Transcript
(Begins mid-sentence) ... all of us, and send through you to your people our prayers, our continuing efforts and concern. In the fifteenth chapter, the people cried, crucify him. Why? What harm has he done, Pilate asked. They shouted all the louder, crucify him. So Pilate, in his desire to satisfy the mob, released Barabbas to them, and he had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified. Then the soldiers took him inside the courtyard, the governor's headquarters, and called together
the whole company. And they dressed him in purple, and having platted a crown of thorns, placed it on his head. Then they began to salute him with, Hail, King of the Jews. They beat him about the head with a cane and spat on him, then knelt and paid mock homage to him. When they had finished their mockery, they stripped him of the purple and dressed him in his own clothes. Then they took him out to crucify
him. They brought him to a place called Golgotha, which means place of a sculpt. He was offered drugged wine, but he would not take it. Then they fastened him to the cross. The love of Christ leaves us no choice. When once we have reached the conclusion that one man died for all, and therefore all mankind has died, his purpose in dying for all was that men, while still in life, should cease to live for themselves and
should live for him who, for their sake, died and was raised to life. This summer, up in the mountains where we go for a rest, I spent most of my afternoons rebuilding an old ice house so that I could use it for a shop. It was in pretty bad shape, and I had to put a great many very large timbers into the foundation in order to make it stay there. I think I drove more six-inch
nails than I've driven in the last ten years. Every time I drove one, and this is literally true, I thought of that scene of which we've just read. A six-inch nail is a terrible thing. When you've put it even halfway in, you can't get it out even with a wrecking bar. And I kept wondering, as I was doing that, how any man could do that to another. And then, every time I hit one of those
nails, I asked what I was doing. Because the same motives that drove those first nails were in my life and yours. The pride that's shamed by him. The self-indulgence, which doesn't want to get involved. The sheer lack of imagination and sensitivity to other people, those people standing by while that hideous thing was done. This thing turned itself on me. Toward the end, I heard of what Mr. Ford had done about ex-President Nixon. I growled
about the injustice of it. And then I wondered, you know, those people there, couldn't they have had some more imaginative and creative response and could die? Maybe this is the time to say to America, the talk about justice when you're talking about putting people in cages is not a sensible way to talk. Years ago, I saw them bringing those cages to a municipal lockup. And God piteous, I thought it was a circus coming to town. They
had a whole row of them on a flatbed truck. Thousands of years and we haven't gotten beyond that. He died for us, to wake us up. What are we going to do? Justice? Karl Menninger talks about the crime of punishment. Of course, you've got to restrain people that are going out and kill other people and maim them. But beyond that, have we really developed a sensible way of handling people who deviate from our social norms? And
what are we doing about it? What am I doing about it? I know one thing I'm going to do, I'm going to write some people. I think this is just the right time to strike on that note. We ought to devise something a little cleverer than what we're doing and something a little closer to the love of God. Maybe something creative could come out of this. Let us pray. Oh God, our Father, for those terrible nails.
So strong beside a human hand. That break and hurt. That we drive. Our envy of the people around us that hurts him. Our pride. That makes us hard and cruel and fearful. Our self-indulgence. So much a part of us. And so deadening. Our insensitivity and our lack of imagination. As we face the pain of others. Sitting helpless within bars. Oh God, have mercy on us. And somehow awaken us. He died for us and for them
and for all our children. Use us. We pray this day for the policeman who shot a boy in New York and is twisted inside and hurting. And for the boy's family. We pray for those desperate men who are holding hostages across the sea. And for the hostages. We pray for the homeless people in Cyprus. Those who made them homeless and have twisted their own and hardened their own consciences. We pray for those who are hungry across
the world. And for all too many of us that have done too little about it. We pray for the lonely person sitting somewhere in one of our dormitories right now. With no one who has noticed or cared. We pray for those who are ready now to do something creative and waiting for us to give some leadership. We pray for our nation. In this time when it stands at a crossroads. We ask that thou will raise up
leaders. And use us. For we come in Jesus name. Unto whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. We conclude with 625. (music)