March 22, 2023 – Lent Text: Matthew 27:27-31
Dear Friends in Christ,
With my sociological mind I enjoy watching shows on the mob or the mafia if you prefer. It is always a wonder why people get involved in this line of work and why have they wielded such power? It can be whittled down to one word: bullying. The mob is made up of bullies. Pay up or we hurt you, ruin your business etc. They push people around or kill them just to show their power. They are sick individuals.
Bullying is a problem in our society. It happens at school, on social media, in the workplace, and between spouses. The government has a website: www.stopbullying.gov. It names three types of bullying. Verbal – name calling, threats. Social – excluding a person from a group. Physical – pushing, kicking, using your fists.
Jesus was a victim of all three. The Pharisees and Sadducees verbally bullied him with their “gotcha” questions. Socially the Jewish leaders discouraged people to follow him, and they spread rumors about him. We see the physical bullying in tonight’s text.
Beginning late Thursday evening the physical violence against Jesus escalated. Tonight, we see Jesus suffer the soldiers’ . . .
“HANDS OF BRUTALITY”
This is the second instance of brutality. We heard about the first last week in front of Caiaphas. Jesus was blindfolded, slapped and spit upon. He was then sent to Pilate.
That is where we find him in our text. Pilate wanted to set Jesus free as we heard in the Passion reading. But he was a politician first and a humanitarian second. So, he hands Jesus over to the battalion – an estimated 600 men – to do their worst. (v. 27)
For a Roman soldier, being stationed in Judea was like being sent to the end of the world. Nothing to do. The Jews were a pain. They needed entertainment and Jesus was the show. The trial was about Jesus being “King of the Jews”, so they put a scarlet robe on him and a crown of thorns and reed in his right hand. “And kneeling before him, they mocked him saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’” (v. 29b). They spit on him and struck him on the head. This act was so torturous that many considered it an act of mercy. You were so weakened by the beatings that you’d die more quickly when crucified.
Jesus had told his followers to “turn the other cheek” (Mt. 5:39), “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt. 5:44), and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Mt. 7:12). This man is now under the microscope. Would He practice what he preached? He did more than that. He fulfilled the Scripture from Isaiah 53: “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth, he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”
Jesus let himself be brutalized. He offered his back. He didn’t object to his oppressors, because he was the King of the Jews. He was the King of the Gentiles. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Why didn’t he punch those bullies in the mouth? He did it for you. Jesus let himself be treated this way. This was the cup of suffering Jesus asked God to take away. But God wouldn’t take it away; Jesus was made to drink every last drop. If He didn’t do it, there is no forgiveness of sins and God’s wrath is still in play.
Look at the brutal treatment tonight. That is how thoroughly forgiven you are.
A bully will try to leverage power and control. People can feel powerless and alone. Sin is a bully; it tries to coerce us into crimes against the commandments. The devil is a bully; Satan browbeats us into bad behavior. Because of Jesus these spiritual bullies can’t demand our milk money any longer. Paul writes, “Sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.” (Rom 6:14). Since the forgiving love of Christ lives in our hearts, we happily submit to his gracious rule rather than to the empty threats of any evil bully. “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
Freedom from sin and Satan give us reason to rejoice. When we join Jesus in his gracious rule, we see what liberty looks like. As the Holy Spirit enables us to take on Jesus’ attitude we can turn the other cheek, pray for our enemies and treat others the way we want to be treated. Because Jesus made peace with us through his suffering, we can live peaceably with all people.
It is no wonder why the world is so unhappy. People living without Christ who are bullied by sin and Satan. They feel alone and powerless as the bullies dictate their lives. How much better it is to have God as your Father. He raises happy kids! Our brother, Jesus, suffered under the soldiers’ hands of brutality, and as a result we will never have to suffer God’s wrath. And, as happy kids in God’s family, we delight to bring our brother’s peace to people who are still being bullied.
Amen.