Some Lenten Thoughts On Being “Choosed”

WED., MAR. 13, 1996, 8:34 AM
OFFICE, PULLIAM

The suggestion you offered last week (and did I help?) for the rest of your Lenten Bible study was eagerly accepted. This morning the discussion of Mark’s account of the Last Supper, the crucifixion and the resurrection was a good one. Related to it I’ll offer some thoughts on election, chosenness, predestination, and “being choosed”.

From the story, as Mark writes it, there are implications and, then, questions related to this theme. As Jesus I seemed to know that I had been chosen for this type of a life ending. If I had the omniscience of God, which I did have, then I knew, from early on in that life, that I had to sacrifice My life, but in a way that appeared as though it were taken from Me. ( 8:43 / 8:47 ) From the preparations for the Passover meal I knew this was the time, and so I symbolically offered My disciple friends bread and wine, to be remembered and practiced as Holy Communion or the Holy Eucharist.

Judas was chosen as the one who would “betray” Me. It seems logical that this wasn’t really necessary, but it was part of the sacrificial picture I was chosen to develop. Could it have been one of the other disciples? Of course… and no, it had to be Judas. Could Judas have reneged? You wonder what his feelings and motivations were. You remember Me telling you that he has long been forgiven for this “identification, positive” (a better term than “betrayal”). He did what had to be done in order that the sacrifice might come off as predestined.

The evidence for the disciples’ inability to see this as a time of “crisis” came in their falling asleep during My final time of quiet prayer with My Father. They were told to stay awake. It just didn’t seem necessary, when there was no imperative. Or was it also part of the plan that they would go to sleep?

I was taken (with only the loss of one ear?) before the High Priestly Body. An important part of the scenario was, finally, the question, “Are you the Son of God?” Up to that point there was no compelling reason to crucify Me. So I answered, in a reasonably strident way, that I would sit on God’s right hand and come again in clouds of glory. Were the priests really free to accept this as just a wild statement, provoked by their question? Nope. They were destined to be taken to a clothes-rending frenzy, passing Me on to Pilate for sentencing.

Was Pilate free to turn down this request, or use his best judgment, which would pardon Me? He was not really afraid of the Jewish leaders, nor did he have any legitimate fear of a people’s uprising. He had the power. He had the army. As Jesus I could easily have talked to him in ways that would satisfy him. I was certainly no criminal, worthy of such a painful, degrading death. But Pilate had his part to play. He wondered, after the trial, why he had done what he did.

Even the Roman soldiers had a part to play, for it was vital that I be scourged, spat upon, beaten, and humiliated. They had nothing against Me, and I didn’t look like or act like the kind of criminal they were used to crucifying. But they had been chosen. Later they wondered why they had acted as they did. One did finally affirm, “Truly, this was the Son of God!”

So, the crucifixion began. According to this story I had one “objection” to My role… Eloi, Eloi… but that, too, was part of the scene for which I was responsible. There was no description of any suffering on My part, and only the women seemed to be there, to be noticed.

I let My Spirit loose from the body, and I was back in spirit form, but with the apparent power to appear again, in at least 2 forms. I made one strong statement that would be a cornerstone of a fundamentalist theology (even to the present day), and then I ascended, giving the disciples a “mission”.