OPEN: Ever since the 1950s, the men of the Philippines have had unusual tradition around Easter. It has grown to the point where from 50,000 to 75,000 people attend every year. McDonalds sets up a temporary store to sell burgers, fries and ice cream to those exhausted by the tropical heat.
The ritual that has drawn all these tourists to the Philippines is an odd and gruesome Good Friday reenactment of the crucifixion of Christ. A group of men who refer to themselves as the “kristos” allow themselves to be beaten with rods and whipped. Approximately 500 men each year are physically beaten as Jesus was. Then, this year 17 men volunteered to have their hands and feet nailed to a wooden cross (which is fitted with a foot rest for them to stand on) and they hang in space – between heaven and earth – for a period that can last anywhere from a few minutes to up to an hour. At that point they are taken down and transferred to a medical tent where their wounds are treated and they receive tetanus shots.
(http://iamaghanaian.com/index.php?do=/news/good-friday-crucifixions-in-the-philippines/)
APPLY: Long before the day of Jesus, people had been executed by crucifition. Many nations had used this form of execution - but it was the Romans that employed it most often and cruelly.
ILLUS: When Rome ruled the world 1000s of people were executed in this way. The most terrible of these executions took place in 73 BC. A slave revolt led by a gladiator named Spartacus defeated many of Rome’s best armies in a conflict that lasted for over two years. Eventually, though, this slave army was trapped and taken prisoner.
The Romans judged that – having waged war against Rome - these slaves had forfeited their right to live. Approximately 100 years before Jesus was crucified – Spartacus and 6,000 of his followers were crucified along a stretch road called the Appian way.
Crucifixion was a terrible way to die.
The victim didn’t usually die immediately. That could take hours… even days.
The executed usually died from suffocation - the inability to breath any longer. With their arms pinned to the posts of their cross, if they sagged from exhaustion it would be impossible for them to breathe, so they would push up on their feet which were pinned to the cross by that nail. In time the pain would be too much and they’d sag again and struggle for breath. This would happen again and again until the condemned would finally succumb to their exhaustion and pain and die.
Now, in the Philippines, none of those young men who were nailed to crosses had to struggle to breath very long. Eventually, they’d were all taken off their crosses and allowed to heal. None of them expected to die.
But they WERE real men experiencing real beatings and crucifixions.
WHY would they do that?
Well, there are several possibilities:
· Maybe some of them have wanted to prove their manhood.
· Or it’s become a “rite of passage” where young men prove their faith in God
· Or, as one local parish priest believes - these men may be inflicting pain on their bodies to prove their repentance of sins they’ve committed.
· And, there are persistent reports that at least some these men do it for money. That they receive cash from tourists and event sponsors. One report has it that participants have received upwards of 50,000 pesos to participate (and no, I don’t know how much money that would be in our economy).
However – as far as I can tell - no one who has suggested that those who taken part in this odd ceremony did it because they loved the people in the crowd.
Each of these young men took part in this ritual for their own reasons.
But Love for sinners does NOT appear to be one of those reasons.
But they did choose to be ‘crucified”.
And the Bible tells us that – Jesus also chose to be crucified as well.
Repeatedly Jesus told His disciples that He would die
In Matthew 16:21-23 (just after Peter had declared that Jesus was the Christ/ Son of God)
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
As His final trip to Jerusalem approached, Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again." Luke 18:31-33
And just before He was betrayed into the hands of His enemies, Jesus told His men
"As you know, the Passover is two days away— and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified." Matthew 26:2
You see, Jesus’ crucifixion didn’t take Him by surprise
He knew it was coming.
But He deliberately went to Jerusalem anyway.
He deliberately went to allow Himself to be crucified.
Why would He do that?
Why would ANYBODY deliberately walk into Jerusalem KNOWING they’d face a terrible death on a cross?
Was it because Jesus was like the men from the Philippines?
· Did He go to the cross to prove that He was man?
No… He went because He was God… and had become a man to taste death for us.
Philippians 2:5-8 tells us “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!”
· Did Jesus go to the cross because He felt He needed to be punished for HIS sins
Oh no… Jesus never sinned. But Jesus did go to the cross to be punished for YOUR sins/ and MINE. Isaiah 53:5 declared that when the Messiah came “… he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
· Did Jesus go to the cross for financial gain?
Oh no… No one paid Him to go to the cross…He went to the cross PAY for us.
Peter wrote: “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you purchased… but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” I Peter 1:18-19 (my apologies for changing a word in the text. I substituted “purchased” for the actual word in the NIV and KJV which was “redeemed”)
But why would Jesus do that?
I mean that’s all great theology: The idea that He would step down from heaven. That He would become “nothing”, becoming human, taking on the nature of a servant SO THAT he could be pierced for our sins and crushed for our selfishness, and HEAL US of all the pains this world inflicts on us. And that He would do all this to redeem us… to purchase us for Himself.
I mean, that’s all great theology… but WHY would He do it.
Well, the Bible tells us - He did it because He loved us.
God so loved the world that He gave us His only begotten Son.
Jesus died on the cross because… He loved us.
Jesus said “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13
Would you “lay down your life” for your friends?
Would you die for people you liked?
I might. Maybe.
I believe I’d lay down my life for my son or daughter, but (pardon my saying so) I’m not sure I’d be willing to die for you, or for a friend.
Now let’s take one step further.
Would I lay down my life for someone I didn’t like?
For someone who would insult me?
Who wanted to hurt me?
Would I die for someone that would hauled me into court for something I hadn’t done?
Would I be willing to endure a horrible death on the cross for the sake of someone who would come and stand beside me as I died … just to watch me die? And then would take the time to insult me and spit on me?
Would I be willing to die for someone like that?
I don’t think so.
But Jesus did.
As Jesus hung on the cross, the very people who had done these things to Him heard Him as He cried “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they do!
Really???
Father, forgive these foul, evil people?
Jesus said that?
Oh, yeah… and apparently He said it more than once.
One person has noted that the Greek in this verse indicates that Jesus said this more than once.
And I checked it out… he’s right.
So it appears that several times as He was being crucified He said the same thing over and over and over again:
“Father – forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”
Forgive them?
I wonder how many times Jesus prayed this?
Did He pray for God to forgive them when they whipped Him with the cat o nine tails that bit into and tore away his skin?
Did He pray for His forgiveness when they mocked Him, jokingly thrusting a crown of thorns upon His head, put a purple robe around lacerated shoulders saying, "Hail, King of the Jews"?
Do you suppose He prayed this prayer as He was forced to carry His cross up the hill?
Did He pray for the soldiers drove the nails into His hands and feet?
Do you suppose He prayed that prayer when He looked into the angry faces shouting, "If you really are the Son of God, come down from the cross"?
(Melvin Newland, Sermoncentral.com)
Just how many times do you think Jesus prayed that prayer?
I don’t know,
All I know is He prayed for those who hated Him.
And for those who misused Him.
And for those who rejected Him.
And for those who caused Him such intense and agonizing pain.
He prayed for those who deserved to go to hell.
They deserved to go to Hell.
(pause…) They ought to go to hell… don’t you think?
I mean anybody who’d treat an innocent man like that… they all ought to go to hell shouldn’t they?
Hell’s where bad people all ought to go.
You ever get that sneaking suspicion that you’re not all that nice a person either?
Have you ever had those moments when, you remember something you’ve done that’s hurt someone else? Moments when you remember something you’ve said/ or done/ or thought and a wave of shame sweeps across you and causes you to cringe? And you think: if the people around me ever knew about it, I’d want to just find a dark secret place and hide myself there… and never come out.
Robert Louis Stevenson once wrote, “All of us have thoughts that would shame Hell.”
You do realize that those thoughts/ actions/ words you’ve said - those things that brought you shame - they’re all sins.
The Bible says we’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
Those things that brought us shame - they all remind us that we don’t deserve heaven.
That we deserve Hell.
The Bible tells me that all of us deserve to go to Hell.
None of us are good to be good enough to stay out of hell.
Because all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
We all deserve to go to Hell.
It’s for YOU and ME that Jesus said “Father Forgive Them”
Jesus literally died on the cross … to stand between us AND Hell.
Jesus died FOR us so we wouldn’t get what we deserve.
Romans 5:8 says “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
He died for you and for me.
CLOSE: Now, my question for you this morning is this?
Did Jesus give His life for you in vain?
Did He die for you… only to have you reject Him
ILLUS: A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.
When the Vietnam conflict broke out, his son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
About a month later, just before Easter, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands. He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art."
The young man held out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."
The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.
"Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift."
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son BEFORE he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.
The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited to the great paintings and and at having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.
On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?"
There was silence.
Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one."
But the auctioneer persisted. "Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?"
Another voice shouted angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"
But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?"
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.
"We have $10, who will bid $20?"
"Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters."
"$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"
The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10."
A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the collection!"
The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over."
"What about the paintings?"
"I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!"
Will you take the Son this morning? Or will you reject Him because you think there are items of much greater earthly value? Remember, Jesus told us that everything on this earth will rust, or be stolen, or will die. Only he who takes the Son gets that which is of the greatest value.
