Many claim to speak and act on God’s behalf, but sometimes individuals or groups do ghastly and terrible things in the process. So how do we know the real thing?
Isaiah’s suffering servant — perhaps a symbolic representation of the ideal disciple — developed the art of spiritual listening. People often pray to God but have difficulty being still and silent so that God can speak in the inner recesses of the heart and soul. The servant did not try to twist God’s teachings to fit his own opinions and desires but allowed himself to be slowly formed according to God’s will. The clearest indication that the servant was in harmony with God is what he did with the teaching he had received: he used it to encourage and sustain others. He did not exalt his own sense of importance or use it to gain power and control over others. Most of all, he did not resort to violence or revenge when faced with persecution and resistance. He was able to face adversity with calm, courage and faith. Learning how to truly listen to God would be very helpful in combatting the religious abuses and violence of our own time.
Paul presented Jesus as the epitome of selflessness and the model for Christian humility and discipleship. Jesus was willing to lay aside the prerogatives and powers of equality with God for the sake of humanity. He did not consider His divine status as something to cling to or to be used to rule others. The text insists that He “emptied Himself ” — in other words, He gave Himself away completely, and assumed our humanity. Going even beyond that, Jesus accepted the condition of a slave and became obedient to God even to the point of laying down His life for others.
Interestingly, it is this giving away that was the cause of His exaltation and empowerment. Humans seek and cling to power that is used to control others and to exalt oneself, but this power is illusory and fleeting. True exaltation results from loving and serving others and being obedient to God. The more we serve the ego, the more we are distanced from God; the more we serve others, the more we are brought into harmony with our divine source.
The qualities of the suffering servant and the self-emptying Christ came together in the drama of the passion. This was not a death for its own sake and it was not desired by Jesus — He begged God to take it away if possible. Of prime importance for Jesus was remaining faithful to His mission, that of revealing and manifesting the teachings of God. Jesus continued to model these teachings even during the passion: He insisted on non-violence on the part of His disciples and He asked God to forgive His persecutors and executioners. He forgave the repentant thief (probably a terrorist) and welcomed him into His kingdom.
His disciples displayed their inability to understand and take to heart His teachings by their quarrelling over greatness during the supper. They had walked with Him for so long and yet even as He faced death they showed that they did not really know what He was about.
Those closest to Jesus let Him down in a big way. They could not stay awake with Him for an hour to comfort and encourage Him. One of the 12 betrayed Him to the authorities and Peter, the rock of the community, denied three times that he even knew Jesus in order to save his own skin.
Human weaknesses among those who claim to follow and represent Jesus are nothing new. It is for that very reason that His passion was and still is important — it continues to give us an example of integrity, courage, faith, obedience and love. As we contemplate the impending passion of Jesus, it would be helpful not to focus exclusively on His death but its significance and what it reveals about God — and us.
This is the same path that we all must follow, although probably not in a literal sense. In our own journey through life each one of us is called to display the qualities of compassion, forgiveness, humility, generosity, love and service in whatever we do.