OUTLINE
I. THE MOCKING OF JESUS.
THE SOLDIERS MOCKED HIM.
(27 thru 31).
II. THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS.
THE CROSS AND THE SHAME.
(32 thru 44).
III. THE DEATH OF JESUS.
THE
TRIUMPH OF THE END.
THE GLARING REVELATION.
(45 thru 56).
IV. THE BURIAL OF JESUS.
THE GIFT OF A TOMB.
AN IMPOSSIBLE ASSIGNMENT.
(57 thru 66).
OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES ARE BEING FULFILLED.
JESUS DIED TO SAVE THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN HIM.
PILATE OFFERS A CHOICE:
JESUS SON OF GOD OR JESUS SON OF A MAN.
1. THE MOCKING OF JESUS.
THE SOLDIERS MOCK JESUS.
27 thru 31.
THE DREADFUL ROUTINE OF CRUCIFIXION.
PILATE HAD JESUS SCOURGED.
ROMAN SCOURGING WAS A TERRIBLE TORTURE.
The Victim Was Stripped;
His Hands Were Tied Behind Him,
He Was Tied To A Post With His Back Exposed To The Lash.
The Lash Itself Was A Long Leather Thong.
Studded At Intervals With Sharpened Pieces Of Bone And Pellets Of Lead.
Such Scourging Always Preceded Crucifixion.
It Reduced The Naked Body To Strips Of Raw Flesh.
And Inflamed And Bleeding Weals.
MEN DIED UNDER IT
MEN LOST THEIR MIND UNDER IT.
FEW REMAINED CONSCIOUS TO THE END OF IT.
After That Jesus Was Handed Over To The Soldiers.
The Cross Was Being Prepared.
They Took Him To Their Barracks In The Governor's Headquarters;
They Called The Rest Of The Detachment.
The Detachment Is Hundred Men.
These Soldiers Were Pilate's Bodyguard.
These Soldiers Had Accompanied Him From Caesarea.
We May Shudder At What The Soldiers Did.
But Of All Involved In The Crucifixion They Were Least Blamed.
They Were Not Even Stationed In Jerusalem;
They Had No Idea Who Jesus Was.
They Certainly Were Not Jews.
Jews Were Exempt From Military Service.
To Them Jesus Was No More A Galilaean Going To A Cross.
THEN THEY PREPARED TO LEAD HIM AWAY TO CRUCIFIXION.
It Originated In Persia.
Came From The Fact That The Earth Was Considered Sacred.
The Criminal Was Lifted Up From It So As To Not DEFILE It.
From Persia Crucifixion Passed To Carthage In North Africa;
And It Was From Carthage That Rome Learned It,
Although The Romans Kept It Exclusively For Rebels,
Runaway Slaves, And The Lowest Type Of Criminal.
CRUCIFIXION WAS NOT LEGAL TO A ROMAN CITIZEN.
The Criminal Was Fastened To His Cross.
Already Bleeding Excessively From The Scourging.
There He Hung To Die Of Hunger And Thirst And Exposure.
2. THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS.
THE CROSS AND THE SHAME.
32 thru 44.
I. THE CROSS ITSELF WAS A REBUKE.
1. It Was A Symbol Of Shame.
2. It Was An Instrument Of Shame.
II. REBUKE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH IT.
1. In The Place Of The Crucifixion.
2. In The Inscription On The Cross.
3. In The Characters Crucified Along With Him.
III. REBUKE WAS CAST UPON HIM.
1. By Those That Passed By.
2. By The Heads Of The Nation.
A Condemned Criminal Was Forced To A Crucifixion.
NOTE:
BUT: Jesus Was LED Away To Crucifixion.
He Did Not Resist.
He Was Led Like A LAMB Not Forced.
The Custom Was That The Criminal Carry THE CROSS BEAM.
The Upright Was Already Waiting At The Scene Of Execution.
The Criminal Charge For Execution Was WRITTEN ON A BOARD.
The Board Was Carried By A Soldier In Front Of The Procession.
And It Was Later Affixed To The Cross Itself.
The Criminal TAKEN ON THE LONGEST ROUTE To Show The Crowd.
Jesus Had Undergone The Terrible Scourging;
He Had Undergone The Mockery Of The Soldiers.
He Had Been Under Examination For Most Of The Night.
He Was Physically Exhausted And Staggering Under His Cross.
THE PLACE OF CRUCIFIXION WAS A HILL CALLED GOLGOTHA.
Impaled On A Cross.
Nails Driven Through Hands And Feet.
Pain Slightly Deadened By Drugged Wine.
BUT CHRIST WOULD NOT SHRINK FROM HIS ALLOTTED SUFFERING.
Criminals Were Crucified Naked, Except For A Loin Cloth.
The Criminal's Clothes Became The Property Of The Soldiers.
Every Jew Wore Five Articles Of Clothing:
Shoes, Turban, Girdle, Inner Garment, Outer Cloak.
Thus Five Articles Of Clothing And Four Soldiers.
The First Four Articles Were All Of Equal Value;
But The Outer Cloak Was More Valuable Than All The Others.
IT WAS FOR HIS OUTER CLOAK THAT THE SOLDIERS DREW LOTS.
So, On Golgotha A Group Of 3 Crosses That Day.
In The Middle: THE SON OF GOD.
And On Both Sides: CRIMINALS.
TRULY, HE WAS WITH SINNERS IN HIS DEATH.
IT WAS PRECISELY THERE THAT THE JEWS WERE SO WRONG.
THEY USED THE GLORY OF CHRIST AS A MEANS OF MOCKING HIM.
COME DOWN, SAVE YOURSELF, THEN WE WILL BELIEVE ON YOU.
IRONICALLY:
BECAUSE
HE WOULD NOT COME DOWN IS WHY WE BELIEVE IN HIM.
CHRIST DID SAVE OTHERS.
CHRIST COULD HAVE SAVED HIMSELF.
CHRIST WOULD NOT SAVE HIMSELF.
THE MISSION REQUIRED SURRENDER.
THE JEWS COULD SEE GOD ONLY IN POWER:
BUT JESUS SHOWED THAT GOD IS SACRIFICIAL LOVE.
HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY WITH THE CRUCIFIXION ?
Identify With Him In His Death And Resurrection.
First:
We Identify With His Death.
By Believing That We Have Died To Our Sin And Shame.
This Means We No Longer Are Guilty For Our Sin.
Second:
We Identify With Jesus In His Resurrection.
When Jesus Rose From The Dead He Conquered The Grave And Spiritual Death For Us.
3. THE DEATH OF JESUS.
THE
TRIUMPH OF THE END.
45 thru 50.
It Is SIN CONDEMNED.
Sin Killed Christ.
Christ Killed Sin.
It Is LOVE REVEALED.
It Is GOD'S PEOPLE REDEEMED.
It Is SACRIFICE INSPIRED.
Jesus Was Crucified At The Third Hour,
That Is At Nine O'clock In The Morning.
(Mk.15:25).
He Died At The Ninth Hour.
That Is At Three O'clock In The Afternoon.
(Mk.15:34).
Jesus Hung On The Cross For Six Hours.
For Him The Agony Was Mercifully Brief.
For It Often Happened That Criminals Hung On Crosses For Days.
THE CRY OF JESUS:
"MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAST THOU FORSAKEN ME?"
(Matt. 27:46).
PSALM 22 TELLS OF THE CRUCIFIXION NARRATIVE:
Who Seek Me To Mock At Me.
But He Committed His Cause To The Lord;
Let Him Deliver Him, Let Him Rescue Him, For He Delights In Him!
(Ps. 22:7-8).
They Divide My Garments And For My Raiment They Cast Lots.
(Ps. 22:18).
1. It Has Been Suggested That Jesus Was Repeating Psalm 22.
Though It Begins In Complete Dejection It Ends In Triumph.
From Thee Comes My Praise In The Great Congregation.
For Dominion Belongs To The Lord, And He Rules Over The Nations.
(Ps. 22:25-31).
As A Picture Of His Own Situation.
As A Song Of His Trust And Confidence.
Well Knowing That It Began In The Depths.
But That It Finished On The Heights.
2. It Is Suggested That Moment Is When The World's Sin Fell Upon Him.
(2 Cor.5:21).
THE PENALTY FOR SIN WAS THE INEVITABLE SEPARATION FROM GOD.
Jesus Felt For The First Time This Separation From God The Father.
THIS WAS THE DARKEST TIME IN HISTORY !!!.
3. It Is Suggested His Humanity Was Also Displayed Here.
Jesus Plumbed To The Uttermost Depths Of Human Experience.
BUT HERE IS THE POINT:
JESUS DID NOT DIE WITH A CRY BUT A SHOUT !!!
The Narrative Goes On To Tell Us That, When He Shouted With A Great
Shout, He Gave Up His Spirit.
JESUS DIED WITH A SHOUT: "IT IS FINISHED".
(JN.19:30).
THE VICTOR'S SHOUT:
IT IS THE CRY OF ONE:
WHO HAS COMPLETED HIS TASK.
WHO HAS WON THROUGH THE STRUGGLE.
WHO HAS COME OUT OF THE DARK INTO GLORY.
WHO HAS GRASPED THE CROWN.
JESUS WHO DIED A VICTOR
WITH A SHOUT OF TRIUMPH ON HIS LIPS.
The Victor Is The Man Who:
Refuses To Believe That God Had Forgotten Him,
Even When HE Feels That He Is Forsaken.
The Victor Is The Man Who:
Will Never Let Go Of His Faith.
Even When He Feels That Its Last Hope Is Gone.
The Victor Is The Man Who:
Has Been Beaten To The Depths BUT Still Holds On To God.
4. THE DEATH OF JESUS, PART 2.
THE GLARING REVELATION.
51 thru 56.
Many Women Were There Watching From A Distance.
They Were The Women Who Had Followed Jesus From Galilee.
Giving Their Service To Him.
Among Them Were Mary From Magdala.
And Mary The Mother Of James And Joseph.
And The Mother Of The Sons Of Zebedee.
GREAT TRUTHS:
A. THE TEMPLE VEIL WAS TORN FROM TOP TO BOTTOM.
That Was The Veil Which Covered The Holy Of Holies.
That Was The Veil Beyond Which No Man Could Penetrate.
EXCEPT The High Priest On The Day Of Atonement.
THE VEIL BEHIND WHICH THE SPIRIT OF GOD DWELT.
There Is Symbolism Here.
Up To This Time God Had Been Hidden And Remote.
No Man Knew What He Was Like.
But In The Death Of Jesus We See The Hidden Love Of God.
The Way To The Presence Of God Once Barred To All Men.
Now Opened To All Men.
The Life And The Death Of Jesus Removes That Veil.
B. THE TOMBS WERE OPENED.
The Symbolism Of This Is That Jesus Conquered Death.
In Dying And In Rising Again He Destroyed The Power Of The Grave.
His Life, His Death And His Resurrection Proves His Power.
The Tomb Has Lost Its Power,
The Grave Has Lost Its Terror,
Death Has Lost Its Tragedy.
For We Are Certain That Because He Lives We Shall Live Also.
C. THE ADORATION OF THE CENTURION.
Jesus Said: When I Am Lifted Up I Will Draw All Men To Myself.
5. THE BURIAL OF JESUS.
THE GIFT OF A TOMB.
57 thru 61.
1. ACCORDING TO JEWISH LAW,
Even A Criminal's Body COULD NOT Be Left Hanging All Night.
But Had To Be Buried That Day.
This Was Very Constricting When,
As In The Case Of Jesus,
The Next Day Was The Sabbath.
2. ACCORDING TO ROMAN LAW,
The Relatives Of A Criminal Might Claim His Body For Burial.
But If It Was Not Claimed It Was Left To The Scavenger Dogs.
None Of Jesus' Relatives Were In A Position To Claim His Body.
FOR THEY WERE ALL GALILEANS.
NONE OF THEM POSSESSED A TOMB IN JERUSALEM.
JESUS SUBMITS TO A BURIAL :
COMPLETING THE PROOF OF DEATH.
JOSEPH
BEGS FOR THE BODY :
REVEALING HIS DISCIPLESHIP.
PILATE
SURRENDERS THE BODY :
SHOWING HIS BELIEF THAT JESUS IS INNOCENT.
6.
THE BURIAL OF JESUS, PART 2.
AN IMPOSSIBLE ASSIGNMENT 2.
Matt. 27:62-66.
Pilate Agrees To Post A Guard At The Tomb At The Request Of Some Jewish Religious Leaders.
THEIR INTENT:
a. To Keep The Body From Being Stolen.
b. Preventing The Disciples From Faking A Resurrection.
The Extra Measures Taken After Jesus' Death Succeed:
Entirely Rule Out Any Possibility Someone May Steal His Corpse.
JESUS' TOMB IS FOUND EMPTY = CLEAR EVIDENCE OF A MIRACLE.
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