Rev. Cary M. Richert
Good Friday (B)
April 13, 2006 (1:00 pm)
The Titled Cross of Victory
The Cross of Lorraine / The Patriarchal Cross
Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews ... standing before Pontius Pilate, Roman Procurator, appointed governor of Judea by Tiberias Caesar in 26 A.D. Ruler facing ruler. Power facing power. Kingdom facing kingdom. Paul Maier writes:
When he arose early Friday morning on April 3, 33 A.D., Pontius Pilate could hear no drumroll of destiny as he prepared to adjudicate the cases waiting at his tribunal. But his appointment with history was waiting for him in the person of a handcuffed prisoner being brought by a huge throng into the paved esplanade in front of Herod's palace. (1)
As Jesus stood before Pilate, it appeared that the kingdom of the world was in full control of the kingdom of God. Mighty Rome against a humble, mostly silent country Jewish Rabbi. And amazingly, in a strange alliance of oil and water, the Jewish religious leaders sided with Rome against the Rabbi! After hearing the charges of sedition and treason, brought by the chief priests, Pilate summoned Jesus inside the palace to speak with him confidentially.
Jesus never denied being a king! But, what kind of King? Scripture reveals: A King sent by God to testify to the truth! To which Pilate responded with the well-known question, AWhat is truth?' After putting to rest in his own mind that Jesus was no king who'd be a threat to him, or to Caesar ... Pilate declared that he found no case against Jesus. If Jesus was a King, He certainly wasn't any kind of king Pilate ever heard about.
Jesus said to Pilate, AMy kingdom is not of this world ... my kingdom is from another place.' [John 18:36]
Another place? Pilate must've wondered, AWhat other place could there be that wasn't in the world ... and that wasn't ruled by Rome? Jesus was speaking of a spiritual kingdom ... the kingdom of God ... the eternal kingdom of heaven ... even the kingdom as it now exists in the Lord's Church. A kingdom where power is in forgiveness, not armies. Where faith is infinitely superior to sight. Where humility, poverty, meekness, mercy, purity and peace are esteemed over military strength and political maneuvering .
Of Pilate's kingdom, Martin Luther said: it's of this world, belongs to this world, and comes to an end with this world. And of Christ's kingdom, he said: It doesn't belong to this world even though it already exists in this world; it doesn't end with this world but belongs to another world and abides forever. It's built, strengthened and preserved, not by external force and the physical sword, but through the Word of God, faith and the Holy Spirit. (2)
As people of faith we live in both kingdoms - for now. In Pilate's kingdom we obey the laws of the land, pay our taxes, elect those who rule over us, eat, drink, raise our families, drive our cars, take our vacations, and so on. And in Jesus' kingdom we pray, hear the Gospel, receive the body and blood of Christ in Holy Communion, believe and trust in Christ alone for forgiveness and salvation, worship God, look forward to eternal life in heaven, and so on. At best, Pilate knew little or nothing about Jesus' kingdom. Jesus knew everything about his!
Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. [John 19:19?20]
Now we come to the significance of the Titled Cross of Victory. The additional, shorter crosspiece above the arms of the cross represent the title Pilate had placed above Jesus' head ... which bears the words: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. Because these words were written in Aramaic (the language of the common people), Latin (the language of the Roman Empire), and Greek (the language of commerce), the message was easily read by everyone who passed the cross. If you were in Jerusalem at this time ... whether to celebrate Passover or to conduct business ... you'd understand this title describing the One hanging in pain and suffering underneath it.
There the title hung. Unchanged by Pilate after the Jewish religious leaders protested it. Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. A symbol of Jesus' passion, telling the world about His love made visible in His suffering and death. A picture of God's devotion to redeeming sinful mankind. A stark and poignant proclamation of the Gospel in the very midst of its fulfillment by the innocent One shedding His blood for you and me.
Among the many people God used to spread the good news of His love in Christ Jesus, Pilate was one! Oh, Pilate didn't intend to proclaim the Gospel. More than likely, he intended to mock the Jewish religious leaders! But, there's no one God won't use to accomplish His good and gracious divine purposes. Even Pilate and a simple sign over the head of an innocent, dying man accused of sedition.
Unbeknownst to Pilate, his simple sign bore immediate fruit for the kingdom of the dying King! Remember one of the criminals crucified with Jesus? His humble confession in his words to the other criminal: Don't you fear God, since you are under the same sentence? We're punished justly, for we're getting what our deeds deserve. But this man (Jesus) has done nothing wrong. [Luke 23:40-41] And then, his desperate cry for mercy to the Lord: Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom. [Luke 23:42]
Jesus answered the man with such love, forgiveness, promise and hope: I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise, [Luke 23:43]. A crude wooden sign was read. A confession spoken. A plea for mercy. Sins forgiven. A soul saved. All because Pilate had a title nailed on the cross of Jesus! A title in 3 languages intended for all ... led to salvation for at least one! (3)
On this Good Friday afternoon, as we reflect on the great paradox of God's love ... demonstrated in the horrible suffering and death of His only-begotten Son ... and, as we recall the many crosses that captured our attention this Lenten season ... we're drawn to the one Cross that means more than any of the others: the Cross upon which our Lord Jesus was nailed for the sins of the world.
There, our Lord became sin for us. There, He became the guilty One in our place. On the Cross of His death, bearing the disgrace and shame of our sinfulness, Jesus took up our infirmities, carried our sorrows, was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, [Isaiah 53:4-5].
Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. By our King's innocent suffering and death, sinful mankind is ransomed from the prisons of sin, death, and the power of the devil which would hold us captive forever. It truly was a miscarriage of justice in Pilate's kingdom to condemn and execute the One who was perfectly innocent. But Jesus our King, the only-begotten Son of God, is the holy Victim that our sins demanded in the Lord's Kingdom. Jesus' innocent death underscores the truth of Pilate's title. In every way, Jesus of Nazareth is our King as well.
When all is said and done, we're only aliens in Pilate's kingdom. Although we live in the kingdom of the world, we're not of it. As the apostle writes: Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will (one day) transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body, [Philippians 3:20].
So with eager expectation, we now await the Resurrection of our crucified King. And we await His final return. For in that day, we shall meet our King face-to-face, where we'll join the joyful chorus, who sing the praises of Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews: The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever! Amen!
* * *
NOTES:
(1) Paul L. Maier. In the Fullness of Time. San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1991, 153.
(2) Jaroslav Pelikan, ed. Luther's Works, v. 12, Selected Psalms I. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1955, 103.
(3) Previous 4 paragraphs adapted from: Max Lucado. He Chose the Nails. Nashville: Word Publishing, 2000, 39-47.