Put Your Sword Away! (John 18:4-11)

Ash Wednesday 

February 22, 2012

Dear friends in Christ.

Back when I was in college, I had a classmate who was filled with all sorts of creative, fun, and crazy ideas.  He was the one who regularly initiated rubber band wars by simply opening someone’s door and shooting rubber bands at them while they studied.  He is the one who organized a number of capture the flag games in the spring and fall as well as quite a few snowball fights during the winter.  On one occasion he convinced us that it would be fun to go play paint ball.  The only problem was that, none of us had any paintball equipment with us, nor did we have the funds to go off to Milwaukee to play.  So, we improvised!  We built swords out of PVC pipes and held a battle right there in the long hallway of our dorm building.  I still remember it to this day.  There were six of us battling each other in pairs of two stretched from the stair well at one end of the hall about 1/3 of the way down the rest of the hall.  We were all fiercely battling each other, switching combatants and gaining up on each other when suddenly the cry rang out, “Put your swords away!”  At first we thought we were all in trouble, but then we realized it was simply one of our dorm mates who wanted to go downstairs, and we were blocking the access to the closest set of stairs.  Hence his cry of “put your swords away.”

Put your sword away!  These same words are the words that Jesus spoke to Peter in our lesson tonight, and as he spoke these words, Jesus and his disciples were in the Garden of Gethsemane.  They were standing before the group of Roman Soldiers and the band of men from the chief priests and Pharisees who had come to arrest Jesus.  They were standing there and they had just heard Jesus tell them that he was willing to go with them; that he would allow the religious leaders to arrest him and take him for the trials that would ultimately bring about his crucifixion.  This is what John is telling us as he writes in our lesson tonight, from John 18:4, “Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?” 5 “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) 6 When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. 7 Again he asked them, “Who is it you want?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” 8 “I told you that I am he,” Jesus answered. “If you are looking for me, then let these men go.” 9 This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: “I have not lost one of those you gave me.” 10 Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) 11 Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”" (John 18:4–11, NIV84)

So zealous was Peter to defend his friend and Master that he struck out with his sword wounding the servant of the High Priest by cutting off his right ear.  Thus Peter proved that he either hadn’t heard or hadn’t heard what Jesus had just been saying or what Jesus was doing for Peter, his disciples and the rest of the world.  So zealous was Peter for Jesus that the thought he needed to fight to free Jesus from these soldiers and prevent the immanent arrest of his Master.  Yet what did Jesus say to Peter? “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” (John 18:11, NIV84)

In some ways it was as if Jesus was saying to Peter, “Don’t you realize what’s going on?”  “Don’t you understand what I am doing for you?”  “Didn’t you just see my display of power and realize that they are not taking me but I am willingly going with them to my death so that I might pay the price my Father demands and free you from your sins?”  “No, put your sword away and see my cross.  I am going to that cross for you, for my disciples, and for all the people of the world.”

Put your sword away!  With four simple words Jesus speaks to Peter, rebukes his misplaced zeal, lays out his mission and reveals, yet again, the purpose for the cross.  And with these simple words, Jesus is doing the same thing for you and me.  For if we think about it, how often aren’t we just like Peter?  How often haven’t we forgotten that Jesus didn’t need any force, not even once single sword to save humanity?  The cross was the only instrument that he needed in order to provide us with his salvation.  He was the only one who could achieve our salvation through his willing and innocent sacrifice in our place.  There was nothing that we could do to achieve it for ourselves; no human action that could even remotely help no matter how brave or how noble. 

Yet how often don’t we lose focus on the purpose of the cross, grab our own swords as it were, and start flailing them about in an effort protect and defend our Savior, like Peter, or in an effort to aid our Savior with his salvation?  How often don’t’ we like to brandish the swords of our own godly lives as we thank God that we are not like all those other people who don’t serve him as faithfully or as well as we do?  How often haven’t we felt that we are worthy of heaven because we have used our own swords to accomplish so much for our God with our faith, with our good deeds, with our incredible public devotion to him, with our record of church attendance or Bible study attendance?  Or how often haven’t we felt that God’s church depended on us being a part of it, or the efforts that we put forth in serving?  How often haven’t we felt so important in God’s kingdom because of the status we suddenly have from being part of this one group or another?  How often haven’t we felt that if our particular group stops meeting or stops functioning in any way then the church will quickly follow suit?  How often haven’t we been so zealous for our Savior and his church that we were tempted to change the message we preach, even just a little bit, in the hopes that it might attract more people and help us to grow?

These are the times that Jesus rebukes us as he did Peter, saying, “Put your sword away.”  “Put your sword away and see my cross, because without my cross there is no hope, no forgiveness, no salvation, and no life!  But when you let go of your own importance and focus on my cross, you live in my forgiveness, my life, and my salvation.”  Thus, tonight, as we have gathered to see our Savior, we have heard him calling on us to put our swords away, and put them away we have.  But not only have we put them away, but we have come to lay them at the foot of the cross; we have come to place all our misguided zeal, our attempts at helping our Savior, even our thoughts of changing his message at the foot of his cross.  Tonight, we have placed our swords away by laying them before our Savior, and he has washed us clean of every spot and stain of our sins.  He has completely removed every trace of our guilt, and he has restored us to live a new life for him.  Tonight we have seen and been reminded of what Jesus did for us, what he knew he had to do to free us from our sins.  Tonight we have felt his gentle hand of blessing upon us assuring us of the hope and salvation that we have through faith in him.  Tonight, through faith in Jesus, we have put our own swords away by laying them at the foot of the cross.  Through faith we have been assured that his cross is the reason for the hope we have.  Through faith in Jesus we look to the cross as the instrument through which our sins were forgiven.  Through faith in Jesus we see our Savior’s great love for us in his sacrifice.  We see the forgiveness he won for us in his death.  We see the undeniable assurance of salvation in his resurrection, and we see the hope of eternal life in his empty tomb.

Though the image of a bloody, crucified, Savior is not an attractive picture to the world or even our sinful nature, through faith in Jesus it is an image of victory and strength.  Though the message of the cross is foolishness to some and a great offense to others, it is God’s wisdom for our salvation.  Though as sinful human beings it is so easy to grasp the hilt of our own swords and seek to fight our way to salvation, through faith in Jesus we have lain those swords aside.  In the same way that my classmates and I stopped our hallway sword battle when someone wanted to get to the stairs, so we have stopped our battling through faith in Jesus. We now see our Savior’s cross.  We know its purpose.  We know the forgiveness that is ours and because of that we have also put our swords away.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church--Le Sueur, MN

One of the Mob; a Follower (Matthew 27:20-23)

Mach 9, 2011
Ash Wednesday
Preached from the perspective of one of the Mob on Good Friday


Dear friends in Christ.

Were you there when they crucified the Lord? Where you there when they nailed him to the tree? Were you there when they crowned his head with thorns? Were you there when the crowds cried, “Crucify”? Though I know that none of you were there on that dark day so many years ago, I can tell you that I was. I was there as one of that mob. I was there as a follower. I was there, and I can remember the details of that day as clearly as if it happened yesterday. I remember all the sights and sounds from that day. I remember how the sun seemed almost tentative as it warmed my skin that morning and how the breeze almost seemed to hold its breath when Pilate brought Jesus out before the crowd.

Funny thing, isn’t it, I can remember all those details. I can remember exactly how Jesus looked; bruised and beaten with blood trickling down his face from the crown of thorns pressed into his head. Yet I simply, for the life of me, cannot remember why I was part of the crowd in Pilate’s courtyard that morning. I can’t remember if I had gone there out of curiosity to find out why Jesus was on trial or if I had simply been swept along to the palace by the mentality of the mob gathering there. After all, I wasn’t a follower of Jesus at that time. Oh, I had heard him preach. I had seen some miracles, I liked what he had to say, but the Holy Spirit had not yet created faith in my heart to trust in Jesus as my Savior. Though I now know exactly why I was there as part of that mob that day, at the time when Jesus was on trial, I was merely following the crowd.

Yes, I do remember exactly what Jesus looked like when Pilate brought him out before the crowd. I remember Pilate’s booming voice as he asked the people, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:17) And I remember seeing the Chief Priests and the Elders circulating through the crowd persuading the people to ask for Barabbas and to have Christ crucified. (Matthew 27:20). I probably wouldn’t have noticed it except for the Elder who came up to me, put his hand on my shoulder, looked me straight in the eye, and told me that if I considered myself and Israelite, I would demand Jesus’ execution and Barabbas’ release. It was in that moment that time seemed to stand still as a saw the Chief Priests and Elders, essentially the entire Sanhedrin—the ruling body of the Israelites—milling through the crowd; turning the people against Jesus. I wondered what I should do! Should I stay and ask for Jesus? Should I do what my leadership told me? Should I just leave and go somewhere else? I didn’t know what I should do. I was frozen with indecision as I heard Pilate ask, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” (Matthew 27:21)

It took a few seconds before my mouth started working again. I heard some shouting for Jesus, but I heard others shouting for Barabbas. Then I heard more and more people taking up the cry for Barabbas, and before I knew it, I joined right in with all the people chanting Barabbas’ name and drowning out any other voices crying out for Jesus. When Pilate asked, “Why? What crime has he committed?” (Matthew 27:23) I didn’t even hesitate. I was right there shouting with the crowds, “Crucify!” “Crucify!” I was fully part of that mob now. I was following every direction that the collective mentality of crowd was giving me. My eyes were gleaming with evil intentions. My stomach hungered for the deed to be done. My blood was boiling with lust to see Christ’s blood spilled on the ground. Every fiber of my being demanded to see him nailed to the cross and crucified. Every part of me needed to see it happen, because I was caught up in the frenzy of the mob that day. I was following the crowd demanding that the governor give the order, so that we could go out to the place of the skull and see it come to pass.

Now, I’m not proud of what I did by any means. But, before you judge me too harshly, let me ask you a question. How often haven’t you done the same thing? How of then haven’t you been part of the mob; a follower of the crowd when it came to sins? How often haven’t your own temptations led you to a mob mentality as you quickly rushed in to your favorite and most comfortable sins with an ever increasing hunger for more? How often haven’t you simply followed the bread crumbs of temptation in to the courtyard of the palace of sin, joining with other sinners as a mob of people trying to justify their actions to each other by comparing their sins to other worse sinners in the world? How often hasn’t our blood boiled with lust as the TV screen, movie screen, or computer screen flickered before us? How often haven’t our mouths cried out with curses upon others, oaths sworn to get even with the person who wronged us in some way, foul language, lies, hatred, gossip, slander, or other sins? How often haven’t you acted just as I did in that crowd, following the mob mentality of sin that moves us to rush forward into more and more greater sins as we hurtle ever forward moving closer and close to the cliffs of damnation?

That’s where I was! I was hurtling through those gates, moving as one; following the mob of people as they led me behind Jesus, out toward the place of the skull. I was there, standing, watching, desiring, and needing to see the nails driven through his hands and feet! I was there needing to see him raised up, dropped into place, and left to die! I was there as part of that mob, following every move until I heard something that began to separate me from them. As they were crucifying him, I heard him pray, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:32–34) In that moment my heart seemed to stop beating as I came back to my senses. When I heard the exchange between one of the thieves and Jesus, and heard Jesus promising the thief that he would be in paradise with Jesus today (Luke 23:39-43) I began wondering if this Jesus might be the Messiah for whom I had been waiting. When the sun stopped shining and darkness covered the land for three hours, I knew there was something special about this Jesus. When I heard him cry out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) I was immediately reminded of what David had written about the Savior in Psalm 22. Then, when I saw how he died, how he declared everything to be finished, how he committed himself to his heavenly Father, and how the earth shook and the rocks split, I knew that this Jesus had to be the Son of God, the Messiah for whom I had waited, my God who saved me from my sins. Now, I told you that when I was part of that crowd in Pilate’s courtyard I wasn’t a believer. However, I can tell you that if I had not followed the crowd out to Calvary that I may not have had the opportunity to come to faith in Jesus as my Savior. Though I am not proud of my part in the mob, I know I am forgiven. I know that I am forgiven through my Savior who poured out his blood upon the mercy seat of God to atone for my sins.

The same thing is true for each and every one of you who have gathered here today! Though you may have given into a mob mentality when it came to your sins, your sins have been forgiven! Though there have been many occasions that you have rushed head long into your favorite and most comfortable sins, with an ever increasing hunger for more, your Savior’s blood has not only washed you clean, but gives you the desire to turn your back on those sins. Though you may have felt your blood boiling with lust, or your mouth on fire with vicious and sinful words, even these sins have been taken away! They were all nailed to the cross with Jesus your Savior. They were atoned for by his death. They were erased from your record by his blood poured out for you. But best of all, through the faith created in your hearts by the Holy Spirit, you all have been separated from the mob barreling its way toward the cliffs of damnation. Instead you are traveling with the group of believers, following after your Lord and Savior who redeemed you by his blood, made you his own, and has given you the guarantee of eternal life in heaven through faith in the one who poured out his blood for you.

Though none of you were actually there when the crucified our Lord, each time we review the events of that day, our Savior’s love is brought home to us all the more clearly. I pray that through my witness today that you have grown in your faith and your assurance that you have been forgiven by the Blood of the Lamb. I pray that you won’t find yourselves as I did, part of a mob; a follower. Rather, I pray that you will continually be found as a follower of Christ, your living, loving, and forgiven Savior. In his Name.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church --Le Sueur, MN