Philippians 2:5-11 St. Matthew 27:1-54

Cameos of the Cross

It is interesting to note that the Gospel reading for this Palm Sunday, does
not concentrate on the triumphal entry as one would have expected, but
rather on the actual events surrounding the Passion of our Lord. In this the
compilers of the Book of Common Prayer abandoned a strict chronological and
systematic approach to the great redemptive drama for a more holistic
approach in which the Passion is repeatedly re-enacted throughout the week
leading up to the Sunday of the Resurrection.

The intention seems to have been a desire to focus on the Cross, the
crucifiers and the Crucified with a view to enlightening those of us who are
historically removed from them. In many ways, the world in miniature can be
seen around the Cross (J. Paterson Smyth), and as we view the Passion of our
Lord from the different angles given to us by the First Century
eyewitnesses, we begin to see how it transcends time itself, connecting us
with the past and the past with us. And so, as we examine the characters who
swirl in and out of the climactic events of the year 30, we begin to see in
their faces our own contribution to the crucifixion.

We first read of the chief priests and elders of the people who had plotted
against Jesus to put Him to death. Throughout this passage, they are
presented in an unfavourable light. They handed Christ over to the
authorities because of envy (v. 18).they persuaded the crowd to demand the
release of Barabbas (v. 20).they mocked our Lord while He hung in agony on
the cross (vv. 41-43).

It seems that their sense of morality was all but non existent and that they
were blind to the gross injustice they committed. From the beginning through
to the bitter end, political and religious expediency triumphed over
biblical conviction.

But before we smugly dismiss these men, let us look a little deeper into
their hearts and minds to see if that same spirit resides within us. Are we
not guilty of the same character when we play the judge over each other? Are
we not all sinners saved by grace? Then, as St. Paul asked, who are you to
judge Christ's servant? To his own Master he stands or falls.indeed, like
yourself, he is made to stand by the One Who is able to present you both
faultless before His presence in glory. Why then do you dare to judge one
together with whom you stand before the judgement seat of God? That is not
the humble mind of Christ. Give account for your own life and allow others
to do the same. (cf. Romans 14)

Yes, the chief priests also persuaded the people to condemn the Lord, but
have you not at times used your powers of persuasion to do the same? We seek
affirmation from others to gang up against those who are not of the same
opinion and together we crucify one for whom Christ died. We would do well
to heed the exhortation of St. James: "Do not speak evil of one another,
brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks
evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a
doer of the law , but a judge. There is One Lawgiver, Who is able to save
and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?" Let us never forget that the
Scriptures teach us that whatever we do to each other, we ultimately do to
Christ.

Then there is the character of Judas. This is a man who had enjoyed the most
amazing spiritual privileges (Colquhoun), but who had later left the
straight race for material reasons. As such, Judas is the personification of
the observation that "those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a
snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in
destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of
evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and
pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Timothy 6:10). In the case
of Judas, the love of money led him to the betrayal of his Lord and
eventually drove him to commit suicide.

But we are not free to walk away here either for many of us have at one time
or another also betrayed our Lord for the sake of gain. We may have
dishonoured Him by breaking His law through covetousness, or by
appropriating an item which was not ours for the taking. Many have turned a
blind eye to the Truth or twisted it just a little bit or even ignored it
for the sake of a contract, a raise, status, a pension perhaps or something
else we might have lost had we stood up for biblical morality. Others of us
may have chosen to tolerate that which He would not tolerate. Are we not
then also guilty of having betrayed the Son of Man with a kiss for a few
measly pieces of silver?

Now, if Judas is the personification of materialism, then Pontius Pilate is
the personification of weakness and cowardice. His fear of man and love of
personal security caused him to "put expediency before principle"
(Colquhoun) and to buckle under pressure. St. Matthew vividly sketched a
portrait of a man desperately trying to "shelve his responsibility, to evade
a decision, to wash his hand of the whole business" (Colquhoun). This is a
classic example of the legendary ostrich syndrome. We think that if we hide
our head in the sand long enough, things will either disappear or get better
by themselves. This is extreme pacifism at its worst. But Pilate was unable
to pass the buck and the Creed records for all time that our Lord "was
crucified under Pontius Pilate".

We have all given in under pressure at one time or another and as experience
has taught us, such pressure may not necessarily always come from the
majority. A few loud peers are enough to sway us to a contrary position.
Witness the most recent events in the Church. Many have capitulated to the
relentless onslaught of those who are in the decided minority. Passing the
responsibility off onto a commission or offering false hope in the
establishment of so-called "orthodox forums" will not absolve us anymore
than hand washing absolved Pilate.

Barabbas is also a character we should not pass by. This is a man who sought
to fight fire with fire and resorted to using extreme political zeal to
achieve his goal for freedom from the tyranny of Rome. The contrast could
not be greater. The Prince of Peace was exchanged for the prince of popular
political power. The Kingdom of Christ was not established by political
means then, and it will most certainly not be furthered by political means
today. No king, queen, president , prime-minister, tyrant, despot or freedom
fighter, good, bad or ugly, can ever fill the shoes of the Messiah.

Then the people of Jerusalem should serve to warn us against following the
crowd mentality. Just because it is the will of the people, doesn't make
anything right, does it? Morality is not established by the majority (nor
the minority for that matter), but by what God has already showed us to be
right or wrong. God is not on the side of the many nor is He on the side of
the few.He is on the side of the Truth He has revealed in His Holy Word. It
doesn't matter who may agree with you on any given issue.it doesn't matter
if Church polity does not express itself as one mind.whatever God has
determined to be written is what must carry the day..that is, if we are not
to crucify the Son of Man once more and to put Him to open shame before the
world.

The Roman soldiers are indicative of human cruelty and brutality. However,
let us honestly ask ourselves how many times we have not beaten, bruised and
battered each other with our thoughts and our words if not our deeds. A
tongue can rip another apart just as painfully as a whip and an unkind or
judgemental word can pierce as deeply as a hammer driven nail.

But let us look away from our mirrored selves toward the principle Character
of this drama. "The story of the crucifixion is (ultimately) the story of
the Crucified. It is Jesus Himself Who dominates the Gospels in their
entirety, including these closing scenes which bring us to the "place called
Golgotha" (v.33). The Collect of the day, in speaking of our Lord's
suffering for us, refers particularly to the example of His humility and
patience. Yet it is not all that the Cross means. Jesus did not die merely
to be our example (see 1 Peter 2:21-23). He died.to bring us (we who have
judged Him, we who have betrayed Him, we who have washed our hands of Him,
we who have not sought His Kingdom first, we who have gone with flow against
His Word, we who have done unto Him as we have done unto others) He died.to
bring us to God: 'Who His Own self bare our sins in His body upon the tree.
'" (Colquhoun).

As we stand as one with those guilty of nailing Him to the Cross, let us
hear the only one of the seven last words of Christ recorded by St. Matthew.
"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" And as we hear that cry of
anguished dereliction, may we turn to see each other in the same light He
saw us . All sinners.all alike.all worthy of death.and yet all loved by the
Father to such a degree that He sent His only begotten Son into the world to
save us. With His death, Jesus rent forever the veil between us and His
Father. Let us then not seek to re-erect this veil between us and our fellow
sinners..let us not crucify our Lord again by crucifying each other.

And yet, as we lift our faces to gaze upon one marred beyond recognition,
let us also remember that Christ died to rid us from sin, so that we might
no longer continue in it. It was the general disregard for His revealed Word
that brought about His death in the first place. We cannot expect a
different outcome if we commit the same mistake.

Our final cameos paint a different picture to what we see at the beginning
of our Lord's Passion. Here a pagan Roman Centurion and a few brave and
faithful women take their stand against the opinion of the hostile and the
failure of the faint hearted. In the face of apparent defeat they speak out
by word and by deed their faith in the Crucified. We are not told how much
they really understood, but we do know that they remained faithful even to
the end.

At the Cross of Christ we have the world in miniature. Here before the
Throne of Christ, we have the same. So, as you come before Him once more
this Palm Sunday to receive that which He freely gave you at Calvary, ask
Him to reveal to you which cameo most resembles you. And as He does so, ask
Him to have mercy upon you; to pardon and deliver you from all your sins; to
confirm and strengthen you in all goodness and to bring you to everlasting
life; through Him Who loved you and gave Himself up for you.

© Johann W. Vanderbijl III 2004