John 18:1-19:42
"So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the
place called the place of a skull, which is called in Hebrew Golgotha.
There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side,
and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the
cross; it read, 'Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews'. Many of
the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near
the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. The
chief priests of the Jews then said to Pilate, 'Do not write, The King
of the Jews', but, 'This man said, I am King of the Jews'.
Pilate answered, 'What I have written I have written'. When the soldiers
had crucified Jesus they took his garments and made four parts, one for
each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was without seam, woven
from top to bottom; so they said to one another, 'Let us not tear it, but
cast lots for it to see whose it shall be'. this was to fulfill the
scripture. "They parted my garments among them, and for my clothing they
cast lots". So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross
of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas,
and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom
he loved standing near, he said to his mother, 'Woman, behold, your son!'
Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother!' And from that
hour the disciple took her to his own home. After this Jesus, knowing
that all was now finished, said (to fulfil the scripture), 'I thirst'.
A bowl full of vinegar stood there; so they put a sponge full of the vinegar
on hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the vinegar,
he said, 'It is finished'; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit"
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Behold, my servant shall prosper, he shall be exalted and lifted
up, and shall be very high. As many were astonished at him -- his appearance
was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the
sons of men -- so shall he startle many nations; kings shall shut their
mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they
shall see, and that which they have not heard they shall understand. Who has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the LORD
been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like
a root out of dry ground; he had no form or comeliness that we should
look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised
and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we
esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was
wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes
we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every
one to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of
us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his
mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep
that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression
and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression
of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich
man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit
in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to bruise him; he has
put him to grief; when he makes himself an offering for sin, he shall
see his offspring, he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD
shall prosper in his hand; he shall see the fruit of the travail of
his soul and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my
servant, make many to be accounted righteous; and he shall bear their
iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great, 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 made intercession for the transgressors.
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The cross brings us face to face with Jesus' suffering.
He was alone – all his disciples had deserted him except for his mother
and three women along with John, the beloved disciple. And his death was
agonizing and humiliating. Normally a crucified man could last for several
days on a cross. Jesus' had already been scourged, beaten with rods, and
a crown of thorns pressed into his skull. It is no wonder that he died
mid-afternoon. Pilate publicly heralded Jesus "The King of the Jews"
as he died upon the cross, no doubt to irritate and annoy the chief priests
and Pharisees.
Jesus was crucified for his claim to be King. The Jews had understood
that the Messiah would come as king to establish God's reign for them.
They wanted a king who would free them from tyranny and foreign domination.
Many had high hopes that Jesus would be the Messianic king. Little did
they understand what kind of kingship Jesus claimed to have. Jesus came
to conquer hearts and souls for an imperishable kingdom, rather than to
conquer perishable lands and entitlements. We can find no greater proof
of God's love for us than the willing sacrifice of his Son on the cross.
Jesus' parting words,
“It is finished!" express triumph rather than
defeat. Jesus bowed his head and gave up his spirit knowing that the strife
was now over and the battle was won. Even on the cross Jesus knew the joy
of victory. What the Father sent him into the world to do has now been
accomplished.
Christ offered himself without blemish to God and
he
put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
In the cross of Christ we see the triumph of Jesus over his enemies
– sin, Satan, and death. Christian writers down through the centuries
have sung the praises of the Cross of Christ. Paul the Apostle exclaimed,
"But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." Hear what Gregory Nazianzen, a 6th century church father, has to
say: "Many indeed are the wondrous happenings of that time: God hanging
from a cross, the sun made dark and again flaming out; for it was fitting
that creation should mourn with its creator. The temple veil rent, blood
and water flowing from his side: the one as from a man, the other as from
what was above man; the earth shaken, the rocks shattered because of the
rock; the dead risen to bear witness to the final and universal resurrection
of the dead. The happenings at the sepulcher and after the sepulcher, who
can fittingly recount them? Yet no one of them can be compared to the miracle
of my salvation. A few drops of blood renew the whole world, and do for
all men what the rennet does for the milk: joining us and binding us together.
The Cross of Christ is the safeguard of our faith,
the assurance of our hope, and the throne of love. It is also the sign
of God's mercy and the proof of forgiveness. By his cross Jesus Christ
has pardoned us and set us free from the tyranny of sin. He paid the price
for us when he made atonement for our sins. The way to peace, joy, and
righteousness in the kingdom of God and the way to victory over sin and
corruption, fear and defeat, despair and death is through the cross of
Jesus Christ. Do you follow Jesus in his way of the cross with joy, hope,
and confidence?
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"Lord Jesus Christ, by your death on the cross you have won pardon for
us and freedom from the tyranny of sin and death. May I live in the joy
and freedom of your victory over sin and death."
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