Sermon Central
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From His Bruises Series
Contributed by John Bright on Apr 17, 2025 (message contributor)
Summary: This is a sermon series for the six Sundays of Lent. I am using a wooden "Tau" cross on the platform and some examples of the instruments of torture the Romans used - a large spike, scourge/cat of 9 tails, spear, and crown of thorns. There is a teaching sheet below the sermon.
Series: Jesus’ Blood for Me
“From His Bruises”
Titus 2:11-14
Pastor John Bright
Titus 2 “11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.”
All of the other ways Jesus bled for you and me, there was an outward flow of blood. It was visible on the outside of His body. Not this one for today. This one is on the inside. Have you ever returned from the hospital with your arm black and blue?
A bruise is evidence of injury to the blood vessels under your skin. In the hospital, when you have an IV, the blood leaks and pools up under the skin of the arm. If you bump into something or someone hits you, small blood vessels under the skin burst and the blood leaks out. This is even more pronounced if you are taking a blood thinner. Today, if you have a little fender-bender, the airbag deploys and hits your nose. The next day you have two black eyes.
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The Shed Blood of His Bruises
When Jesus was bruised, blood was shed. It just stayed on the inside. The bruises Jesus sustained are powerful and effective for what is on the inside of you and me. If there is going to be a change in us, we have to GET TO THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM! (repeat)
From the first week of this series, we have continued to state the Biblical truth: Blood must be shed and blood must be applied. We looked back to the last plague in Egypt and God’s instruction for the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb. We have also gone back to Isaiah 53 again and again. In Isaiah 53:5 we read: “He was bruised for our iniquities.”
Today, we read Titus 2:14 “who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed.” In the KJV it is translated “redeem us from all iniquity.” Other translations use “wickedness” or “evil.” How about a quick review?
• Sin refers to unintentional wrongs
• Transgression refers to wrongs committed with full knowledge
• Iniquity refers to the inner motive behind sin and transgression – the motive, the why
How Iniquity Works
Growing up, I read science fiction and liked to watch the old sci-fi movies. Those movies are very different today. One common theme in the movies was life forms that come from outer space. If you killed it, you better get the whole thing! If they left just one piece of the alien, a new one would grow from that piece or maybe several aliens from the leftover piece.
Where did they get that idea from? I know, MY YARD. As soon as it gets warm outside, little yellow flowers appear in my yard. Soon, they become white puff-balls that delight little girls and boys on a windy day. You already know what I am talking about – the dreaded dandelion. Anybody, other than me, ever gone to war against the dandelions in your yard? You pull. You whack. You spray. If you don’t remove the whole root – ALL OF IT – they will come back again and again. Thinking about the dandelion:
• Iniquity is the root
• Sin is the flower
• Transgressions are the seeds that blow into the lives around us
Iniquity is the part that nobody can see, but you feel it. If you get hit hard enough to leave a bruise, it hurts.
Jesus was Hurt
We find two places in the Gospels where Jesus is hurt and bruised. Mark records the mock trial before the Jewish leadership: Mark 14:65 “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.” Then, John writes about mistreatment by the Roman soldiers while Jesus is in their custody: John 19:3 “Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck Him with their hands.” All these hits were hurts for Jesus.
We have all been bruised. We have all been injured on the inside. I’m not talking about a physical injury. We have been hurt emotionally and spiritually. Children who grow up in abusive homes have inner wounds. Children who grow up in homes with alcoholics have inner wounds. Children who grow up in homes where there is divorce have inner wounds. Maybe you grew up in a loving home, but you knew kids and teens who were unkind and uncaring. Maybe college was rough or you went to work and got caught up in the office politics. Maybe you were the one somebody else used as a stepping stone to the top.
