Experiencing the Cross

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SERIES DESCRIPTION: In this series on the Book of Mark, Pastor Shawn and Krista highlight Jesus as the main attraction. This week, they explore Mark 15:1-47, examining how people responded differently to the cross. Scripture challenges us to consider how we will experience the cross in our daily lives.

Altar Instructions: Please come up when I begin the last sub point called The CONTRITE actors.

Series | The Main Attraction

Pre-Message Welcome

Well... we’re so glad to see everyone of you that are here today in person and online.

· My name is Shawn... my wife and I are the Co-Pastors here at The Grace Place.

· Our mission here is simple... it’s to be Caring People... Caring for people.

· We hope you feel cared for... by God in worship & Word and by the people.

Spanish Welcome - 2nd Service ONLY!

To our Spanish speaking family..

A mis amigos hispanos, me-da-gusto.. que vino... a-adorar... con nosotros hoy!

We’re so glad you came to worship... with us today!

A nuestra familia de habla hispana .... Bienvenidos, esperamos que usted y su familia se sientan bien atendidos también.

To our Spanish speaking family... welcome, we hope you and your family feels cared for as well.

Before we get into the message today… I want to say THANK YOU to so many of you who have started sowing into the Thanksgiving Offering Fund.

Pastor P: TK You

Every November at TGP we take time to slow down and thank God for all his Kindness during the year.... by giving what we call a Thanksgiving Offering. It’s simply a tangible way we say thank you.

So far we have brought in a little over 1/2 of our 20 thousand dollar Goal… we are currently at 13,779.64.

Lets thank the Lord for that!

Lets keep up the good work.

This years project is going towards:

Replacing the soundboards -

Refilling the fabricated mulch in the play area

Let’s get make sure to get this done together.

If you have not had a chance to give

We’re inviting you to sow a seed over and above your normal tithe.

We are going to be receiving this offering over the rest of the month.

many people are sowing 100.00 into this offering which is only 25 a week throughout the month.

Some are doing a bit more and some a little less.

My wife I and I are going to do much more than that... we invite those of you who can… to sow a thousand or more.

It going to take each of us doing our part to get there.

Make sure when you give to indicate your gift as THANKSGIVING OFFERING so it gets to the right place.

Again! We thank you very much for your generosity and faithfulness in giving.

Transition: We’re in a series called

Series Title | The Main Attraction

We’re going through the book of Mark – noting how Mark makes Jesus the Main attraction of every story he writes. We are in the HOME Stretch!

If you have missed the opener to our series you can catch up

o By listing on most Podcast sites

As well as

o Watch on our Youtube

Did you enjoy Pastor Amanda’s message last week!

Didn’t she do a great job? I had someone come up to me after the service and say, you should just let Amanda preach the rest of the month :). Amanda is very loved around here and we love to hear that!

Context

Last week Pastor Amanda talked about the Trail of Jesus’

Last week as we looked at the events the religious Trial of Jesus… we noticed that His Innocence, His Purpose in death.

Today as we enter Ch 15… it details NOT his religious trial… but his Public Trial and Death on the cross.

The public trial is found in Mark chapter 15.. you can turn your bibles there or turn your attention to the screen as I read. Due to time… this is a longer chapter.. so we’re going to focus on a couple parts of the story… that are relevant to todays teaching…. here is what Mark 15 says…

Mark 15:1–47 (ESV)

And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate. 2 And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” 3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” 5 But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified

6 Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked. 7 And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barabbas. 8 And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he usually did for them. 9 And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead. 12 And Pilate again said to them, “Then what shall I do with the man you call the King of the Jews?” 13 And they cried out again, “Crucify him.” 14 And Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

Jesus Is Mocked

16 And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters), and they called together the whole battalion. 17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on him. 18 And they began to salute him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19 And they were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him and kneeling down in homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him.

The rest of this chapter outlines the events that lead to his death on the Cross.

The Mocking & Beatings… of Jesus

The Crucifixion itself itself

and Finally the Death of Jesus

We’re going to skip down to v. 42… after Jesus died… as we notice the boldness of a man name Joseph. starting at v.42 it says…

42 It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body.

Transition: the title of our message today is...

Sermon Title | Experiencing The Cross

***Feel free to encourage people to listen to the Holy Spirit speak to them personally as the message is preached

LETS PRAY

Introduction

Every day we make decisions with our life… we get to choose how we will experiance the cross of Christ.

I want you to think more broadly here… .when I say Experiencing the cross…

Im not just talking about the acceptance or rejection of Jesus that brings salvation….

I am talking about the daily decisions we make.. to either embrace and accept the way of Jesus… or denying them and doing things our way.

It’s said that humans make an estimation of 35,000 decisions per day.

Some of these are conscious and others subconscious (We are responsible for both)

Here is my wonder….

I wonder how many of mine… are made with the cross of Christ in mind?

The other day I was driving and found myself heading to the church and suddenly realized I wasn’t even paying attention… I was zoned out… it was my day off… and I was supposed to be going home… but I was not paying attention and I was headed the wrong direction…. EVERY BEEN THERE?

Transition: We’re talking about…

Experiencing the Cross

In Mark 15, we see various people at this secular trial and crucifixion, each experiencing the cross differently. I want to highlight two general ways people experienced the cross in this passage.

The First thing I noticed… IN YOUR NOTES…

Some were FOR the Cross Mk 1-20

We see this in verses 1-20 some people wanted to SEE Jesus crucified… they were FOR the crucifixion of Jesus.

Lets look at a couple of them… The first actor I notice in our passage… IN YOUR NOTES…

The CONTENTIOUS actors v.1, Prov. 17:14

Yea… we see this in the Pharisees beginning in v. 1

The religious people were completely contentious… they were… against the message of Jesus and want nothing to do with him.

They wanted to CANSEL… not just his message… but they wanted to cancel his life.

As we saw, last week Jesus stood on trial amoung the religious leaders… … but under Roman Rule, they did not have the authority to enforce the death penilty. This could only be done in secular courts.

So scripture describes in v.1 that after their religious trial… they Bound him-like a dangerous criminal… and drag him to the Governing Authorities.

How are you experiencing the Cross? Are you contentious toward Jesus as the Pharisees were?

Most of us would say… no way. But let scripture challenge us today …

How can you recognize contentious people? IN YOUR NOTES

Contentious people are ARGUMENTATIVE.

They are always looking for a fight… they love to disagree or challenge others to prove a point regardless of the importance of the matter. Friends this is NOT a pro Jesus or pro-cross way of living.

They are not open to suggestions… when they have something in mind… they are going to do it. and thats exactly what the Pharisees did.

How can you recognize contentious people? IN YOUR NOTES

They are not just ARGUMENTATIVE…

Contentious people are PROVOKING.

Yeah… even if someone tries to walk away from a fight… they won’t let you. They’ll either chase you down until you fight back…. or come back another day to provoke you… until your triggered.

Before you know it, you’re ticked off… your “seeing red,” and now you’re trippin’ just like them.... and ready for a fight.

Thats what contentious people do…

Prov. warns us about contentious attitudes… it says in Prov. 17:14… lets look at it together.

Proverbs 17:14 (NIV)

Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter… before a dispute breaks out.

Friends, experiencing the cross is a daily choice… and a contentious attitude is not how we are invited to experiance the cross.

How can we apply this today? Let the word examine us to examine us….

Here is the question I believe it’s inviting us to ask today…

Question: Are you contentious towards God, if so, in what ways?

We’re looking at a few actors that we’re FOR the cross in our passage… The next actor I want to mention… IN YOUR NOTES… is

The COWARDLY actors v.2-15, Prov. 10:24

In verses 2-15, we see Pilate’s cowardice during Jesus’ public trial.

It’s clear he finds no reason to sentence Jesus to death, he begins to buckle under the pressure of the religious leaders and the crowd.

Instead of firmly saying no, Pilate tries to appease them by offering Barabbas for crucifixion, but they refuse.

Fearing a regional disturbance and the risk to his leadership, Pilate avoids making the hard, right choice and takes the cowardly way out. Cowards often choose the easy path over the right one.

Before Pilot sentences Jesus to death… he even ask the crowds one more time before he gives them Jesus v. 14… lets look at it on the screen…

Mark 15:14 (ESV)

And Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas… and sends Jesus to his death.

We see his struggle… but it’s as if God gives him another shot to re-consider… and he does not.

Pilot is popular for saying… fine… you want to crucify Jesus… he is yours… but the blood is on your hands not mine.

But friends taking the cowardly way out does not make Pilate innocent… it makes him a coward for not doing the right thing.

How are you experiencing the Cross? Have you made COWARDLY choices towards Jesus?

Most of you would say… no way..I’m not a coward.

As hard as it is… let scripture challenge us today and point out our Cowardly ways.

How can you recognize COWARDLY people… IN YOUR NOTES?

Cowardly people AVOID - RESPONSIBILITY.

They do the wrong thing… even when the right thing… is staring them in the face.

They justify their decision by saying… it’s what the people wanted… I was forced to make that decision…

This does not make them innocent… it makes them manipulators…

How can you recognize COWARDLY people… IN YOUR NOTES?

They don’t just AVOID-RESPONSIBILITY

Cowardly people are FEAR-DRIVEN.

They are not driven by morals… they are driven by fear.

Fear of what?

Fear of losing favor amoung the people.

Fear of causing more problems for themselves.

Fear of losing their position.

We see that that Pilate had every one of these fears.

Prov. warns us about fearful… COWARDLY attitudes in Prov. 10:24… lets look at it together…

Proverbs 10:24

Proverbs 10:24 (NIV)

What the wicked dread will overtake them;

You might as well face your fear… becuase if you don’t… what you fear… what you are trying to avoid .. will overtake you… you will be consumed by it.

You can’t be consumed by both God and Fear… you must chose which one will overtake you.

Scripture continues and says…

what the righteous desire… will be granted.

When we make the hard decision and do the right thing … our life is reward…

Friends, experiencing the cross is a daily choice… and a cowardly attitude towards the cross is not how we are invited to experience the cross.

This is where scripture challenges us to-examine… who we fear more… man or God.

Here is the question I believe it’s is inviting us to ask… its on the screen

Question: Has the approval of others gotten in the way of you making the right decision? How might you avoid this in the future?

Transition: We’re talking about…

Experiencing The Cross

We’re looking at two general ways people experienced the cross in this passage.

We see that…

Some we’re FOR the Cross…

They wanted to see Jesus die…

The next group of people I noticed as they we’re experiencing the cross… … IN YOUR NOTES…

Some were AGAINST the Cross 21-47

We see this throughout the entire chapter. There we’re many that… DID-NOT want to see Jesus crucified!

They loved him…. they believed he was truly the Son of God.

Lets look at a couple of them… The first actor I notice in our passage… IN YOUR NOTES… is

The COURAGEOUS actors v.42-47, Prov. 28:1

Yea… there we’re some courageous people there that day, despite the pressure from many in the crowed..

We see there we’re courageous women there…

John the Beloved was there..

and many others sat with Jesus till his last breath.

I do want us to pay special-attention to one person in the last part of the story.

We see this in v.42… the courage of a man named Joseph… as he steps up in front of all those who wanted Jesus crucified…

He courageously approaches Pilate for permission… to pull down the body of Jesus…. from the cross and give him a proper burial. All eyes we’re on the sympathizers of Jesus. For the Pharisees… it was now very clear who was with them and who was with Jesus…. people like Saul was sent on mission by the Pharisees to kill the Jesus sympathizers. It was risky for Joseph to do this for Jesus.

How are you experiencing the Cross? Are you COURAGEOUS like Joseph was?

Lets let scripture challenge us today to point ways we might be able to be courageous as we experiance the cross daily.

How can you recognize courageous people… in YOUR NOTES?

Courageous people are RESILIENT .

Yea they have a strong bounce back… they are hard to break.

With God’s help, the resilient have learned to handle stress, slow down, regulate their emotions, and recover from overwhelming moments. This allows them to think clearly and make the right choice as they experiance the cross.

Dont mistaken courage for FEARLESS… Courage is not the absence of fear… but the ability to do the right thing while being afraid.

Courage is having the strength to do what others wish they could but lack the bravery to to it.

Courage isn’t fearlessness—it’s doing the right thing despite being afraid.

How can you recognize courageous people… in YOUR NOTES?

Courageous people are CONVICTED .

Yea, they have a strong moral-compus… to do the right thing no matter what.

They have CONVICTIONS… values… morals

They have the courage to do the right thing… NOT just when people are looking… but when they are not.

Courageous people… are who they are… in private and in public.

I’m reminded of Pro.

1. Proverbs 28:1

Proverbs 28:1 (NIV)

The wicked flee though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

• The COURAGEOUS are as BOLD as LIONS… their superpower is that they TRUST GOD…. and this leads lead to boldness…. to do the right thing even when they are afraid.

Friends, experiencing the cross with courage… is a daily choice…

This is where scripture challenges us …

Here is the question I believe it’s inviting us to ask today… its on the screen…

Question: What might you need courage for in this season?

What are you fearful of?

What is causing you to be frozen… unable to do the right thing and move forward?

The last actor I want to mention that we see in our passage… IN YOUR NOTES… is…

The CONTRITE actors v.21, Ps. 51:17

These are the submissive actors in our story. Those with a CONTRITE spirit…

I wanted to save the best for last…

This brings us to our MAIN ATTRACTION of this story… JESUS.

We see this in how Jesus experience's the invitation to the cross by the Father. He is CONTRITE as he is willingly lays his life down for his friends… for the lost… the broken.. and even his enemies.

As hard as it is… let scripture challenge us today and to help us tap into a contrite heart.

How can you know if your heart is a CONTRITE one? IN YOUR NOTES

Contrite people are GENUINE .

Yea… Jesus was geniune and Honest all the way to the cross.

Rather than being motivated by fear… he was motivated by love for people.

He did the right thing and embraced the brutality of the cross becuase of a genuine love for others.

It was His love for others that sent him to the cross… it was not contingent upon his feelings.

It was his genuine love for others that caused his death.

Even when he could have blamed the people for the pain he was experiencing he said…

Forgive them, for they know not what they do…

he even reminded genuine in his love for his enemies all the way till the end.

How can you recognize contrite people?

They are not just Genuine…

Contrite people are HUMBLE .

We see this in Jesus…. didn’t even defend himself … when he could have… no he remained humble.

He knew that his defense of himself would not make a difference in the mydths of this blood thirsty crowed.. they would have only seen him as a fool.

Friends…. CONTRITE people… take the HUMBLE and HIGH road… through life…

and… Just a warning… the Humble road… can be a lonely road.

Ps 51:17 tells us this…

Psalm 51:17 (ESV)

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Friends, experiencing the cross is a daily choice…

Its not all bliss and blessings…

Ps say’s that the sacrifice Jesus was made from a contrite heart… it lead him to… a broken and humbled heart as he was humiliated and died a criminals death…

If we experience the cross the way Jesus did… we can know that we too will experiance brokenness

As we pray for others… and share the good news with them… it will be painful as they deny Jesus… as we too will suffer… our heart will be broken for them.. it will be painful…

Here is God’s promise for you… God says… don’t fear a broken and contrite ehart… becuase I will be there to embrace you…

This is where scripture challenges us to examine our heart…. to see if there is a genuine humble way in us.

Here is the question I believe its inviting us to ask today… its on the screen

Question: I am more focused on being right or serving others?

Is my heart contrite or puffed up?

Is there a HIGHT-HUMBLE-LONELY road that God is inviting me to travle?

Transition: We’re talking about…

Sermon Title | Experiencing The Cross

Some we’re FOR the Cross… and Some we’re against the cross…

How will you experiance the Cross today

TOday is a fresh chance to change the way you are EXPERIANCING the Cross.

Salvation

If GOd has spoken to you in any way

Transition: As I close today….

So today… if you do NOT know Jesus as your Lord and Savior today is your day…

Salvation Altar Call

I believe Jesus is here today, and He wants to save you. Salvation simply means to deliver or to free. It’s not just about delivering you…

It’s about believing

Believing in Jesus means trusting what He say’s—about sin, and eternal punishment, thats the bad news.

The good news is this… that His death on the cross paid the penalty for our sins, making us right with God.

Ephesians 2:8 reminds us: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” Salvation requires two things:

1. God’s Grace—His undeserved gift of forgiveness and life because of His love for you.

2. Faith—placing your trust in Him for salvation.

If you’ve never asked Jesus to save you, today is your day. If you’d like ask him… , raise your hand.

I want to invite you to Repeat a prayer after me

· There is nothing magical in this prayer.. it simply is a way of declaring to Jesus what has taken place in your heart.

Here is how I would like to end the service for everyone else….

Call to Action Altar Call

We’re going to end the service with A question as we do nearly every week.

ALL ACROSS THE ROOM – HAS THE HOLY SPIRIT spoken to you in anyway today?

Going Deeper

What stuck out to you in this passage? v. 1-47

Are you contentious towards God, if so, in what ways?

Has the approval of others gotten in the way of you making the right decision? How might you avoid this in the future?

What might you need courage for in this season?

I am more focused on being right or serving others?

What might the Holy Spirit be saying to you in light of this teaching?

How might the Holy Spirit want to transform you in light of this teaching?

What actions might the Holy Spirit want to take in light of this teaching?

Tongues & Interpretation

1. To STRENGTHEN the Church (1 Cor. 14:5)

For prophecy is greater than SPEAKING in TONGUES, unless someone interprets what you are saying so that the whole church will be STRENGTHENED.

Believers, God has operated through this gift today to strengthen you today. Let your faith be strengthened and know that God is in control and using supernatural measures to speak to us.

2. Is a SIGN for unbelievers. (1Cor. 14: 21a, 22)

1 Corinthians 14:21–22 (ESV)

In the Law it is written, “By people of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord.” Thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers but for believers.

22 -  So you see that speaking in tongues is a SIGN, not for believers, but for UNBELIEVERS.

The Bible explains to us God has chosen to use this gift to be a sign for you. A sign for what? It is a sign of his realness for those of you who have been doubting or questioning the existence of God. He wants you to know he is REAL and he wants to bring you spiritual life and health. If you're in here today and you don't know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior... he wants you to know he has gone to great lengths to show you his love today. (Great opportunity for a salvation altar call if it fits).