Thoughts & Homilies

Good Friday
"W W J D" What would Jesus do?

"W W J D" What would Jesus do?
A popular expression among many Christians. -WWJD
It has spawned something of an industry of books and bracelets and bumper stickers.
Even Madison Avenue recently appropriated the expression, with their usual poor taste, and asked in an ad,
"What would Jesus drive?"
What's next?
What would Jesus wear? Eat? Drink?
A small boy returned from Vacation Bible School with a button that read WWJD. His mother asked him to change his clothes before he went out to play. Joshua looked at the button and said,
"What would Jesus do?"
His mother promptly replied that Jesus would have done what his mother asked him to do and change his clothes.
Joshua thought for a minute then said, "Are you sure?
He seems to be wearing the same clothes in every picture I've ever seen."

What WOULD Jesus do?
It's a good question, and it may be helpful in our decision making.
Good Friday tells us what Jesus would do in the face of violence, opposition and evil.
Good Friday tells us what he would do for those he loved…

He would die for them.
He would submit to every form of torture, humiliation and death even death on the cross for those he loves.

No wonder the author of our second reading can say to us:
"Let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy, grace and help."
The "throne of grace"
We usually associate thrones with kings and rulers
and other people of authority and power.
Royal thrones are imposing pieces of furniture.
They're usually made with costly materials, but there are other thrones or seats of power closer to home -
the seat of the president or the principal or the boss or the bishop.
It can be unnerving to stand before these thrones of authority.
It may mean we're in trouble.
What makes the 'throne of grace so approachable?
It's the throne of Jesus.
It's the throne of total vulnerability, complete surrender,
unqualified acceptance.
It's the seat of infinite understanding, unconditional mercy and ultimate safety.

Christ's throne is the wood of the cross,
his crown is a headpiece of thorns.

He wears a robe of tortured flesh
and an iron scepter pierces his hands.

The lifeblood of his Kingdom flows from his torn side.

To his left and right are condemned criminals like himself.
He is simply one of those that day.
Yet the sign above his head is clear.

This is our king and Savior.
Jesus came among us as one of us, born of a woman,
that he might share fully in our humanity.
He did not come to explain or even take away our suffering,
indeed, his life in this world lays bare the truth that no one escapes suffering and death in this world, not even God's own son.

It's the nature of the world.
It's the condition of an imperfect, material creation,
made all the more imperfect by our sins.
When we think of Jesus suffering and dying on the cross,
we see what happens when God fills our human flesh,
and takes on the sins of the world.
What we don't see is the depth of God's love for us.
We don't see the fullness of his heart.
We will never comprehend such love and sacrifice, but we try.
We stop everything for a little while on Good Friday
to contemplate the mystery of a life and love so perfect.
Suffering and death remain part of our life,
but by faith we know now that God suffers and dies with us
and for us.

In the face of pain and misunderstanding
What would Jesus do?
When rejected, abandoned, betrayed and denied,
What would Jesus do?
When staring cold, calculated power or self righteousness in the face,
What would Jesus do?
When asked to compromise with the forces of evil
and to deny who and what one is and stands for,
What would Jesus do?

Look to the cross for the answer.

We know what Jesus would do,
because we know what he did that first Good Friday.

Reverencing the Cross
Reverence is the highest form of respect and the need for reverence in our lives is greater than ever. Some things are sacred, and tonight we reverence the cross.
It is more than wood.
It is symbol of just how much we are loved by God
and what Jesus would do to show it.
He told us that if we want to be his disciples,
we must take up the cross daily and follow him.
Tonight we will do just that.
The cross can be a very heavy thing to carry.
There are some people here tonight who are carrying very heavy crosses,
the burden of disease or pain, old age
the cross of unemployment or loneliness
the burden of grieving for the ones we have lost in death
The good news is that our crosses become lighter
when we help each other carry the cross.

This night in the church, as on each Good Friday, the large wooden cross was passed from hand to hand throughout the church, a symbol of our sharing the burden of each other's cross.
As you read these words, perhaps you too can say a prayer for those whose cross you help to carry and who help you to carry yours.

WWJD?

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