Saturday, March 28

Scripture: Matthew 27:45-54
Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

THE CENTURION
Lent is a season for personal and corporate spiritual renewal. During this season, the Christ follower is to look within and ask, “Am I living my life as though it were worthy of someone to die?” Furthermore, Lent is a time to die to self and to the power that sin has over our lives. The desire during this season is that God would create in us clean, broken, and contrite hearts. An authentic journey through Lent leads to repentance—to turn away from sin and to turn to God.

The Scriptures show us numerous examples of people turning away from sin and focusing their attention on God. One such example occurred on the hill of Golgotha.

As a Roman soldier, he would have observed, and participated in hundreds, if not thousands, of crucifixions. Having a hand in the punishment and death of criminals would have been a normal occurrence. Over time, this would have caused him to become a hard and cold soldier—a valuable character trait for such a career. He also must have been a well–respected soldier to be assigned to the crucifixion of such a high value target.

The soldier’s story was such an important piece of what occurred at Jesus’ crucifixion, that it is mentioned in three of the four gospel accounts. But why is this story so important for us today?

It shows us that hardened hearts can become soft. The Roman soldier, known for his hard demeanor and rugged personality is not mentioned in the gospels for his cruelty or callousness, but rather for a transformation that occurred immediately after the death of one of his prisoners. He knew what to expect, having seen so many crucifixions. But something was different about this prisoner—the one they called the King of the Jews. Not once did he hear Jesus plead for his own life, which was likely a common practice of the criminals he normally supervised. In fact, it was just the opposite: he heard Jesus pray for him “Father forgive them...”

It seems that this soldier may be the first person to believe after Jesus’ death. “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mark 15:39). The centurion stood before God, and before men, and declared in a loud voice that Jesus was who he said he was. We don’t know the result of this declaration: was he mocked? Did he lose his job? Was he physically punished? Regardless, his confession of faith is a powerful declaration and one that surely was an encouragement to many in the early church.

Standing in the presence of the Son of God, the centurion turned his attention from his sinful self and onto the saving Christ. His story offers hope for our own lives today. Our hardened hearts can become soft, and our sins—no matter what we’ve done or what we’ve participated in—can be forgiven. And so, during Lent we should ask, “Am I living my life in a way that shows how grateful I am that Jesus, the Son of God, died for me?”

Listen to the setting of today’s music, Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed. Imagine the centurion singing these words as he speaks for all of us.

Alas! and did my Savior bleed
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For sinners such as I?

Was it for crimes that I had done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity! grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!

Well might the sun in darkness hide
And shut his glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker died,
For man the creature’s sin.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe:
Here, Lord, I give my self away
’Tis all that I can do.

At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart rolled away,
It was there by faith I received my sight,
And now I am happy all the day!

PRAYER
O Lord, who hast mercy upon all, take away from me my sins, and mercifully kindle in me the fire of thy Holy Spirit. Take away from me the heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh, a heart to love and adore thee, a heart to delight in thee, to follow and to enjoy thee, for Christ's sake.
Amen. (Ambrose of Milan, c 339 -97)

Steven D. Brooks, Adjunct Professor, Conservatory of Music