Crucified God

The Rev. Joseph Winston

April 6, 2007 (Good Friday)

Sermon

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.1
The Roman Empire was an effective killing machine. That is how the world’s
superpower kept the peace.
Rome had been the seat of power for nearly five hundred years and there still
would be almost five hundred years before power would finally be wrestled away
from Rome. Caesar Augustus was in the capital city and he was intent on consol-
idating and keeping his power. In order to do that, he needed peace at home.
One prong of his plan was to eliminate the infighting between the different
power brokers. He implemented this action with ruthless efficiency. The many
different forces were consolidated into his own private army. The solders in these
disperse armies needed to be properly motivated. To do this, Augustus reinstated
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3

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the ancient practice of decimation. If a cohort, a force of four hundred and eighty
men, failed in battle, they were randomly divided into forty-eight groups of ten.
Then lots were thrown in each group to identify the one man that would be killed
by his compatriots. In Caesar’s world, it was either to kill or be killed. Caesar also
needed a way to keep all of the underclass strictly in line. This, the second part of
his successful strategy, was required since the lower class outnumbered the elite
by a nine to one ratio.
Crucifixion achieved this goal of maintaining the peace by shaming both the
victim on the cross and his entire family. This happened because society lost con-
trol of the criminal’s body. While alive, he was publicly humiliated on the cross.
During the days he hung on the cross, your friends and your neighbors knew what
your son had done and he became an example for others. This dishonor contin-
ued after the criminal’s death because he could not be buried because his body
normally remained on the cross where it was mutilated by vultures.
If public embarrassment was not an effective enough deterrent to prevent you
from stepping out of line, there always is the pain associated with the cross. In
most cases, death comes slowly by suffocation. Even today, almost seventeen
hundred years after crucifixion was outlawed in the Roman Empire, we still have
phrases in our vocabulary about the torture of crucifixion. For example, we say,
“The pain is excruciating.” which literally means that the pain comes out of cru-
cifying.
Tonight’s Gospel lessons reminds us of the harsh reality of how the Roman
peace is executed. You get in the way of the Empire and you will die. This is

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exactly what has happened to Jesus. God stood up to the abuse and to the suffering
of the masses. The result was not hard to predict. God is brought to trial. After
a brief interaction between the Word of truth and the power of the world, the
anointed Son of God is sent out for public humiliation and is whipped. Nothing
can stand in the way of their total domination. Jesus must die.
So they take the Son of God, to “The Place of the Skull” and string Him up on
the cross. The sign above His beaten brown reads, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of
the Jews.” This King has been beaten in battle and Rome has won. All hail Caesar,
bringer of peace.
Sin is the old ancient story that we all know by heart. We believe that we cannot
trust anyone (John 16:8). The results of our suspicion can be seen everywhere in
the world. In the time of Caesar, the results of this mistrust normally were very
clear. If those in power did not have faith in you then you were put to death.
Slaves, foot soldiers, and senators could testify to this basic fact. Today, the story
is exactly the same with one small twist. For the most part, we no longer physically
crucify people anymore. Instead, we ignore them. This is the modern difference,
which separates us from the Romans and those men who put Christ to death. The
lack of attention to those in need is a certain death sentence that plays out in streets
and in rent-houses over weeks and months rather than on a cross for a few days.
The four hundred thousand who have died in Darfur during the last four years
are silent witness to this type of mistrust. The 25 million deaths from AIDS since
1981 add their voices to the inaudible chorus. Tonight, we remember the ultimate
form of this lack of faith. God is put to death.

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 However, the reality of God’s love for all of us is even older than our distrust in
God. This is the message that Jesus repeats over and over again in the Scriptures.
He says in words and deeds, “I love you.”
This passion for humanity has been apparent before the start of time. God
uttered the Word and the entire universe is formed. Every little bit of the infinite
cosmos was created for us. God then enacted the second part of the plan. God
declares that there will be life. Every one of us is alive because that is what God
wanted. Next, God takes care of our every need by providing us with food and
drink along with a way to live. This takes place when God announces that the
Light would shine on the earth. That is why you are here tonight. God showed
you the way to this place.
But what occurs when we cannot return God’s love? Or even more to the point,
what happens when we do not believe any part of this story?
Simply put, God never gives up on you. You can see a major part of the plan
in tonight’s Gospel lesson. Completely knowing all the risks associated with life
here on earth, Jesus volunteered to come and live with us. We have killed Him and
He is hanging on the cross.
Look at Him and live (John 3:14).
The complete picture of God’s plan is given to us by the writer of John in two
key verses, which simply say this, “God gives you the ability to listen. Hear what
Jesus has to say and live” (John 6:63; 5:24). In other words, when God hears what
God says, we live. That is right. We have to do nothing because God speaks to us
and God listens for us. This is how much God loves you.

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 What then are we to do with the dead God on the cross? All that we can do is
wait and watch because God is our only hope.
Our own world also kills and mains with ruthless efficiency. Just drive by the
courthouse and look at one of the large Oak trees on the North East side of the
square. There are not only one or two pairs of shoes on this tree. This mighty oak
is weighed down with shoes that represent the number of confirmed child abuse
cases in this county. If we are able to keep silent about these horrible atrocities
committed against the most vulnerable members of our society then we also would
not rise up and stop the execution of an innocent man.
When we leave tonight, we go out into the world with the God who was “aban-
doned and crucified” to serve those people who are “abandoned and crucified” by
the world.2
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”3

References

Moltmann, Jürgen, The Crucified God, (Fortress Press, 1993).

2
Jürgen Moltmann, The Crucified God, (Fortress Press, 1993), p. 1.
3
Philippians 4:7.