The Reaction

“Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?” This was the frequently asked question of the evil queen in Snow White. One day when the mirror responded with “there is someone more fair than the queen," the queen was angry enough to kill.

We all have different ways of responding to the discovery that someone is more kind, more generous, more forgiving, or just better than us. Some people become angry like the queen, others may experience a kind of depression or envy, and others find themselves idolizing that person.

Near the end of Jesus ministry on earth He demonstrated qualities that pricked people to the heart. From Peter to Malchus from the Jews to the Roman guards, Jesus’ reactions to how people were treating Him made an impression.

When the rooster crowed the last time, Peter remembered the words of Jesus, words that Peter had denounced. Matthew 26:34, “Truly I say to you that this very night, before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” On the night of Jesus’ crucifixion, Peter went away and wept bitterly.

Malchus, the high priest’s slave, experienced something as equally humbling as he accompanied the mob who came to arrest Jesus for being a fake and a troublemaker. But what Malchus learned was different. John 18:10, “Simon Peter then, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slave's name was Malchus.” But Jesus immediately helped the man. Luke 22:51-52, “[Jesus] touched [Malchus’] ear and healed him.”

There was the Roman centurion whose job it was to assist in punishing criminals. But on this night, the criminal he was watching over actually convicted him. Luke 23:46-47, “Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my Spirit.’ Having said this, He breathed His last. When the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent.’"

Then there were the large number of Jews who had been convinced by the high priests that Jesus needed to die because of who He was. Yet they too observed what had happened, and began to return, beating their breasts.

As the seed that was scattered in the parable of the soils fell on soils that responded differently to it; Jesus’ life prompted reflection on those who came in contact with Him. Some remained bitter and angry; others wept and mourned. Still, there were others that were emboldened by the courageous display of God’s glory through Jesus’ sacrifice. People like Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple, found the courage to ask Pilate for the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he, along with Nicodemus, took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with spices in the burial custom of the Jews (John 19:38-40).

It hadn’t been too long before this that some of those same people who had come in contact with Jesus reacted differently. Peter claimed he wouldn’t deny Jesus ever but would even die with him. The priestly group had “plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him” (Matthew 26:4-5). The Romans had been beating and mocking him saying, “Hail, king of the Jews.” Meanwhile the Jews would be chanting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

Jesus paid for their sins and the sins of all of us that day. Later they would be saying something different, “Men and brethren, what do we do?” and “What must I do to be saved?” Where do we fit in? How do we respond to the message of Jesus? There had been many reactions, but in the end all will be humbled. Revelations 1:7, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him.” One day all will see that Jesus truly is “the fairest of them all." He is the one that truly deserves to be glorified. Why not let that begin with you… today?