Fight for something

Too many Christians today have spiritualised the death of Jesus and are satisfied to say simply that Jesus died for our salvation — "the blood of the Lamb has washed away our sins". While this may be true theologically, these Christians tend to ignore the stark reality of the Gospel story and the real historical context in which Jesus lived, preached and died. Moreover this approach can keep us trapped in a devotional Christianity often unrelated to the world in which Jesus lived and in which he preached his message of the kingdom.

 

The events of Jesus' passion and death need to be seen within the historical context of his times and the complexity of this socio-political context. We need to understand realistically the reason why Jesus was crucified. And the stark reality is that Jesus was killed because of what he said and did.

 

Jesus lived out his life in a particular historical context and what he said and did can only be fully understood in relation to that context. He came into a world where there was great inequality, injustice and poverty and where, for many, the covenant had been reduced to the observance of strict laws and rituals. The ruling class was made up of the high priestly families and the Sadducees, the great landowners, businessmen and the court circles around Herod. There was tension between this rich upper class and the masses of poor people.

 

...

 

Jim Wallis, the founder of Sojourners in Washington, recalls an incident when he asked his students: "Why was Jesus crucified?" After some hesitation one student replied: "Well, to save us from our sins." Wallis replied: "So you think Pontius Pilate was sitting there thinking, 'How am I going to save these American evangelicals from their sins? I'm gonna kill this guy and that will do it'. No! He was killed because he was seen as a threat to the rulers - both religious and political."