Did The Jews Kill Jesus? Series

#2: True or False: The Jews Killed Jesus?

¡°He was wounded for our transgressions...¡±

¡°I could ask my Father and he would give me. . .¡±

¡°Cancelled the handwriting. . .¡± Col. 2:15?

Could Jesus have prevented his death?

I used to think that Jesus couldn¡¯t have stopped it. That God had decided that He would die, and that was all there was to it. However, I had to change my position when I encountered this verse:

Mt 26:53 "Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly?¡±

Do you realize the IMPACT of that? Jesus really could have stopped this from happening! Every strike of the whip, every time the hammer struck the nails. . . all of it he could have prevented! What would it be like to go through a crucifixion, knowing that if you would just ASK, you could stop it??!

Jesus even said it himself as he stood before Pilate:

Joh 19:10 Then Pilate said to Him, "Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?" 11 Jesus answered, "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.

So the real question is:

If he could have prevented it, why didn¡¯t he?

On February 15, 1947 Glenn Chambers boarded a plane bound for Quito, Ecuador to begin his ministry in missionary broadcasting. But he never arrived. In a horrible moment, the plane carrying Chambers crashed into a mountain peak and spiraled downward. Later it was learned that before leaving the Miami airport, Chambers wanted to write his mother a letter. All he could find for stationery was a page of advertising on which was written the single word "WHY?" Around that word he hastily scribbled a final note. After Chambers’s mother learned of her son’s death, his letter arrived. She opened the envelope, took out the paper, and unfolded it. Staring her in the face was the question "WHY?"

After watching the Passion of the Christ, you just kind of walk around and heave an occasional SIGH for the rest of the day. It feels like the wind has been knocked right out of you.

The only question really left in your mind is a great big ¡°WHY???!¡± The Bible answers that question for us:

¡°Jesus, because of the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross...¡± Hebrews 12:2

JOY?! What would give Jesus JOY about going through the horror of torture and death that he went through? What would inspire him to go through that, if he could be delivered from it?

Why did he have to die? There are three reasons why he had to die, and these three reasons show us what the JOY was that Jesus found in dying on the cross.

1. I have sinned.

A few minutes ago, you received a blank piece of paper. Here¡¯s what I want you to do with that. I want you to think something that you¡¯ve done that you knew was wrong. I want you to write that on your paper. If you¡¯re worried about someone else seeing, just a word or a picture or something that reminds you of it would be fine.

¡ñ It might be the name of someone that you¡¯ve treated wrongly.

¡ñ It might be a lie that you¡¯ve told.

¡ñ It might be something that you¡¯ve stolen.

¡ñ It might be a time that you disobeyed your parents.

¡ñ It might be the time you cheated.

Whatever it is, I want you to write something down, and then fold it over. Everyone of us in here, no matter how good we are, has a paper with something written on it.

2. Because I have sinned, I deserve to be separated from God forever.

Did you know that in heaven, there is a book that has a record of everything that you¡¯ve done wrong?

Re 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Did you know that what you just wrote on that paper is IN THE BOOKS? You may be a really good person today...

You may give a lot to the church. . .

You may treat your wife well. . .

You may pay your bills. . .

But what are you going to do about what¡¯s IN THE BOOKS?

¡°The wages of sin is death...¡± Rom. 6:23