Church of the Holy City

So Human a God

So Human a God
Rev. Dr. David J. Fekete
September 15, 2013

Isaiah 50:4-9 Mark 8:27-38 Psalm 116

Once again, we see how Jesus fulfills prophesies found in Old Testament writings. Once again, we see that Jesus is God, that Jesus is the God that the Old Testament wrote of. The reading from Isaiah 50 is almost bone-chilling in the way it prophesies what will happen to Jesus. In this reading, we see the persecution that Jesus underwent in the final hours of His ministry on earth. Isaiah reads,
I gave my back to the smiters,
and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I hid not my face from shame and spitting (50:6).
In Isaiah, we see that the Messiah will be smitten on the back and that his face will be shamed and spat upon. This is what happens to Jesus. In Mark, we read,
And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to strike him . . . And the guards received him with blows (Mark 14:65).
And just a little later in Mark, we are told that Pilate scourges Jesus with a whip, that is, smites Him on the back, as predicted in Isaiah. Jesus told His disciples that all this was going to happen. In Mark 8:31, Jesus says, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.” So in this combination of readings, we see that Jesus fulfilled what the prophet Isaiah said the Messiah would suffer when He came to earth. We see in this combination of readings, again, that Jesus is the Messiah foretold in the prophets.
Last Sunday, we saw Jesus as the Divine Human. We saw the power and divinity of Jesus in the great and wondrous miracles He wrought. This Sunday we see a much different Jesus. We see Jesus as the Suffering Servant that the Psalms and parts of Isaiah talk about. In this picture of Jesus, we see Jesus not as a wondrous miracle worker. Instead, we see Jesus as the very human person. This is Jesus the Human–so Human that He can suffer, be stricken, spit upon, and finally killed. This is the Jesus who conforms to the complete human condition, even the condition of death.
This is an extraordinary image of God. God is all-powerful. God created the whole universe and everything in it. God knows our every thought and deed. God is above everything mortal. At least some images of God make Him like that.
But in Jesus we have a God who walks with dust on His feet. We have a God who weeps. We have a God whose feet are anointed by a sinful woman. We have a God who is spat upon, struck, and finally killed. Say it isn’t so!
Peter, and Jesus’ followers couldn’t understand how these things could happen to Jesus the wonder-worker. Jesus predicted that these things would befall Him. Mark tells us that, “He said this plainly” (Mark 8:32). But Peter couldn’t understand how these events could happen to the Messiah. Peter had just confessed that Jesus was the Messiah. He confesses this in a dramatic series of questions asked by Jesus.
Jesus went on with His disciples, to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others one of the prophets.” And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.”
So Peter recognizes that Jesus in no mere mortal. Jesus is not just a wise rabbi, nor is He just a great prophet. Peter see that Jesus is the Messiah spoken of by the prophets, God in the flesh. For the high priest himself knew that the Messiah was supposed to be God in the flesh. During Jesus’ trial, he asks Jesus, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed?” This combination of terms–Messiah, Son of the Blessed–indicates that the Messiah is God in the flesh. All this is contained in Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah.
But what’s this about rejection by the Jewish leaders, about suffering many things, and finally being killed?! That’s not what anyone knew about the Messiah! So Peter, confused by Jesus’ plain statements about His coming rejection and suffering, takes Jesus aside and rebukes Him. We can almost hear Peter saying, “No, not you, Jesus.”
As is so often the case in the Gospels, Jesus has to explain Himself over and over again to disciples that appear not to be the sharpest tool in the shed. This time, he corrects Peter rather sharply, “Get behind me Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of men.” Just a little later, Jesus would tell the crowds,
Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels (Mark 8:28).
What was Peter’s mistake that elicited such a strong response from Jesus? I think that Peter wanted Jesus to be a king on the worldly plane. Peter wanted a Messiah that would take charge of the Jewish religion, would drive out the hated Romans, and issue in a period of world peace. The Messiah that Peter wanted would make Israel the centre of world power. The Messiah would make Israel a light to the other nations. These are some of the worldly hopes that Peter probably cherished for Jesus. These are the things of men that Jesus accused Peter of cherishing.
But Jesus was a much, much different Messiah than the one that the Jews hoped for. Jesus was a king of the spiritual world. And in the suffering, death, and resurrection, Jesus showed the world a new kind of dignity and power.
Let’s return to the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah speaks of a kind of dignity that comes from God. He speaks of a kind of honor that comes from being at one with the Most High. If one is in right relations with God, who can attack one, demean one, or accuse one with guilt of any kind? Isaiah says,
For the Lord God helps me;
therefore I have not been confounded;
therefore I have set my face like a flint,
and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
he who vindicates me is near.
Who will contend with me?
Let us stand up together.
Who is my adversary?
let him come near to me.
Behold, the Lord God helps me;
who will declare me guilty? (Isaiah 50:7-9)
Jesus lived out these words. He was accused of many things, falsely. And yet he said not a word. This amazed Pilate. He said, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” And Jesus’ profound silence, Mark tells us, caused Pilate to wonder. And finally, the way Jesus bore his suffering and death moved a pagan soldier to acknowledge Jesus’ divinity. Mark tells us, “When the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that he thus breathed his last, he said, ‘Truly this man was the Son of God’” (Mark 15:39).
This so Human God gives us a picture of God that is remarkable in world religions. Yes, this God is powerful and wonderful. This God heals, drives out demons, and calms stormy seas. But this powerful wonder-worker also allows sinful women to cleanse His feet. He allows envious elitists to spit on Him, flog Him, and finally to kill Him. This God is very Human. This powerful wonder-worker lives like an ordinary Human being. From His birth, as a helpless baby in need of a mother’s love and protection, to His death by shameful men, as a man of honor and dignity, this God is fully Human. The Athanasian Creed tells us that Jesus is “Fully God and Fully Man.” This is a God that can be touched, embraced, and loved. This is so Human a God.

PRAYER

Dear Lord, we give you thanks this morning. We thank you for all the things we take for granted. We thank you for this church and our spiritual friends. This church is as a family,, and in it we find nurture for our souls and a place of refuge when we are hurting. Lord, we give you thanks for the good things we have enjoyed over the years. We give you thanks for the accomplishments you have gifted us with, and the uses we have been able to perform in this world. And, when we think of you and your life on earth, we have so many things to thank you for. We especially thank you for coming to us not as a conquering Emperor, but as a human being, as a helpless baby. Lord, we thank you that you came in a way that we could touch. We thank you that you were so human that you did not turn your cheek from the pain inflicted by humanity at its worst. You call forth from us a love and devotion from your humanity. You invite us to dine with you. And Lord, give us to respond and live with you forever.

And Lord, we pray that you bring peace to this troubled world. May those who harbor ill will for their neighbors learn to understand and see the fellow humanity that they share. May those who strive against each other see that they are like in their wishes and in what they want for their land and nation. Lord, we especially ask that you be with the people of Egypt and of Syria. May the way of peace and diplomacy prevail instead of force. May all warring factions find their way to peace.

Lord, we ask for you to heal those who are sick. As you worked miracles of healing when you were on earth, how much more can you work healing miracles now that you have risen and have all authority in heaven and on earth. Grant all who are in need your healing love and power.