Jesus Crucified
Notes
Transcript
Good Morning
Good Morning
What did the drummer name his twin daughters?
Ana1
Ana2
We have a quick business meeting after service for the finance committee to give their new budget and for us to vote on it.
Next Saturday we are going to have our men’s breakfast. 8 o’clock
Today we are going to be in Mark 15:22-32.
Last week we saw Jesus get flogged and mocked by the Roman soldiers. The Romans were masters of pain and killing people. They knew how to inflict pain and they knew how to kill people in painful ways. The focus was on the mockery of Jesus. The Roman soldiers put a robe on Jesus and they put a crown on Him also. They bowed to Him and called Him King, all while laughing and hitting Him in the head. 600 soldiers to mock one man! They spit on Him and did everything they could to humiliate Him. When they were done, they stripped off the mock robe and put His clothes back on Him and lead Him out to be crucified. He was unable to carry the cross beam as was custom for the one being crucified, so they enlisted the help of Simon of Cyrene. He was from Northern Africa and was in town for the Passover and for the upcoming Pentecost festival.
Today we are going to look at the beginning of the crucifixion of Jesus. Again the focus is not on the pain of the crucifixion, it is on the mocking of Jesus. All Mark says about the crucifixion is that Jesus was that they crucified Him. The mocking signifies the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews. Jesus, the Messiah, the one they have been waiting hundreds of years for, is finally here and they can’t even see Him for how He truly is. He has been walking amongst them and teaching, healing, doing miracles, raising the dead, and they still don’t want to recognize Him as their Messiah. Let’s see what they are going to do to our King.
Please stand as we prepare to hear God’s Word.
22 And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. 25 And it was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27 And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. 29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.
Mark tells us that they brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha which means place of the skull. We do not know for certain why it is called this or exactly where this place is. We just know that it was out side of the city gates. So say that it was named this because the hill looked like a skull. That sounds reasonable, but also this was the place that was customary to crucify people, so death was common on this hill and maybe the crucified were left hanging as a sign to would be capital criminals and the birds would pick off the skin and expose the skull of the dead. We don’t know for sure, we just know that is what they called it. So of our Bibles may have the Latin word for Golgotha which is Calvary, these are the same place. So if you know of a church with calvary in their name, their name has skull in it.
Jesus finally makes it to Golgotha, I imagine He wasn’t breaking any speed records with the condition He was in. When He arrived, we are told that they offered Him some wine mixed with myrrh. What is myrrh, I’m glad you asked!!
Myrrh is an aromatic gum-resin (dried sap) extracted from the bark of small, thorny trees and shrubs , primarily found in northeastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The name "myrrh" comes from the Arabic word "murr," meaning "bitter".
Myrrh has been a highly valued commodity for thousands of years, historically traded for its use in medicine, perfumery, and religious rituals.
Myrrh was used extensively by the ancient Egyptians for embalming mummies and in religious ceremonies.
Myrrh is mentioned three times in the Bible. Here in our verses today, in John 19:39
39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight.
We give Nicodemus a lot of grief because he came to Jesus at night, but here there is no sneaking around with 75 pounds of spices!! He has come out and let his feelings be known.
Both of these cases the use of Myrrh is for death. The other time we see it is in the Christmas story. In Matthew 2:11
11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
That is a strange gift to give a child, a spice used for death! It was a foreshadowing of His death to come.
It was mixed with strong wine and then given to those who were going to be crucified to help reduce some of the pain. It was kind of a mercy offering to the one who was about to die a horrible and painful death by suffocation.
Jesus refused the drink. He would not take it.
Jesus didn’t take the drink for two reasons.
Jesus was to drink the whole cup of God’s wrath and He was to experience all of it un altered. If He would have taken the drink and it would have lessened the pain and suffering, that would have taken away from the wrath of God. Jesus in obedience to His father, was to drink the whole cup and experience the whole wrath.
25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Jesus told His disciples that He would not drink of the fruit again until that day when He raised up and back at the right hand of the Father.
Jesus was did not take the drink offered to help with the pain. He was drinking the whole cup that the Father had prepared for Him.
Next they crucify Jesus. That is all that Mark tells us. He leaves out all the details. The nails used to pierce the hands and feet would have been around 7 inches long and the head would have been about 1-2 inches wide. One would have been driven through each wrist as the hand would not of been able to support the weight of the body. Then either one nail was driven through both heals or one for each foot. This would have been a very painful moment in the crucifixion. The person would have to endure the pain in the feet of pushing up to breath and then the pain of hanging by the wrists. It was a back and forth endeavored to stay alive. While hanging from the wrists, causes the chest to be forced into an inhale position and makes it hard to exhale.
To exhale, the person must use their legs to push up against the nails, a process that is extremely painful and becomes increasingly difficult over time. As the victim becomes more and more exhausted, they are no longer able to push up to breathe, and the body is unable to exhale. This leads to a progressive lack of oxygen in the blood, which eventually results in suffocation.
Crucifixion was a slow painful death that the Romans had perfected. It was only used on the worst of the worst criminal. Which Jesus was not one of these!
After they had put Jesus on the cross, it was customary for the guards at the crucifixion to get the belongings of the victim. They would divide them between them. It was their reward for what they had to do! They did the same with Jesus’ clothes. They divided them up and they cast lots, threw dice, to see who would get what pieces.
This was foretold by David over a thousand years ago. We can see in Psalm 22:18
18 they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
David is telling about the death of the future Messiah. He foretold this hundreds of years before crucifixion was even invented!
Mark tells us that it was the third hour when the crucified Jesus. That would be 9 am. Think about all that has gone on since the sun came up. The Sanhedrin had their fake trail, Jesus went before Pilate and then King Herod, and then back to Pilate. He was flogged and mocked by the Roman soldiers and now crucifixion. What a day and it was only three hours into the day.
It was customary for the criminal to have the charge they were guilty of put either on a chain around their necks or on a sign above their heads. Pilate put a sign above Jesus’ head that read King of the Jews. It was written in Greek, Latin, and Aramaic. Everyone walking by would have been able to read this. This really upset the Sanhedrin. They went to Pilate and asked to change it to say, He says He is the king of the jews. Pilate tells them that he has written what he has written. Pilate did this to spit the leaders. He knew that Jesus was innocent and this was a way to get back at them for forcing him to do their bidding.
Jesus was crucified in the middle of two other criminals. These two would not have been common thieves. The Romans did not crucify anyone except those deserving capitol punishment. These two men were more than likely part of the group that Barabbas was part of. They were there because they were trying to lead an insurrection. They probably had killed people like Barabbas had. Jesus was on the cross meant for Barabbas. This also was foretold in Isaiah 53:12
12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.
All of what was happening to Jesus was foretold hundreds of years ago. Isaiah told about this hundreds of years before Jesus was born.
Mark tells us that those who were passing by were wagging their heads and mocking Jesus. They were saying to Him save yourself and come down! Notice that they were miss quoting Jesus. They thought He said He was going to destroy the Holy Temple and then build it back in three days, but He was talking about His body!
They were tempting Jesus to come down off the cross. This was Jesus’ last temptation. Just like Satan tempted Jesus in the desert, these people were tempting Jesus to miss use His power. Praise God that Jesus did not do what they said, otherwise no one would have been saved! I am so glad that our King had the restraint to hold back and not come down off that cross when those people were mocking and testing Him. I praise Him that He was obedient to death to the Father.
We see also that the scribes and chief priests were mocking Him also and saying to Him that you save others, save Yourself! They tested Him also, saying come down off the cross so that we may see and believe. There is a theological word for this, liar! Even if Jesus did come down off the cross, they would not have believed! Faith does not come by seeing, it comes by hearing, hearing the Word. Romans 10:17
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Just like the story of the rich man and Lazarus. Luke 16:27-31
27 And he said, ‘Then I request of you, father, that you send him to my father’s house—28 for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not come to this place of torment as well.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”
Not even seeing a dead man raised from the dead is enough to make someone believe. These are Jesus’ words! It is through hearing God’s Word that faith is formed and then through study and obedience faith is matured.
That is why it is so important that the Bible be preached. It is by hearing and hearing the Word of God that we get our faith! Nothing that we see can do what the Word can do when we hear it consistently preached. We must always be a Bible preaching church.
The last half of our last verse is perhaps the worst!! The two criminals are even mocking Jesus. While they are on the cross dying, with their last breaths, they are mocking Jesus. It just goes to show how wicked the human heart can be. Without the redemption recieved from Christ, we can do some wicked wicked things. We need Jesus!
We can see in Luke that after a while one of the criminals had a change of heart! Literally. Luke 23:40-43
40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
One of them rebukes the other! He says, do you not fear God!! We are dying because we are guilty, this man is not guilty, He has done nothing wrong!
What he says next is truly remarkable. Remember at this point what Jesus must have looked like. Beaten in the face multiple times, flogged, had a crown of thorns mashed down onto His head, and crucified. He did not look like a King at all! But this one criminal askes Jesus to remember him when He comes into His kingdom. From mocking to repentance! A true change of heart.
Just like Jesus always does, He does more than just remember him, He tells him that today you will be with Me in paradise!! Jesus didn’t tell him that he had to be baptized first, He didn’t tell him that he had to join a church first! He didn’t have to do anything other than what he had already done! He repented, we can see that when he was rebuking his friend, and then he believed in Jesus. He believed Jesus was the King! That is all you have to do to have salvation! Jesus taught that repentance and belief is all it takes! I am so glad that God gave us this picture of the thief on the cross to remind us that works has nothing to do with salvation, because if it did, this man could not be in heaven. He did not works to earn his salvation. He had repentance and faith! Jesus made salvation a simple process, we have muddied it up so much!! Repent and believe is all it takes!
The take away today is similar to last week.
Jesus was mocked and tested.
So are we. We should not expect to be treated any better than the King was!
Not wanting to be mocked or tested or rejected is ok, but it should never keep us from being obedient.
Jesus didn’t want those things either, remember how He prayed in the Garden? Father take this cup!!! But not MY will but YOURS!!!!!!
Jesus tells us that we will be treated the same way that He was treated.
They will mock us, reject us, laugh at us. We should expect it. But it should never stop us!
Jesus tells us that if we love Him we will keep His commands! John 14:15
15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
Those words are in Red in my Bible! Those words came out of Jesus’ mouth while He was here on Earth.
How are you showing that you love Jesus?
If it is anything other than obedience, it is not love according to Jesus!
We have to do what Jesus told us to do.
We have to Love God!
We have to Love our neighbor as ourself!
We have to go and spread the Good News!
Doing those three things will show the world how much you love Jesus.
The old saying talk is cheap!
Action speak louder than anything you can say.
We have seen all that our King had gone through because of us and for us!
What are you willing to go through for Him!
Liberty, let’s go show Stephens County our love for our King!
Let’s pray
