Closing In On The Cross Of Jesus Christ - Part 10: Our Lord's Last Hours Before He Died Series

Closing in on the Cross of Jesus Christ

Part 10: Our Lord's Last Hours Before He Died

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 27:26-44; Luke 23:34-43

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared May 8, 2023)

MESSAGE:

*Today we continue our look at the darkest day in history. In these verses God's Word shows us the Lord's last hours on earth before He died on the cross for our sins. Jesus Christ surrendered His life to save our lives forever. And today's Scripture helps us understand what the Lord went through for us.

1. FIRST: JESUS WAS ABUSED FOR US.

*We see the abuse of our Savior starting in vs. 26, where the Roman governor Pontius Pilate released Barabbas to the mob of Jews. Then Pilate had Jesus scourged and delivered Him to be crucified.

*The Roman governor had Jesus scourged. Dr. Truman Davis studied this awful beating, which was so vicious that it left Jesus on the very brink of death:

-"The Lord was tied to a post and whipped at least 39 times. The whip had jagged pieces of bone and lead weights woven into it. Over and over Jesus was hit full force on His bare shoulders, back and legs. As the blows continued, the whip cut ever deeper into the Lord's underlying muscles. By the end of the scourging, the skin on Jesus' back was left hanging in long ribbons. And the entire area was an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding tissue." (1)

*William Barclay noted that "Roman scourging was a terrible torture. Men died under scourging. Men lost their reason under it, and few remained conscious to the end of their scourging. Undoubtedly, Jesus was in critical condition even before the crucifixion. It's no wonder He was not able to carry His own cross. (2)

*Jesus was abused by a ferocious whipping. Then he was abused even more by the Roman soldiers. Verses 27-31 say:

27. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him.

28. And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.

29. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!''

30. Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head.

31. Then when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.

*Those Roman soldiers were vicious and cruel. They went to great lengths to abuse the Lord. They stripped Jesus. They put a scarlet robe on Him to mock His royalty. They made a crown of thorns and put it on His head. They put a reed in His hand as a fake royal scepter. They made fun of Jesus by bowing their knees and saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!'' They spat on the Lord. Then they took the reed to hit Jesus on the head, and drive the thorns in deeper.

*Those Roman soldiers were vicious and cruel. And thank God we are not like that! But remember that it never would have happened without our sin.

2. JESUS WAS ABUSED FOR US, AND HE WAS ASSISTED FOR US.

*We see our Lord being assisted in vs. 31-32:

31. Then when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.

32. Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. Him they compelled to bear His cross.

*Simon was not a volunteer. Verse 32 says the Roman soldiers compelled him to help carry the cross. And in a way, Simon was also carrying the cross for us. I say this because there is nothing we ever needed so much as we needed Jesus to die on that cross for our sins. And Jesus was beaten so badly that He was not able to carry His cross all the way to Golgotha.

*One writer said it was a miracle Jesus even lived through those beatings, much less carry the cross to Calvary by Himself. A. T. Robertson put it this way: "Gethsemane, betrayal, the ordeal of the past sleepless night, and scourging all made the Lord's body weak. But the greatest weight was the burden of all the world's sin breaking the Lord's heart." (3)

*So Simon carried the cross for the Lord Jesus Christ, but also for us. And it is amazing to me that the Lord who created every piece of wood that has ever existed humbled Himself to need help carrying His cross.

*Colossians 1:15-17 tells us that Jesus "is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist." Colossians 2:9 tells us that all the fullness of the Godhead lives in the body of Jesus Christ!