Again to Bethany

Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve. (Mark 11:11)

Verse 11 says, Jesus entered Jerusalem as a king of peace and stayed there for a while but came out from Jerusalem since it was late. Compare to the scene of bringing a colt and entry to Jerusalem the explanation after entry is too simple. Why did Jesus come out from Jerusalem?

Was it nowhere for Jesus in Jerusalem to stay? It might be. In those days Jerusalem was a capital city of Israel. Jesus came from Nazareth a remote place. It might be not easy to find out the people who could provide Jesus with lodging and eating. Furthermore Jesus was branded a person to be watched by Jew’s leader. Who could hide him in Jerusalem? So it was comfortable for Jesus to return Bethany where his intimate people were residing.

If we think it a little realistically Jesus might need a rest before a big battle against the religious leaders in Jerusalem temple. Then it was better for Jesus rather returned to Bethany lesser noticed place than staying in Jerusalem where hostile people surrounded.

We don’t know clearly about such matter. The author of Bible also might not have much concern on this matter. Reporting temple cleaning incident directly after entry of Jerusalem (Mark 11:15-19) didn’t have any problem and furthermore it was natural proceeding like Matthew’s gospel. Was the author mentioned the incident of returning Bethany in order to deliver a story of fig tree? It is also not clear.

However, I feel a certain sense of pathos between the lines of the word, Jesus returned to Bethany. Perhaps, so awed by the air of Jerusalem’ dignity, might Jesus think to return Nazareth in Galilee momentarily?

Hosanna! (2)

"Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!" "Hosanna in the highest!"( Mark 11:10)

From yesterday’s meditation by focusing on the meaning of Hosanna, “Save us”, salvation is gift of God, we can ask this question. Don’t we have anything to do for our salvation? This is a little difficult question to reply. If we say it at the ultimate level, as we can confirm it from the conception of ‘Sola Gratia’ of Martin Luther, we have nothing to do because salvation is God’s grace. It is similar as a child eats food. A child has nothing to do for his mother cooks for him.

At the Reformation times, Roman Catholic taught differently. Salvation was God’s grace but at the same time it required human’s religious achievement. Christians should follow Church’s teaching. It revealed salvation as a religious achievement and it became the other important part of salvation. The request for such achievement was connected to two issues: salvation is process and in this process Christians should be taught religious education.

The opinion of Luther and Catholic is not the matter of a choice of two things. It may be a different view point for salvation. The former has a view point to see beginning of salvation and its completion as one. The latter has a view point to divide its beginning and completion. Even in Protestant, those who emphasize sanctification seem to be closed to the latter view point. Despite taking at any view point, shouting of Hosanna is an indispensible fact. Though setting process and sanctification of salvation forth as a premise, ultimately everything is God’s grace.

At the moment of Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem, there was the shouting of “Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus is indeed the origin, ground, goal and process of salvation. Hosanna!

Hosanna!(1)

Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Mark 11:9)

Verse 9 says, “Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, ‘Hosanna!’" Hosanna means “Save us!” It frequently used in a sacrificial ritual of Judaism. Especially Jews shouted it on the Feast of Tabernacles, shaking branches. When people asked king’s mercy, they shouted in this way. (2 Sam. 14:4, 2 Kings 6:26) It also was introduced to the worship service of Christianity.

The biggest reason we have to cry “Hosanna!” is that we cannot produce salvation by ourselves. For example, here is a criminal under sentence of death and there is no other way for him to change his destiny but receiving a king’s amnesty. At this moment, the only thing he can do is to shout for king, “Hosanna!” Some of you may be unpleased with such word saying that it makes human being too much meanness. Many philosophers including Nietzsche denounced such assertion of Christianity. Some criticized it as a working of Oedipus complex. There is a possibility for Christian faith to change into psychology. However, Christianity’s teaching that salvation come from outside and so cannot but pray for Hosanna is not a psychological projection. It is an answer from confronting this world and human life.

Let us think easily. We are singing praise of prosperity and civilization that human history ever unheard-of. However, it cannot provide us salvation. We never experience salvation though this form of life continues endlessly. This is the very dilemma of mankind that depends on civilization only. The other life totally different in its quality should be given from outside. It means salvation is only God’s gift. Hosanna!

The Time for God

“‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!’”(1:15)

Today Mark is telling us the first words of Jesus who started his official life. The first word of the sentence is that “the time” has come. The time in the Bible is not “chronos” which means sequential time but it is “kairos” which means a moment something special happens. The time in the Bible does not mean just May 3, 2006, but it is the spiritual moment in which God’s will be fulfilled. But generally speaking we cannot recognize this kind of kairos. Because chronos has been inscribed as the ultimate tie deep inside of our minds.

Time experienced by us who are living on earth is calculated usually by the speed of light. If we could move faster than the speed of light, the present time is said to move slowly. In a theory, time might go backwards. But it is impossible for time to go backwards because we are living in the world controlled by irreversibility. But anyhow it is evident that time regarded as the ultimate must be relative.

In this viewpoint, it is not unreasonable that the time in the Bible means kairos. To look at the time as the duration of being completed of life could be much richer understanding than the mechanical viewpoint for the time. The problem is that if we could have that kind of understanding or not for the spiritual time.

We Christians need to see the time as a dimension for the relationship with God. Just like time goes faster or slower according to the degree of density of love to the lovers, time for us Christians goes by how close relationship we have with God, doesn’t it? But it is very frustrating to see that their relationships with God do not change to most Christians even after years pass by. It means that they have more knowledge about faith-related life, but no change for the real relationship with God. To Christians living like this, the time for God does not mean anything special. To those people the spiritual time does not seem to exist at all. Without the change of an inner life, that means no growth and depth, it means we are dead spiritually with only superficial time passing.

The time for life that God prepares is related with all the species on earth as well as with a person and also with the whole mankind. Is modern civilization controlled by the time of God? Does modern life science accept God’s life movement? Do the politics, economy, culture of today in the world recognize the fact that God is near? Even if people in the world do not understand God’s time, we Christians should recognize this precisely. So we should do our best to work in order to vitalize God’s life according to our position in life, just like the phrase in the Lord’s prayer: “as it is in heaven your kingdom come as it is on earth”.

“The time to be fulfilled” as described 2000 years ago has become fulfilled now? God’s time does not move by calculation of chronos. And also that time is not moving by proportion to historical time, either. That time is moving only by God’s way, and by the people who recognize that, the time could expose itself clearly, or it might be still hidden. In this point the spiritual recognition of Christians today is very important. Today if we understand exactly God’s kairos and live according to that, the moment of right now could be God’s time.

Lord, how much do we recognize your time in our living today?

Cloaks and branches

Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. (Mark 11:8)

Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem was beginning in earnest. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. (8) According to the scholars of the New Testament, those who did such activity were not Jerusalem’s resident but the followers from Galilee. I don’t know in what bases they insist like that but assume as following. Jesus entered into Jerusalem and returned to Bethany in the dusk of evening at the same day. It signifies Jesus wasn’t welcomed by the people of Jerusalem. Then it might be difficult to say that the cheering people were Jerusalem’s resident.

However, people spread their cloaks and branches on the road and it symbolized Jesus was the real king of Jews. There was a nameplate written as ‘the king of Jews’ on the cross where Jesus hanged. A king is a ruler of all the people. However, the king of Jews was executed on the cross which was fitted to a traitor. The author of gospel hinted this fact through cloaks and branches that belonged to the ceremony of an emperor.

This world didn’t recognize Jesus was a real king as a lyric in ‘Messiah’ of Handel, “King of kings”. It was because the level of Jesus’ kingly rule was different from its rule of the world. The kings of the world rule over this world as the way of revealing their ability. They want to show their great achievement. Of course, though there are the kings who serve his people with pure heart but its numbers are few and even their purity also is not perfect. Furthermore, they don’t have such ability. Generally, the kings of this world are hostile to a real king. So there are repeated crucifixions in the worldly history.

A colt (5)

When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. (Mark 11:7)

The preparation of Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem was over. The disciples threw their cloaks over the colt and Jesus sat on it. If we see this scene in real it seems a little funny. It was not a donkey but a colt on which 30 years of man was sitting. A colt might feel tough to deal with the mission to carry Jesus. Then the person on it also felt uneasy a little. Was it possibility that a colt didn’t have any problem because the people lived in 2000 years ago were smaller than us today?

The author doesn’t have any concern on this matter. He fully concentrated on delivering the identity of Jesus who was entering to Jerusalem, the king of peace. The king of peace doesn’t ride on a horse. The one who enters into a city rides on a horse is a triumphant general. A triumphant general is a ruler of the world by his army power. However, Jesus rules over this world by peace. Peace doesn’t seem to match to rule. It should to say that Jesus proclaims peace and establish peace. A colt is a right animal for riding on such king of peace.

A triumphant general also fulfilled peace. He forced others peace by war, destruction and violence. He demanded other county obedience by force. Now war is over and peace has come but it is not real peace. This is one-sided peace. Pax Romana(Roman peace)! Such peace cannot endure long. Roman Empire, once proud of its power was finally destroyed by the same power.

Jesus’ peace was the cross. He was entering into Jerusalem in order to be crucified on the cross. The peace of Jesus executed of treason by Rome was not given by force but grace. Jesus the very king of peace rides on a colt, a symbol of peace.

A colt (4)

They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. (Mark 11:6)

I am to think more about yesterday’s mediation, though evilness is clearly not God’s will but still a part of God’s great providence. Such opinion somewhat can be misunderstood. People may say if God deals with the evilness of the world with his own way then we don’t need to struggle against evil. This is the opinion of a complete nonresistant.

During the last 2000 years of Christian history such principle of nonresistance has carried on its stream through a minor sect. Even now ‘Jehovah Witness’ sustains such opinion. They regard an army as violence and refuse to army service despite they serve a term in prison. We have to accept their position. We have to provide them an opportunity to live with us in the Republic of Korea as the same community. They merely accept the teaching of Bible more strictly than us.

Though the principle of nonresistance is right we cannot solve all the problems of this world with this principle only. Ideally the principle of nonresistance is right but has a limitation in real. We cannot unconditionally denounce anti-violence in order to depend on the greater violence. For example, we should us violence in order to gain control of an armed housebreaker.

The Christians today who believe God’s providence should not let loose its tension at this point. Though we believe the evil order in this world eventually will be surrendered to God, we have to fight against the evil power case by case. This is really not easy matter for our struggle may give damage to God’s providence. However, those who believe God’s providence do not be fatigued in struggling with evil power and at the same should not absolutize their struggle for they completely obey the will of God.