ILC Devotion - 18 March 2012

Immanuel Lutheran Church Weekly Devotion

Monday 18 March 2012

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Mark 11:7-10 Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting,

“Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! 

Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

Luke 22:47-53  While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him; but Jesus said to him, “Judas, is it with a kiss that you are betraying the Son of Man?” When those who were around him saw what was coming, they asked, “Lord, should we strike with the sword?” Then one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus said, “No more of this!" And he touched his ear and healed him. Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, "Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness!”

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Humanity is such a fickle creature. One minute we praise those we think highly of, the next minute we seek ways to betray them. As a student of history, I am always amazed as to how this is continually played out. I sometimes view history with a romantic flair. I read about a group of people - such as the Irish, the Scots, the American Indians, French Protestants of the 16th century. Take your pick of peoples documented and I view them in charitable and glowing terms. Then I study the powers that be who try to subjugate them - I view them in less than glowing terms. But even as I set aside the rose colored glasses, I discover the minority groups are never that cohesive or united. They struggle for recognition and political power, but in the end there are people who will side with the majority power against their own. For whatever reason they sell out, betray, support the ruling group in power. There is a time when the struggle comes to a head and the ones engaging in the struggle are defeated soundly and dispersed. The ruling power maintains and tightens its grip on the people who struggled against it.

Jesus comes into Jerusalem with shouts of “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! These same people disperse and scatter when those who represent power and authority come and arrest Jesus. They know who to arrest when one of his own disciples comes and betrays him with a kiss. No one will stand with him, no one will come to his defense, no one will rouse the faithful to come and support him. No, everyone will scatter, and hide, and disavow ever knowing him. So much for being faithful followers of Jesus. Have things changed in the past 2000 years? Can we really say we would behave differently? Jesus will pay the ultimate price for us; even those of us who would flee, scatter, hide and disavow ever knowing him, when faced against those who wield brutal power and authority. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness!”