The Crucified Lord of Glory
The Feast of the Elevation of the Cross
Numbers 21:4-9; Philippians 2:6-11; John 3:13-17
One day Socrates was supposed to prove to his friends that the most common profession of the world was that of being a doctor. He tied his head with a scarf pretending to have a terrible headache and went to a common market asking for help. Almost everybody gave him some advice or even prescribed a medicine. Socrates wrote it down and presented it to his friends as proof of his victory. Would he do it today, he might have come out with a statement that the most common profession of the world is that of a theologian. Everybody knows something about God. From the graduates of theological schools to the uneducated people in the slams of the world, everybody has something to say about God. “God is like this; God is like that.” Moreover, when they come together for a discussion, they often end up quarreling: “No. You are wrong. God is not like this. He is like that.” Few will ever keep silent acknowledging their own inability to comprehend the mystery of God.
For Christian, Jesus Christ is the image of God (2 Cor. 4:4). Therefore, looking at the life of Jesus, we can contemplate something of the mystery of God. But, the life of Jesus turns to be a great surprise. Christ Jesus, “who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Phil. 2:6-7). It is amazing to know that Jesus leaves behind the form of God to be one with us, to be “born in human likeness” (Phil. 2:7). It is even more amazing to realize that this downward movement from the form of God to the form of a slave is the consequence of God's love for us: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (John 3:16). Who can comprehend such a mystery? Leaving heaven for the life on the earth; serving the needs of humanity, and giving up his own life for the salvation of the world. What an awesome mystery! God longed so much for the works of his hands (Job 14:15) that He decided to attract them to Himself by revealing the depth of his love.
So, what does Jesus' move to empty himself of the form of God to take the form of a slave and to die on the cross tell us about God? Think about our preoccupation with being the best, with reaching the top. It was reported that, during the Beijing Olympics, many Chinese athletes, who came second or third in their discipline, considered it as a great disappointment. Silver or bronze were not the options; only gold mattered. For our world, a hero is an underdog, the Cinderella man, someone who leaves the form of a slave and tries to reach for the form of a god. We praise the people who made it to the top and we would love to be there with them. And we often take it for granted that perhaps our God may act differently and may expect from us to act differently: “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, . . . , emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Phil. 2:5-7). There is nothing beautiful about the cross. It was the most tragic and dehumanizing death penalty under the Roman Empire. Yet, that tragic death of Jesus has become the source of life for multitudes throughout the ages. It is the source of power for all those who have made Jesus the Lord of their lives and decided to imitate His way of life. They carry the death of Jesus within themselves so the life of Jesus can manifest itself in their lives. The crucified Lord, Jesus Christ, has enabled them to live a different life. Within the world infatuated with power and success, they proclaim the value of service and love for others. They expel the demon of greed with sharing and the spirit of competition with cooperation, thus establishing communities of equals and laying the foundation for a better world.
However, the story of the cross is not completed without the subsequent resurrection of Jesus. “Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend” (Phil. 2:9-10). It is difficult to assess what Paul meant by stating that God gave Jesus the name that is above every name. With our worldly mindset, we can read it as making Jesus the greatest VIP: finally, he made it to the top; now, he will show his power. But, it can also mean that Jesus receives the confession of being Lord precisely because His Lordship continues to be that of service and love. You bow your knee before Jesus not out of fear, but out of deep gratitude for setting you free from the power of Sin. Jesus draws you to Himself, not because of the threatening power, the way many of our worldly leaders usually do: if you do not come to pay them homage something might happen to you. Jesus draws you to Himself with love. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18). You come to Him, not because you are forced, but because you want to. You come to Him because He has captured your heart by giving up everything for your salvation.
When Moses placed a serpent of bronze upon a pole, all those, bitten by the poisonous serpents, who looked at it would live (Num. 21:4-9). Today, it is not anymore a serpent of bronze, but the crucified Lord of Glory who offers us life everlasting: “And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15). Look at Him, draw to Him, and the poison that is slowly destroying your life will be taken away and you shall live.