Isaiah
52: 13–53: 12; Psalm 22: 1–21; Hebrews 10: 1–25; John 18: 1 – 19: 37
This
is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon Pennsylvania, by Fr. Gene Tucker on
Friday, March 30, 2018.
“DO YOU REALLY DARE?”
(Homily
text: John 18: 1 – 19: 37)
The
very familiar account of the events of Good Friday can be viewed from a number
of perspectives.
One
way to look at what happened with Jesus’ trial and execution is to see it as a
collision between two opposing forces, one daring the other to enter into
conflict.
For
example, the powerful leaders of the Jewish people dared anyone to oppose their
authority. Such opposition was most often dealt with by a body known as the
Sanhedrin, which was composed of the chief priests, the elders of the people,
and others. Jesus’ trial took place in front of this group, as we have just
heard in the reading of the passion narrative from John’s Gospel account. The
Sanhedrin’s concerns often surrounded religious issues. In Jesus’ trial, such
concerns were foremost in the thinking of the members of the Sanhedrin. They
ask Jesus about His disciples and about His teaching (John 18: 19). At one
point in the proceedings, Jesus is ordered by the high priest to tell them if
He is the Messiah (Matthew 26: 63b).
Likewise,
the Roman authorities, personified in the person of the Roman governor, Pontius
Pilate, dared anyone who thought of stepping out-of-line to challenge Roman law
and Roman power. In Jesus’ trial, Pilate dares Jesus to oppose this power,
saying, “Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify
you?” (John 19: 10) Pilate’s main concern in governing the restless Jewish
people was to maintain order, to keep the lid on things. (In fact, Pilate’s job
security probably rested on his ability to do so.) Ruthless application of
power was one of the main tools in the Roman arsenal in order to prevent daring
challenges to Roman rule. The Gospels record some of the ways that the
oppressed Jews dared to challenge this authority.
Often,
the response to daring opposition by the Romans was incremental. For example,
as Jesus is on trial, Pilate seems to seek to pacify the crowd by having Jesus
scourged. After this horrific beating (historical records tells us that many victims
of scourging didn’t live to tell about it afterward), Pilate brings Jesus out
for the crowds to see. Perhaps his motive was to try to show them that he had
met the challenge that this daring individual posed, and had successfully
convinced this upstart Jew named Jesus not to dare to oppose Roman power again.
The
Jewish leadership and the Roman governor were uneasy allies. Often they tried
to stay in their own respective orbits. But when anyone dared to oppose their
power, they were capable of working together quite well. We see this in Jesus’
trial. We must give credit to the members of the Sanhedrin, for they know just
how to get Pilate’s attention with regard to Jesus, for they inform Pilate that
Jesus is claiming to be some sort of a king. Pilate would not have understood
the religious concerns of the Sanhedrin (and, in fact, at one point he tells
them to take Jesus away an judge Him according to Jewish law), but he would
understand full well the threat that any claim to political power and position
would pose to the Roman scheme of things.
Against
these powerful groups, most challengers, and their daring opposition, simply
crumbled. If they didn’t crumble when the threat of violence was presented,
then their movements were crushed, only to be a footnote in history.
But
where Jesus is concerned, He meets these two allied groups in a daring fashion.
Jesus tells the members of the Sanhedrin that the time will come when they will
see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming in the clouds.
(Matthew 26: 64) When told by Pilate, for example, that Pilate would have no
power over Him unless it had been given to him from above, such a response is
probably one Pilate had never heard from anyone who’d been in the threatening
position of the very real prospect of crucifixion. (John 19: 11)
As
the events of Good Friday come to a close, it appears from all outward
appearances that the Sanhedrin and Pilate have won the dare. They have managed
to deal with the threat that Jesus posed to their power and authority.
But
the Easter event tells us something else, for in Jesus’ rising from the grave,
we see that God’s dare to the Sanhedrin, to Pilate, and – for that matter, all
evil in all times to come – has been met by God’s dare.
It
is God who has confronted in daring fashion the powers of evil. It is God who,
at first, looked like the loser in this cosmic battle, but
who has emerged the winner.
Thanks
be to God!
AMEN.
