April 11, 2004
Isaiah 50:4-9a; Philippians 2:5-11; Luke 22:14-23:56 or Luke 23:1-49
The principles of prophecy related in the commentary for April 4, 2004, apply to the passage from Isaiah and additional commentary is not necessary. The relation of that which Paul wrote to the Philippians church, as well as the message which he shared with other young churches by letter and personal visits is monumental! It appears that Jesus had a view of himself which was entirely different from that which Paul and others in the early church developed of him. It is clear from the small amount of information we have about the life and ministry of Jesus in the Gospels that Jesus viewed himself as a human being who could relate to God as parent and other human beings as brothers and sisters. It is also true that Jesus, as a child of God, viewed himself as having enormous responsibility to accomplish things with his life that were harmonious with the will of God. His commitment was such that he was willing to meet this responsibility regardless of the cost. It turned out that it cost him his life--but not the life of his message or spirit. That message, and the spiritual power of it, continues to this day. The history of the world has taken a course different than it would have taken without it. Therein lies the essential proof of the authenticity of his message and its power when embraced by the human spirit.
Paul along with others in the early church, came to view Jesus as "the only begotten Son of God" who died in fulfillment of Gods' need for sacrifice in response to "sin". The death of Jesus thus became to Paul and the early church, the ultimate response to Gods' need and the only hope of salvation from eternal damnation for Gods' human children. The power of salvation, according to Paul and the church, was to be activated only through a belief that Jesus died for the sins of mankind followed by a behavioral expression of life patterned after the loving example of Jesus. Belief in the physical resurrection of Jesus was promoted as "proof" and as a powerful response to other religions of the day which posed a threat to the continued existence of this new religion which began as a sect of Judaism but quickly grew beyond that status.
Those who argue for a belief in the physical resurrection as a basis of hope for their own physical resurrection create questions about how "life is" that they are unable to answer and thus contend that such hope must be embraced by "faith". They are willing to ignore the fact that IF Jesus resurrected physically, there is no evidence, then or now, that such a resurrection provided any benefits for individuals or the human family. On the other hand, the idea of the spiritual resurrection is what empowered the early disciples to continue on and continues to be a source of "good behavior" and hope among Christian disciples today. Failure to trust God for human future after physical death is an insult to a creative God who also informs of us of nothing prior to our physical birth. In a healthy environment human beings begin this life in the presence of both love and hope. Environments which do not provide this healthful and loving gift present the need for additional conversation at another time. Such reality presents a continuing challenge to all sufficiently fortunate to be born into an environment which provide nurture, love and hope.
The message of the Crucifixion and Easter should be a hopeful message that goes far beyond that created by a traditional interpretation and/or portrayal of "the passion". Human beings are not in need of a "scape goat" to covered their failure to experience and express life at its best. Human beings are in need of resources which empower them to be responsible in giving back to God something by way of attitude and behavior that is of value equal to the life of opportunity which God has given them!