And they parted his raiment, and cast lots (Luke 23:34b).
" + "The Crucifixion fulfilled prophecy. Everything that happened on Calvary occurred as God intended. Jesus' crucifixion actualized Psalm 22 in brutal detail (see also Psalm 69:21). Mocked and beaten, Jesus received a criminal's death. With thorns for his crown and a wooden cross for his throne, he was exalted for all Jerusalem to see. Though each breath was an excruciating battle between survival and asphyxia, Jesus, the Word made flesh, spoke the Word from the cursed tree so that Scripture might be fulfilled.
" + "As those gathered below him continued to deride him, he asked his Father to forgive them for their ignorance. As the rulers mocked his Majesty, he embodied the reconciliation, which the Loving Father desired to effect with His unloving children. As Jesus continued to bleed and sweat, he noticed that "they parted his raiment, and cast lots." Jesus saw how carelessly "they" treated his mantle, the mantle that all true followers of the Way should desire to take up. Jesus saw as "they" rent his mantle and gambled for the pieces that remained.
" + "It is no accident that Luke does not labor to disclose who "they" are. Were "they" the people, the ruler, or the Romans? Or, were "they" some combination of these three? Luke only tells us that "they" did this. "They" tore Jesus' mantle. "They" gambled for it; "they" shot craps for it. "They" were ignorant of the Truth that Jesus died for "them." For, the blood-soaked mantle, which "they" tore and for which "they" gambled, was the majestic robe of the Messiah, the Resurrected One, Whom death could not contain. "They" were ignorant of the Truth that Jesus' crucifixion represented his glorious exaltation (John 12:32). From Jesus' vantage point, "they" were those gathered at Calvary. From Jesus' vantage point, "they" were those, who would live centuries, even millennia, from that day in 1st century Palestine.
" + "In 1st century Palestine, "they" were the "we," who did not understand Jesus' identity or the divine mission, which cohered with His identity. In 2009 brothers and sisters – and in so many ways – we are "they." We have assumed the mantle of the Resurrected One, but instead of accepting the commission it bestows, we part it. We gamble with it and for it.
" + "Elisha received a double portion of Elijah's spirit when he saw Elijah's ascension into heaven in the fiery chariot in the midst of the whirlwind; this was the mantle, which the pupil received from his master and teacher (2 Kings 2:1 – 18). We, who are called to live and see by faith, must discern that inasmuch as Elijah's mantle represented the promise of what could be, Jesus' mantle represents the fulfillment of what has been, what is, and what will be. Jesus' mantle —in a sense— affords us a double portion of our Lord's spirit. Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection confirmed the Word of our Father and prepared the way for the sending of the Holy Ghost. We have the Word and the Holy Ghost; this is the mantle of our Lord. How do we part it? How do we gamble for it? How do we gamble with it? In what ways are we blind to the Truth and responsibility this mantle bestows upon us?
" + "Brothers and sisters, a torn mantle cannot provide complete warmth or protection from the elements for one body. It provides partial warmth and protection for bodies. Such enables hate, division, and strife. We are called to operate in love, unity, and peace. This is that with which we gamble. Let us all stop to pause and consider how comfortable we still are with ignorance of the Truth that we are "they." May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all?
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