March 6: The Scourging of Christ
♫ Music:
Day 2 - Thursday, March 6
Title: The Scourging of Christ
Scripture: Matthew 27:27–31 (NKJV)
Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.
Poetry & Poet:
“Holy Thursday, the Stripping”
by Marda Messick
The stripping proceeds without haste.
In this choreography
of total eviction
a bow accompanies each removal
of chalices and fair linen,
candelabra, the historic
embroidery,
the gilded Gospel.
The priest
has handed his scarlet robe
to the verger.
In the emptied chancel
he pours oil and water
on the undressed altar,
washes naked wood
like a body,
folds himself in shadow.
Lots are cast.
Our hearts are wax.
Eloi, Eloi, save us
from the power of the dog.
We kneel forsaken
until there is nothing for us
but to stagger, speechless,
into the voided
and vigilant night.
THE SCOURGING OF CHRIST
Twelve years ago, we sat outside our home eating with friends. The Nile River was in view and our children were laughing, running around a tree. A stray rock thrown by a child found its mark in a large African honeybee nest. The resulting chaos was a mad dash to flee from the organized, aggressive charge. Local South Sudanese stories recount these bees waiting for hours for people to emerge from hiding to get their revenge. Inside our house we watched them banging against the window and looking for a way in.
The bees beating at our windows relentlessly reminded us of their desire for vengeance––the passage in Matthew also relentlessly reminds readers of the suffering Christ. Matthew 27 draws us right into the swarming hive of Christ’s suffering. Paul van Dongen in his artwork Flogging draws our eyes to Jesus’ suffering through the medium of etching where he uses acid to focus his watercolor. The acidity destroys the paper in certain ways to allow watercolor to flow differently and the work of the artist becomes an invitation to see Christ’s suffering in a way that recognizes its sacrifice, tragedy, and beauty.
Poet Marda Messick describes a ceremony in some churches on this day. In somber silence, the church is stripped bare and everything that can be removed is carried away in silence. This practice is an all-sensory reminder that Christ himself was stripped and beaten––Jesus stripped himself (Phil 2) to become man, and then he allowed himself to be stripped, beaten, and mocked for us. This stripping echoes how God desires to form us, taking away what is unnecessary to give our heart the freedom to breathe, move, and grow in love for God. “Save us from the power of the dog” says the poem, please strip from us anything that may destroy us.
In South Sudan that day when I looked out my window again, I saw much more than the swarm of angry bees ready to strike. Pastor Andrew from the village had come; he had pulled up a stool and sat under the tree. He quietly stripped off his hat and allowed the bees to place their anger upon his body, to get their vengeance upon him not us.
It was a quiet sacrifice, he didn’t proclaim to the village what he was doing, after the bees left, he quietly walked home where he was sick from the stings for many days. As my eyes trace the scourged Jesus image above, I am reminded of my pastor, his hat off, his head stripped bare.
Christ’s stripping and beating is a somber reminder that we too must be stripped to be formed by His love. Christ was “despised” and “rejected” (Is 53:3) and this stripping invites contemplation about our response to His love. We are led to Calvary, as we intake His love and follow His example to strip away unnecessary things to respond to His sacrifice. Christ was stripped, and we must be too to enter through HIs love into a life of sacrifice where our stripping can be used by God for His glory.
Prayer:
God, today as we remember your suffering, let us also be reminded of our response to your love. Strip us of things that hinder us from knowing and loving you as we ought.
In your name, Amen.
Amie Cross, M.Div.
Chaplain and Missionary
Alumna of Torrey Honors College
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 Art:
Flogging
Paul van Dongen
2004
Watercolor on paper
70 x 50 cm.
Flagellation at the hands of the Romans is mentioned in three of the four canonical gospels and was the usual prelude to crucifixion under Roman law. None of the three accounts is more detailed than John's—"Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.” (19:1-16 NIV) In today’s artwork, painter Paul van Dongen creates a simple yet powerful watercolor painting of Christ bearing the gruelling torture He suffered at the hands of the Roman soldiers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flagellation_of_Christ
About the Artist:
Paul van Dongen (b. 1958) is a Dutch artist known for his detailed drawings, etchings, and subtle watercolors. Van Dongen's work is deeply rooted both in his Roman Catholic faith and his detail-oriented aesthetic. Explicitly religious subjects like the pietà, crucifixion, and resurrection are common themes in his work. He often chooses one detail from the usual iconographical depiction and then enlarges it. These enlargements, often executed on big pieces of stark white paper, make his work new and contemporary. He attended the Art Academy St. Joost in Breda, the Netherlands, and since then he has been working as an independent artist. His work can be found in the collections of the Noordbrabants Museum in Den Bosch, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Museum of Religious Art Uden, the Teylers Museum Haarlem, the Tilburg University, the Hague, and in corporate collections.
https://www.paulvandongen.com/
About the Music: “Lead Me to Calvary” from the album Hymns of Hope
Lyrics:
King of my life, I crown Thee now.
Thine shall the glory be.
Lest I forget Thy thorn-crowned brow.
Lead me to Calvary.
Lest I forget Gethsemane.
Lest I forget Thine agony.
Lest I forget Thy love for me.
Lead me to Calvary.
May I be willing, Lord, to bear.
Daily my cross for Thee.
Even Thy cup of grief to share.
Thou hast borne all for me.
Lest I forget Gethsemane.
Lest I forget Thine agony.
Lest I forget Thy love for me.
Lead me to Calvary.
Lest I forget Gethsemane.
Lest I forget Thine agony.
Lest I forget Thy love for me.
Lead me to Calvary.
About the Composer:
Jennie Evelyn Hussey (1874–1958) wrote many of the church's best-loved hymns. Although Hussey wrote over one hundred fifty hymns, several of which appeared in hymnbooks in her own day, the only one familiar to most people today is “King of My Life, I Crown Thee Now,” with its haunting refrain, “Lead me to Calvary.” Hussy lived up to her hymn, dedicating her life to selfless caregiving. Much of her life was spent caring for an invalid sister, which she did cheerfully, often referring to Luke 9:23, which calls us to take up our crosses daily.
https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/dailystory/permalink/hussey-is-famous-for-a-single-hymn-of-aspiration
About the Performer:
Don Moen (b. 1950) is a singer-songwriter, pastor, and producer of Christian worship music. He produced eleven albums for the Hosanna! Music series of worship albums and worked for Integrity Media for over twenty years. His discography reflects his passion to create resources for the church that lead people into an honest and intimate relationship with the Lord. In 2002, his peers recognized that lifelong commitment and presented him with the Ray DeVries Church Ministry Award. Don has also received a Dove Award for his work on the musical God With Us and has received multiple Dove Award nominations for his songs, CDs, and choral resources.
https://donmoen.com/
About the Poetry and Poet:
Marda Messick is a poet and “accidental” theologian living in Tallahassee, Florida. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in The Christian Century, Literary Mama, Vita Poetica, Delmarva Review, and other publications. She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize for her poetry.
https://boomerlitmag.com/marda-messick-2/
About the Devotion Writer:
Amie Cross, M.Div.
Chaplain and Missionary
Alumna of Torrey Honors College
Biola University
For twelve years, Amie Cross has lived in East Africa, where she lives and serves with her husband and five children. She completed her undergraduate studies at Biola as a part of the Torrey Honors Society cohort and her M.Div. in Community Chaplaincy from Liberty University. She currently serves as the elementary school chaplain for an international school, where she daily learns from her students, colleagues, and parents more about who God is by engaging in spiritual formation with them. The opportunity to come alongside others as God carries their burdens and transcends culture, class, race, and injustice to bring peace is one she thanks God for daily.