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LUKE CHAPTERS 23 - 24
REVIEW OF OUR LAST LESSON: “Walking with the Word” is the name of our scripture program. The subject of our study is the “Gospel of Luke”: In our previous lesson, Luke chapters 21 and 22, we focused on SACRIFICE : The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a sign of God’s submitting himself to the test of man’s free will response to his love. Love and imitate the humility of God! “For when I am weak,” writes the Apostle Paul, “then I am strong.” [2Cor 12:10] By being so extravagant in mercy, our loving God risks being humiliated in the eyes of the world. God’s kneeling down and fashioning man from the clay of the earth was surpassed in humility only by God himself dying on the cross. Never fear to give someone what God has determined to be his due. Don’t be afraid that goodness will demand too much from you. “Your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” [Mt 6:4] +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ THEME FOR TODAY’S LESSON: Our theme for today’s lesson is ASSENT. In the simplest sense, this word means to agree. Our theme word is spelled A-S-S-E-N-T. (Please understand that I’m not talking about rising or being carried up, as in The explorer made the ascent to the summit of the mountain.) Let’s start by looking at the word “assent” as it refers to being in agreement. As we go along, however, we’ll discover that “assent” goes much deeper than mere agreement. “Assent”, as we shall see, carries the weight of a solemn pledge to Christ and his Church. To understand better what the word “assent” means, we may take music as our example. You listen to a ballad, a concerto, or a symphony. According to your tastes, you decide that one form of music or another is agreeable to you. You’re free to change your mind. Or to make music of your own. Or even bang rocks together and call it rock music. But if you join a music ensemble, a band or a symphonic orchestra, your mere agreement is not enough. By becoming a member of a musical assembly, you give your formal assent to the type of music your group prefers and how your group performs it. You can’t sit there and skip the notes you want to skip. You can’t sit there with your instrument and refuse to play a particular movement. You can’t make up your own notes and be your own conductor. There’s room, to be sure, for the legitimate interpretation of the composer’s work. But there’s no room in a band or symphony for a maverick. To make music, each of the group’s members must believe in what the group is doing—such that they can say, I agree, I defend, and I promote this music and how we play it. Admiring from a distance is one thing. Joining up is quite another. To admire is to agree. To join means giving your assent. This thought is not new. In fact, I trace it back to St. Ignatius of Antioch who was martyred in Rome as entertainment for a great crowd. Now, Ignatius lived in the first century—during the time of St. John the Apostle—and here’s what Ignatius wrote about how members of the Church must give their assent: Your conduct and your practices (should) correspond closely with the mind of the bishop….your justly respected clergy, who are a credit to God, are attuned to their bishop like the strings of a harp, and the result is a hymn of praise to Jesus Christ from minds that are in unison, and affections that are in harmony. Pray, then, come and join this choir, every one of you; let there be a whole symphony of minds in concert; take the tone all together from God, and sing aloud to the Father with one voice through Jesus Christ, so that He may hear you and know by your good works that you are indeed members of His Son’s body. A completely united front will help to keep you in constant communion with God. [Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Ephesians, EARLY CHRISTIAN WRITINGS trans. Maxwell Staniforth, p. 76, New York: Dorsett Press, 1968] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ PART 1 OF TODAY’S LESSON (Lk Ch. 23-24): Today, we conclude our “Walking with the Word” Bible study of the Gospel of Luke, Chapters 23 and 24. Our concluding theme is appropriately: ASSENT and our signature verse for today’s lesson is Luke 23:46: Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit!" Our Lord Jesus Christ didn’t merely admire from afar the idea of suffering and dying to ransom mankind from its sins. Our Lord gave his assent and willingly suffered and died for us. He wasn’t forced to do this. He wasn’t manipulated. Clearly the Lord Jesus lamented the world’s hatred and violence. He prayed, "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." [Lk 22:42] But Jesus had no regret about his commitment. The eucharistic prayers of the Mass recall this very clearly: Before he (Christ) was given up to death, a death he freely accepted, he took bread and gave you (God) thanks. [SACRAMENTARY Eucharistic Prayer II] In fulfillment of your (God’s) will, he gave himself up to death; but by rising from the dead, he destroyed death and restored life. And that we might live no longer for ourselves but for him, he sent the Holy Spirit from you, Father, as his first gift to those who believe, to complete his work on earth and bring us the fullness of grace. [SACRAMENTARY Eucharistic Prayer IV] He (Christ) always loved those who were his own in the world. When the time came for him to be glorified by you, his heavenly Father, he showed the depth of his love. Anyone who reads the last two chapters of Luke’s gospel (23-24) will find them deeply moving. Many persons who followed Christ, at one point or another, now turned against him. Once, they agreed with him. Then they turned on him. Once, they loved him. Then they hated him. These so-called decent people savaged our Lord Jesus Christ because they were unable to think straight. Moreover, they were unwilling to think straight or straighten out their lives of faith. Their heads were a battle ground of strange and conflicting ideas, a situation which invites hatred and violence in human hearts. And in human societies. Our Lord tried to straighten out their tortured minds. But rather than straighten out their own thinking and their own way of life, these brutal people murdered him in their hearts and crucified him on the cross. A lot of people had their hand in this. First, let’s see what the crowd said: We found this man perverting our nation, (they lied), and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ a king. [Lk 23:2] He stirs up the people, (they screamed), teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place. [Lk 23:5] They all cried out together, "Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas". [Lk 23:18] They shouted out, “Crucify, crucify him!” [Lk 23:21] But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. [Lk 23:18] What did the religious rulers say as they watched Jesus being raised up between heaven and earth? The rulers scoffed at him (Jesus), saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!" [Lk 23:35] And the soldiers on duty at the cross? What were their thoughts? The soldiers also mocked him (Jesus), coming up and offering him vinegar, and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!" [Lk 23:36-37] Let’s not forget the two thieves crucified with Jesus. One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!" [Lk 23:39] And Simon of Cyrene who carried the cross of Christ? He was forced to carry it, for scriptures says, They seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. [Lk 23:26] All of these people had terribly conflicted minds, and they lived terribly conflicted lives. The enemies of Jesus went home that night, each to eat at a table of shame, each to sleep in a bed of lies. And again, at the coming of dawn, each to search for new prey. For one, they didn't respect the life of our Lord Jesus Christ; with that, a price could be put on anyone’s head—even their own. If an innocent people die, and someone gets away with it, again and again, no human life is safe. No human life is valued. And two, the tortured minds that celebrated our Lord’s crucifixion did not respect the dignity of our Lord’s human conscience or their own. They were afraid of Jesus’ ideas, afraid of his teachings. It always seems this way, doesn’t it? Tyrants and thugs presume they can kill the message if they kill the messenger. But it doesn’t work that way. The tyrants are dead. The thugs are dead. The accusers returned to the dust they came from. But our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Alleluia! His is risen on high and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty. Alleluia! He who lives forever, says, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” [Lk 24:5] Why do so many in the world seek the living Truth in the cemetery of the world’s dead ideas? I can’t answer that, but I can tell you what Jesus said: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” [Lk 23:34] What I can do, is show you how men and women of faith search and find the Truth who is Jesus Christ. Yes, the Living Truth has a face. The face of living truth is the face of Jesus Christ. I share with you the magnificent words of Pope John Paul II of blessed memory: From all that I have said to this point it emerges that men and women are on a journey of discovery which is humanly unstoppable--a search for the truth and a search for a person to whom they might entrust themselves. Christian faith comes to meet them, offering the concrete possibility of reaching the goal which they seek. Moving beyond the stage of simple believing, Christian faith immerses human beings in the order of grace, which enables them to share in the mystery of Christ, which in turn offers them a true and coherent knowledge of the Triune God. In Jesus Christ, who is the Truth, faith recognizes the ultimate appeal to humanity, an appeal made in order that what we experience as desire and nostalgia may come to its fulfillment. [John Paul II, Fides et Ratio, no. 33 (1998)] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Unlike Our Lord’s enemies and detractors, the followers of Jesus gave their assent to his sonship in the Father’s Kingdom. They assented to his living Truth. And they followed him in a holy way of life. Let’s look at Luke’s gospel, chapters 23-24, and recall the many persons whose lives were changed by their assent to the Living Truth of Christ and his Church: The most spectacular convert is the good thief crucified next to Jesus. And he (the good thief) said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” [Lk 23:42-43] The most spectacular personal testimony the world has ever heard belongs to the centurion who, at the foot of the cross, praised God. He declared: “Certainly this man was innocent!” [Lk 23:47] Through his tears, the good Joseph of Arimathea (a member of the ruling council) did a father’s duty in burying Jesus reverently and in consecrated ground. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud, and laid him in a rock-hewn tomb, where no one had ever yet been laid. [Lk 23:52-53] Though frightened, Mary Magdalene and the other women listened to the angels who guarded the empty tomb, on the morning of the resurrection. The two angels said, “Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise.” And they (the women) remembered his words. [Lk 24:6-8] Sadly, for a time, however, the apostles could not get their thoughts straight. They were fearful and conflicted. They believed the worst and disbelieved the best. For a while at least, the hopes of the eleven died and remained buried in Jesus’ tomb. Luke expresses their disbelief this way: “These words (about Jesus’ resurrection) seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them”. [Lk 24:11] If I had witnessed the events of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Jesus Christ, I would want to be one of the two disciples traveling to Emmaus. At first, Luke says, “Their eyes were kept from recognizing him (Jesus).” [Lk 24:16] As well, their eyes of faith were closed. Now when Jesus speaks to these two disciples, he addresses all of us who doubt, all of us who are afraid of trusting the Living Truth of Our Lord Jesus and his Church. And he said to them (the two disciples and to all who doubt), “O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” [Lk 24:25] Then, in a systematic and orderly way, “beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he (Jesus) interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself”. [Lk 24:27] Note that the “breaking open” of the word was not enough by itself. In Christ, a new thing has happened. A new order has emerged. The Word of God is married to the Sacrifice of God. The two have become one flesh. And the flesh is the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Both the Lord’s Word and the Lord’s Body unite in the breaking of bread. Listen to Luke’s powerful words: When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?” [Lk 24:30-32] This union of Word and Body in Christian worship opens our minds and hearts. We can see with our eyes. We can see with our minds. We understand how it comes together. It reveals new and exciting things to us. We are renewed in Christ. We are nourished by the unity of Word and Body. We come in contact with eternity. We see the face of Living Truth in Jesus Christ. Jesus appeared unexpectedly in the company of the apostles in Jerusalem. At first, the eleven panicked. What were they thinking? How did Jesus respond to their fear? They were startled and frightened, and supposed that they saw a spirit (phantom)”. And he (Jesus) said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do questionings rise in your hearts? [Lk 24:37-38] Even after that, “they still disbelieved for joy”. [Lk 24:41] The apostles were quite beside themselves in their confusion. How does Jesus respond to their human limitations? Luke’s answer is perfectly clear: He (Jesus) opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.” [Lk 24:45-48] We know that the disciples gave their assent to Jesus and his Church. They assented to his kingship. They assented to the truth of his kingdom. They solemnly vowed themselves to the service of their king. Luke gives crucial evidence that their lives were forever changed for the good: “And they returned to Jerusalem with great joy” (Luke writes), “and were continually in the temple blessing God.” [Lk 24:52-53] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ REFLECTION ON THE THEME OF “ASSENT”: As our series on Luke’s gospel comes to a close, let’s return to the theme of giving full assent to Christ and his Church. We began by illustrating the nature of assent with the example of music. Perhaps you like to listen to fine music. You admire a composer’s artistry and skill. But to admire these means that you must affirm the principles that form the harmonic system of music. Just like fine music, the human mind needs to be composed of intelligible, expressive and pleasing ideas which form a consistent and harmonic whole. If you agree with a fellow, for example, you share his view on a certain subject. You may agree with him or disagree with him. You can change your mind often. You possess the human powers to adopt certain ideas or abandon them. Nevertheless, if a person’s ideas and views can be arranged into some kind of order, he’ll live a more stable and predictable life. And, if his ideas stand up to the test of truth, he’ll live a happier and more purposeful life. Let’s talk about why ideas are like people. Ideas are like people in the sense that they aren’t meant to be isolated or locked in perpetual and senseless combat. Ideas are meant to be arranged in some kind of order. (This, itself, is a test of whether ideas are true and orderly or false and chaotic.) Ideas are meant to be in families of thought and to work in relationship to each other. For example, there’s a whole family of Christian ideas that defends human life from the unborn to the grace of natural death. A intimately related family of ideas supports the freedom of the human conscience. Together, both “idea families” (respecting life and conscience) support the best interests of the whole society. All Christian “idea families” complement each other and reveal the fullness of Christ the Eternal Word. To achieve order and stability in our lives, we’ve got to move beyond expressing opinions and taking polls. Or, I should say deeper. We must understand ideas as they relate to each other in a “system”, that is to say, a logically consistent body of thought. If a person’s thinking is shot through with conflicting ideas, it goes without saying, his life will be full of holes: “For that person must not suppose that a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways, will receive anything from the Lord.” [Jas 1:7] You admire the architecture of a beautiful home or splendid church. Likewise, your mind also benefits from good architecture—an integrated, harmonic “family of thought” that is not only beautiful but principled as well. Do you want a more enriching and fulfilling life? You need to belong to a “family of thought”. What “family of thought” can I recommend to you? Well, I recommend the body of thought that we have come to know as the Truth of the Church—the Holy Bible, the CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, the lives of the saints, and the teachings of the magisterium. I recommend the Truth of our Church as a “family of ideas” because this body of thought is given to us by none other than God himself, and therefore is sacred and can be trusted. There is no contradiction in God. God’s ideas all harmonize with each other. God’s ideas support each other. God’s ideas stand up to the test of truth, because God is Truth itself. God’s truth is a part of the sacred order which he created for man and revealed to man. God’s truth has been tested and confirmed in its rightness. As the Church is a body with Christ as its head, so the ideas of God and his Church are a body of truth. And Christ, the divine Logos (Gk. word) is truth itself. Christ is head of the body of Truth. We may now understand the meaning of the word “assent”. Remember, the Church is a voluntary society. To give your assent to Christ and his Church means that you solemnly receive and affirm what Christ and his Church propose as true. To give your assent to the Church’s teachings means saying, I concur with them, I endorse them, and I maintain them in my life. It goes without saying, only by giving your full assent—“I believe”—to the Truth of the Church, can you give your full consent to membership within the Church. Isn’t it time to reconcile your membership in the Church with your full assent to the teachings of the Church? Why remain on the outside—just looking in—any longer? Round up the usual suspects and send them into exile: doubt, distractions, dissenters, publicity hounds, special interest groups—and the pride of life! ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ RECAP: My dear friends, the Truth of Christ and his Church is a part of the sacred order of God’s Kingdom. To illustrate this, I will paraphrase St. Paul’s beautiful theology of the Body of Christ which is found in his first Letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12. For St. Paul’s theology also applies to the body of the Living Truth of Christ and his Church. For Christ is Truth itself: For just as the body (of Living Truth) is one and has many (ideas), and all the (ideas). . .though many, are one body (of the Living Truth), so it is with Christ. [1Cor 12:12] For the body (of Living Truth) does not consist of one (idea) but of many. [1Cor 12:14] The (ideas) of the body (of Living Truth) which seem (in your opinion) to be weaker are indispensable, and those (ideas) of the body (of Truth) which we think less honorable we invest with the greater honor. . . that there may be no discord in the (Truth). [1Cor 12:22-23,25] Clearly, you need Christ the “good physician” to give your life a “check-up” just like your medical doctor gives your body a check-up. If you want a happier and more purpose-filled life, the Good Physician prescribes the Truth of the Church. Follow his instructions to the letter. Give your enduring assent to the Truth of the Church. All of it, not part of it. Yes, not maybe or perhaps. Always, not sometimes. If you want good psychological and spiritual health, the Good Physician prescribes for you the Truth of the Church. Give your unqualified assent to the Lord’s total prescription. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
© Rev. Richard E. Barker 2006
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