“And after flogging Him, they will kill Him, and on the third day He will rise.”
Even when Jesus spelled it out, even when He told them point blank about His death and resurrection for a third time, the disciples didn’t get it. They didn’t want a suffering and dying Messiah, they wanted a Messiah who was going to kick some backside and take some names! They wanted a Messiah who was going to rule and give them goodies galore. Isn’t that what we want a Messiah, a “god” to do? Give us more and more “blessings” – by which we mean stuff and might and power? By nature, we’d prefer a God who is like a kindly uncle who shows up, gives us a bunch of gifts, and then leaves us alone.
Jesus can’t do that, though. He won’t. Why? Because Jesus knows what sin is. Sin isn’t something to be brushed off lightly – sin is death. Sin breaks and destroys and kills. How often has sin broken friendships, destroyed your joy and peace, killed things you hold dear? We try to brush that under the rug, move on; pretend it never happened, and pretend it will never happen again. But Jesus doesn’t ignore sin. He doesn’t pat it on the head. Jesus doesn’t affirm sin. Instead, He becomes man and takes up your sin onto Himself, and He drags it to the cross in His own flesh, and He kills sin even with His own death.
Then, He will rise. He will rise triumphant over sin and give you life. True life. Life that isn’t defined by how much money you have, or how many likes and favorites. No, Jesus gives you true life – Himself. Jesus gives Himself to you. Having taken away your sin, He doesn’t leave you empty and on your own, He makes you to be His own holy temple. He promises to be with you all your days, because He knows that you still wander a sinful world and still have your own sinful flesh that fights against you. And He will not abandon you to that, He won’t treat your temptations lightly. Instead, He will be with you to return you to your Baptism and strengthen you with His Body and Blood over and over – even until you die and rise and sin is made truly a thing of the past. This is the blessing, this is the victory Jesus is determined to win for you, and He will let nothing get in the way of His love and salvation for you.
