God’s grace, peace
and mercy be with you. … My sermon is entitled The Last Word and is based
on the Seven Last Words of Jesus. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist
wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of
the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to
hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our
hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity.
Amen.
As I was writing
this, I saw an interview with Richard John Neuhaus regarding his book, “Death
on a Friday Afternoon” which is about the last words of Jesus from the Cross.
It made me pause and reflect on what my last words might be.
Have you ever
thought of what your last words might be? You may not be able to speak for
several months, days or hours before you pass. So, maybe your last words might
be as equally nonsensical as my mother’s, “Come here. Pick up my pipe. Pick
up my lip.” She died several days later.
Maybe your last
words would be akin to those of Beethoven, “Friends, applaud. The comedy is
over.” Or those of the famous seer, Nostradamus, “Tomorrow at sunrise I
shall no longer be here.” Churchill said, “I’m bored with it all.”
Sinatra, “I’m losing it.” Ben Franklin, “A dying man can do nothing
easy.” Drummer Buddy Rich died after surgery in 1987. As he was being
prepped for surgery, a nurse asked him, “Is there anything you can’t take?”
Rich replied, “Yeah, country music.” Mother Teresa said, “I love you,
Jesus.” The Martyr, St. Lawrence taunted those burning him to death by
saying, “Turn me over. I’m done on this side.” And because we’re
Lutheran, the Good Doctor said, “Into Thy hands I commend my spirit! Thou
hast redeemed me, O God of truth.”
The sayings of
Jesus on the cross are also known as the Seven Last Words of Christ. They are
gathered from the four Gospels. Since the 16th century, these
sayings have been widely used in sermons on Good Friday, and entire books have
been written on theological analysis of them. The Seven Last Words of Christ
are an integral part of the liturgy in the Anglican, Catholic, Protestant and
other Christian traditions. Several composers have set the sayings to music.
Today, I would like to spend a few moments on each.
The First Word is
Jesus speaking to his Father regarding those crucifying him: “Father,
forgive them; for they know not what they do.” We find this Word in Luke
23:34, immediately after he is hung upon the Cross.
The Second Word is
from John 19:26-27. John recorded that after the soldiers crucified Jesus, they
took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier,
and then cast lots for his tunic, which fulfilled the prophecy that reads, “They
divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.”
Witnessing this – because they were standing by the cross – were Jesus’ mother
and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. “When
Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to
his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold,
your mother!” The two sentences addressed to both his mother, Mary, and
his beloved disciple, John, are considered one Word.
Then we go back to
Luke. Some number this second and the previous episode as the Third Word, but
there’s no strict rule on this. To the repentant thief: “Truly I tell
you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”[1] At the ninth hour: “Eloi,
Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have
you forsaken me?”[2]
In order to
fulfill Scripture, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”[3] After receiving a drink of
vinegary wine, “It is finished.”[4]And as Jesus was dying: “Father,
into your hands I commend my spirit.”[5] If I chose to preach on
all seven of Jesus’ Words on the Cross, we would be here for three hours, and
you might consider crucifying me. So, I am limiting my sermon to Three Words
from John’s Gospel.
As I mentioned a
moment ago, the First Word in John is Jesus’ address to his mother and his
beloved disciple. In this scene there are three groups of people at the cross.
The chief priests complained hostilely about the title “The King of the Jews”
hung over Jesus’ head. The soldiers treated Jesus as a criminal and divided his
clothes. The third group are friends and disciples.
The relationship
between Jesus and each group goes like this. He is triumphant over the chief
priests. Unbeknownst to the soldiers, Jesus orchestrated them to fulfill
pertinent Scripture passages. The third group is reconstituted into a new
family relationship.
While one can
discuss how close or far away this third group stood, and whether there were
three or four women present, we know that one of them, Mary Magdelene, not only
witnessed Jesus’ death and burial, but also went to the tomb to anoint the body
and later met the Risen Lord. Our chief interest, however, is the Word spoken
to Jesus’ mother and the disciple he loved.
It is also
interesting to note the men present at the scene. In Mark, the Evangelist bolstered
his theme of human weakness and failure during the Passion.[6] Luke recorded men with an
optimistic portrayal of fidelity.[7] In John, the Beloved
Disciple embodied ideal discipleship that never wavered. Even Jesus’ brothers,
mentioned in chapter two, no longer believed in him.[8] The Beloved Disciple is
the only faithful male.
In regards to his
mother, this is the first time she appears in John since the wedding at Cana in
chapter two. This long absence makes one wonder about her relationship with her
son which seems ambiguous until now. Here, she stands with the other women who
are clearly attached to Jesus even to his death; and she is about to be put
into a close relationship with that ideal disciple.[9]
Jesus’ words to her
in chapter two were that the two of them had nothing in common. Here, his words
have the opposite meaning. “Woman, behold you son,” is not Jesus
leaving his mother in the earthly care of John. Disciples, as Jesus said to
them earlier, are not of this world.[10] His Word puts her in an
intimate relationship with the ideal disciple. That the mother of Jesus is now
the disciple’s mother and that he has taken her to his own is a symbolic way of
describing how one related to Jesus by flesh became related to him by the
Spirit. It’s about how Jesus’ natural family is related to a family created by
discipleship. His natural brothers are replaced by beloved disciples, who by
becoming the sons of Jesus’ mother become Jesus’ brother. Through the Spirit,
Jesus enlarged his family significantly, and added diversity to discipleship.
The words that
precede the next Word, “I thirst,” read, “After this,
Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the
Scripture), “I thirst.” I mention this because in January, I
preached on John, and mentioned the Book of Signs (chapters 1-12) and the Book
of Glory (13-21). The Book of Glory begins with these words, “Now before
the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out
of this world to the Father.”[11] This is significant
because John lets his readers know that Jesus knew when his work was finished.
The opening of the Last Supper and the death of Jesus on the cross are all part
of the same “hour”.
When Jesus said, “I
thirst,” he provoked a response that is found in Psalm 69. There we
read, “They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me sour
wine to drink.”[12]He is responsible for the
reaction to offer him vinegary wine and fulfillment of the Scriptures, but
there is no mention of who offered the wine. Without debate, most agree the
soldiers gave Jesus the wine since they had access to it and him. Yet, even
they were not aware that their actions were fulfilling Scripture under Jesus’
direction, who was orchestrating the passion as part of laying down his own
life.[13]
You may recall
that after Jesus reprimanded Peter for cutting off Malchus’ right ear, he
asked, “Shall I not drink the cup the Father gave me?” Jesus
indicated that he wanted to drink this cup of suffering.[14] When he took what was
offered him on the cross, he finished his commitment. He spoke his Last Word, “It
is finished.”
When Jesus spoke
his Last Word, he fulfilled Psalm 16, “A company of evildoers encircles
me; they have pierced my hands and feet — I can count all my bones — they stare
and gloat over me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they
cast lots.”[15] He also fulfilled the
theme of sprinkling the lamb’s blood in Exodus. As Lamb of God Jesus took away
the world’s sin, fulfilling and completing the role of the paschal lamb in Old
Testament theology.[16]
Finally, The Last
Word. My internet search provided The Last Word as a book, a movie with Shirley
McLaine, a show on MSNBC, several bars and a cocktail. The dictionary defines
the phrase as the final decision or best one of its kind. Once again, the
internet disappointed me. The Last Word I am thinking of today is a question.
What is the last word you want to hear? To answer that, I turn to a memory, Scripture
and imagination.
Memory. On the
night of April 16, 2003, I received a phone call from my mother. After she
said, “Paul,” she stopped. She couldn’t say anything. Then she said, “Here’s
Uncle Ted.” My dad’s brother informed me that my dad had died. The EMT said
that dad had a massive heart attack and was dead before he hit the floor.
Sometime later, my parishioner and friend, Dr. Bill Katz, told me that one in
four people who suffer their first heart attack die.
April 16th
was Wednesday of Holy Week that year. I am sure that my dad planned on
attending the annual Chrism Service on Holy Thursday morning at St. Paul’s
Cathedral. He always did. On Tuesday of that week, he went to a Lenten
penitential service and confession. On that particular Wednesday, he and my mom
attended church in the morning before they did some grocery shopping. They
visited his brother, Ted, who lived a few doors up the road, and stayed for
dinner. They returned home and watched some TV before he went into the bedroom,
prayed and started to get ready for bed before he fell asleep for good. It’s as
if he knew the hour when he would die and prepared for it.
To be quite
honest, even though my dad and I had a good relationship for the most part, we
had a phone argument on the afternoon of Palm Sunday, just a few days earlier,
and I am sure we would have patched it up by Easter. Unfortunately, that didn’t
happen.
On the night dad
died, I stayed overnight with my mom, and returned to Oakmont in the afternoon
for Maundy Thursday services. Good Friday came and went, as did Saturday’s
Easter Vigil. In between, my brothers, mom and I planned dad’s funeral, picked
out a casket and so on. I spent Easter Sunday morning preaching and leading
worship, and Sunday afternoon greeting family members and friends at the
funeral home.
I remember a bit of
the sermon I preached, but I don’t remember much else. Ironically, I remember
that for many years prior to that Easter, I would tell people, “When I die, I
want to be buried on Easter Monday because the church is decorated with so many
flowers and live plants.” That was the day we buried dad.
Scripture and imagination.
Preparing for this sermon, I wondered what last word dad heard. Then I thought
about the last word I will hear or want to hear. How about you? There are many
passages we might want to hear as we pass from here to eternity: Psalm 23,
Simeon’s Nunc Dimittis. The Giles Family chose Isaiah 25:6-9 and the John
14:1-6 for Marsha’s funeral. Perhaps you’d want to hear a hymn such as Amazing
Grace or How Great Thou Art? My wife, Cindy, wants to hear, “Well
done, good and faithful servant. … Enter into the joy of your master.”[17]
Personally, I want
to hear, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you
gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you
welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I
was in prison and you came to me.”[18] My friends, I hope none
of us hears what the King says to those on his left, though that is what each
of us deserves. Whatever the last word is, we will hear it only through the
grace of God and the sweet, welcoming voice of our Savior.
As we observe the
quiet of Good Friday night and Holy Saturday, take some time to contemplate
Jesus’ last words. Take time to prayerfully reflect on The Last Word you want
to hear. As you do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep
your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
[1]
Luke 23:43.
[2]
Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46.
[3]
John 19:28.
[4]
John 19:30.
[5]
Luke 23:46.
[6]
Mark 14:50-52.
[7]
Luke 23:49ff.
[8]
John 2:12; 7:3-5.
[9] Raymond
E. Brown, S.S., The Death of the Messiah: From Gethsemane to the Grave, Volume
Two. New York: Doubleday Press (1004), p. 1020.
[10]
John 17:14.
[11]
John 13:1.
[12]
Psalm 69:21.
[13]
Brown, p. 1075.
[14]
John 18:11.
[15]
Psalm 22:16-18.
[16]
Brown, p. 1078.
[17]
Matthew 25:21.
[18]
Matthew 25:35-36.
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