"Then they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh; but He did not take it. And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take. It was the third hour when they crucified Him. The inscription of the charge against Him read, "THE KING OF THE JEWS."
They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left. [And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with transgressors."] Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, "Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!" In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, "He saved others; He cannot save Himself. Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!" Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him."
Good Morning my beloved,
While the crucifixion is at the heart of Christianity, as we mentioned before, the four Gospel writers spend very little time writing about the crucifixion itself, they spend most of their time writing about the events that happen before and after it.
As I look at the cross of Jesus Christ, I cannot help but to notice the many paradoxes, I'll just mention a few of them; justice out of injustice, light out of darkness, strength in weakness, healing out of wounds, glory in suffering, life out of death. And the greatest paradox of them all, found in 2 Corinthians 5:21, "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." I believe that it is by His sacrificial death on the cross, that we can best learn how to live, following His example. I believe this is exactly what Peter had in mind when he wrote in 1 Peter 2:21-24, "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed." Obviously, there are features of Christ's example we cannot duplicate, we cannot pay for the sins of all mankind or even our own to satisfy the justice of God. The Good News is we don't need to, it's already been done and it can never be done again, His perfect sacrifice stands alone! However, I believe there are aspects of Christ's example we can and absolutely should follow.
It is unrepentant, unforgiven sin that ultimately sentences man to Hell, keeping him separated from God for eternity. God’s attitude towards sin is a theme that runs all through Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation. In Mark 2:17, Jesus said "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners." And, in Revelation 2:21-23 our Risen Lord says, "I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality. Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds. And I will kill her children with pestilence, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds."
Sin makes us objects of God’s wrath, and only Jesus can save sinners from the wrath that is to come and offer forgiveness. Our Lord said that it is inevitable that offenses will come, but it isn’t the offense that destroys our relationship with God; it is how we deal with those offenses. Therefore, we can conclude that the forgiveness of sin is man’s greatest need. The problem is that because from the moment man is born into the world, sin rules in the heart of man and deceives his soul, and puts him in bondage under the control of Satan, so he's never going to be able to repent as long as he's dominated by a power that is beyond him, unless the Holy Spirit convicts through the proclamation of the Gospel. Nobody knows what sin is unless somebody exposes it, right? That's the point of preaching the Gospel, to expose the deeds of Satan and cause the sinner to come face to face with his sin. It is the responsibility of the under-shepherd to guard and protect Christ's flock and feed them, not to pet them as they are being prepared for slaughter.
That's why Paul writes in Romans 10:14-15, "How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!" That's what makes teaching sound doctrine such an important issue in the church, because we live in a society that has made sin and unforgiveness a virtue, forgiveness is a rare commodity, in fact, the pursuit of revenge is exalted. The biblical concept of forgiveness is to grant a full pardon, complete absolution, to a condemned guilty individual, and giving them an undeserved clean slate, no matter what they've done. However, biblical forgiveness requires repentance and the willingness to turn away from our sin and to forgive others. In fact, in Matthew 6:15, Jesus says, "But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." Even as Jesus was dying on the cross, He asked for the forgiveness of God to be given to the very ones who were crucifying Him instead of focusing on His own suffering, saying "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." Jesus, then, is our pattern for forgiveness toward those who have wronged us!
Let us pray
Heavenly Father,
In Christ's name we ask and pray
Amen
Today's Message: Paradox of the Cross
Today's Message: Paradox of the Cross
Take out your Bibles and open them with me, if you would, to the
fifteenth chapter of Mark, verses 22-32. I hope that you
to follow along with me as I read to set the text in our
minds, and listen for the voice of our Lord with open ears and a hearing heart. Mark 15:22-32.
Crucifixions were done outside the city gates on the main road, the rotting corpses would left on the cross, where predatory animals and birds would devour it, so that it could be easily seen by as many people as possible, warning against crimes perpetrated on the Roman power, as a method of control and intimidation. Jesus wasn't the only One to be crucified by the Romans in dishonor and shame, but He is by far the single most important, the only One Whose name is still remembered to this day.
"Then they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh; but He did not take it. And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take. It was the third hour when they crucified Him. The inscription of the charge against Him read, "THE KING OF THE JEWS."
They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left. [And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with transgressors."] Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, "Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!" In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, "He saved others; He cannot save Himself. Let this
Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we
may see and believe!" Those who were crucified with Him were also
insulting Him."
Crucifixions were done outside the city gates on the main road, the rotting corpses would left on the cross, where predatory animals and birds would devour it, so that it could be easily seen by as many people as possible, warning against crimes perpetrated on the Roman power, as a method of control and intimidation. Jesus wasn't the only One to be crucified by the Romans in dishonor and shame, but He is by far the single most important, the only One Whose name is still remembered to this day.
Let's look at verse 22, "Then they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull," due to the shape of the hill. In Latin, it is the word "calva," meaning bald head or skull, from which we get the word Calvary. While the exact location is disputed, Catholic tradition contends the location inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over a point called the Rock of Golgotha is authentic, due to the construction being overseen by Helena, the mother of Constantine, in A.D. 325. However, many prominent scholars question the legitimacy of this claim, since the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is located inside the city walls, and according to the Gospel writers, Golgotha is located outside the city walls. (cf. Mark 15:20; Matthew 27:31; John 19:17.) Which begs the question, was the city wall relocated, and according to Conrad Schick and Father Louis-Hugues Vincent, this was a second wall. However, excavation below the Church of the Redeemer in the early 1970's by Dr. Ute Wagner-Lux and is of interest to many Christians, not nearly as significant as what happened there.
They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh; but He did not take it." If you will recall in Mark chapter 14, Jesus said "Truly I say to you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God," making a sacred oath not to taste any fruit of the vine until this age is over. But more importantly, Jesus resolved to taste the cup of wrath with full awareness, enduring the pain of the cross for your sins and mine, which was His Father's will for Him. Matthew says after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink, which fulfills Psalm 69:21, which says that it would be offered to Him. It was some kind of anesthetic to numb the pain, this wasn't given in an act mercy, as some have suggested. The Roman soldiers were absolutely heartless and could have cared less about His comfort. Psalm 69:20 says "And I looked for sympathy, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none." By the way, it is no coincidence that myrrh appears in both the birth and death of Jesus, myrrh symbolizing He was the anointed of God in the midst of rejection by the world.
Verse 24, "And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take." And they crucified Him, Jesus, the sinless Son of God, had been nailed to the cross; the cruelest and most hideous
punishment possible, it is plain enough without further explanation. And divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take. By the way, it was common practice for the Roman soldiers to divide up the garments of those they crucified, as a form of compensation. John says they "took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece." Every Jew had five articles of clothing: shoes, a head covering, a sash,
or belt to tie around the middle, an inner garment, and an outer cloak, indicating that there must have only been four soldiers present during crucifixion process, they "cast lots," or gambled for them to see who got what, fulfilling Psalm 22:18, "They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots."
It was the third hour when they crucified Him." Critics have found it very difficult to reconcile this third hour of Mark, with the sixth hour of John 19, claiming the Gospel writers have contradicted themselves. It's important to note, the Jews divided both the night and the day into four equal parts of three hours each, with the first division beginning at six o’clock in the morning, and ending at nine; and the second beginning at nine and ending at twelve and so on. This is significant because Mark professes to give the time accurately; while John does not, he says "it
was about the sixth hour," without affirming the exact
time. This difference can easily be explained with Mark referring to end of third hour, which would be "around" the beginning of the sixth hour, to which John is referring.
Verse 26, "The inscription of the charge against Him read, "THE KING OF THE JEWS." Six different phases of trials and there's still no crime. "THE KING OF THE JEWS, " is the inscription of the charge against Him. John tells us the full inscription, this is "JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS." The Jews protested the sign, because they wanted it to read, "He said he was the king!" Pilate refused,
saying "What I’ve written, I’ve written," in other words, I don't care what you say, I’m not changing it! Pilate
was not willing to comply with their demands, in fact, he wrote it in three different languages, he was obviously motivated by revenge for being backed into a corner, threatened by the Jews to report him to Caesar, forced to order the crucifixion of an innocent man. As we study the Scriptures, we often think to ourselves, "How could they possibly reject Jesus, crucifying the Son of God, the evidence was overwhelming, they should have known better." The truth is, the same could easily be said of many today, who reject Christ in ignorance, blinded to the Truth.
Verse 27, "They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left." Matthew identifies them as "lēstai," meaning an unscrupulous bandit, a thief that exploited the vulnerable, even at the cost of violence. It's quite possible they were guilty of the very same crimes, which Barabbas was guilty of. Jesus,
the innocent Son of God, hanging between two condemned criminals was another form
of mockery. I believe Jesus' cross was originally intended for Barabbas, who led the rebellion.
Verse 28, ["And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with transgressors."] Some of the manuscripts include this verse, while others do not, that's why it's in brackets. Nevertheless, it certainly fulfills Isaiah 53:12, and what Jesus says in Luke 22, "For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘And He was numbered with transgressors’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment."
Verses 29-30, "Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, "Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!" Theses are just passersby, people going along the road, possibly the same people who hailed Him as Son of David on Monday, saying "He's not the Messiah, He's nothing more than a laughing stock!" John 1:11, "He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him." This was sarcasm, another form of mockery, wagging their heads, hurling abuse at Him, just like Psalm 22 said they would. They knew Jesus never said that He would destroy the temple, the ridiculous charge they came up with against Him. He said He would destroy the temple of His body and raise it in 3 days. Even when it was reported to them that He rose from the dead on the third day, they didn't believe Him, instead they bribed the Roman guards to lie.
Verse 31, "In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, "He saved others; He cannot save Himself." The irony is, they did not see the paradox right before their eyes, it was not nails that held Jesus to the cross, it was love that kept Jesus on the cross. It was the Savior saving others, by dying in their place, just as He took Barabbas' place on the cross that very day. The True Passover Lamb, sacrificed for the sins of those who would believe on Him. They would have been telling the truth if they had said He is not willing to save Himself, so could save others.
That brings us to verse 32, "Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!" Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him." They wouldn’t believe it, even if they had put Him in the tomb and witnessed the resurrection with their own eyes, they're spiritually blind! Notice the end of the verse, "Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him," referring to the thieves on either side of Him joining in the mockery, echoing the mockery and sarcastic insults of the Sanhedrin. To the very end they wanted a sign, something to compel them, even force them to believe; but He would not give it to them. Nor will He coerce anybody to believe!
Here's a surprise for you, something very dramatic did happen on that day, clear evidence of the power of the cross! Come back next and we'll take a look at it.
Until then,
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
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