The Crucifixion
Good Friday 2026 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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As we pick up the account of the Lord’s crucifixion in Mark chapter 15, we are introduced to a man named Simon. Verse 21 reads,
21 Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.
Now, I’m sure unbelievers would look at this verse and think, “Man, talk about the wrong place at the wrong time”. But we as believers realize this was quite the opposite. We would say, “talk about being in the right place at the right time”. What an honor and a privilege this man received. He assisted the Lord Jesus Christ in the final steps toward the greatest act of love the world has ever known. Simon thought he was just passing by. He was just another pilgrim in town for the Passover feast. His hometown, of Cyrene was in northern Africa where many Jews lived. So, it is highly likely that Simon was a devout Jew who had come to Jerusalem to observe Passover. But you see, heaven had written his name into this story long before he ever arrived in Jerusalem. And we have hints that this man was even known by the early church. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all mention Him by name , and Mark even mentions His son’s name. Mark says, His sons names were Alexander and Rufus.
Now here is where this gets interesting. According to early Church tradition Mark was originally written to believers who lived in and around Rome. In fact, Mark was writing to believers in Rome who were suffering persecution, and it is quite possible that one of Simon’s sons was a member of the Church at Rome. Listen to what Paul writes in Romans 16:13.
13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
So, it is all together possible that Rufus in this verse is Simon’s son. That would be a really good reason for Mark to mention Simon’s sons in his Gospel. He mentions Simon’s sons because he is writing to a group of believers who knew them. And so, you probably thinking, “Gee William thanks for that little tidbit. But so what?”.
Well, here is why this is important. Number one, obliviously Simon becomes a believer sometime after this “carrying the cross” experience, and so do HIs sons. And apparently, His son Rufus is a well known member of the church at Rome. But here is what I want us to walk away with. Simon becomes a beautiful picture of what picture of what discipleship looks like. What did Jesus tell his disciples on the road to the cross? “Whoever, desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me”. You see, Mark’s gospel was written to believers who were suffering and He is explaining that suffering is a part of what it means to follow Christ. He is showing them the way of Master. And it is like He is writing to them saying, “look even Rufus’ dad Simon, got dragged into it.” Suffering is a part of following after the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is what the Gospel of Mark is still teaching us today. If we obediently follow the Lord Jesus Christ, we will partake in the same type of sufferings as the Lord Himself. If we seek to carry on His work and teach people about Him and make disciples, the world will persecute us in the same ways it did Him.
Ok, let’s keep moving before this sermonette turns into a full blown sermon. Picking back up at verse 22,
22 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. 23 Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.
So, this term Golgotha is an Aramaic word, and it means “Place of the Skull”. Now there are a couple of different reasons commentators suggest this name. It is possible that the side of the hill where the crucifixions took place was shaped like a skull, or it may have been named that simply because it was a place of death.
Then in verse 23 we read that “they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it." Now, let’s talk about this word myrrh for a second. That is a word in Greek describes a substance that contained narcotic properties. In other words, this wine mixed with myrrh would have been given as an act of mercy. Someone was offering this to Jesus as a way to dull the horrific pain He was about to experience. In fact, according to the Talmud (ancient Jewish commentary) Jewish women would give men who were going to be crucified a mixture of wine and Myrrh as an act of mercy. It was intended to ease the criminals pain. But, notice the end of the verse, “He did not take it”.
Now Mark doesn’t explain why He didn’t take it, but we can make an educated guess as to why. Jesus had to drink the cup of God’s wrath, as we talked about this past Sunday. Jesus had to drink the cup, and in order to fully drink the cup of God’s wrath against sin, He couldn’t take any shortcuts. No, Jesus had to drink every drop of God’s wrath before the cup would pass from Him, and He had determined to feel every bit of the pain and anguish that came with it. Simply put, Jesus was preparing to pay for the sins of the world and He needed to be fully present to do this.
I know I’m not the only person in here who is a fan of the movie Braveheart. In this movie Mel Gibson played a Scottish hero named William Wallace, who is fighting for His country against a tyrant king that was oppressing the Scottish people. Well at the end of the movie, William Wallace is finally captured and sentenced to torture and death. Well, right before His execution an ally secretly sneaks in an and offers him some laced herbs to dull his upcoming pain. In effect, William Wallace was offered some “myrrhed wine” to ease his upcoming suffering. But William Wallace refuses because He wants to die a valiant death that would further help the cause of his people. And He knows to die this way he needs his wits about Him. He knows he needs to be fully present and experience the pain.
Now to be clear. Their is no evidence from history that this actually happened. There is no evidence that anyone slipped in and tried to give William Wallace a pain killer before his death. But it does make we wonder if maybe Mel Gibson was inspired to include this scene based off of Jesus’ crucifixion experience.
You see, Jesus refuses the wine mixed with myrrh—not to make a dramatic statement, not to prove His toughness, but because He was determined to face the full weight of the Father’s wrath with complete clarity. He wasn’t going to numb Himself. He wasn’t going to take the edge off. He wasn’t going to soften the cup the Father had given Him.
He came to drink that cup—all of it—to take away the sins of the world.
So while the movie gives us a fictional example of a man refusing painkillers to stay mentally sharp, the gospel gives us the real Son of God refusing a real narcotic so He could fully bear the real judgment our sins deserved. And because He drank that cup to the bottom, you and I will never have to taste it. Amen.
24 And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take. 25 Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.
Mark says, “when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them”. So, many details in these two verses. First, it is important to realize that crucified men were hung on the cross naked. And especially in Jewish culture, public nudity was shameful, which of course added to the humiliation of the Lord’s death. And is says that the soldiers gambled to see who would take home HIs clothes. One of the things we don’t realize in our culture today is that clothes were much more valuable back then. And in that culture, clothing wasn’t something you picked up on sale at a department store. A man might own only one outer garment. It was valuable. It was personal. It was part of his identity. So when the soldiers cast lots for Jesus’ clothing, they weren’t just dividing spoils—they were stripping Him of the last earthly possession He had.
And don’t miss this. Once again, we see the perfect example Christ gave us of what He requires of His disciples. Just like the picture we saw earlier with Simon carrying the cross, disciples must be willing to give up everything as they take up their own cross to follow Christ.
The Lord Jesus Christ gave everything.
His clothes.
His dignity.
His blood.
Even His very life.
And He did that for you.
And He did that for me.
Oh what a Savior indeed!
Now, in verse 25 Mark simply says, “Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him”. The third hour was 9 o’clock in the morning. Mark doesn’t add any detail around how excruciating the cross was. He didn’t need to. He was writing to an audience in Rome. They were familiar with the all the gory details. They were well familiar with all the pain and suffering involves in a crucifixion. They had seen it with their own eyes.
But here is something you may not know. Most of the details surrounding what Christ experienced on the cross are not found in the Gospels—they’re found in the Old Testament. It is David, speaking prophetically in Psalm 22, who pulls back the curtain and lets us feel the inner agony of the Lord’s crucifixion.
Psalm 22 is often called “the Psalm of the Cross,” and here is what is amazing about this Psalm. It was written a thousand years before Jesus was born. It was written long before crucifixion was even invented, and yet through the Holy Spirit David describes the suffering of the Messiah with stunning accuracy. He speaks of being surrounded by enemies. He speaks of mockery. He speaks of physical weakness. He speaks of pierced hands and feet. And he speaks of His garments being divided and lots being cast—exactly what Mark has just recorded.
It’s as if Psalm 22 is the Holy Spirit’s commentary on the crucifixion.
Where Mark gives us the historical facts,
Psalm 22 gives us the emotional and spiritual depth.
Where Mark shows us what happened,
Psalm 22 shows us what it felt like.
And so as we prepare to partake of the Lord supper. Let’s read a few verses of Psalm 22.
1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning?
Does verse 1 sound familiar? It should, these are the very words Christ cried out as He was experiencing the wrath of God. And now we don’t have time to study the entire Psalm, but I want to show you how detailed this prophecy gets. Let’s pick back up at verse 7.
7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
Pay close attention here to “they sake the head, saying”… Does this sound familiar? Again, it should. Let me show you in Mark where these prophetic verses come to pass.
29 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 save Yourself, and come down from the cross!”
This verse says they blasphemed Him, “wagging their heads”. This “head wagging” was a gesture of ridicule, shame and contempt”. Just like Psalm 22 predicted. But wait because this Psalm get even more detailed.
Skipping down to verse 14 now.
14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death.
You see, it is here in the OT. It is here 1000 years before Christ walked the earth. In is here in Psalm 22 written long before crucifixion was invented that we learn of the Lord’s anguish on the cross. He says, I am poured out like water. This is language of total exhaustion, and it pictures the life of the Lord draining away as His strength leaves Him, like water being poured out of a glass. He says, all my bones are out of joint. This is poetic language that describes the physical strain of crucifixion, where the victim's arms were stretched so severely that the shoulder could be pulled from their sockets.
And when David says, “My tongue clings to My jaws,” he is describing the intense thirst that comes with crucifixion. We have all experienced being so thirsty that our tongues stick to the roof of our mouths, but we’ve never experienced anything like this.
Conservative scholars point out that dehydration was one of the defining features of this form of execution. The blood loss, the exposure, the strain of trying to breathe—all of it drained the body of moisture. Medical studies confirm that a crucified man would experience a burning, overwhelming thirst. And maybe that is why Jesus cried out, “I thirst.” But He wasn’t just expressing physical need, He was thirsting spiritually as He experienced the wrath of God.
Here is the point. The Messiah would suffer thirst so that you and I could drink the water of life freely.
But were not done, this Psalm gives us even more detail that makes it undeniable that this indeed is a “Psalm of the Cross”.
16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet;
I know you heard it, but let me make sure this sticks with you. “They pierced My hands and My feet”.
Now let’s look at one more verse in this Psalm.
18 They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.
Jesus’ destiny was always the cross. In fact, His destiny was recorded in black and white 1000 years before He was born. Jesus knew what His mission was. He knew it in the Garden, and He knew it when He refused the wine mixed with Myrrh right before they crucified Him. He was always determined to drink the cup of the wrath of God to take away the sins of the world. And because His perfect completed work. He has now opened up that pathway to God the Father. He is the pathway to the Father. Jesus said
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
We come to the Father when we believe on the Son. Jesus also said,
47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
If you haven’t believed in Jesus Christ for eternal life. I hope you do now. I hope this sermon persuaded you that Jesus is who He said He was. He is the one who gives eternal life to whosoever believes in Him for that life. He is the One who endured the cross and purchased you with His shed blood. Amen.
Let’s pray.
Now as we turn our hearts to the Lord’s Supper, It’s important that we understand why we do this. This is a sacred moment for the body of Christ—the Church—to remember the death of our Lord and to focus our hope on His promised return.
The Apostle Paul makes the purpose of this ordinance clear:
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
As we come to the Lord’s table tonight I want us to remember what the Lord has given for us. I want us to realize that the death of the Lord Jesus Christ forms the basis of all the blessings that Christ provides for His church. John the Baptist, when He saw the Lord approaching said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”. Do you know what that means? Have you ever really thought about what that means? It means that Jesus Christ, the Only begotten Son of God, removed the sin barrier between God and man. It means that our sins no longer separate us from God. It means that every person born of Adam can be saved. This is the beautiful message of the Gospel.
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
The death of the Lord Jesus Christ, the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, has removed the sin barrier and now whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. So, tonight if you have believed in Jesus for His gift of eternal life I invite you to partake of the Lord’s supper with us. But I want everyone to understand this supper is for the church. This is something believers do to remember and proclaim the Lord’s death until He returns. So if you are unsure about Christianity or you have questions about the faith then I would recommend that you wait on taking the Lord’s supper, and come talk to me after service. I would love to talk to you.
So, here is what I would like us to do. I want us to have a few minutes of silent prayer. This is a time for you to thank God for His sacrifice. This is a time for you to tell God how thankful you are that He is returning soon, and this is a time to for you to be open and honest with God about your walk with Him. So take a few min to pray to yourself and then I will close it out.
Let’s pray.
23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
Let’s close out singing a Hymn together.
