If Found, Please Return To...
"And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.” And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”
Mark 15:33-39, ESV
The animal rescue I adopted Squirrel from that fateful January day made sure that he had his shots, was neutered, and was microchipped before adoption. Once Squirrel was officially mine, I had to update the microchip information to match my own so that if, God forbid, he ever got lost and was brought to a vet or a pound, they could out where he came from and who he belonged too. If found, please return to Meg. Like...ASAP!
Jesus inspired similar questions in those who encountered him. It was clear there was something different about him - where did he come from? Who was he? Whose was he?
This the theme Mark explores in his gospel, the question posed without his book:
Who is this man?
Was he a prophet? A holy, miracle man? A lunatic? Another rabble-rouser?
Where is he from? Galilee? Nazareth? Heaven?
Who does he belong to? God? The devil? The medical staff at the local insane asylum?
Each person who encounters Jesus has a different idea.
Mark gives us a glimpse into the answer via the least likely person to ever pay homage to Jesus: The Roman centurion who helps oversee the crucifixion, and who, upon seeing how Jesus gave up his spirit, exclaimed, "Truly this man was the Son of God."
But the real question, and the one posed by Mark to everyone who reads the story:
Who do you say he is?
And, once you have found him, please return to God. He's been waiting for you. Not to condemn, but to say, "Welcome home!"
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