April 11, 2019

The Blessed One, Servant and Son

Melissa Tidwell | Read Philippians 2:5-11

(Image by: Pixabay)

Lectionary Week

April 8–14, 2019

Scripture Overview

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Psalm 118 is a song of rejoicing, yet it also includes the prophecy that the cornerstone must experience rejection. Isaiah speaks of physical suffering, of being beaten, disgraced, and spat on. We see elements of this in the Gospel reading, where Luke describes the final moments of Jesus’ life. Bloodied and beaten, Jesus hangs on the cross and breathes his last. In Philippians, Paul places this drama within the eternal narrative of God’s redeeming work. Jesus leaves his rightful place and becomes flesh. He experiences pain and suffering, even the most humiliating form of death, crucifixion. Jesus can empathize with our suffering because he has suffered. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Questions and Suggestions for Reflection

Read Isaiah 50:4-9a. How does the Suffering Servant speak to your life today?
Read Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29. How do you hear differently the familiar verses of this psalm when you read them together?
Read Philippians 2:5-11. Do you find it paradoxical to live as a beloved child of God and as a servant? If so, how do you live in this paradox?
Read Luke 19:28-40. How do you experience the extreme emotional highs and lows of Palm Sunday and Holy Week, even knowing how it will all turn out?

Respond by posting a prayer.

Paul’s letters are not abstract theological treatises but practical communications meant for a particular place with a particular context. We do not know the exact details of all the situations to which Paul writes, but it seems clear that the Philippians are experiencing conflict among strong-minded parties.

Paul urges the...

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Incarnate One, human and divine, we praise you as servant and son. Teach us to embrace our own call to be children of God, servants of all. Amen.

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