Like the suffering servant of Isaiah 50, Jesus did nothing to prevent his fate. He did not argue with his accusers. He did not retaliate against those who beat him and crucified him. Instead, he responded with few words, a lot of silence, much suffering, agonizing prayer, and steadfast endurance to the end. He allowed his righteousness to speak for itself, as it did to Pilate’s wife in her dream (Matt. 27:19). He allowed others to supply the testimony to his identity. In the face of injustice, he relied on God’s justice in God’s time. In the face of scorn, he refused to stoop to the same level of contempt. In the face of violence, he chose a path of nonviolence.
Three days later, on Easter Sunday morning, God’s answer to all of the questions about Jesus came in the Resurrection. Yes, Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah and Anointed One of God. Yes, the temple of Jesus’ body had been beaten and broken, but gained new life on the third day. Yes, Jesus is God’s Son, not at all forgotten or forsaken, but fully vindicated in his passion and in his rising again. Our text ends with Jesus’ passion on Good Friday, but Resurrection Sunday is coming!
April Yamasaki is a pastor and the author of several books, including Christ Is for Us. Learn more at AprilYamasaki.com. Excerpted from Christ Is for Us © 2016 by Abingdon Press, an imprint of The United Methodist Publishing House. (All Scripture quotations within these excerpts are drawn from the Common English Bible © 2011.) Used by permission. All rights reserved.
