Today I read Luke 23 which is the account of Jesus before Pilate, Herod and Jesus' crucifixion. Luke contains a few items that none of the other Gospel authors do. For example, Luke is the only one to mention that Jesus was sent to Herod. Herod is interesting because he doesn't treat Jesus like He is on trial, more like an oddity or like Jesus is going to perform for him. He is very excited that Jesus has come before him and tells him that too. However, Jesus does not answer Herod at all, not one word. Now this is the same Herod that had John the Baptist beheaded. It should be noted that he really didn't want to have John killed, but he made a rash promise and fulfilled it. It is possible and very probable that the reason Jesus did not answer Herod at all is because of John being killed, after all, John was his cousin and Jesus knew John's purpose in the plan.
Luke is also the author that tells us that the Sanhedrin, when they bring Jesus before Pilate, accuse Jesus of causing an uprising and saying it is unlawful to pay tribute to Caesar. And yet, when the Sanhedrin met the previous night to condemn Him, the charges were blasphemy. The reason for this change in the charges is because Pilate was a Roman. He believed in many gods and would not have cared in the slightest that Jesus was claiming to be a god in the flesh. However, it was Pilate's job to ensure that things stayed quite in Jerusalem, so a charge of a rebellion, now THAT would grab his attention. There is a secondary reason, a matter of prophecy. Since as early as 600 BC, and before because Jacob in the Book of Mormon is quoting a prophet, it was known that Jesus would be crucified. This means that the Jews could not put Him to death for blasphemy. Why? Because the penalty for blasphemy was death by stoning. The prophets had been quite clear that Jesus would be killed on the cross. So the Jews could not have been the ones to put Jesus to death because as we well know, they were VERY good at following the law and we can be assured that they would have put Jesus to death by stoning.
Luke also includes the conversation Jesus has with the two thieves while on the cross. Now, it's not really a conversation between Jesus and the thieves, it's really only 1 line from Jesus, which Joseph Smith actually clarifies. One of the thieves joins in the mocking of Jesus telling Him that if He really is the Christ to save Himself and while He's at it, save the thief as well. The other thief, much more contrite than his fellow criminal, rebukes him saying that their punishment is just while Jesus did nothing wrong. He then beseeches Jesus to remember him when He comes into His kingdom. Jesus then tells the thief that he will be with Jesus in paradise. Joseph Smith left the translation alone as being correct, but taught that what Jesus was referring to here was the Spirit world, which all Latter-day Saints know there are two parts, paradise for those who have accepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ and have accepted the ordinances necessary for salvation, and spirit prison for those who have not accepted the Gospel, or accepted it but have not received the proper ordinances. I can only assume that this thief had previously been baptized since even Jesus has to obey laws higher than Himself. That is of course only my speculation that the thief had been baptized previously and not doctrine.
Luke pretty much glosses over the rest of Jesus' time on the cross and I can't really blame him as who really wants to focus on such a gruesome spectacle as our Lord and Savior suffering in agony, even if that was the reason He was born? It is important to note that as Latter-day Saints we recognize and appreciate more than we can ever say Jesus' suffering and death on the cross, but that is not how we choose to remember Him. We instead choose to focus on the empty tomb, that Jesus lives again and conquered death, and that through His ultimate sacrifice, we too will conquer death. Some wonder why Latter-day Saints do not adorn their chapels with a cross or wear crosses to signify their status as Christians. It is for that reason I named above, we prefer to focus on the risen Christ. Personally I have always found the concept of wearing a cross kind of silly. I mean if you had a friend or family member who was stabbed to death, would you wear a knife to represent him or her? Hardly. So while we as Latter-day Saints do not minimize or gloss over the death of Christ and His sacrifice on our behalf, we do not revere it or choose to use his method of death as a symbol of our devotion to Him.
Tomorrow we finish the book of Luke and on Monday we start John, the Gospel that is very different from the rest and does not contain very many, if at all, of the stories we have already covered. It has been interesting reading the synoptic Gospels like this and writing about them and trying not to rehash what I have already talked about, but the Spirit has led me various ways and helped me know what will be of greatest benefit for those of you reading this. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have writing it. Tomorrow we will read the account of the resurrection where Luke adds more to the story than we have read before. Until tomorrow.
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