A Watch Party

"Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!' And with those words, he breathed his last. When the Roman officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said, 'Surely this man was innocent.' And when all the crowd that came to see the crucifixion saw what had happened, they went home in deep sorrow. But Jesus' friends, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance watching." (Luke 23:46-49)

Did you catch it? Throughout the entire ordeal, they said and did nothing to help their friend. They didn't stop the mob from arresting Him, they didn't argue on his behalf during the many conversations with the Roman officials, they didn't debate with the crowd, saying, "What are you talking about? He's our friend and mentor and did nothing wrong!!!" Nope, they did and said nothing. They didn't help Him carry the cross, put up a defense against the soldiers, or bring Him some comfort, water, or even check on Him as He hung on the rugged, splintering wood, dying before their very eyes. Zilch, zero, nada. Jesus' friends stood at a distance watching.

It took the guy in charge of His execution to publicly identify Him as innocent and worship God. His killers advocated for Him more than His friends.

Thankfully, He wasn't asking for help, and He didn't need us to step in. God knew that if anyone did, that man would somehow take the credit, and that wasn't part of the plan. Man had screwed things up enough, and it was Jesus' job to fix it. Even still, I ask myself, what would I have done?  

Friends help friends. How often, however, do we just stand at a distance and watch? Watch somebody struggle, watch somebody suffer, watch somebody be bullied, watch our friends run right into a wall or off a cliff. Do we watch and do nothing?  

The only thing evil needs to expand in this world is for good people to stand around and do nothing.

I think God placed that last verse there for two reasons. First, to remind us of what happens to our friends when we stand around and watch at a distance. People get hurt. Second, to remind us that He doesn't need us. He wants us, but doesn't need us. There is nothing we can do to change the end of the story, but it sure would be nice if we stepped in every now and then and brought more of our friends along for the ride. Jesus calls you His friend, and friends help friends. This isn't just a watch party; step in and do something.