Unwilling to suffer

What an ugly part of the Story. 

 Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. Luke 23:11

 [Pilate] had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified. Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. Matthew 27: 27-31
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 Most of us are reluctant to suffer. Few of us want to endure discomfort, even for a good cause.

 Even pastors and those in ministry get offended and angry when people are mean to us or attack us. Christians theoretically may expect a bit of suffering, but when things get serious, we blame God. Or we start to hate the people making us uncomfortable. Some of us leave the church (or ministry) altogether.

 Sometimes we're willing to go as far as being judged unfairly, like Jesus in Pilate's hall. We may even be willing to be dressed up for mockery, like the Savior in Herod's palace. But when the scourging starts, when a crown of thorns goes on our head, or our beards are plucked

 - when it really begins to hurt - 

 we turn aside and say, "Enough already. I've done my best and this is how people treat me?! No way am I going all the way to the cross."

 Jesus endured shame, betrayal by those in his inner circle (Peter and Judas), and physical suffering for us. As his followers, are we willing to do the same?

 --
(John's account)
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.
Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe,Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”
As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”
But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.” John 19:1-6

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