A Precious, Beaten Body

This post from a couple of years ago seemed fitting to share once again:

It was work for a coroner--horrifying and intriguing. Amazing as the body is, this one was dead. Dead and beaten. What kind of people wash, manipulate and care for the dead?

Joseph of Arimathea for one.  Nicodemus for another.  And their service to the dead, unrecognizable body of Christ touches me in a way I'm not sure I can communicate.

As I re-read the account of Joseph asking Pilate for Jesus' body (Matthew 27:50-61), I was impressed with his affluence, influence and confidence. God knew him hundreds, thousands, even eons, of years in advance. He predicted this rescue hundreds of years beforehand (Isaiah 53:9). Incredible. 

The next day, I was still thinking about the process of taking Jesus' body off the cross and caring for it.  I wondered what Jesus' body looked like after being scourged, spat upon, struck, beaten and crucified? What would it have taken to lift, transport, or wash it?  According to Jewish tradition, the body would be held vertical by one person as another poured water and worked from the top down, cleansing and washing. Jesus' body, unlike most, would have been difficult to piece together and cover. It would have required great care and tedious wrapping. As an expression of devotion and generosity, Nicodemus brought one hundred pounds of spices to apply to Jesus' body (John 19:39).
It was would have been messy. Dirty. Uncomfortable. Wet. Cold. Uncertain. Frightening.  Had they  done this before?  Doubtful. Nicodemus was a Pharisee. Simon likely had servants to complete unpleasant tasks. And as far as Jesus was concerned, certainly no one other than Mary had cared so intimately for the Son of God. I've never dwelt on the thought for obvious reasons, but it is there.
As we approach Good Friday, we realize the wonder of God's love exceeds the physical wounds of the crucifixion.  The separation of eternal God from eternal God is inconceivable.  The wrath of untouchable God poured out on a spotless Savior is unbearable.  The power of the resurrection is insurmountable.  But God did.  God has. God is.

And in light of who Jesus is and what's He's done for me, I can't help but wonder if, through His Spirit and by His Word, God has equipped His people to minister to His Body when it is beaten and afflicted and sore and wounded and weeping?  To the persecuted church, the deserted mother, the fallen pastor, the imprisoned brother, the neglected child, the hungry beggar, the discouraged teacher....  May God enable and empower us to be in the right place at just the right time.  And may we be willing to roll up our sleeves and get dirty as we love and minister to the wounded Body of Christ and He loves them through us.  It's all about Jesus.

Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
"Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”  (Matthew 25:34-46).

When Food is King

Granted, Americans have been overtaken by such a physical appetite that gluttony and body idolatry fill our malls, streets, televisions, homes, and lifestyles. Food is king: organic, gluten-free, low fat, high fat, homemade, hard (on arteries) and fast. No matter which side of the coin you prefer, chances are that the food we eat (or don't eat) plays a large role in our everyday choices.

The same is true of the American church. We want to be fed, and our demands rule the pulpit. Our tastes determine where we spend our money and time: contemporary worship, blazing sermons, hymns, choruses, truth or comfort. Take your pick, it's a smorgasbord!

Sadly, our spiritual selves mirror our physical. A great number of us struggle with spiritual obesity. We know, read, study, and discuss more than we spiritually "do." Exercise lags behind input. On the other end of the spectrum are the anorexics who visit church as little as possible, nibble on crumbs and waste away, their spiritual lives looking less and less enviable. The buff exercise and tone their muscles, manage what they learn and know, but get so caught up in appearance that the true honor-bearer, Jesus, is lost behind the mirrors of other's approval.

Each of us needs a balance--enough Truth for our daily needs, enough faith to be uncomfortable; just a daily dose of Jesus. In.  And out.

"For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food.  For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil." Hebrews 5:12-14

Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” Matthew 13:18-23

 

When Old is New

Nothing new. Ahh, the world shakes, nations tango and tremble, rise and fall. Young people disregard old people, recreate old trends. Successful people leapfrog; the downtrodden disappear. There is nothing new under the sun.

There is nothing new in--nothing to add to--God's Word. How dangerous it is to look for something new, hidden, secret. And yet, perhaps it is even more dangerous to know what God's Word says and fail to do it. How tempted we are to overlook the simple and obvious in search of a closet permission to meet our heart's desire. But that is not how it works.

God has given us a simple truth (remarkable, but humbling): Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I am a sinner. I need a holy God.

To believe that, to take God at His Word and bank my life--my eternity--on it, is to turn my world upside down, inside out. It's not new. It's not improved. It's not going to be on the nightly news. But if I were to truly embrace and live by His grace, based on the old, old story of Jesus and His love,

- I would measure the activities of my day in eternal rather than national currency.
- I would desperately seek to touch the hurting, needy, and outcast.
- I would willingly sacrifice comfort and conveniences.
- I would not attach my name to success, but to weakness, failure, and infirmity.
- I would not worry.
- I would look for ways to serve others instead of myself.
- I would sleep at night, both from a sense of well-earned weariness and God-given peace.
- I would not want.
- I would thank God instead of asking, "Why?"
- I would hold my agenda (my children, my home, my job, my ...) with an open hand instead of a closed fist.
- I would spend more time on my knees and less on my feet.
- I would not humor self-condemnation or false guilt.
- I would be quick to confess my wrongs to God and others.
- I would be quick to listen; slow to speak; slow to anger.
- I would praise, not complain.
- I would love without expectation.
- I would give without acknowledgement.

In other words, I would look, sound and live like Jesus. I would find that He has made Himself at home in my body, my mind, my world, my family, my church, my life. Jesus would be here, living through me, and I, by faith, would experience the joy, peace and power of the gospel that only He can give.

The Christian life is not new. It is not old. It is. Because I Am has come. I Am is here. I Am is among us. The life lived by faith in Christ is a present reality that began in eternity past and runs through eternity future--but it is not dependent on me. God's work will continue and live on... and on....

The beauty and strength of the Christian life is found in the precious truth of this Savior, told over and over, day after day, moment by moment. And in those moments, I no longer need something new. He is. Enough.

For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:

“Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth”; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. (1 Peter 2:20-25)

 

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.  And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. (Ephesians 5:1-2)