Luke 23:26-43 Christ Died to Save Us

Transcription

1 Luke 23:26-43 Christ Died to Save Us Parkdale Grace Fellowship Sunday AM, August 27, 2017 Let s once again begin by reminding ourselves of who Jesus is which will increase our sense of awe when we study how He was treated by those of us He came to save: Colossians 1:15-20 NIV, The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Luke 23:26, Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus. Before turning Jesus over for crucifixion Pilate had Him scourged with iron tipped whips. A Roman scourging commonly tore much of the flesh on the victim s back into shreds often exposing the ribs. Jesus had been so weakened by the scourging He received from the Romans that He was physically unable to carry His cross all the way to outskirts of the city where He would be crucified. So a stranger from Cyrene, in northern Africa, was pulled out of the crowd and forced to follow Jesus carrying His cross. This dramatic image of Simon of Cyrene bent under the weight of the cross graphically portrays the, often humiliating, self-denying sacrifice that is required of those who are called to be a disciple of Jesus. Luke 9:22-23, Jesus said, The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. 23 Then He said to them all, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. Simon from Cyrene is mentioned by name in Matthew, Mark and Luke s gospel. This shocking experience resulted in Simon becoming a Christian, apparently well-known in the early church. But prior to this encounter, being newly arrived from northern Africa, he had probably never heard of Jesus before. Mark s Gospel, which was written to the church in Rome, gives the names of Simon s sons, Alexander and Rufus (15:21).

2 2 And in Romans 16:13, which was written many years later by Paul to the same church in Rome, says, Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother [Simon s wife], who has been a mother to me, too. Simon s family was by then living in Rome and they were key members of the church, Simon s wife being a spiritual mother to the Apostle Paul. Profound indeed was the impact of Jesus through this cross carrying experience on Simon as he followed the Lord all the way to His crucifixion. Luke 23:27, And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women who also mourned and lamented Him. In the next verse Jesus identifies these women as being residents of Jerusalem, and warns them of disaster coming upon them and their children, so they were not part of Jesus group of devoted followers who had come from Galilee. They were sympathetic, but unconverted Jews. Yet Jesus is more concerned about their spiritual condition and the danger they face than He is about His own imminent death. It was to save sinners like these that He was going to the cross to die. Luke 23:28-30, But Jesus, turning to them, said, Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed! 30 Then they will begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us! and to the hills, Cover us! The real cause for mourning is not because of what Jesus is going to suffer, but because of what the people of Jerusalem are going to suffer as a result of their rejection of Him. Painful as His death is going to be He knows that the end of His suffering is only hours away, and that will be followed by the triumph of His resurrection. But for the people of Jerusalem many years of extremely harsh judgment and suffering are coming upon them. And for those who don t repent, an eternity of suffering, because of their rejection of Jesus. In that culture it was considered a great blessing to give birth to children, and barrenness was considered a curse. But such hard days lay ahead for these people that women with no children will be considered blessed because of the extreme suffering their children will experience. Jesus is referring specifically to the plight of the Jews with the soon coming destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. But that would only be the beginning of centuries of hardship and suffering continuing to the modern holocaust and for years yet to come through the Great Tribulation before the second coming of Christ.

3 3 Prophesying earlier of the coming time of judgment against Jerusalem, Jesus warned, Luke 21:20-24, But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near 22 For these are the days of vengeance 23 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. 24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Jesus next quotes a prophecy given by Hosea the prophet concerning the terrified cries of the people facing the future judgment coming upon Israel, an event that came to pass in 70 AD. Luke 23:30, Then they will begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us! and to the hills, Cover us! This is a cry to be hidden from the terror of God s wrath upon them, but sadly it is neither a cry of repentance nor a cry for mercy. What is true for the nation of Israel is also true for every individual who chooses to reject Jesus Christ as their God and King. We must all give an account to God who will judge us for what we have done with His Son, Jesus. To reject Jesus will result in being forever separated from God. Luke 23:31, For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry? Jesus is contrasting the wet wood of a healthy, green tree with the dry wood of a dead tree. People don t normally burn green trees because they do not burn very easily when they are green and the wood is wet, but they are highly flammable and burn with intense heat when dry. So if such intense cruelty is shown by the Romans to an innocent man (green wood) like Jesus, in peaceful times, how intense and fierce is going to be the heat of their cruelty against the sinful, rebellious (dry wood) city of Jerusalem, who have unjustly condemned the Son of God, their King? Indeed, history tells us that the horrors of the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 are unparalleled in ancient history. In all an estimated 1,100,000 Jews were killed by the Romans during the siege, many thousands by crucifixion, and 97,000 captured and enslaved. Indeed, weep and mourn for those of all ages who have rejected Christ for their suffering and torment will be without earthly precedent and without end. Luke 23:32-33, There were also two others, criminals, led with Him to be put to death. 33 And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left Jesus was crucified as a criminal among criminals in the center, the position of chief among the criminals, like a king with one on His left and one on His right.

4 4 This was fulfilling Jesus own words when just a few hours earlier, eating the Last Supper with His disciples, Jesus applied Isaiah s prophecy to Himself: Luke 22:37 NLT, For the time has come for this prophecy about me to be fulfilled: He was counted among the rebels. Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true. Jesus was crucified at a place in Latin called Calvary, or in Aramaic the name is Golgotha, which in English means the skull. This is interesting in light of the demonic realm s obsession with skulls which are so popular in contemporary art today. The skull symbolizes death, the destruction of God s creation, and Satan s opposition against God. It was at place of the skull where all the horrors of hell were poured out against our Savior. It was the place of complete separation from God, but it was also where the ultimate price was paid for our salvation. On the other hand, the empty cross reminds us that Jesus triumphed over all the evil that the skull stands for. If you are going to wear a symbol, don t wear a skull, but wear a cross an empty cross, because Christ is not dead He is alive. And after the Roman soldiers nailed Jesus to the cross look at what He said as He gazed upon the blood spattered soldiers, and beyond them to the mocking crowd: Luke 23:34, Then Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do. And they divided His garments and cast lots. Here Jesus lives out in the ultimate way, how He taught His disciples to respond to their enemies. Luke 6:27-29, But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. On the cross Jesus demonstrates the magnitude of the love of God for the most undeserving of sinners. Romans 5:6-8, You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And the soldiers divided His garments and cast lots to see who would get to keep His clothes. This whole scene was fulfilling the prophecy of David made in Psalm 22 concerning the Messiah.

5 5 Psalm 22:12-18, Many bulls have surrounded Me; strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. 13 They gape at Me with their mouths, like a raging and roaring lion. 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. 16 For dogs have surrounded Me; the congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; [written 600 years before crucifixion was invented] 17 I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. 18 They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots. Luke 23:35, And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God. His enemies acknowledged that in His lifetime Jesus had saved many from demon possession, from sickness, from crippling deformities, and from empty, sinful lives. But that didn t stop them from wanting Him dead. Evil does not make sense. It turns everything upside down and perverts God s design. Wickedness calls good evil and evil good. It calls the lie of atheistic evolution truth, and the truth of creation by a Creator a lie. It calls women aborting their babies a wise choice, and staying home to raise your kids foolish. And now it tells little boys that they can choose to be women, and little girls that they can be men. Evil is simply opposed to all that is of God and God is good. And now that He was hanging on the cross the rulers taunt Him that He was not the Messiah because every Jew knew that in the Law of Moses it is written, anyone who is hung on a tree is under God s curse (Deut. 21:23). Therefore, in their mind, there is no way that this man hanging on the cross was the chosen One of God, He was cursed by God. If you are of God then undo the curse and come down. Ah, but He was undoing the curse by staying on the cursed tree. What they did not realize was that after His Triumphal entry into Jerusalem as their King, He got down off the donkey and entered the Temple courts as the Passover Lamb to be scrutinized and examined for any blemish the Lamb of God which had come to take away the sin of the world. Therefore when they mocked Christ as they did they might has well have mocked one of the literal Passover lambs because, while the Passover lambs were sacrificed as a substitute each year to temporarily save others, they could not save themselves or the sacrifice would be ineffective. (Kent Hughes, p. 383) For the wages of sin is death the sinner must die, unless there is a sinless substitute to take his place.

6 6 Jesus, the sinless Son of God, was hanging on the cross in our place to take our curse so that we could be saved from the penalty of our sin, which is everlasting separation from God. But He had to die or we would remain under the condemnation of our sin. Luke 23:36-38, The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, 37 and saying, If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself. 38 And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Now these soldiers who do not know Jesus join in with the mocking, offering Him poor man s wine in jest as if they were cup bearers serving a king. Psalm 22:6-8, But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised by the people. 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! The final irony in all their taunting is that God ultimately will save Jesus by raising Him from the dead, after the sacrificial work is finished. Luke 23:39, Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us. Everyone feels free to participate in putting Jesus down. Still today, the world doesn t dare mock Mohammed, or the Virgin Mary, the Dali Lama, Buddha or other religious figures, but even just the sincere use of the name of Jesus brings ridicule and scorn from the wicked. Luke 23:40-41, But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong. The other gospels tell us that initially both criminals were blaspheming Jesus, but as time wore on and the second criminal witnessed what was happening his spiritual eyes began to open and sanity flooded into his mind, and humility entered into his heart. Of all the people gathered around Jesus at the cross this man alone spoke up in defense of Christ and he opened his mouth and confessed his own sin as he testified to the faith that was flooding his heart Jesus was innocent He was the Messiah, the King of the Jews. Luke 23:42-43, Then he said to Jesus, Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom. 43 And Jesus said to him, Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise. He did not say, Remember my good deeds. Neither did he say, Remember that I alone stood up for you in your darkest hour. Can you return the favor?

7 7 He knew he had nothing worthy in himself to commend himself as deserving to receive any favor from God. He simply asked for undeserved mercy, I deserve to be punished, but remember me when You come into Your kingdom. That is all any of us can do cry out for undeserved mercy that we might not get the punishment our sins deserve. And look at how Jesus responds so positively and immediately to this humble, but faith-filled cry for mercy: Verse 43, And Jesus said to him, Assuredly I say to you [I promise you this], not some day in the future but today, immediately, you will enter into Paradise. And best of all, you will be with Me, close to Me, not in hell but in Paradise. Jesus gave this dying thief eternal life in his final moments. Imagine the mocking that must have come from the religious leaders, You re asking Him to save you? You fool! He can t save you; why He can t even save Himself. And yet in refusing to save Himself Jesus was saving souls as He died in their place. Simon of Cyrene was saved in following Christ to the cross. This condemned criminal was saved while trusting Jesus on the cross. And countless billions of souls over the centuries since have been saved from condemnation as they put their faith in what Jesus did for them in dying in their place on the cross. The very thing that the enemy intended for evil, God meant for unimaginable, massive good and for eternal glory. The Bible uses many images to describe what the cross is and how we should understand it. It is a ransom, a payment for the debt of our sin. It is a substitution Jesus offers Himself in our place. It is a propitiation, appeasing the just wrath of God, by dealing with our sin, removing our evil and replacing it with His righteousness, so that now when God looks on us He sees not stain but delights in us. Through the cross Satan is overthrown. The cross was the price Jesus paid to purchase us and to make us His own.

8 8 The cross was the sacrifice that ends all other sacrifices for sin. There is no longer any further sacrifice to be made it is finished at the cross. On the cross Jesus became a curse for us so that we are forever set free from the curse of sin. At the cross reconciliation takes place between God and humanity so that you no longer need to be separated from God; you no longer need to be strangers and enemies of God, but you can now be called children of God and friends of God. Because of the cross God can justify you and declare you righteous before Him and He will do it instantly, right now, if you, like the criminal crucified beside Him, will humble yourself, acknowledge your sin and your guilt, acknowledge that you are undeserving and that you have nothing to offer in exchange, but call upon the Lord for mercy and ask Him to save you. Romans 10:13, For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Copyright 2017 by Parkdale Grace Fellowship Permission: You are permitted to reproduce and distribute this material in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.