Jesus and the problem of authority
Proper Last B | John 18:33-37
When we last gathered on Sunday, we heard Jesus announce a terrifying future, what scholars call “The Little Apocalypse” of Mark. I had prepared a sermon for it, even recorded the audio, before that foul beast named COVID interfered. So I was not with you for that gathering, but I trust the community had to wrestle a bit with questions of fear and authority.
Jesus pushes back at the disciple’s awe toward human authority and the works of human hands in the building of the temple. That these are not as awesome as the works of God—and far more delicate.
What happens after that is the sequence we know as the Passion. When Jesus gathers his disciples close for one last supper together, he is betrayed, arrested, tried by Temple leaders, and handed over to Rome to be executed. And that is why he now stands before Pilate.
But this raises a lot of questions before we even dig into this moment itself, chief among them is this: …
The full text may be found here.
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