As Joshua departs, his farewell address is similar to Moses'
in Deuteronomy. He is skeptical about
the people's commitment to the Lord, telling them time and again that they will
not be steadfast in their allegiance to the covenant. He is right, not only they, but we, have a
difficult time with faithfulness. We
struggle to remain faithful in our hearts and because we do not literally see
God each day we forget Him and we allow our hearts to be ruled by something or
someone else. Joshua is a wise leader,
drawing forth a commitment from the people, warning them of the cost of not
being faithful but reminding them that the Lord forgives if they return. It isn't cynicism that causes this, it is a
keen awareness of human nature, not particular to these people but to all
people of all times. We hear here also
of the faithfulness of the people who have borne Jacob's bones these forty plus
years that they now inter them in the land he had purchased in Shechem. (This is near the well of John 4 - the well
the Samaritans say their father Jacob gave to them.)
Is Pilate really innocent?
That is quite a postmodern declaration in that he had the power to
release Jesus but his fear for his reputation and his future caused him to
leave that decision to the Jews.
Innocence would have required him to do the right thing but he
didn't. What a horrible response the
Jews make, "His blood be on us and on our children." Little do they know that Jesus' blood is our
acquittal, it is that which cleanses rather than stains. Normally, such a statement would indicate
blood guilt, and that is impossible to remove, but Jesus' blood is the
sacrifice for sins. Reading about the
mockery of the soldiers and their cruel treatment of Jesus is one of the worst
things we have to do. I wonder how these
men felt when they heard the rumor that the tomb of this man was found empty
only three days later.
It is amazing how many people Paul mentions by name here at
the end of the epistle. Paul seems to
have truly been a shepherd, not a CEO.
We have somehow made Christian leadership into something that would be
difficult for the early church to recognize.
Paul not only knows the names of this group of people, he also singles
them out particularly for praise, he knows them. The commendations here are for those who have
proven themselves faithful in service to the church and the Lord. As we say the words with the crowd on Palm
Sunday, "Crucify Him!" we take on ourselves the guilt and shame of
the people and on Easter we receive with joy the news of the empty tomb. Are we capable of being steadfast to the one
who is eternally faithful to the covenant?
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