December 27: A Man of Sorrows
♫ Music:
WEEK FIVE INTRODUCTION
TITLE: PART TWO--BORN TO DIE THAT MAN MIGHT LIVE
December 27 - January 2
Although it’s only two days after Christmas, our meditations for the coming week focus on Christ’s passion and crucifixion. You might be thinking, isn’t subject matter dealing with Holy Week the stuff of Lent? Yet in Revelation 13:8, Jesus is described as “the Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world.” Author Kay Arthur writes, “When God spoke and brought the world into existence, Christmas was on His heart. Christmas is all about Jesus, the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world! It’s about Jesus, God’s gift of redemption--born to die in my place so that I, who was dead in my sins, might have life!”
Handel’s Messiah was originally performed in the spring of 1742, just after Easter. Today over two hundred and fifty years later, most performances of Messiah occur just prior to Christmas. Usually only the first portion of the two-and-a-half-hour oratorio, focused on the birth of Christ, is executed. This has become an annual Christmas tradition for thousands around the world. But these audiences are only hearing part of what Handel envisioned. The full oratorio is a sweeping narrative, from prophetic utterances to the incarnation; from Christ’s death and resurrection to his glorification--a masterpiece that proclaims the full story of redemption.
We know that Christ’s birth makes no sense without his death and resurrection. The angel that appeared to Joseph in a dream prior to Christ’s birth announced that Jesus would “save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Throughout Christ’s earthly ministry, uppermost in his mind was the fact that he took on human form to die for the sins of the world. As we continue celebrating the Nativity this week, let’s do so by contemplating the most significant reason He came to earth.
Day 29 - Sunday, December 27
Title: A MAN OF SORROWS
Scripture: Isaiah 53:3-6; 50:6
He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. He gave His back to the smiters, and His cheeks to them that plucked off His hair: He hid not His face from shame and spitting. Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Poetry:
Bent to the Earth
by Blas Manuel De Luna
They had hit Ruben
with the high beams, had blinded
him so that the van
he was driving, full of Mexicans
going to pick tomatoes,
would have to stop. Ruben spun
the van into an irrigation ditch,
spun the five-year-old me awake
to immigration officers,
their batons already out,
already looking for the soft spots on the body,
to my mother being handcuffed
and dragged to a van, to my father
trying to show them our green cards.
They let us go. But Alvaro
was going back.
So was his brother Fernando.
So was their sister Sonia. Their mother
did not escape,
and so was going back. Their father
was somewhere in the field,
and was free. There were no great truths
revealed to me then. No wisdom
given to me by anyone. I was a child
who had seen what a piece of polished wood
could do to a face, who had seen his father
about to lose the one he loved, who had lost
some friends who would never return,
who, later that morning, bent
to the earth and went to work.
MAN OF SORROWS
I do not have to convince you that there is sorrow and suffering in the world today. The pandemic has exposed the underbelly of modern America: inequitable medical care, rising mental health issues, ubiquitous loneliness, acute economic concerns, and the realities of racial injustice. The draining disunity of the political cycle only perpetuated the deep disconnections we experience with each other. Sin has not only been felt in the brokenness inside ourselves, but the brokenness we see in our world.
Peruzovic’s Ecce Homo poignantly illustrates the scope of sorrow and suffering. Notice the blood-red backdrop, ominous in its color, composition, and consistency. Recognize the agony in Jesus’ grief-elongated face, his unevenly bruised cheeks, and his swollen right eye. Consider how the contrasting blueness of his left eye catches our attention, calling for compassion. The collective brokenness of the world is on display in the lonely, floating bust; his halo is even discolored by blood. The crown of thorns pierces any normalcy of comfort and frames the frontal pose that ensures we do not ignore the sin-soaked scene.
Our Bible passage today reminds us that our King is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. We tend to associate this passage with the first coming we celebrated a few days ago (and rightly so!); the life, death, and resurrection of Christ roots our faith, hope, and love. But this passage also reminds us that Christ bears our grief and carries our sorrow with us even now as we wait for the renewal of all things in his second coming. He’s paid for our iniquities once and for all, but he’s also present with the pain of our world today.
And so, we’re called to wait for him as he waits with us. And the beauty of this waiting is that it is an invitation through and not an escape from the realities of our world. Sometimes waiting takes the shape of toxic positivity where our attention is unrealistically imbalanced on future possibilities instead of present realities. Sometimes waiting is more fear-mongering where we myopically focus on the burdens of today without trusting that God can intervene. Sometimes we feel abandoned by God in the waiting, and take things into our own hands and lose sight that he really is in control.
This waiting is messy, but one thing is clear: This waiting is not passive. This waiting invites us to hold the painful present and calibrate it with future hope. The waiting actively affirms the importance of life’s sorrows as the Man of Sorrows guides us through.
As we conclude our meditation today, turn on the music and talk to God about some of the suffering you have (or someone close to you has) experienced this season. How has God been with you in this time? What do you want from God as you look back on specific sorrows? Is there something God might be asking you to do to actively participate with him in the waiting?
Prayer:
Man of Sorrows, what a name
For the Son of God who came
Ruined sinners to reclaim
Hallelujah, what a Savior!
---Hymn by PP Bliss (1875)
Mike Ahn
Assistant Dean of Chapels & Worship
Host of The Biola Hour
About the Artwork:|
Ecce Homo
Hrvoje Marko Peruzovic
2014
Acrylic on canvas
40 × 30 cm
Pontius Pilate used the words "Ecce homo," Latin for "Behold the man," to refer to Christ as he presented Him to the hostile crowd shortly before His Crucifixion. Beaten by Pilate’s soldiers, Jesus was mocked and humiliated. Croatian artist Hrvoje Marko Peruzovic paints the elongated face of Jesus in a field of blood red, conveying the brutal reality of sorrow and pain and Christ’s knowledge of the ultimate sacrifice at Golgotha that looms before Him.
https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/christ-mocked-14524
https://www.imb.org/2017/04/07/journey-cross-artists-visualize-christs-passion-part-1/
About the Artist:
Hrvoje Marko Peruzovic (b. 1971) is a Croatian academic painter, graphic artist, illustrator, sculptor, and photographer. He graduated from the graphic department of the School of Applied Arts and Design in Split. In 1995 he graduated in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb. He has studied in Paris, Milan, Venice, and Vienna and has exhibited in about thirty solo exhibitions as well as in numerous group exhibitions in Croatia and abroad. He writes poetry, aphorisms, and short essays in the field of fine arts. Of his work, Peruzovic said that, “Even when I do sacred art, through some suffering of the body and torment I try to convey a universal message because the body is a perfect instrument. Not only in the physical world, but also as an artistic means by which certain spiritual states can be expressed. By the very position of the body, the expression, some stories can be told.” https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hrvoje_Marko_Peruzovi%C4%87
https://www.remek-djela.com/aktivnosti/hrvoje-marko-peruzovic-1/hrvoje-marko-peruzovic-1.html
Music #!:
“Surely He Hath Borne Our Griefs” from the album The New Young Messiah
Lyrics:
Surely. Surely....
He hath borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows.
He was wounded for our transgressions
he was bruised he was bruised
for our iniquities.
The chastisement
The chastisement
The chastisement
Of our peace
Was upon him.
Performers:
Larnell Harris, Michael English, and Steve Green
Larnelle Steward Harris (b. 1947) is an American gospel singer and songwriter. During his 40-plus years of ministry Harris has recorded 18 albums and won 5 Grammy Awards and 11 Dove Awards. Perhaps Harris' best-known songs are his duets with Sandi Patty, "More than Wonderful" and "I've Just Seen Jesus.” Admired by fans and peers alike for his majestic tenor voice, Harris exemplifies talent and integrity in a career that spans over five decades. He is a member of three distinct hall of fame organizations -- Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Kentucky Music Hall of Fame, and the Amateur Radio Hall of Fame. Songs such as "How Excellent Is Thy Name," "I Miss My Time with You," "I've Just Seen Jesus," plus many others, including his signature song, "Amen," are now considered modern gospel music classics. Still a sought-after vocalist for tours, special events and ceremonies, Harris continues to perform solo concerts for churches and various organizations worldwide each year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larnelle_Harris
http://www.larnelle.com/
Michael English (b. 1962) is an American Christian singer and record producer. Initially he was a member of his family's singing group, but later he became a member of The Gaither Vocal Band. During his solo career, he recorded eight studio albums. English's highest-charting solo single was "Your Love Amazes Me,” which reached No. 10 on the Adult Contemporary chart in 1996.
https://michaelenglishmusic.com/
Steve Green (b. 1956) is a Christian singer, notable for his high vocal range and flexible solo style. Over his 35-year career, Green has been honored as a four-time Grammy Award nominee and a seven-time Dove Award winner. He has released 33 albums, had 13 No. 1 songs, and has sold over three million recordings. Green desires the kind of spiritual growth that J. C. Ryle describes: “When I speak of a man growing in grace, I mean simply this – that his sense of sin is becoming deeper, his faith stronger, his hope brighter, his love more extensive, his spiritual mindedness more marked.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Green_(singer)
https://stevegreenministries.org/
Composer:
Handel arr. by Alan Moore
Alan Moore has spent decades in the music industry. As a composer, he has created around 1,800 pieces of music for Fortune 500 companies' broadcast jingles, cinema, television, and radio. As an arranger, he has worked on recordings spanning a wide range of genres, from country to contemporary Christian to R&B. He has worked with artists like Amy Grant, Jaci Velasquez, and John Hiatt.
Music #2:
Messiah, HWV 56, Pt. 1: 24. He Was Despised
Lyrics:
He is despised and rejected of men,
a man of sorrows
and acquainted with grief
Music 3:
Messiah, HWV 56, Pt. 2: 1. Surely He Hath Borne Our Griefs
Lyrics:
Surely He hath borne our griefs,
and carried our sorrows!
He was wounded for our transgressions
Music #4:
Messiah, HWV 56, Pt. 2: 2. And With His Stripes
Lyrics:
He was bruised for our iniquities:
the chastisement of our peace was upon Him;
and with His stripes we are healed.
Music #5:
Messiah, HWV 56, Pt. 2: 3. All We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray
Lyrics:
All we, like sheep, have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way,
and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Messiah Performers/Musicians/Lyricists/Composer:
Unless otherwise noted, all Messiah performances are by Margaret Marshall, Catherine Robbin, Anthony Rolfe-Johnson, Robert Hale, Charles Brett, Saul Quirke, the English Baroque Soloists, and the Monteverdi Choir conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner. Biographical information for the performers and musicians can be found by clicking here.
About the Poet:
Blas Manuel De Luna (b. 1969) is a Mexican-American writer of both fiction and poetry. De Luna earned a BA and MA from California State University, Fresno, and an MFA from the University of Washington. He worked alongside his parents and siblings in California’s agricultural fields while he was growing up in Madera, California. His first book, Bent to Earth, a 2006 National Book Critics Circle finalist, reflects on those experiences. Claire Dederer in Poetry noted, “The immigrant labor experience permeates De Luna’s spare, forthright poetry, from his depictions of border crossings and INS beatings to his evocation of ‘bitter dust’ and carefully tended tomato plants.” In the same Poetry profile, De Luna comments on the autobiographical tone of his poems, stating, “I’m not by nature the kind of person who reveals himself, but it just kind of happens in the poems—the willingness to go to the place where you’re revealed, but always in service of the poem, never in a purging kind of way.” His poems have been anthologized in How Much Earth: An Anthology of Fresno Poets (2001) and Highway 99: A Literary Journey Through California’s Great Central Valley (1996). A 1998 Artist Trust / Washington State Art Commission Literature Fellow, he teaches high school English in California.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/blas-manuel-de-luna
About the Devotion Author:
Mike Ahn
Director of Worship and Formation
Host of The Biola Hour Podcast
Biola University
Mike Ahn oversees Biola's chapel programs, worship teams, the annual Torrey Conference and The Biola Hour podcast and serves on the pastoral care team. He is a graduate of Haverford College (B.A., History, '01) and Talbot School of Theology’s Institute for Spiritual Formation (M.Div., Spiritual Formation, ’09), and he is currently completing his Ph.D. in Educational Studies at Talbot. If he could, Mike would have two In-N-Out cheeseburgers with chopped chilis, animal style fries, and a Pamplemousse LaCroix for every meal.