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“The cross cannot be defeated for it is defeat.”

-G.K. Chesterton

The first reading is quite the encounter with Christ: explicit yet enigmatic, demanding yet alluring. I frequently go to the movies for work. In the past two years, I’ve seen just about every superhero movie that has been released. Spiderman, Thor: Ragnarock, Guardians of the Galaxy –  you name it, I’ve seen it it.

At the end of every saga, the victor is the person or group of people who has defeated their enemy by outmuscling or outwitting them with greater force and cunning strategy. And I think we like these stories because that’s how wars of the flesh are won; the strongest and smartest take the spoils.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a Marvel screenplay writer or a military officer who’d think that it’s a good idea to freely choose to give the leader to the enemy, allow them to physically torment him and then kill him.

“Yeah boys. No way we can’t win.

Whadaya say? Great plan, right?!”

If I was under the command of an officer who proposed this plan, I’d probably  definitely think he was insane. But that’s exactly what Christ did on the cross. ?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

The absurdity of the cross can be lost on many of us who have grown up with Christ’s story.

…But it’s insane!

We commemorate, follow, praise a Man who chose suffering and death. We call Him King. And the image we oft see of Him is the episode of His humiliating death. Jesus’ marketing plan is to show Himself killed on a cross.

Starkly dissimilar to Christ’s initiative to spread His message, Marvel and military posters portray their subjects as strong and capable. These are images that people want to see. Why is it that the centerpiece of the Christian faith is Our Lord and Savior crippled and defeated on a cross?

“For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom,

but we proclaim Christ crucified…

…the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.”

1 Cor 1: 22-23, 25

Perhaps Christ’s death was so gruesome because He wanted to show us that no amount of force that humanity possesses can destroy His affection for us and desire to be close to us.

“My Love is greater than the whips that, at man’s hand, bloodied My Body,

I am uncompromised by the crown of thorns that pierced My head,

and I am not defeated by the profound torture and mockery of the cross.

I love you.”

Jesus, I love You.

Make us more like You.

During the week, Matthew Juliano is a mentor for individuals who have developmental and intellectual disabilities. On the weekends, he is a drummer for Full Armor Band. You can find more content by Matt and his band at www.fullarmorband.com.