Monday in Holy Week: Jesus is Anointed for His Burial

Mary Anoints Jesus at Bethany

Collect for the Day:

Almighty God, grant that in the midst of our failures and weaknesses we may be restored through the passion and intercession of Your only-begotten Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Old Testament Lesson: Isaiah 50:5–10

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 36:5–10; antiphon: v. 9

Epistle Lesson: 1 Peter 2:21–24

Gospel Lesson:  St. John 12:1–23

“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”  (John 12: 23b “…for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.” (John 12: 43).

The glory that comes from  the Old Adam always praises the glory of man. As a pastor wrote after “the Oscars” ceremony:  Idolaters worshiping their idols as their idols receive an idol. This is as old as Babel.

  And all man’s Babylons strive but to impart/The grandeurs of his Babylonian heart. (Francis Thompson)

We think that man’s glory will last the ages, as the 1,000 Year Reich proclaimed, but even the vainglorious ancient Romans knew something of the transitory nature of earthly glory:

“For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of triumph, a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeteers, musicians and strange animals from conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conquerors rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children robed in white stood with him in the chariot or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror holding a golden crown and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting.” (General George S. Patton)

“In the cross of Christ I glory, tow’ring o’er the wrecks  of time”. Not all glory is fleeting: The glory that comes from God glorifies His Son in love for us all, and His love is before the foundations of the world, ancient yet ever new (Ephesians 1: 4-5).  The Holy Monday Gospel is the severe contrast between the poverty of the glory that comes from man with the glory that comes from God. 

The evangelist John and many other eye witnesses of the Word testified, “…we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth’(John 1: 14). The glory coming from God is His extravagant and costly mercy, as seen “when Mary anointed the Lord’s feet”.  Judas was pinching pennies,not understanding such love, nor the Giver at the table.  Judas and the Pharisees magnifies the Adamic  lust after the glory of this world.  Judas could not understand Mary’s joy that her brother Lazarus was alive by the Word of Jesus.   Like Judas, the Old Adam is a thief, stealing to get ahead, attempting to rob God of the glory for one’s self.   As old as Eve (Genesis 3: 5). The glory coming from God is finally the costly blood of His Son for those who are poor in spirit to anoint our heads and feet with His forgiveness (Matthew 5: 3).Human reason, unaided by the revelation of God’s grace in Jesus Christ, can not understand such love. As  Mary anointed the Lord’s Body for His burial, the Lord has anointed us with His blood so our sin, our self itself is buried with Him, and that as He is risen,we too may walk in the newness of life (Romans 6: 4).  As our Lord said after His anointing:

“She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. ⁹ And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” (St. Mark 14)

We do not proclaim any good news of the rich and famous, Caesars and presidents, for there is none. In the whole world we remember what Mary did.  After the dust collects on trophies and awards and diplomas, they are forgotten but we remember with joy those who loved us. The Lord’s  love and mercy is never in the black, but always in the red, that is, in His blood.  A slave stands behind our ears who is the Lord of heaven and earth and says, ‘The glory of this world is fleeting, but  behold, I am with you even unto the end of age’ (Matthew 28: 20). 

O Lord  Jesus Christ, You who were anointed with the fullness of the Holy Spirit, give me grace so that I may sprinkle Your feet with penitent tears and may thus be enabled to anoint the members of Your spiritual body—especially the needy and suffering ones—with the oil of compassion and gentle kindness. Amen.  (prayer by Pr. Johann Gerhard)

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The Ascension of Our Lord, 9 May, anno Domini 2,013

Lessons:

Acts 1: 1-11

Ephesians 1: 15-23

St. Luke 24: 44-53

Almighty God, as Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, ascended into the heavens, so may we also ascend in heart and mind and continually dwell there with Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:
    He was manifested in the flesh,
   vindicated by the Spirit,
       seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
    believed on in the world,
       taken up in glory. 1 Timothy 3: 16

• Jesus was born of the house and lineage of David,  descended, according to the flesh, from King David.
• His Mother was a devout Jew.  His step-Father also a faithful son of Israel. They observed all the required sacrifices in the Temple.
• Jesus was born in the city of David, Bethlehem.
• On His 8th day of life, according to the Covenant the LORD God established with Abraham and his descendants, Jesus was circumcised.
• Jesus taught in the synagogue of Nazareth.
• Jesus observed the great Festivals of Israel, in particular, The Pesach, the Passover.His last meal was Passover.
• Jesus kept the Sabbath.
• By His Word through His touch He healed the sick, the blind, the deaf, the mute, the dead.
• By His Word He multiplied wine and bread.
• His hands blessed and broke the bread.
• His hands were bound as a common criminal.
• His head was crowned with thorns shedding His blood.
• He was a carpenter and bore the work of another carpenter:  the cross.
• His hands and feet were nailed to the cross.
• His side was pierced by a Roman spear and blood and water flowed out.
• He was laid in a tomb.
• And as He said, on the third day He rose again.
• For for 40 days,  in His resurrected body He ate and drank and showed many His hands and His side.
• On the 40th Day, He ascended into heaven: with the scars of the cross, the mark of the circumcision, the hands that healed and broke the bread blessed His apostles one last time…a true man, a Jewish man, was taken up into heaven and sits upon the right hand of God the Father.  Jesus is true God before all worlds were created.

His ascension is man’s exaltation.  As much as we exalt ourselves, at the expense of others, we do so to distance ourselves from others. He is exalted to be close to us all to lift us up by His Word and Sacraments. He is exalted to be near to us, Emmanuel, God with us, “This is My Body”  “This is My Blood”, His Word in our ears then our hearts.   His exaltation is His humiliation and in that humiliation His love and mercy for Israel and the whole human race is poured out through His life and crucifixion and resurrection.  He humiliated Himself to bring us close to His bosom and He ascended and is exalted to be close to us all.

For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly,
   but the haughty he knows from afar.

How high is heaven?  Very far away for the proud and self-exalted. But near for the lowly, for those who pray by looking up to Him Who came down for all.

 ⁷ Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
   you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
   and your right hand delivers me. (Psalm 138)

Seated on the right hand of the Father, and the Father’s right hand Man, true Lord,  is everywhere. How did the risen Jesus bodily come into locked rooms?  He was already there.  Where He is, there is His people.  His right hand has delivered us:  Thanks be to Jesus Christ!

THE ASCENSION by Kathryn Ann Hill, Rich in Grace:  The Bible of the Poor for 21^st Century Christians

With such faith God blessed old Enoch that they walked in one accord

Till the day he was not found, for he was taken by the Lord.

Taken also was Elijah when his faithful work was done:

In a chariot of fire he ascended near God’s throne.

As he left he dropped his mantle to Elisha, God’s elect,

That the preaching of God’s word might carry on to good effect.

 

From eleven true apostles Christ our Lord was taken up

After He had fed their faith with words of hope and bread and. cup,

After He instructed them to wait for power from on high

To enable them to witness to the kingdom drawing nigh.

They would follow in His footsteps, both to preach and suffer loss,

That all nations might receive forgiveness through the holy cross.

 

We who have received forgiveness through the preaching of the word

Ought to offer gifts of thanks for faithful servants of the Lord,

Those who taught us Christ has taken up with us by His great love And ascended to prepare a home for us with Him above.

Where Christ goes we too shall follow; as He promised it will be:

Nail-pierced feet have blazed a trail for tenderfoots like you and me.

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Ascension Eve

• Jesus was born of the house and lineage of David,  descended, according to the flesh, from King David.
• His Mother was a devout Jew.  His step-Father also a faithful son of Israel. They observed all the required sacrifices in the Temple.
• Jesus was born in the city of David, Bethlehem.
• On His 8th day of life, according to the Covenant the LORD God established with Abraham and his descendants, Jesus was circumcised.
• Jesus taught in the synagogue of Nazareth.
• Jesus observed the great Festivals of Israel, in particular, The Pesach, the Passover.His last meal was Passover.
• Jesus kept the Sabbath.
• By His Word through His touch He healed the sick, the blind, the deaf, the mute, the dead.
• By His Word He multiplied wine and bread.
• His hands blessed and broke the bread.
• His hands were bound as a common criminal.
• His head was crowned with thorns shedding His blood.
• He was a carpenter and bore the work of another carpenter:  the cross.
• His hands and feet were nailed to the cross.
• His side was pierced by a Roman spear and blood and water flowed out.
• He was laid in a tomb.
• And as He said, on the third day He rose again.
• For for 40 days,  in His resurrected body He ate and drank and showed many His hands and His side.
• On the 40th Day, He ascended into heaven: with the scars of the cross, the mark of the circumcision, the hands that healed and broke the bread blessed His apostles one last time…a true man, a Jewish man, was taken up into heaven and sits upon the right hand of God the Father.  Jesus is true God before all worlds were created.

His ascension is man’s exaltation.  As much as we exalt ourselves, at the expense of others, we do so to distance ourselves from others. He is exalted to be close to us all.  His exaltation is His humiliation and in that humiliation His love and mercy for Israel and the whole human race is poured out through His life and crucifixion and resurrection.  He humiliated Himself to bring us close to His bosom and He ascended and is exalted to be close to us all.

For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly,
   but the haughty he knows from afar.

How high is heaven?  Very far away for the proud and self-exalted. But near for the lowly, for those who pray by looking up to Him Who came down for all.

 ⁷ Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
   you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
   and your right hand delivers me. (Psalm 138)

His right hand has delivered us:  Thanks be to Jesus Christ!

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