11 Stations of the Anointed One

1st Station — 
The Anointed Blesses the Lame

2nd Samuel chapter 5 (NLT) — Jerusalem’s ‘blind’ and ‘lame’ arrogant pagans
6 David then led his men to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites, the original inhabitants of the land who were living there. The Jebusites taunted David, saying, “You’ll never get in here! Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” For the Jebusites thought they were safe.
7 But David captured the fortress of Zion, which is now called the City of David.
8 On the day of the attack, David said to his troops, “I hate those ‘lame’ and ‘blind’ Jebusites . . . That is the origin of the saying, “The ‘blind’ and the ‘lame’ may not enter the house.”

2nd Samuel chapter 9 — The lame survivor of Saul’s family
3 And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” . . .
6 And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.”
7 And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” . . .
13 So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king's table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

Matthew chapter 21 — Making room in the temple
12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
13 He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”
14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I been arrogant?
• Who are the living descendants of honorable ancestors whom I can bless?
• Lord, when have I crowded my life with busyness? Lord, how can I make room for the needy?

2nd Station — The Anointed Endures Fickle Fidelity

2nd Samuel chapter 15 (NLT) — Israel is wooed away from King David
2 . . . When people brought a case to the king for judgment . . .
3 Absalom would say, “You’ve really got a strong case here! It’s too bad the king doesn’t have anyone to hear it.
4 I wish I were the judge. Then everyone could bring their cases to me for judgment, and I would give them justice!”
5 When people tried to bow before him, Absalom wouldn’t let them. Instead, he took them by the hand and kissed them.
6 Absalom did this with everyone who came to the king for judgment, and so he stole the hearts of all the people of Israel.

Matthew chapter 27 — Israel is persuaded against Jesus
20 Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have my opinions been molded by voices that are not of You? Lord, do I listen to them more than I do to You?
• Lord, forgive me for when I have been fickle.
• Lord, lead me from the temptation to care what polls say. Deliver me from the persuasion of evil tongues.

3rd Station — The Anointed Retreats

2nd Samuel chapter 15 — David flees Jerusalem
14 Then David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise, and let us flee . . .
23 . . . the king crossed the brook Kidron . . .
30 David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, weeping . . .

John chapter 18 — Jesus retreats from Jerusalem
1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.

Luke chapter 22
39 And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him . . .
44 And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, would I have chosen to go with You? — away from the attractive place of celebration, across the valley, into the place of desolation?
• Lord, forgive me when I do not retreat with You. Lead me not into the temptation of what is popular with my peers.
• Lord, how can I retreat with You?

4th Station — The Anointed Heeds the Father’s Will

2nd Samuel chapter 15
25 Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me back and let me see both it and his dwelling place.
26 But if he says, ‘I have no pleasure in you,’ behold, here I am, let him do to me what seems good to him.”

Mark chapter 14
36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I not trusted You to be good? When have I thought I knew better?
• Lord, forgive me for these times when I have not wanted Your will to be done.
• Lord, how can I align my heart to Your will in this time of my life?

5th Station — The Anointed is Targeted

2nd Samuel chapter 17
2 . . . I will strike down only the king,
3 and I will bring all the people back to you as a bride comes home to her husband. You seek the life of only one man, and all the people will be at peace.”

John chapter 11
49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all.
50 Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.”

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I targeted people? When have I wished someone dead? — to just go away? out of my life?
• Lord, forgive my hate, my ridicule, my gossip.
• Lord, heal my hurt so that I never hurt someone again. Make me a wounded healer, not a wounded hurter.

6th Station — The Anointed is Betrayed

2nd Samuel chapter 17 — Plot against David
1 Moreover, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue David tonight.
2 I will come upon him while he is weary and discouraged . . .

Matthew chapter 26 — Jesus arrested
47 . . . Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people.
48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.”
49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him.
50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I betrayed you? When have I betrayed anyone? When have I flattered falsely? When have I only feigned love?
• Lord, forgive me for treating others with ulterior motives.
• Lord, help me to be a true lover. Let me never misrepresent Your love by poor imitation.

7th Station — The Anointed’s Betrayer’s Suicide

2 Samuel chapter 17
23 When Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and went off home to his own city. He set his house in order and hanged himself, and he died . . .

Matthew chapter 27
3 Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders,
4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.”
5 And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, forgive me for when I have put myself into dire straits.
• Lord, forgive me for when I have turned to despair and trusted death more than Your love to welcome me back and Your power to redeem me.
• Lord, give me the joy of playing my part in helping others be reconciled to You and growing in You.

8th Station — The Anointed Restrains

2 Samuel chapter 16 — David restrains his guard
5 When King David came to Bahurim, there came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera, and as he came he cursed continually.
6 And he threw stones at David . . .
9 Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.”
10 But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? . . .
13 So David and his men went on the road, while Shimei went along on the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went and threw stones at him and flung dust.

2 Samuel chapter 18 — David restrains his men
5 And the king ordered . . . “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom.
9 . . . Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak, and his head caught fast in the oak, and he was suspended between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on.
10 And a certain man saw it and told Joab, “Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak.”
11 Joab said to the man who told him, “What, you saw him! Why then did you not strike him there to the ground? I would have been glad to give you ten pieces of silver and a belt.”
12 But the man said to Joab, “Even if I felt in my hand the weight of a thousand pieces of silver, I would not reach out my hand against the king's son, for in our hearing the king commanded you . . . ‘For my sake protect the young man Absalom.’ . . .
14 Joab said, “I will not waste time like this with you.” And he took three javelins in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom . . .

Matthew chapter 26 — Jesus restrains his men
51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.
53 Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?
54 But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?”

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I been tempted to defend You?
• Lord, forgive me when I leave the rest of Your Spirit of shalom, and allow the world's warrior-spirit to inflame me.
• Lord, put me in my place.

9th Station — The Anointed Will Be Abandoned

2nd Samuel chapter 17
2 . . . all the people who are with him will flee.

Matthew chapter 26
56 . . . Then all the disciples left him and fled.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I abandoned You? Abandoned others?
• Lord, forgive me.
• Lord, whom do You expect me to stand with?

10th Station — The Anointed Laments

2nd Samuel chapter 18 & 19 — David weeps over his son, the insurrectionist
18.31 And behold, the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “Good news for my lord the king! For the Lord has delivered you this day from the hand of all who rose up against you.”
32 The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” And the Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be like that young man.”
33  And the king was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept . . .
19.1 It was told Joab, “Behold, the king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.”
2 So the victory that day was turned into mourning for all the people, for the people heard that day, “The king is grieving for his son.” . . .
4 The king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice, “O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

Matthew chapter 23 — Jesus laments over rebellious Jerusalem
37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, whom have You lamented over that I have failed to lament over?
• Lord, forgive me for not lamenting.
• Lord, mold my heart to Your heart that laments.

11th Station — The Anointed’s Substitutionary Death

2nd Samuel chapter 18 — David’s deathwish
18.33  . . . “Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

Mark chapter 15 — Jesus died
33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” . . .
37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.
38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”
40 There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome.
41 When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.
42 And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath,
43 Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he should have already died. And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead.
45 And when he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the corpse to Joseph.
46 And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.
47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

Romans chapter 5
6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.

Examining Ourselves:
• Lord, when have I tried to redeem myself and not rely on Jesus’s sacrifice for me?
• Lord, forgive me for not appreciating what You did for me on this Friday years ago.
• Lord, how can I point others to Your sacrifice for them? Whom can I tell? Who is ready? Help me to be ready for those who cross my path.

Reflecting on the Word

Anyone who doubts the need for Christ’s sacrifice has not reflected upon sacrifice in daily life: From asking our parents to sacrifice some money for our benefit, to an army officer ordering troops into certain doom for the greater good. Neither has the skeptic faced the uncomfortable truth of every person's causation of Jesus's unjust lynching.

I lynched Him. I have done this to Him. I have treated Jesus like this.

Jesus has been up since Thursday morning. Last evening he was in turmoil. Then a friend gave him to men who abused him all night while the rest of his circle abandoned him. He’s been tortured all morning. Right now he’s stumbling to his execution. In an hour he’ll be stripped and hung up by large nails for 6 hours until he can't breathe.

Every time I do less than love as I want to be loved. Every time I hurt by my gossip, my climbing the world's ladders, my hate. Every time I avoid or calculate efforts to not get too involved. Every time I cling to unforgiveness and harden my heart.

I cause Immanuel to be with them. The ignored, the injured, the dead in my wake. And He goes to them willingly.