Let’s set the scene. Jesus has arrived in Jerusalem…on a donkey. The place is crushed, and no where to even park a donkey. People have arrived early to sort out everything ready for the Passover. So have the Romans. They have arrived with their General, atop a white charger with full regalia of the accompanying troops. Yes, Jesus on a donkey, people waving palm fronds, showing that they’ve come from the fields. Would we have hidden?
Temple Tantrums
Soon Jesus has been seen at the Temple, causing a commotion. Yes, he’s upturned some tables, upset a number of traders but it wasn’t such a big deal given that the Romans didn’t arrest him there and then. It has caused the Temple authorities to be more than aware of his presence. Importantly also that the locals have turned out to hear from you and ion his teaching. He’s become known as an agitator.
He starts to question those within the Temple authorities – they are not exactly happy with this and they are starting to deliberate on how best to effectively ‘deal’ with him. They certainly can’t kill him themselves, stoning him wouldn’t work here with so many people in Jerusalem and quite a number seemingly are followers of him. What to do?
There’s stories of someone whom might pass, might give him, Jesus to them. They might have thought that to do so might deliver the saviour, the Messiah to the appropriate time and position to restore Israel from the conquering power of the Romans.
His arrest
What? News in that Jesus has been arrested. He’s charged as King of the Jews – and he doesn’t seem to be responding to those charges, his defence isn’t overwhelming. Pilate has given him over to Festus who passes him back; eventually the is needed to be resolved. Give it to the people. Crucify him! they cry. Would we have hidden at that time?
Let’s not forget that the followers of Christ were in disarray. The Romans were in charge, and the disciples, known men, were in hiding. Their Messiah, the one they had placed nigh on everything, had been arrested, charged, sentenced and killed in the most barbaric way possible of the times. He had been made an example, a spectacle, as he was forced to walk with the horizontal beam to where they wanted to crucify him. In Mark’s Gospel it merely says ‘they crucified him’ – there’s no banging in of the nails, the screams, the cry’s – why? Because everyone knew of the pain, the torture of the cross, it was common place – they had heard it far too often before. It was the standard way of the Romans to punish agitators, for he was joined by two of them at the site.
It was Joseph of Arimathea who spoke up and sought to take the body to a tomb, in accordance with Jewish custom – but Mary Magdalene and Mary, mother of Joses, saw where that tomb was, not any of the disciples did. Having said that, nor did the other followers who had been in Jerusalem – would we have seen where Jesus had been laid?
Sabbath
That Sabbath must have been a strange day – devoid of purpose perhaps, their Saviour had gone. There was little expectation of Christ returning in the minds of the disciples, the previous Chapters of the Gospel testify to that. Where would we have been that day? Would you have hidden?
The day after…
Early on that sabbath morning, the women now joined by Salome, mother of the Zebedee twins, went to the tomb to anoint the body. This wasn’t embalming for that was not the custom of the day. It was merely to make the rotting body smell sweet. They had no expectation either – they were there to meet a dead Jesus. Upon arrival, after discussing how they were going to roll the stone away from the entrance, they were stunned when it was cast aside already – the entrance to the tomb was gaping open. What would you have done next? Run away to raise awareness of the presumed missing body, alert the probably not caring Jewish Temple authorities of the misdemeanour? Would the Romans have cared? The women peeked inside. To me that’s bravery or extreme inquisitiveness.
Who was that man?
There, a certain young man dressed in a white cloth on the right side of the tomb spoke with them. Was this the man, mentioned in Chapter 14, who in the Garden of Gethsemane was inexplicably mentioned fleeing naked when Jesus met with the Chief Priests? Why else mention it? Some consider it could even have been the author of the Gospel.
The women are told that “it’s ok, the Jesus of Nazareth has been raised, look around the tomb if you like. Now tell his disciples ‘and Peter’ that he is going ahead to Galilee.”
‘and Peter’? Peter is included even through he’s been struggling with the idea that Jesus will die and wouldn’t admit to following Jesus three times. No mention of Judas being excluded either. It seems to end there quite abruptly, like a cliff hanger to a series on the television, and, and?
Within the other Gospels Jesus’ resurrection is there, front and centre. But here in the earliest Gospel in the Bible, we have an implied resurrection.
But there’s no problem with that. If Jesus was seen glorified, distant, distinctly deified, then the Jesus now was where? Galilee? Where this whole story started? You mean we have to start again, afresh, anew?
But here there was hope.
The Jesus who had shown us how to live, how to love, how to forgive was still around. Moreover, that Kin_dom of Heaven he had spoken about a lot, and they couldn’t quite figure it all out, was becoming evident. It wasn’t a cloudy city held high above them but one that would pervade every aspect of their lives…now. They were expecting a Messiah, one in whom would save Israel from the Romans: they now knew that God was here with them now.
They now had a purpose – follow his example, create that community, show that love. It wasn’t merely sitting in an upper room but it now meant action.
The story in the Gospels hasn’t ended. In the Greek version it actually ends with an expression like ‘however’…
What’s the message here: Live as he lived, love as he loves, forgive as he forgives, believe as he believed, for there you’ll experience Jesus. Be less focussed about the location of Heaven and eternal life and more concerned with living with Jesus, for the Kingdom of Heaven is here. Alleluia.
Even if I am ‘locked away’ currently, the Gospel message is still alive.