Sermon for Midweek of Lent 3 JUXTAPOSITION
Theme: It is good that One Man should die for the sake of the people. Juxtaposition. It may not be a word you hear everyday, but it has a common, everyday meaning. When you juxtapose two objects, you are simply placing them side-by-side. Writers, painters, designers, builders: many people use juxtaposition—many people place two objects side-by-side—in order to show you things that you might not otherwise notice or realize by looking at the two objects separately and by themselves. Here is an example of juxtaposition: Think about a grapevine growing on a trellis. (Nothing fancy about that.) Now think of a crucifix, with Jesus is nailed hands and feet to the cross. (Again, a common image.) Now juxtapose the two. Picture your Lord Jesus crucified on a grapevine (as artists often did in the Middle Ages). Jesus was not literally crucified on a grapevine. When these two images get juxtaposed—when the blood of the cross is placed near wine-producing grapes—this shows you something. The juxtaposition of a crucifix and a grapevine illustrates how the blood of the cross and the blood-joined-to-wine in Holy Communion are one and the same, “poured out… for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Juxtaposition. When you juxtapose the prophet Jonah and our dear Lord Jesus, placing these two men side-by-side, astonishing similarities emerge: · Both of Jonah and Jesus sleep in a boat during a storm, awakened only when the experienced sailors on board seek their help. · God marks both Jonah and Jesus as guilty, as the one upon whom God’s wrath must fall. Jonah was identified by casting lots; Jesus by a descending dove. · Both Jonah and Jesus face death in the water. Jonah gets thrown into the sea and Jesus wades into His Baptism, where He takes upon Himself and begins carry the sin of the world. Now push the juxtaposition a step further. Compare the treatment Jonah received from the sailors and the treatment Jesus received from the Jewish Council. It already sounds bad enough when we hear Caiaphas say out loud what we all know and feel in our hearts: “It is better for you that one man should die for the people.” But this declaration is made worse when we juxtapose the Jewish Council with the sailors in Jonah’s boat. · The Jewish Council was working desperately, trying to find a way to put Jesus to death. · The sailors in Jonah’s boat worked with equal desperation, trying to find a way to keep Jonah alive. [Jonah] said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you…” Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not. · How is that for juxtaposition? Jonah finds brotherly, self-sacrificing help from the hands and the backs of strangers. Jesus “came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him” (John 1:11) so Jesus gives His hands and His back for them. You might not like the sound of it (I have not met many Christians who do), but Caiaphas is undeniably right: “It is better for you that one man should die for the people.” The juxtaposition of Jonah and Jesus forces us to admit that Caiaphas is right. “The men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not.” Why could they not? The storm of divine fury was simply too great. Jesus cannot escape the judgment and wrath of God any more than Jonah can. Jonah must be thrown into the water, or the entire ship will be lost. Jesus must likewise be nailed to the cross. Bother are now guilty. Both must give up their lives or many other lives will, of necessity, be lost. Both must be swallowed up. “It is better for you that one man should die for the people.” Jonah or Jesus: the one traded for the many. Jesus declared that “no sign will be given… except for the sign of the prophet Jonah” (Matthew 12:39) but that one sign is more than enough: “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and tree nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40). ___________________________________________________________________ 'CAT 41 Sermons & Devotions' consists of works that are, unless otherwise noted, the copyrighted property of the various authors; posting of such gives members of this list implied consent for redistribution _with_attribution_ unless otherwise specified by the author (as long as no charge is made for the work and it is not made part of a compilation), as well as for quoting or use in a congregational setting _with_or_without_attribution_. Note: This list's default reply is to the *poster*, NOT the list. Do *not* reply to the list with your comments, but to the poster. Subscribe? Send ANY note to: [email protected] Unsubscribe? Send ANY note to: [email protected] Archive? <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/> For more information on this or other lists offered by Confess And Teach For Unity, you can contact the CAT 41 list administrator at: Rev. Fr. Eric J. Stefanski <MoM [at] lists (dot) cat41 <dot> org>
