April 4: Jesus Questioned Before the High Priest
♫ Music:
Day 42 - Tuesday, April 4
Title: JESUS QUESTIONED BEFORE THE HIGH PRIEST
Scripture: John 18:19–24
Meanwhile the High Priest interrogated Jesus about his disciples and about his own teaching.
“I have always spoken quite openly to the world,” replied Jesus. “I have always taught in the synagogue or in the Temple where all the Jews meet together, and I have said nothing in secret. Why do you question me? Why not question those who have heard me about what I said to them? Obviously they are the ones who know what I actually said.”
As he said this, one of those present, an officer, slapped Jesus with his open hand, remarking, “Is that the way for you to answer the High Priest?”
“If I have said anything wrong,” Jesus said to him, “you must give evidence about it, but if what I said was true, why do you strike me?
Then Annas sent him, with his hands still tied, to the High Priest Caiaphas.
Poetry & Poet:
“The Interrogation of the Good”
By Bertolt Brecht
Step forward: we hear
That you are a good man.
You cannot be bought, but the lightning
Which strikes the house, also
Cannot be bought.
You hold to what you said.
But what did you say?
You are honest, you say your opinion.
Which opinion?
You are brave.
Against whom?
You are wise.
For whom?
You do not consider your personal advantages.
Whose advantages do you consider then?
You are a good friend.
Are you also a good friend of the good people?
Hear us then: we know.
You are our enemy. This is why we shall
Now put you in front of a wall. But in consideration of your merits and good qualities
We shall put you in front of a good wall and shoot you
With a good bullet from a good gun and bury you
With a good shovel in the good earth.
JESUS QUESTIONED BEFORE THE HIGH PRIEST
Today’s Scripture is such a good gift from our loving Father. And today’s painting and the poem bring so much depth and richness to the way we can reflect on the passage.
As we reflect, I invite you to first remember today’s musical selection: Handel’s setting of Isaiah 53:4-5. Particularly, sit with that opening word, “Surely.” This is an English word with definitions that are not in Isaiah’s Hebrew. But as a tool for reflection, please consider that sure is defined as: safe; steadfast; trustworthy; confident; certain; without doubt.
Surely he hath borne our griefs
Christ has borne them safely, confidently, certainly. Jesus can and does bear our burdens. We would be crushed under them. But Jesus carries them with surety. He can bear them and not succumb.
With that in mind, we think of our passage, the record of Christ in the house of Caiaphas, before the high priest. As we were well reminded in the introduction to Holy Week, Christ is the one in control of these proceedings. Jesus is not the one actually on trial. He is no passive character being swept along by the drama developing around him. He has no personal guilt to be weighed in the balance. He is orchestrating this series of events, building the tension in this story to prepare for a twist nobody could see coming, though he has been making it plain to his disciples every step of the way. He is a chess grandmaster, setting up His sacrificial move that will forever change the game and win a greater victory that the opponent did not expect.
J. Kirk Richards’ painting, In the House of Caiaphas, uses the chess board pattern under Jesus’ feet to hint at this idea. I look at the other images in the painting, those surrounding our Savior: hooded faces, gaping mouths, smiling skulls, faceless soldiers pointing their spears, and I hear the question from Brecht’s poem, “Are you a good friend of the good people?”
In answer, we see Christ: serene, certain, sure. He stands as the King in the center of the chess board. Our John passage has his response to the above question, “I have spoken openly… question those who have heard me.” In other words, the evidence of his goodness (and of his friendship) is already out there.
Among the images in the painting, several things stand out. One is the shallowness and incompleteness of the figures in the crowd. Most look like paper cutouts, reflecting their shallow and flimsy accusations. Another is that most of the faces lack natural-looking eyes, instead they are circular with no pupil, or empty skeletal eye sockets. One of the faces in the crowd has a single natural-looking eye, but not two, this half-vision representing a distorted perspective on the world. Christ, in contrast, is painted with soft edges, His goodness radiant amid the darkness. Those soft edges create visual depth and dimension, while He is surrounded by flatness. He stands tall, His goodness the only necessary defense amid the malevolence.
Christ is good. In today’s poem, The Interrogation of the Good by Bertolt Brecht, the speaker’s definition of good becomes twisted beyond recognition, focused on power and enmity. Let us always look to Christ and the simple yet profound truth of His goodness. In His goodness, surely He hath borne our griefs.
Prayer:
Our good and loving Savior, thank you for bearing our burdens and for giving us rest. We praise you that in Your holiness you took the worst that this world could bring against you and turned it for Your glory, and for our freedom. May Your Spirit fill us and enable us to rest in Your victory, your wisdom, your goodness.
Amen.
Chuck Koontz, MLIS
Systems Librarian and Archivist
Adjunct faculty for School of Fine Arts & Communications
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Translation of the Bible for the 2023 Lent Project:
J.B. Phillips New Testament Translation of the Bible
J.B. Phillips (1906-1982) was well-known within the Church of England for his commitment to making the message of truth relevant to today's world. Phillips' translation of the New Testament brings home the full force of the original message. The New Testament in Modern English was originally written for the benefit of Phillips' youth group; it was later published more widely in response to popular demand. The language is up-to-date and forceful, involving the reader in the dramatic events and powerful teaching of the New Testament. It brings home the message of Good News as it was first heard two thousand years ago.
https://www.biblegateway.com/
About the Artwork:
In the House of Caiaphas
J. Kirk Richards
Oil on canvas
2004
Under the cloak of darkness, Jesus is captured and arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane and brought first to Annas and then to the private residence of the high priest Caiaphas to be interrogated. Artist J. Kirk Richards paints the encounter with a limited inky gray-blue palette that emphasizes the clandestine nature of the rushed illegal “trial” that would ultimately result in Jesus' crucifixion by the Romans. Richards highlights the figure of Jesus standing solemnly in the midst of a chaotic and claustrophobic space inhabited by bloated figures, faceless soldiers, and grotesque skull-shaped faces—all revealing the true nature of the Sanhedrin’s unjust proceedings.
About the Artist:
J. Kirk Richards is a favorite among admirers of contemporary spiritual artwork. His love of the textural, the poetic, and the mysterious has translated into a unique take on traditional Judeo-Christian themes. Richards attributes much of his love for the arts to an early emphasis on musical training in his parents’ home. Turning then from music to visual arts, Kirk studied with painters Clayton Williams, Patrick Devonas, Gary and Jennifer Barton, James Christensen, Joe Ostraff, and others. Two years in Rome influenced Richards’ palette, which often consists of subdued browns and rusts. Kirk and his wife, Amy, have four creative children. They split their time between their home in Woodland Hills, California, and their country studio in the small town of Redmond, Utah. Richards’ work is mostly found in private collections throughout the country.
http://www.jkirkrichards.com/
About the 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.
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.
Surely, surely, surely,
He hath borne our grief.
About the Composer:
George Frederic Handel (1685–1759) was a German Baroque composer who spent the bulk of his career in London and became well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, and organ concertos. He was strongly influenced by the great composers of the Italian Baroque and the middle-German polyphonic choral tradition. Musicologist Winton Dean writes that his operas show that “Handel was not only a great composer; he was a dramatic genius of the first order.” Handel’s Messiah was first performed in Dublin, Ireland, in April 1742 and received its London premiere nearly a year later. After an initially modest public reception, the oratorio gained in popularity, eventually becoming one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in western music.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messiah_(Handel)
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-glorious-history-of-handels-messiah-148168540/
About the Performers: Michael English, Larnelle Harris, and Steve Green
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.”
https://michaelenglishmusic.com/
Larnelle Harris (b. 1947) is an American gospel singer and songwriter. During his forty-plus years of ministry, Harris has recorded eighteen albums and has won five Grammy Awards and eleven Dove Awards. Perhaps Harris' best-known songs are his duets with Sandi Patty, including "More than Wonderful" (1983) and "I've Just Seen Jesus" (1985). Others of his well-received and popular songs are his self-penned "I Miss My Time With You" (1986) and "In It After All," written by Dawn Thomas. Harris' song, "Mighty Spirit" was featured in a 1993 television campaign for the Points of Light Foundation, headed by President George H. W. Bush. His 1995 album, Unbelievable Love, received the 1996 Dove Award as Inspirational Album of The Year. A concert critic described Harris as having a “larger-than-life stage presence with impeccable vocal prowess.” He is the only person in history to be 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.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larnelle_Harris
https://www.larnelle.com/biography.html
Steve Green (b. 1956) is an American singer/songwriter. He spent much of his early life in Argentina with his missionary parents. He graduated from Grand Canyon University. His intended major was pre-law, but a professor recognized his musical talent and encouraged him to develop it. In 1980, Green joined Gary McSpadden, Lee Young and Bill Gaither to form the Gaither Vocal Band. Green sang tenor for their first two albums, The New Gaither Vocal Band and Passin' the Faith Along. In 1982, He signed a solo contract with Sparrow Records, and released his self-titled debut album in 1984. In the same year, he established Steve Green Ministries. Green's breakout year came in 1985 with the release of He Holds the Keys, which earned him the Dove Award for Male Vocalist of the Year in the Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) category. Green has been nominated for a Grammy Award four times. He has also been the Dove Award winner seven times and was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2017. His website states he has sold over three million albums. His bilingual abilities have seen the release of seven Spanish CDs in the United States, including El Descanso, in 2019.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Green_(singer)
https://stevegreenministries.org/
About the Poetry and Poet:
Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956) was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. During the Nazi Germany period, Brecht fled his home country, first to Scandinavia, and then to the United States, where he worked in the film industry in Los Angeles, California. He returned to Berlin, where he established the theatre company Berliner Ensemble with his wife and longtime collaborator, actress Helene Weigel. Though a poet and essayist, he was most notably a playwright whose theatrical works portrayed social issues. Among his more than forty plays are the influential works The Threepenny Opera (1928), written with the composer Kurt Weill, and Mother Courage and Her Children (1941). Brecht challenged the theatrical genre by creating "epic theatre," which was inspired by German expressionism and Marxism, and portrayed nonlinear events in an objective manner that presented an argument meant to prompt social change.
https://poets.org/poet/bertolt-brecht
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertolt_Brecht
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bertolt-Brecht
About Devotion Author:
Chuck Koontz, MLIS
Systems Librarian and Archivist
Adjunct faculty for School of Fine Arts & Communications
Biola University
Chuck Koontz is the Systems Librarian and Archivist at Biola University, having worked at Biola since 2001. He also works as a freelance musician playing tuba in various settings around Los Angeles. He has been happily married to Faith since 2001, and they have three sons. The Koontzes are members of Grace Evangelical Free Church in La Mirada.