Good Friday: Questions and Reflections.

As we observe Good Friday devotedly today focusing on the 7 last words from the cross which traditionally lay emphasis on the themes of 1. Forgiveness (Luke 23:24), 2. Salvation (Luke 23:43), 3. Relationship (John 19:26-27), 4. Abandonment (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34), 5. Distress (John 19:28), 6. Triumph (John 19:30) and 7. Reunion (Luke 23:46), it takes a daring step to move beyond, under, over, and also question the who, what, and why of these words.

The question over “who/what” brought these “last” words together is a mystery. The “why” of the same is a mystery as well. There is much scholarly work done on these “last” seven words, but it rests fundamentally on the power of “tradition”. The strongest tradition is that the number 7 represents wholeness and a complete circle and some would even say that Jesus, through these last 7 words proves to his onlookers (which includes even us this day) that he has accomplished his task and has completed his duties on Earth. Did Jesus really accomplish all that he had to do? Or was his ministry curtailed by the events surrounding “Good Friday”? To try and answer this, one must see the sights of Maundy Thursday and the night thereafter.

We shall look at chapters 17, 18, and 19 of the gospel according to John. John does present, as is his style, a very interesting narrative on the events of the “Holy Week”. All four gospels record the events in this order following the events of Maundy Thursday (as a matter of fact, John is the only gospel writer to record the "washing of the feet"):

Jesus “prays”.

Jesus is betrayed and is “arrested”.

Jesus is presented before the “high priest”.

Jesus is presented before “Pilate” and is sentenced to death.

Jesus is “crucified”.

(The story of Simon Peter’s betrayal does make a cameo within these bounds in all the gospels). Let us look at how these events played out.

1.      Jesus “prays”.

According to the gospel writers, Jesus either prayed at Gethsemane (Matthew and Mark) or at the Mount of Olives (Luke). Interestingly John doesn’t make such a mention. All John says is that “Jesus…looked up to heaven and said…” Jesus did pray but ‘what he prayed for’ is our concern here. I think a key phrase recorded in John 18:4 should be taken into account. The phrase “Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him” suggests that Jesus was well aware of the approaching death. While the synoptic gospels say that Jesus prayed so that “the cup may be taken away from him” which was nothing more but a request from Jesus to his “Father” to not let him go through the death that was approaching him, John records Jesus praying “for his disciples”. This prayer (John 17) is a highly philosophical treatise on Jesus’ conversation with God where he intercedes for his disciples, friends and all on Earth. This prayer is also (and sometimes only) famous for its phrase, “that they all may be one” (John 17:21). So what’s the takeaway from this section? Even on the eve of Jesus’ crucifixion, John tries to tell us that Jesus focused on praying for “others” than for himself.

2.      Jesus is betrayed and is “arrested”.

All four gospels maintain that it was Judas who betrayed Jesus. While it happens through the “kiss of Judas” in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, John leaves out Judas’ kiss and portrays an incident of “surrender” rather than an “arrest” (v. 4). While Matthew, Mark, and John record the ear of one of the high priest’s slave being cut off, only Luke mentions “healing of the ear” thereafter. Yes, it was one of the most difficult times in the life of Jesus. For this very reason, He prepared himself for this time with much prayer. The take away from this section can be Jesus’ willingness to face the time of trial and to “drink the cup”.

3.      Jesus is presented before the “High Priest”.

John 18:14 – “Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was better to have one person die for the people.”

This verse is definitely a shocker. Was the high priest the one who killed Jesus? Jesus is arrested in the first part of chapter 18 and is handed over to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest at that time. Verses 19-24 records the conversation between Jesus and the “High Priest” and interestingly ends with verse 24 saying, “Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.” Verses 25-27 have a Simon Peter cameo and Verse 28 begins with “Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate’s headquarters.” Fascinatingly, there is a big difficulty as there is no continuity in flow between v. 24 and v. 28. There seems to be “no” actual encounter between Jesus and Caiaphas. But, the takeaway from this section is that John's gospel clearly says that Caiaphas had a major role in Jesus’ death. A further question could be who else had a say in Jesus’ death?

4.      Jesus is presented before “Pilate” and is sentenced to death.

John 18: 31, 32 – Pilate said to them, “take him yourselves and judge him according to your law.” The Jews replied, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death.”

John 19: 6, 7 – When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him.” The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of God.”

Pontius Pilate has been traditionally acclaimed to be the one who sentenced Jesus to death. Despite the gospel of John repeatedly telling us that Pilate did not find any fault in Jesus and he, in fact, even tried to save Jesus, he has become a victim through the ages. We even affirm this through the Apostle’s Creed saying, “I believe in Jesus Christ who suffered under Pontius Pilate”. The point here is not to redeem Pontius Pilate or totally blot out the hegemony of the Romans. Pilate can be used as a historical pointer alone because the “real” murderers of Jesus were the Jews. As one reads the verses above, it becomes clear in knowing that the Jews were trying to find some way to put Jesus to death. Though they initially realised that it was religiously and culturally impossible to put him to death, they found a legal means and charged Jesus on grounds of blasphemy. The takeaway from this section could be placing ourselves in the minds and hearts of the first century Palestinian Jews. Would we have killed Jesus?

5.      Jesus is “crucified”.

(I’m sure you've heard enough at Church today on this through the “Last Seven Words”.)

A lot happened on the night before the crucifixion. On one hand, we have an all-knowing Jesus ready to take up the cross. On the other hand, there are questions and probable alternatives had one of the characters during these events acted otherwise. We have looked at John and his way of portraying the events leading up to the cross. The purpose of the gospel of John as recorded in John 20:31 is that “you may come to (continue to) believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through believing you might have life in his name.” The opposite of “belief” or “faith” is not “doubt” but “certainty”. We are never certain of anything and this is what makes faith and faith in Jesus worthwhile. Jesus was crucified. I’m sure He had a lot of questions regarding the same. May we be challenged to learn through questions and live life as Jesus, the Christ did. Happy Good Friday!