Jesus is fully human, but also fully God. With that mystery at work, you have to expect a few surprises. Spirits obey him and recognize him because of his Godhood, but he doesn't lord it over us regular people. Small acts like the one he did for Simon (Peter)'s mother are evidence of that.

Wny did Jesus need to be baptized? Was it to wash away his sins? Certainly not, but to show us what full fellowship with God looks like. His example was made for us so that we could know God better, and the invitation to baptism is just the beginning.

The responses to Jesus were notable. A religious leader, someone who was probably friends with the enemies of Jesus, gave his own burial plot for Jesus's body. The other religious leaders who convinced soldiers to lie were certainly convinced that something had come of Jesus's message... why else would they go to such great lengths to cover up what was happening? And then there were the disciples. Even after the resurrection, some still had problems believing. Following Jesus wasn't easy, but he did make an enduring promise: that he would always be with his followers.

The crucifixion is, of course, one of the most important moments in Christian history. Jesus is fulfilling prophecy while demonstrating the unthinkable vulnerability of a God who came to be among us. It was also a wild day, apparently, with those who had died before making surprise appearances. Only God knows the answer to why, but maybe this first bell of Jesus inaugurating his lordship needed a few extra heralds? 

It seems that the path to the cross has more people in conflict than just Jesus. Judas kills himself, Pilate's wife tries to warn him and fails, and even the religious leaders who paid Judas realize that they have spent blood money. Supernatural forces are certainly at work, and this has an effect on the people involved.

The road to the cross is a difficult one, and not just for Jesus. Times of testing sometimes show us things we wish we didn't know about ourselves, and Peter is learning his own cowardice. Don't worry, though. Better days are coming.

It's easy for us, with the benefit of looking back on history, to see where God's story was going and think Mary was calmly agreeing to what was about to happen in her life. In reality, it was scandalous enough that Joseph considered cutting her loose. And so would be the life of Jesus: doing things sometimes opposite of what might be expected, but using that upside-down approach to help people see who God really was.

Jesus has been talking, in previous chapters, a lot about what citizens of his Kingdom look like. Now he comes to an even more important point: himself. There is no Kingdom without him, and his is the life that was given to breathe breath into the Law and prophets. His sacrifice is the picture of what God looks like and the lengths to which God will go to be in covenant with his people.

Today’s collection of verses are an interesting combination. In Psalm 51, after the lament section, David declares that his sacrifice is a broken Spirit, which he wrote after the priesthood of Aaron was established from the Exodus passage. “You do not delight in sacrifice” also seems like a preview for what Jesus was bringing, And of course, the passage from Matthew is exactly that: instead of the brokenness of animals, we should be humble enough to serve others, offering wholeness.