Editor’s Note: The following piece is part of the Holy Week Series from our Young Writers Cohort. Rosia Li reflects upon Luke 21:37-22:2.
I live across the street from the ‘Cambridge Union’, a place which regularly hosts some of the world’s most in-demand speakers. Think Prime Ministers, Presidents, Bill Gates, Jordan Peterson, etc. Each time someone famous is invited to speak, people begin to line up hours before the event. The queues become exponentially longer. Those desperate to be in the presence of Jordan Peterson, start pushing in to cement their positions in the ever increasing crowds. Started queueing at 100th place? Expect to be pushed back to 350th by the time doors open.
Except what we see here in Luke makes even the most lauded celebrity pale in comparison. People lined up to hear God Himself speak about repentance and the nearness of his Kingdom. By spending his final days at the temple, Jesus ended his public ministry in the same manner he had first begun it as a boy (Luke 2:46-49)一ministering to people at his Father’s house.
How wonderful it was for the people who recognized the preciousness and holy identity of the one who taught them. No wonder the people ‘‘came early in the morning to hear him.” No amount of extra sleep or work could deter them from hearing Jesus before their eyes. They came because they recognized who Jesus was; the same God who brought their ancestors out of slavery, who gave them manna in the wilderness.
Yet this was the same Saviour that the chief priests and Pharisees were leading to the cross. We see this in Luke 22:2. The chief priests and teachers of the law did not acknowledge who Jesus truly was, so they deemed proximity to Jesus to be a threat. Their misrecognition eventually leads to the cruellest injustice. In fact, these verses are situated right before Judas’ betrayal of Jesus; the sinless man betrayed and punished for a sinful world.
But for those of us who acknowledge who Jesus truly is, we know that his betrayal is far from the end of the story. Rather, it is a new beginning of a cosmic love story; Jesus rises from the dead. Death is defeated on the cross because he loves us; for he was pierced for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5). Why would we hesitate to receive the warm embrace of his devotion? He promises that he will never leave or forsake us and we are forever safe in his arms.
While we cannot see Jesus physically before our eyes, God promises us that his word is still ‘alive and active’. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.’ (Hebrews 4:12). What a privilege we have to draw near to God by sitting under his word.
This Holy Week, Jesus extends an invitation to come to receive his ministry that continues as he is seated at the right hand of the Father. Extending his invitation to those who are reluctant to step into his embrace and even those who feel threatened by his presence. Will we have the courage to listen to Jesus, the one who has known us since before the start of time?
Photo Credit: Dawid Zawiła