I am sharing today a portion of a sermon I delivered on Good Friday a number of years ago.
The Yellow Brick Road
Mark 15:16-20 (NRSV)
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
16 Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters); and they called together the whole cohort. 17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him. 18 And they began saluting him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19 They struck his head with a reed, spat upon him, and knelt down in homage to him. 20 After mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
It was the 1960’s. We gathered in front of our new color TV to watch the annual presentation of the Wizard of Oz. Corn was popped in our iron Dutch oven, coca colas were poured, and the saga of Dorothy began. Dorothy and Toto, running from a mean old woman determined to take Toto from Dorothy, are swept away to the wonderful world of Oz where their dangers only worsen. The only hope to return home is in reaching the great and powerful Oz, and the only advice they received is “follow the yellow brick road.”
Our Scripture today tells us about the last road Jesus would ever walk. Just one week earlier throngs of people welcomed Him into the city of Jerusalem, shouting “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord”, yet there was an unseen danger. Much like the Wicked Witch of the West planning a way to destroy Dorothy and steal her ruby slippers, the religious leaders were already plotting Jesus’ demise.
Have you ever thought about some of the similarities between the fictional account of Dorothy and the narrative of Jesus’ last days. Both the Yellow Brick Road and The Road to Calvary seemingly were one way roads. Neither Dorothy and her friends nor Jesus and those who accompanied Him met anyone traveling from the opposite direction
Both roads had a singular destination–there was no city beyond Oz nor a place beyond Golgotha.
Neither Jesus nor Dorothy traveled alone, yet none of their friends could help them.
But here is where the roads diverge. While one leads to a magical, mythical land, the other leads to the cruel and very real Place of the Skull.
The phrase, “Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore” has become a way of acknowledging our situation has changed, not just changed but has spun out of our control. In other words, things are so different that our normal coping mechanisms will no longer work.
Have you ever had a time when you wished for either a yellow brick road or perhaps a pair of ruby slippers that you could click together three times and you would magically be transported away from your troubles? When Jesus prayed in the garden, asking that the bitter cup before him be removed, he had a very real choice to make. Would he remain faithful to His calling by staying on the Road to Golgotha, or would he take the alternate route, a yellow brick road, still filled with danger but ultimately lifesaving. We all know the choice He made. He was obedient to God, even unto death.
When the Roman Empire ruled the world, there was a saying–all roads lead to Rome. From the time Jesus took his first mortal breath, all roads for Him led to the place where he would die.
Jesus was just where He was supposed to be that fateful day when He walked, stumbled and even crawled towards Calvary. Jesus was just where He was supposed to be when He rose from the dead, and He is just where he is supposed to right now as He sits at the right hand of God the Father.
Each one of us is called to take up our cross and follow Jesus, not down the yellow brick road but on the road to Calvary.
I must needs go home by the way of the cross,
There’s no other way but this;
I shall ne’er get sight of the gates of light,
If the way of the cross I miss.
Refrain
The way of the cross leads home,
The way of the cross leads home,
It is sweet to know as I onward go,
The way of the cross leads home.
I must needs go on in the blood sprinkled way,
The path that the Savior trod,
If I ever climb to the heights sublime,
Where the soul is at home with God.
The way of the cross led Jesus Home, and it leads us home today.
May we determine to be Easter people today and every day.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
- Posted in: Blogs
Seeking Holiness 