Loading...If you wanted to summarize up the entire Bible in one sentence how would you do it? When I want to sum up the Bible I usually use John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to the end that all who believe in him will not perish but have eternal life.
A person could also sum up the entire Bible with Matthew 21:39 So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. Matthew 21: 39 doesn’t sound as cozy for cross stitching on to a pillow. But a father’s only son dying in an effort to fulfill his father’s mission is the heart of the salvation story.
Murder, fratricide, genocide, all the ‘cides’ pack the Bible to overflowing.
I set my mind to appreciate the importance of death when it comes to celebrating resurrection. To my friends who like to skip all the ‘-cides’ and turn directly to cozy cross-stitch verses, I don’t blame you, but I can’t go with you. I am stuck on Calvary. Calvary is where I find my Hope. Calvary is where all the darkness and despair lands after 900 chapters of bloodshed and I land at this solemn moment where a son dies a terrible death for his father’s mission. The mission of Mercy to end all bloodshed.
Twenty years ago this Tuesday, a young man was killed in Laramie, Wyoming. His death became a mission for his father. The story of Matthew Shepherd became a play called Laramie Project. I remember when my then 16 year old son came home from school and told me how excited he was that his theatre class would portray the story of a young man tortured and left tied to a fence in the countryside. He was thrilled to be part of such a performance and wasn’t I excited too. No, at the time I was not excited. I already get enough doom and gloom from reading about all the killing in Holy Scripture.
Over 2.8 million people die directly because of God in 160 separate killing events in the Bible for which God is responsible. https://www.vocativ.com/news/309748/all-the-people-god-kills-in-the-bible/index.html
An evening of more death did not appeal.
I went. And I walked out of that theatre feeling lighter. I didn’t feel hopeful; I felt Hope. The play itself is designed to create a community of Hope within the audience. I am so thankful I came to terms with my aversion to death and discovered deeper life. Later, my son made a diorama of the lonely road and the fence posts under the lonely sky for a class assignment. I didn’t want to display it because it makes me sad. And I do display it because it reveals the raw Hope of humanity that God counts on when God takes a gamble on Mercy.
My son played these three roles
1. Russell Henderson is a nineteen-year-old Laramie Resident and one of Matthew Shepard’s murderers. Russell pleads guilty to participating in Matthew’s murder, driving the truck in which Aaron McKinney beat Matthew and then tying him to the fence to die.
2. Matt Galloway was the bartender at the Fireside Bar on the night that Matthew Shepard was murdered.. Matt regrets that he did not realize Matthew was in danger as he left with Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson that night, wishing he could have foreseen what was happening and stopped it. Matt now participates in many pro-LGBT demonstrations.
3. Dennis Shepard, Matthew Shepard’s father. During Aaron McKinney’s sentencing, Dennis makes a statement explaining the family’s decision not to ask for the death penalty for Aaron, in which Dennis describes how he and his family believe that rejecting the death penalty is the best way to honor Matthew’s memory and ensure that the Laramie community can heal. "I would like nothing better than to see you die, Mr. McKinney. However, this is the time to begin the healing process. To show mercy to someone who refused to show any mercy. To use this as the first step in my own closure about losing Matt….Mr. McKinney," he concluded, "I give you life in the memory of one who no longer lives. May you have a long life and may you thank Matthew every day for it."
For more information about the Laramie Project see
https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-laramie-project/characters/dennis-shepard
There are so many ways to summarize the salvation story. Hope. Mercy. Love. All the law and the prophets. Love the Lord your God and Love your neighbor as yourself. When people see your actions how will they sum you up?
The Love of God in Jesus Christ makes you more than the sum of your parts.
