March 29, 2024
Friday Evening Service

Thursday set off a whirlwind of activity beginning with Jesus washing the feet of His disciples.  Jesus then used that time to institute the “Lord’s Supper” as we still partake of today.  It is a time of remembrance of all of these events and a time to receive our spiritual nourishment of His body and blood.  In the Garden, Jesus gains the final resolve He needs to complete the momentous task that lies before.  He battles the forces of evil through prayer placing Him in great agony. We discussed the human side of His agony and the spiritual side.  His physical body will be brutally beaten to a point where He is unrecognizable.  His Spirit will have the greater agony as the sins of the world will be cast upon Him in a single moment in time. In the end, Jesus yields His will to the will of the Father and is empowered to complete His mission.  Remember what drives Him to move forward KNOWING what comes next.  He loves you.  He loves me.  He does this for us and everyone who will believe in Him.  Thank You Jesus!

Judas betrays with a kiss and Jesus is taken into custody.  He is taken to a mock trial before the Sanhedrin where even their false witnesses can’t get things straight.  Jesus finally has to help them along as we read in Mark:

 Mar 14:61-65 But He kept silent and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, "Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"  (62)  Jesus said, "I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."  (63)  Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "What further need do we have of witnesses?  (64)  You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?" And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.  (65)  Then some began to spit on Him, and to blindfold Him, and to beat Him, and to say to Him, "Prophesy!" And the officers struck Him with the palms of their hands.

            Jesus uses the same “I Am” name that He told Moses when he asked Him.  This enrages these leaders to have Him killed and the persecution begins here among religious leaders as they spit upon Him, mock Him, and even strike Him.  Oh the irony of this proud Jewish people longing for the Messiah to come and when He stands in front of them they do not recognize Him.  Jesus remains in their custody all night.

 

Mar 15:1-15 Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound Jesus, led Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate.  (2)  Then Pilate asked Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" He answered and said to him, “It is as you say."  (3)  And the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing.  (4)  Then Pilate asked Him again, saying, "Do You answer nothing? See how many things they testify against You!"  (5)  But Jesus still answered nothing, so that Pilate marveled.  (6)  Now at the feast he was accustomed to releasing one prisoner to them, whomever they requested.  (7)  And there was one named Barabbas, who was chained with his fellow rebels; they had committed murder in the rebellion.  (8)  Then the multitude, crying aloud, began to ask him to do just as he had always done for them.  (9)  But Pilate answered them, saying, "Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?"  (10)  For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.  (11)  But the chief priests stirred up the crowd, so that he should rather release Barabbas to them.

 

 (12)  Pilate answered and said to them again, "What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?"  (13)  So they cried out again, "Crucify Him!"  (14)  Then Pilate said to them, "Why, what evil has He done?" But they cried out all the more, "Crucify Him!" (15) So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.

          How the tide had changed in a few days?  From singing His praises to calling for His execution!  Jesus stands before His chosen people and hears them all cry out in hate to “Crucify Him, crucify Him!”  This is not a moment He looked forward to but He knew His chosen people would reject Him just as He planned.

   Pilate marvels that Jesus speaks nothing in His defense.  In an ordinary proceeding, I am sure the accused would dream up every reason he could think of to get out of this predicament.  But Jesus stays silent knowing and accepting His fate.  He no doubt could talk His way out of this courtroom as He is innocent of all charges, but choose to be silent.  This moment was prophesied by Isaiah:

 

Isa 53:7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.

 

Mar 15:16-20 Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.  (17)  And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, (18) and began to salute Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  (19)  Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.  (20)  And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.

            Notice the Romans made a party out of this as they “called together the whole garrison.”  Many enjoy seeing others suffer and that is a display of pure evil.  Jesus was the only One in all of time that was free from sin, and this is how He was treated.  I can’t dwell on the details of these verses, but words cannot describe the pain and anguish Jesus suffers here at the hand of the Romans.  Again why would He do this?

 

Isa 53:4-6 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  (5)  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.  (6)  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.

          Let that simmer for a minute.  God’s plan of salvation which restores my relationship with Him, for gives me of MY sins, and gives me hope of eternal life all came through Jesus’ suffering, death, and culminates with His resurrection.  He did this for me.  My iniquities (sins) were cast upon Him for full payment for the “wages of sin is death.”  It is difficult to visualize someone loving me that much; but He does.

 

Mar 15:21-32Then 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.  (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.  (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.  (26)  And the inscription of His accusation was written above: THE KING OF THE JEWS.  (27)  With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  (28)  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH THE TRANSGRESSORS."  (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!"  (31)  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  (32)  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe." Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

            Here is where Steve’s song comes straight from scripture as Simon was asked to help Jesus carry His cross.  The bitter wine, dividing His garments, and casting lots for them was all prophecy fulfilled.  Mark does not give many details here of the crucifixion, but we know what that entailed.  Adding insult to the injury, He was mocked upon the cross by those who passed by.  He however at a point prayed to His Father to “Forgive them for they know not what they do.”  How powerful is that?  Rather than look at the men who are executing you with hate, He seeks forgiveness for them.

 

Mar 15:33-39 Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.  (34)  And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"  (35)  Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, "Look, He is calling for Elijah!"  (36)  Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, "Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down."  (37)  And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.  (38)  Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.  (39)  So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, "Truly this Man was the Son of God!"

          Jesus’ cry in verse 34 match the words written in Psalms 22:1, but Jesus was not so much quoting them, but living them.  Who can imagine the depths of horror He faces as God (as Paul put it in 2 Cor. 5:21) “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become righteousness of God in Him.”  In this moment Jesus was totally alone abandoned by friends and now separated from the Father as He became sin for us.

In John’s gospel he declares that Jesus’ final cry was “It is finished.”  The temple veil being torn symbolized that the separation between God and man had been removed through the offering of the Perfect Sacrifice once and for all time.  The scene was so intense that even the centurion proclaimed the truth that Jesus was the Son of God!

 

Mar 15:42-47 Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, (43) Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  (44)  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  (45)  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  (46)  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen. And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  (47)  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.