I’m going to read some famous last words, and you can see if you know who spoke them just before death. Here’s the first set: “Have I played the part well? Then applaud as I exit.” Those were reportedly the last words spoken by Caesar Augustus. How about these? “Oh wow! Oh wow! Oh wow!” Those were the last words spoken by Steve Jobs before his death in 2011. Now see if you know these: “I’m bored with it all.” Those were the last words of Sir Winston Churchill.
It was Passover week in Jerusalem, and people from far and near converged on the city and the Temple during this sacred time. It was not only Israelites who came. Non-Israelites who had come to know Israel’s God also came to worship and observe the Passover. We meet some of them in our text today. They are called “some Greeks.”
Without fail we come around to this point each Lent. At some point we must deal with Judas in the Passion story of our Savior. He is viewed as the “villian.” The antagonist. The bad guy. He is both thief and traitor.
I don’t know exactly what Nicodemus was expecting when he came to meet with Jesus that night. Nicodemus was a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, and he acknowledged that even though the Sanhedrin opposed Jesus, they knew that he was a teacher sent from God.
It has been well said that from our perspective, there are three kinds of answers we can receive to our prayers. Sometimes, God answers, “Yes,” and he gives us what we have asked for. Sometimes, God answers, “No,” and he gives us something better than what we asked for. And sometimes, God answers our prayers, saying, “Yes, but not yet,” and we are left to wait for our requests to be fulfilled.
In the middle of our text is the little word “zeal.” A relatively benign little word. Zeal is defined as “great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective.” Sounds like a pretty good thing. It’s when you get into some of the words derived from “zeal” that things begin to take a turn.
Do you have a favorite Lenten hymn? Maybe it seems a little out-of-place to speak of a “favorite.” There are so many good ones! To ask you to name your favorite is like asking which of your children is your favorite child. But we like what we like. From the time I was a little boy “Come to Calvary’s Holy Mountain” has been one of my favorites. Which ones do you like?
In the Old City of Jerusalem, there is a route marked out known as the Via Dolorosa. Via Dolorosa means “Sorrowful Way” in Latin, and this route called the “Sorrowful Way” has been suggested as the path the Savior may have walked when he went from his sentencing under Pontius Pilate to his execution outside the city on a hill known as Golgotha. In total distance, the Via Dolorosa measures about 2,000 feet.
In these Wednesday services throughout the season of Lent, we will be taking time to consider some of the psalms which our Savior quoted. Specifically, we’ll be considering psalms which he quoted during the week of his passion.
Our text for this morning is really a little bridge. It connects two major events in Jesus’ ministry. Just before our text we have the baptism of Jesus. That was the day Jesus was introduced to the world as the Messiah, the Christ. A new King was anointed! Immediately after our text, this newly anointed King begins his public ministry. He announces the nearness of the Kingdom of God: The kingdom of God has come near! (Mark 1:14)
