If I said that Jesus died on the cross over 2000 years ago
then it is to acknowledge that it has already happened, this is easy to say
after the fact. But there’s a special detail about this story and that is 1000
years before Jesus walked this earth, God the Father revealed to someone the
circumstances to which our saviour, Jesus Christ would die. This person was the
prophet David. The fact that David knew demonstrates that the crucifixion of
the Father’s one and only son was not accidental or unforeseen, but it was a
plan of salvation that God had put in place an eternity ago to save the sinners
of the world, us.
About the burden that Jesus would carry on this day, David
had said ahead of time “But I am no longer a human being; I am a worm, despised and
scorned by everyone.” (Psalms 22:6 NIV) “I am a worm” refers to what
exactly? We know that worms belong on
the ground beneath people’s feet and in that time, Jesus wasn’t even considered
an equal amongst men. He was akin to a worm, lowly and unworthy of any respect,
“then they spat
in his face and beat him” (Matthew 26:67 NIV). Even one of the Lord’s much loved disciples, Peter,
denied Jesus: “I
swear that I don’t know that man” (Matthew 26:72 NIV). These are
only a couple of examples of the incredible amount of abuse Jesus faced during
his life here on Earth, when all those around considered him worthless.
Further, the prophet David speaks about the circumstances
surrounding Jesus on the day he died “All who see me make fun of me; they stick out their tongues
and shake their heads” (Psalms 22:7 NIV). This
was truly the case, as Matthew also recounts “people passing by shook their heads and hurled
insults at Jesus… “Save yourself if you are God’s Son! Come on down from that
cross!”” (Matthew 27:39-40 NIV). Friends,
not only did no one offer any words of comfort while Jesus was dying on that
cross, all the more, people were goading and slighting him as he was. Is there
any hurt that could compare to that?
Because “Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross”
(1Peter 2:24), Jesus became that worm underneath man’s feet. How
were people treating Jesus during that time? The words of the psalmist David
describes it as if “they open their mouths like lions, roaring and tearing at
me” (Psalms 22:13 NIV). It was as though Jesus had done something
horrible to these people that they would be upset and angry, nailing his two
hands and feet to a wooden cross for crimes he had not committed. It says in Psalm 22:14 “my
strength is gone, gone like water spilled on the ground”. Christ’s
blood pouring out from the marks on his hands and feet where those nails
pierced through flesh, blood pouring from the place where the thorns pricked
Jesus’ head as he wore the crown of thorns - Jesus’ life leaving his body just
like water spilling to the ground. “My heart is like
melted wax” (Psalm 22:14) reminds us of the moment that a soldier
plunged his spear into Jesus’ side and “at once blood and water poured out” (John 19:34 NIV). Christ’s heart had been broken, melted like wax, no
longer able to sustain his life.
In a moment of pain and anguish, David wrote “My God, My God,
why have you abandoned me?” (Psalm 22:1). With
this, the psalmist has brought us to the place where Jesus had suffered for
mankind. They nailed him to that cross at Calvary and it is there that Matthew
wrote “at noon
the whole country was covered with darkness which lasted for 3 hours. At about
three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud shout, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?”
which means, “My God, my God, why did you abandon me?” (Matthew 27:45-46 NIV). Jesus Christ is the second person in the holy
trinity. The relationship between Father and Son has lasted and will last
forever. But it was when Jesus died on that cross that “the LORD made the punishment fall on him, the
punishment all of us deserved” (Isaiah 53:6 NIV). Friends, let us
reflect on the sins that we ourselves have committed and placed on Jesus
Christ? It could be the lies that we’ve told, the grudges we hold against
others, our unwillingness to forgive, the hurtful things that we say about
others, the idols we worship, the way we deny our creator… the way we break the
law etc… these sins are stacked on top of Jesus’ shoulders which he carries for
us. It is because of this, because of our transgressions and iniquities that
God the father left Jesus and therefore Christ said “My God, my God, why did
you abandon me?” Don’t you think this punishment is unjust? Can you imagine
what it would be like if we ourselves were to pay for our own sin?
Jesus Christ was insulted, abused, crucified and thereafter,
had his robes fought over. It had already been foretold that they would “gamble for my clothes and divide them among themselves”
(Psalm 22:18 NIV). Just as Matthew accounted for in the gospel “They crucified him
and divided his clothes among them by throwing a dice (Matthew 27:35 NIV).
This points out that our belongings shall be stripped from us when the day of
judgement arrives. Jesus teaches us “Do you gain anything if you win the whole world but lose
your life? Of course not!” (Mark 8:36 NIV).
The way that Jesus was treated was abhorrent. Was it because
Jesus had been rejected or was it because he strangely accepted to take all of
mankind’s sin upon himself? The answer is the latter, that he lovingly took
responsibility for our sin when he himself was perfect. We can say this because
Christ is the second member of the trinity and is the divine word. Jesus need
only command it and Lazarus rose from the dead, one word and the howling winds
and raging storms cease; one command and trees die from root to tip. With
authority like that, if Jesus were to stop the hearts of those who hated him
from beating, it would happen.
Why didn’t Jesus do that though? Why didn’t he spare his own
life? Christ didn’t do this because God’s purpose for him was to die in place
of man in order to break the curse of sin and death; God wanted a relationship
with us, his creation and didn’t want anything separating us from Him. It is because
of this that Jesus went through all the atrocities that he did, submitting
himself to the will of his father “it is finished” (John 19:30 NIV). Jesus Christ died at Calvary over 2000 years ago for
anyone who would accept him as their LORD and saviour. What does it mean to
believe this? “It means to accept that Jesus is able to heal the sick, that
Jesus has the ability to turn water into wine. To believe in Jesus Christ means
to believe that he has authority over all land and sea…” Moreover, we must be like
the apostle Paul who said “This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of
God, who loved me and gave his life for me” (Galatians 2:20 NIV). Paul encourages his audience, you and I, to believe “that Christ died
for our sins” (1Corinthians 15:3 NIV). Peter also reaffirms this in
his writings “Christ
himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin
and live for righteousness” (1Peter 2:24). Which means every single one of us
must accept that “Jesus Christ carries the weight of my sin on the cross.”
There is no
one who is innocent that would die in place of anyone guilty of ever committing
a sin, only Jesus Christ can do this and he has. When we believe in Jesus’
sacrifice for us, God the father agrees to mercifully forgive us of our sins
and grants us salvation because his word states that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life”
(John 3:36). After we all pass away, we won’t be placed in the fiery
pits of hell but get to be with Jesus Christ in heaven for eternity. We don’t
need to worry about what others are doing, comparing ourselves and thinking
“I’m not as faithful as he is, they serve the church better than I do, that
must mean I won’t receive salvation”. Friends, we receive God’s salvation and
mercy because of Jesus dying on that cross, because of the blood Christ spilled
that washes us clean of our sin not by our works. Grace that we cannot fathom!
There are those who understand God’s grace, who are thankful, who love God and
serve him wholeheartedly, they obey his word and love others in order to
glorify his name.
The way we
serve is dependent on our heart for the Lord, not because we believe it will
earn us salvation. There is nothing we can do to earn it as the price has
already been paid by Jesus.
We are all
loved by God, we are all his children and therefore pray that he will give us
the strength to live good, wholesome lives with a purpose to love and serve him
well so that through our every word and action, we can demonstrate our
gratitude that Jesus Christ has saved us and he lives.
May God
bless us all. Amen.
Rev Trần Hữu Thành.
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