The Passion of Christ

Announcements:

Valentines Day w/ JHM

Boys Game Night Friday

Girls Brunch Saturday

Introduction:

We have come a long way in the Gospel of Mark

And today we’ve arrived at the climax of the story

Last week we saw how pressure brings out people’s true character

And today we’ll see Jesus pushed to the absolute extreme

Tortured, beaten, mocked, humiliated, and crucified for everyone to see

Before we jump into the Scripture reading (which is a lot), I hope we can all read this with fresh eyes and open hearts

Familiarity can cause us to be indifferent about what is happening here

We know the gospel—we know the crucifixion—they can just become facts in our heads

But reading this story should break our hearts

That after chasing down humanity time after time in the Old Testament—sending prophets and calling his people to return to him—God came to Earth himself

He came to set us free from sin and death

And we rejected him, humiliated him, and crucified him

In John’s words:

John 1:9–12 CSB

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was created through him, and yet the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name

So today, instead of the normal scripture reading we do every week, I want you to break into groups of 2 or 3 to read all of Mark 15

And I ask you.. pay attention

Don’t let familiarity with this story blind you from it’s power

What sticks out to you?

Then we’ll regroup and I’ll share some words on it

Scripture Reading:

Mark 15

What stood out to you?

Application for Us:

I want to take our time this morning to talk about what this means for us:

We have to make up our minds about Jesus (Pilate)

Pilate tried to take the middle road

He knew the religious leaders handed over Jesus because of envy

He knew Jesus was innocent

But he didn’t stop any of the injustice

Knowing the Truth is not the Same as Obeying It

Pilate knew the truth—but he did not follow through on it

My time in college

True Faith = Action

Meteor Analogy

If the Bible is true, and Jesus is who he says he is, and he did what the Bible says he did

It changes the way we live

We forgive others because we have been forgiven

We abstain from sinfulness—because we truly believe that God’s way is better

We treat others as more important that ourselves and seek to be a blessing to others that glorifies God

The Way of Jesus isn’t just a way of behavioral modification

It is living out the truth of the Gospel

It’s true whether or not we believe it

Are we going to stay in line with reality?

Or do what is convenient, but will destroy us in the long run?

The second character I want us to look at is Barabbas, we see that:

Jesus is our Substitute (Barabbas)

Until we know our sinfulness, we will never appreciate the cross

We are all like Barabbas

There was no defense, no argument, no plea — He was guilty

We can try to excuse ourselves of guilt but when we face the truth—we know we fall short all the time

You don’t have to teach a baby to lie/to say mine

And we each grow up with an inward bent towards ourselves—at the expense of others—and at the expense of God

And if we aren’t aware of this—it is probably because pride has hardened our hearts to even see it

We can see it in others a mile away—But often we are blinded to our own sin

And whether we are aware of it or not, Jesus has come to save us from our sin

In this story, Barabbas walks free without saying a word

Jesus took his place, died a criminal’s death—so that this guilty man could walk free

And he didn’t wait until Barabbas realized his wrong ways

But in the words of Paul:

Romans 5:8 CSB

8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:10 CSB

10 For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life.

While we were sinners — Christ died for us

He is the initiator

He rescued us before we even knew we needed rescue

At the core of the Gospel is this substitution

Christ took our place—So that we might take his

Jesus took all of the consequences of our sin and brokenness on the cross

So that we might receive life — and adoption into the family of God

Here we see the foreshadowing of this heavenly exchange

Next I want us to ponder:

The Horror of the Cross

Like I just said, with this exchange—Jesus took on our sins on the cross

The true horror of the cross was not the crucifixion

Flogged, skin ripped apart—Nailed to a cross

People died of asphyxiation—pushing up on your flayed back to get the smallest breath

Naked and humiliated for all to see

It truly is one of the most horrible to die

But that wasn’t the worst of it

You see any of us could have gone through with that

In fact historians speculate that Rome crucified anywhere from 300k-2mil people

The true horror of the cross was not the cross itself, but what happened on the cross

He took on our sin

1 John 2:2 CSB

2 He himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world.

2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB

21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Romans 8:3–4 CSB

3 For what the law could not do since it was weakened by the flesh, God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh as a sin offering, 4 in order that the law’s requirement would be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

He took on our sin and put it to death—so that we might live

On the cross—Jesus faced utter separation from God the Father and recieved the wrath of God

Jesus, the one man who never knew sin—lived in perfect communion with the father

Was separated from his presence

Jesus, the only completely innocent man to ever live—recieved punishment on our behalf

That is a pain, an agony, we can never know

Separation from God is hell

And Jesus experienced hell, so we don’t have to

Now you might have the question: Why did the father have to punish Jesus?

Cosmic Child Abuse

This was a part of Jesus’s plan

He had constantly been warning his disciples of this

2. Love/Justice

God is wholly love

God can’t act out of unlovingness

God is wholly just

God can’t be unjust

Sin has to be dealt with so that God can truly love us

And on the cross this problem was dealt with

Jesus paid the penalty of our sin—so that we could enter into a true and full relationship with the Father

Which is the last thing I want to highlight this morning, one peculiar thing happens in this story:

The Veil is Torn

Mark 15:37–38 CSB

37 Jesus let out a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 Then the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

This can seem like a minor or insignificant detail—but the power and importance of this cannot be understated

The veil of the temple played a very important role

It separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple

You see, in the temple there was a place called the Holy of Holies that only the high priest could enter once a year after a ton of cleansing ceremonies

He would go in to offer a sacrifice for all of Israel on the day of atonement

This room contained the Ark of the Covenant (from Exodus) and was the center of God’s presence on this Earth

It was a room that was entered with the highest honor and fear — people who entered into a holy space like this without reverence were often struck dead

Now the veil that separated this room from the rest of the temple was torn—as Jesus breathed his last breath

And Mark even adds the detail that it was torn in two (completely) from top to bottom

Indicating that God himself tore this veil

This is shedding light on what Jesus came to accomplish

The barrier that once separated God and man has been torn

That our sin has been dealt with

We have free and unfettered access to God himself

Hebrews 4:16 CSB

16 Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.

We no longer have to approach God in fear and trembling—but with boldness

It’s not that we are irreverent and don’t take God seriously—but we have nothing to fear

Jesus has taken our sin and dealt with it

So we know God has nothing but love in his eyes for us

The Father loves us with the very same love that He has for Jesus

We have been made children of God

Children of a king (example)

That’s my Dad

Conclusion

And all of what we’ve talked about this morning leads us to the communion table

It reminds us of the cost of our freedom—the cost of our adoption

Jesus gave his very body—and shed his blood—to purchase us (you and me)

As we go forward into this week—I charge you—Keep the cross in the front of your mind

It is a reminder of God’s greatest act of love for you and me

Let’s take this time to reflect on these truths—take communion—and recenter our lives back on Jesus

Eucharist — Thank you