Stones and Rocks
Good Friday
Am I a stone, and not a sheep,
That I can stand, O Christ, beneath Thy cross,
To number drop by drop Thy blood’s slow loss,
And yet not weep?
Not so those women loved
Who with exceeding grief lamented Thee;
Not so fallen Peter weeping bitterly;
Not so the thief was moved;
Not so the Sun and Moon
Which hid their faces in a starless sky,
A horror of great darkness at broad noon –
I, only I.
Yet give not o’er,
But seek Thy sheep, true Shepherd of the flock;
Greater than Moses, turn and look once more
And smite a rock.
by Christina Rossetti
Christina Rossetti, a Victorian age poet, has given a beautiful reflection of her own heart as she engages the magnitude of Good Friday. "Am I a stone, and not a sheep", she asks. Is my heart hard? Do I truly appreciate the death of Christ?
These are deep and worthwhile reflections to be sure, but she also gives us a glimpse of the heart of God. God, "who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all" (Romans 8:32). Her imagery here captures Moses striking the rock to bring forth life sustaining water for the people (Numbers 20:11), as well as Paul's reflection that this rock speaks to us of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4). As we come to the end of the Sermon on the Mount this week, Christ entreats us to ensure that our lives are founded on that Rock (Matthew 7:21-29). I trust you will find this an appropriate invitation for Easter morning as we celebrate the stone being rolled away and new life emerging from the empty tomb!
Photo by Ondřej Matouš on Unsplash