Crucifixion

Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

What does it mean to “take up His cross, and follow Christ”?

The one condemned to crucifixion was first scourged or flogged, a whip with several leather thongs the ends of which were tipped with lead balls or sheep bones. Then the near naked victim was forced to carry the heavy crossbar of his cross, to the place of his death. The intensity of Christ’s sufferings even before His actual crucifixion is revealed by the fact that after a night of torture and scourgings He was too weak to carry His own cross. It was therefore placed upon Simon.

At Golgotha the soldiers would have flung Jesus to the ground and stretched His arms upon the crossbar for size. The executioner would take a square spike about a third of an inch thick at its head and drive it with a single blow between the wrist bones at the heel of the victim’s hand (not through the palm). Usually it tore through the median nerve. A doctor, explains that the tissue of the palm “cannot bear weight and the victim would drop to the ground within minutes after being elevated”.

He further explains that the feet were nailed in order to give the victim a cruel “step” to support himself so that he could breathe. Otherwise the sagging body hanging on its arms prevented exhalation. The victim would then quickly suffocate from an inability to use his respiratory muscles. As the hours wore on the body became soaked with perspiration, thirst became intense, and pain and shock were tremendous.

Breaking the legs meant that victim could no longer lift himself on the nail in order to breathe, and he soon died. Since Jesus was already dead, the soldiers merely administered their usual stabbing a lance along the right side of the sternum and into the heart (“A Doctor Looks at the Crucifixion”, Christian Herald.)

Christ was tortured and was in much pain and than went to the cross and died a shameful death as far as the Roman and the Jew of that time thought

I.       Christ tell us to deny our self as He deny Himself

A.    Denying our self does not mean going with out ice cream

B.    Or to deny our self some luxury

C.    The hardest person to deny is our self

1.     Christ is telling us to put our self out of the picture and put Him into it in it place

D.    To deny our self is to obey God's Word

II.     Then Christ tells us to take up His cross

A.    Dieing on the cross was the worse death

B.    To die on the cross was deepest of humiliation and shame as well as torture:

1.     Hebrews 12:2, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

C.    During the Roman times when they crucified some one, they made them carry their own cross showing people that Rome was in charge and the convicted had to carry their own burden

1.     Christ tell us to take up His cross

a)     To show the world we belong to God

b)     With the joy that is set before us do His will

c)     That one day we will be in heaven with Him

2.     Matthew 10:38-39,38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

3.     We that lose our life for Christ will find every thing we have been looking for to start with

III.    Finally, Christ tell us to follow Him, how do we do that?

A.    Follow His doctrine

1.     Christ’s teachings

2.     The Bible

B.    Follow His example

1.     As we read the Bible, let us do the things that Christ did while He was here on earth

2.     Let us be an example to the world that we are saved and love Christ

3.     When we deny ourselves, we are giving God a living sacrifice to Him as it says in

a)     Romans 12:1-2,1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Conclusion:

Today is Easter and we celebrate the risen Savior. But let us remember the cross and what happen there.

Let us take up our cross and follow Christ today

Then remember what it says in Matthew 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

When we learn to deny our selfs and take up His cross and follow Him, everything we give up will come around back to us

Christ said “he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it”

Sunday Morning Biker Services 3/23/08