Jesus's Death: Shock and Awe
Matthew 27:50-54, NIV - And when Jesus had cried
out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two
from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open.
The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’
resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
When the centurion and those with him who were guarding
Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and
exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
Oh to see what is described in this
passage! It would have been terrifying, awe-inspiring,
and faith-building all at one time. I
have been around to witness miracles before, but nothing like this. It’s as if the death of the Son of God,
Jesus, caused such a metaphysical disturbance that all of creation reacts by
life springing up elsewhere when death claimed Jesus. Creation testifies that Jesus is the Son of
God and the centurion and other guards simply state the obvious.
These events are the “proof” that
the chief priests and other mockers of Jesus were taunting Jesus in his dying
moments. They dared Him to prove that he
was the Son of God by coming down from the cross. Ironically, Jesus “proves” the true nature of
God by NOT escaping the cross, but submitting fully to death. The violent reaction of creation and the
resurrection of others who had died gives witness that it is the death of Jesus
that is where God’s power is truly seen - not in escaping death by supernatural
power, but in God’s sacrificial love for all.
Death is not conquered by physical miracles, but by Miraculous Love –
the Love Incarnate whose name is Jesus. N.T.
Wright puts it this way:
“A new sort of power will be let
loose upon the world, and it will be the power of self-giving love. This is the
heart of the revolution that was launched on Good Friday. You cannot defeat the
usual sort of power by the usual sort of means. If one force overcomes another,
it is still “force” that wins. Rather, at the heart of the victory of God over
all the powers of the world there lies self-giving love, which, in obedience to
the ancient prophetic vocation, will give its life “as a ransom for many.”
Exactly” (The Day the Revolution Began:
Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus's Crucifixion)
People have been missing this point ever since Jesus
died. Supernatural Love, not
supernatural force, is the greatest power in the universe.
When we
follow Jesus, we invite this Power to be at work in our lives. This power doesn’t rescue us from suffering
and death. We all still suffer and we
will all one day die. But when Love is
at work in us, our suffering and death has power just as Jesus’s suffering and
death has power. It is precisely the
power of Jesus’s suffering and death at work in us! Our suffering accomplishes things that cannot
be accomplished any other way and our deaths are but an entrance into eternal
life.
Question: Have you
invited the power of God’s self-giving love in Jesus to be at work in your
life?
Prayer: Lord, we are
impressed by miracles, but we are transformed by your Love. We invite the power of Jesus’s suffering and
death to be at work in us. Amen,
Prayer Focus: Pray
for God to transform the suffering of those you are led to pray for today.
Song: The Power of
the Cross – Casting Crowns
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