I just can’t manage to put myself in his shoes.

22May
When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set towards Jerusalem. When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, ‘Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’ But he turned and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village.
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’
- Luke 9:51-58

“He set his face to go towards Jerusalem” 

When I read the Gospel passage for today, this was the line that stood out to me. Jesus knew he was going towards his death, and yet he turned his face, set his destination, put one foot in front of the other, and began walking. Divine determination. Commitment to divine sacrifice. 

I just can’t manage to put myself in his shoes. I wouldn’t know how to do this. The closest I have come is saying goodbye to loved ones in hospice. Close in that death is iminent. When my grandmother was fading, we knew it was time. I traveled to Dallas knowing she was dying and was able to whisper my prayers, “thank yous,” and “I love yous” into her ear. I would very much like to believe that she heard them, even if she wasn’t conscious. She slipped away only a few hours after I left the hospital. 

But my grandmother was 94 with a weak heart. Jesus was supposed to have been a hearty thirty-three - in the very prime of his ministries. And he was so alone. The disciples in this verse strike me as buffoons. 

“Man, these guys aren’t showing us ANY hospitality! Let’s burn them down, dude!” 

Can’t they see how morose he is? Can’t they offer compassion? 

Another man commits to serving Jesus however he can and in a statement that feels weighted with premonitive sadness, Jesus answers, “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 

I feel the need to reach through the lines of the Gospel and offer Jesus comfort. To ensure he knows that generations of believers will be grateful for the sacrifice he is about to make. If I were to encounter him on this journey to Jerusalem, I would offer him the verse that sustains me in dark nights. 

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me besides the still waters.

He restores my soul…

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear not evil for thou art with me. (Psalm 23) 

Perhaps he said these lines himself while in the Garden of Gethsemane. Perhaps in his divinity he didn’t need to say them. Perhaps he knew them intuitively. 

My prayer for today is that I, we, never cease our gratitude and appreciation for the sacrifice Jesus made. May our hearts seek him out through time to that lonely journey to Jerusalem and offer him comfort and companionship along the way. May the way we live our lives assure him that his sacrifice was not in vain. 

Musical Reflection - Boulevard of Broken Dreams - Green Day

Merciful Jesus, we know that any path we must walk, you have already led the way. Thank you for sending your Spirit to guide us along the path. Amen.
GospelDeath
Tags
jesus, death, grief

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