Storytime Tapestry Newsletter

The newsletter devoted to spreading love and cultural awareness around the world

Christian Meditations – A Chris Hansen Column

February 13, 2008

You met Chris, now you can read more of his work:

Courage Of The Ancient Ones – Part 3

                    by

                     Chris Hansen

Author of:

“Secret of the Psalms,”

Amazingly accurate prophecies about Jesus written centuries in advance.

“Revelation Revisited,”

John is under arrest by the Roman empire.  While he is in exile, he gets the surprise of his life!  The glorified Jesus shows up!  John’s story is redramatized for today’s audience who may not be familiar with the Bible.

“Grandfather’s Journal.”

A touching illustrated book for children and adults.  A young boy who is terrified of death and bored with church reads his grandfather’s last journal entries.  The boy discovers the sweet hope that the resurrection of Jesus provides.  The boy learns to “Smile on the inside too.”

www.xlibris.com and local bookstores and 1-888-795-4274

This series of short stories looks back at some very courageous Christians.  These Christians were far more than mere footnotes in church history.  They were real people with incredible courage in the face of unspeakable brutality!  This kind of courage needs to be remembered and emulated.  This kind of brutality, though unspeakable, needs to be spoken.  They were and still are our brothers and our sisters in Christ.  They are a great cloud of witnesses who surround us and encourage us to finish our race.  May their great courage be ours too.  May God help us to be heroes too.  The world still needs heroes like them.  These stories are based on historical records left to us by Eusebius.  Where appropriate a certain amount of imagination is used.  Even so, the basic facts are definitely nonfiction!

In part 2, more memories went through the mind of James regarding Jesus, his brother who changed the course of human history.  Well, finally James’ big moment had come.  James now stood where he knew he must one day stand.  The elders and James had reached an irreconcilable impasse.

Passover had come.  The elders realized that James had to be confronted about this Jesus once and for all!  James had a sterling reputation among the people.  The elders knew that.  In fact, he was known as the righteous one.  Anything James might say to the people would carry great authority.  This was their big chance.  Crowds of people once again crowded into Jerusalem for Passover.  If James could be persuaded to speak to the people, he might yet redeem himself and lead the people back to their former ways.  If not, well then, James could at the very least be a public example!  If James died, his blood would be on his own head!  Another James had been beheaded, the other James being an intimate disciple of Jesus that false prophet.  (Acts 12:2.)  Worst of all, the very one who had brought charges against James was so moved by his death, that he had actually become a follower of this pernicious way!  And now, this James, the very brother of this Jesus would be trouble whether he lived or died!  If he lived, he would persuade the people with his words; and if he died, he would persuade them with his blood!  The only way now was to plead with him to deny this false way!

James found himself standing where he knew that he must one day stand.  The elders stood before him.  The magnificent temple stood behind him.  This was the temple about which Jesus made his dire prediction-“Not one stone will be left standing upon another, for it will be thrown down!”  (Matthew 24:2.)  James looked into the intense faces of his opponents and remembered something else Jesus said; “Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it!”  (Luke 9:23-24.)  James already counted himself as dead!  The elders began the last act of the drama, which would send James into the waiting arms of his brother.

“Be good enough to restrain the people,” the elders pleaded.  “For they have gone astray after Jesus and believe that he is the Christ.  Be good enough to make the facts about Jesus clear to all who come for the Passover day.  We all accept what you say.  We can vouch for it; and so can all the people, that you are a righteous man, and take no one at face value.  So make it clear to the crowd that they must not go astray as regards Jesus.  The whole people and all of us accept what you say.  So take your stand on the temple parapet: so that from that height you may be really seen and your words audible to the whole people.  For because of the Passover all the tribe are full gathered and the Gentiles too.”

James began to climb the steps slowly which lead up to the very pinnacle of the temple.  His hour had come!  He would have one last chance to speak to thousands of Jews and non-Jews as well.  What an opportunity!  What the elders said was true enough.  The people did respect James.  James only permitted himself the barest of necessities so as to separate himself from the pollution of the world.  He would not even allow himself the luxury of a warm public bath in order to discipline his mind and body and in order to avoid any appearance of lewd behavior before the people.  James reached the temple pinnacle.  The elders gazed up at him from far below.  An elder’s voice from far below reached James.  The elder said, “Righteous one!  You are one whose words we are all obligated to accept; the people are going astray after Jesus who was crucified; so tell us what is meant by the door of Jesus?”  (Matthew 7:13-14 & John 10:7-9.)  By this time, a large crowd began to gather when they heard the elder and when they saw James high above them.  The people knew that something very dramatic was about to happen.  Jesus had said, as James remembered, “I am the door of the sheep.  Whoever enters by me will be saved.”  Surely the elders would never accept this!  James took a deep breath and began to speak.  His voice rang out so that all the people far below him could hear him clearly:

“Why do you question me about the Son of Man?  I tell you, He is sitting in heaven at the right hand of the Great Power, and He will come on the clouds of heaven!”  Jesus had said something very similar at his trial-“From now on, you shall see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven!”  (Mark 14:62.)  “Blasphemy!” they cried, “What further need have we of more witnesses!  He is worthy of death!”  That was the beginning of the end for Jesus.”  Well, James too had done it now!  It was the beginning of the end.  The crowd began to go wild just as they had done so long ago when Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem in triumph!  They had cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Mark 10:7-11.)  Again and again they had rejoiced and had cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”  They had known about all the miracles Jesus and his followers had performed!  Jesus had once said, “If they do not cry out, why the very stones will cry out!” (Luke 19:39-40.)Now, as James listened, the voices of the crowd echoed among the temple stones as if the very stones themselves joined in and cried out, “Hosanna!”  The elders began to talk frantically among themselves.  They had to raise their voices just to be heard above the rejoicing of the crowd. 

One elder said, “We made a bad mistake in affording such testimony to Jesus!”  Another shouted to be heard and said, “We’d better go up and throw him down so that they will be frightened and not believe him!”  A number of elders ran single file up the narrow winding stairs, which lead up to the pinnacle where James stood.  As they rushed up behind James, others shouted from far below; “Aha!  Even the righteous one has gone astray!” Others shouted, “Stone the righteous one!”  This fulfilled Isaiah’s dire prophecy: (Isaiah 3:10) “Let us remove the righteous one for he is unprofitable to us.  Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their works.”  How true that would turn out to be!  Jerusalem would be overthrown because of the fruit of this evil work!  Everything was a tumult of noise and commotion!  Elders shouted up at James.  James raised his voice to be heard.  Crowds were shouting “Hosanna!”  Elders ran wildly up the temple stairs.  James braced himself for the worst.  Then, the worst happened!  All at once, all the shouting of “Hosanna!” came to a sudden stop!  A hush fell over the crowd as the crowd watched in horror as the body of James tumbled down from the temple parapet.  His body struck the stones far below!  The crowd gasped!  Was he dead?  His body was twisted into such a bizarre posture that it was obvious that many of his bones were broken!  Surely he must be dead-or he soon would be!  Suddenly, a voice broke the silence!  “I beseech thee!” James prayed through enormous pain.  He was still alive-barely!  Some began to shout, “Stone the righteous one!”  A priest broke in and cried out, “Stop!  What are you doing?  The righteous one is praying for you!”  James continued his final prayer before pain, weakness, and finally death could overcome him.  “Father, I beseech thee!  Lord, God, Father, forgive them!  They do not know what they are doing!”  As James was praying through his great pain, a fuller came through the crowd and struck James several times with his heavy club.  Now, the club once used to beat out white wool was covered with the blood of James, a sacrificial Lamb of God!  The crowd stood silently as James was tenderly picked up by his friends and prepared for burial.  The elders dared not do anything for fear of angering the people further.  They permitted James to be buried honorably just outside the holy sanctuary at the place where he had so brutally died.  The elders dishonored him in life, but did give him some honor in his death. 

With the death of James came the final act in Jerusalem’s drama!  The armies of Vespasian came shortly thereafter.  Jerusalem was surrounded as Jesus had predicted.  (Luke 21:20.)  No one could go in or out.  Hunger grew so severe that people were reduced to breaking into houses and killing one another for what little food was left!  There were so many dead bodies; there was no place to bury them all!  The bodies rotted in the streets in such vast numbers that the putrid liquid, which drained from them, flowed beneath and out of the city walls!  Even Vespasian was horrified by the smell and the sight of this flowing testimony to Jerusalem’s end! 

Jerusalem no longer had a hold on the disciples.  There was no reason to stay now.  Thomas, who would not believe unless he saw for himself the nail scars in the hand of Jesus, (John 20:25.) he was chosen by the others to go to Parthea.  Andrew, who had quietly but enthusiastically brought Peter to Jesus, (John 1:41) he, Andrew, was sent to Syythia.  John was the one who laid his head on the breast of the Savior.  (John 13:23.)  John was sent to Asia.  Peter was the one who lost his courage.  Yet he encouraged people in many places; Pontus, Galatia, Bythinia, Capadocia, and finally Rome. (1 Peter 1:1.) There he spent the last two days of his life proclaiming Jesus while hanging on a cross upside down!  Simeon was installed as Bishop taking the place of James.  Simeon was the son of Cleopas.  Cleopas had met Jesus shortly after his resurrection and did not realize at first that Jesus was actually alive.  Then, at the meal, Jesus had vanished from sight!  (Luke 24:13-35.)  Cleopas was Joseph’s brother.  He kept an eye on Jesus after Joseph died.