Closing in on the Cross of Jesus Christ
Part 8: Victory Belongs to the Lord!
The Gospel of Matthew
Matthew 27:1-10
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared April 26, 2023)
MESSAGE:
*Here in God's Word we are very close to the cross of Jesus Christ. Lord willing, next time we will see the Lord's trial before the Roman Governor Pilate. And by the end of Matthew 27, Jesus will be dead and buried in the tomb. But even when things seemed the worst, victory belonged to the Lord! And it always will.
*One of the Scriptures that has blessed me the most over the last few years is Isaiah 46:9-10. There the LORD says, "Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.'"
*Psalm 98:1-3 also urges us to "Sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has openly shown in the sight of the nations. He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God."
*Praise the Lord! Victory belonged to Jesus, even on the darkest day in history. And we can see this truth in today's Scripture.
1. BUT FIRST, GOD SHOWS US THE HATEFUL PLOT AGAINST THE LORD.
*We see this plot in vs. 1-2, where God's Word says:
1. When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put Him to death.
2. And when they had bound Him, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor.
*In their kangaroo court of an illegal, nighttime trial, these Jewish rulers had already condemned Jesus to death. Now they were plotting about how to quickly carry out the sentence.
*Under Jewish law, the normal way of executing prisoners was by stoning. And it is true that the Romans had taken away the authority for the Jews to carry out executions. But that didn't stop this same high council from stoning Stephen the deacon a few months later in Acts 7.
*John Gill tells us that they could have also turned Jesus over to a group of the religious zealots. They were very well-known for their hatred, violence, and murder of those who opposed man-made laws and traditions of the Jews. Gill suggested that the Jewish rulers chose to send Jesus to the Romans, because they executed their criminals by crucifixion, and the cross was the most painful, humiliating way to die. (1)
*Except for Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, the bottom line for these rulers was hatred for Jesus. They totally rejected the Lord, and they wanted Jesus to suffer. The more people reject Jesus Christ, the more cruel and hateful they will be toward the Lord's people and His ways. The more government rejects the true and living God, the more evil it will become.
2. AND TODAY GOD SHOWS US THE HATEFUL PLOT AGAINST THE LORD. BUT HE ALSO SHOWS US HIS HEAVENLY PLAN.
*In vs. 1-2, those ungodly rulers thought they were in control. They were not, and they are not! The cross was God's plan from before the beginning of time.
*So when those chief priests and elders "took counsel against Jesus to put Him to death," they were fulfilling a prophecy that King David had written a thousand years before they were born. The early church quoted this Scripture in Acts 4. There, Peter and John had been threatened by this same high council, and God's church began to pray.
*Acts 4:24-30 tells us that when they heard Peter and John's report:
24. . .they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: "Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them,
25. who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: 'Why did the nations rage, and the people plot vain things?
26. the kings of the earth took their stand, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ.'
27. For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together
28. to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.
29. Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,
30. by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.''
*In that prayer they were quoting Psalm 2. Please listen to it today to see who's really in control:
1. Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing?
2. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,
3. "Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.''
4. He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The LORD shall hold them in derision.
5. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep displeasure:
6. "Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion.''
7. "I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.
8. Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
9. You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.'''
10. Now therefore, be wise, O kings; be instructed, you judges of the earth.
11. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
3. THAT'S THE HEAVENLY PLAN OF GOD. BUT HERE GOD ALSO SHOWS US THE HOPELESS PAIN OF A LIFE WITHOUT GOD.
*This is the pain we see in Judas in vs. 3-5:
3. Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
4. saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.'' And they said, "What is that to us? You see to it!''
5. Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.
*Judas shows us the hopeless pain of a life without God. And it is important for us to realize that Judas was never saved. Judas never put his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Judas never really repented from His sins.
*Yes vs. 3 in the KJV says, "Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself. . ." But this word "repent" is not the same original word that the Bible usually uses for godly repentance that leads to salvation. The word used here means "to be remorseful" or "to regret" something you did. And that's good, as far as it goes. But being sorry for your sins is never enough to save anyone's soul.
*The original word for the repentance that leads to salvation is a totally different word. And that other word means "to think differently," "to reconsider," "to change one’s mind for the better," and "to heartily change with disgust for one’s past sins." This other word is the word Peter used in Acts 2 when he preached the gospel to a large crowd of people. Starting in Acts 2:36, Peter said:
36. "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.''
37. Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?''
38. Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.''
*Three thousand people got saved there on the Day of Pentecost. But Judas was never saved. So John Gill said that "when Judas 'repented,' it was not talking about repenting for the sin he committed against God and Christ. Rather, it was talking about the load of present guilt and horror upon his mind as he became aware of the everlasting punishment he faced. It was not such a repentance by which he became wiser and better, but an excruciating, tormenting pain in his mind, by which he became worse.
*It did not spring from the love of God, as soul-saving repentance does. It did not recognize God's goodness in Christ, and it did not result in reverence for God. Instead, it was a foretaste of that fire which cannot be quenched."
*Judas was never saved. In John 6:35-41, Jesus talked about being the Bread of Life. There God's Word says:
35. And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
36. But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.
37. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.
38. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
39. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.
40. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.''
41. The Jews then murmured against Him, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven.''
*Many of the Lord's disciples abandoned Him that day. And in John 6:61-64:
61. When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples murmured about this, He said to them, "Does this offend you?
62. What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?
63. It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
64. But there are some of you who do not believe.'' For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.
*Jesus always knew about Judas the traitor. But as one of the original disciples, Judas did the work of the Lord. He was sent out by Jesus to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And in Matthew 10:7-8 Jesus gave them this command: "As you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons." Judas did all of those miraculous things, so he believed in the undeniable power of Jesus. But Judas never believed in the Lord's purpose and plan. Like the devil, Judas had a rebellious heart against God. And John Gill said, "Judas's repentance was without the hope of forgiveness, and was nothing else but horror and black despair. He was pushed on by Satan, and by his own greed. And now, there being no hope, guilt and horror seized his mind, and gnawed his conscience." Judas had gone so far wrong that the Bible tells us that Satan had personally entered into Judas at least twice. That's in Luke 22:1-6 and John 13:18-27. What a horrible and horrifying thing! (2)
*And Judas was never saved, even though he confessed his sins. That's because he confessed to the wrong people. Again in Matthew 27:3-5:
3. Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
4. saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.'' And they said, "What is that to us? You see to it!''
5. Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.
*Judas never got saved. He never trusted in our crucified and risen Savior Jesus Christ. So Acts 1:25 says Judas went "to his own place.'' That is, he went to hell, or he went to his own place in hell. The Bible indicates that some people will suffer worse in hell than others. And I would think Judas will be one of the people who suffer the most.
*But to me it's kind of like the difference between being put in the center of the sun or on the surface. The center of the sun can have temperatures of over 27 million degrees, while the surface of the sun is only about 10,000 degrees. But what difference does that make? The best part of hell is the last place you would ever want to be! And that is the hopeless pain of a life without God. (3)
*But before we move on, let me say a few words about suicide. The Catholic church teaches that suicide is an unpardonable sin, but the Bible doesn’t say that. When it comes to the suicide of a Christian, I always remember something Jon Stubblefield said at the funeral of Dr. Bob McGee. Dr. McGee was a wonderful pastor and Christian who served in Ruston for many years. He was certainly saved, but after a long battle with depression, Dr. McGee took his own life. And at his funeral, Jon Stubblefield said, "God did not call him home. -- But He welcomed him home."
*In 1 John 1:7 the Bible tells Christians that "if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." All sin -- all sin. Thank God for that!
4. BUT HERE GOD SHOWS US THE HOPELESS PAIN OF A LIFE WITHOUT GOD. THANK THE LORD, HE ALSO SHOWS US THE HOPEFUL PROOF OF GOD'S WORD.
*And this proof is the fulfillment of prophecy we see in vs. 6-10:
6. But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, "It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.''
7. And they took counsel and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in.
8. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.
9. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, "And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced,
10. and gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord directed me.''
*Verse 9 says that this prophecy "was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet." And this can be a little confusing, because this prophecy is actually found in the book of Zechariah. But in those days, the order of the Old Testament books was different from today. And they divided the Old Testament differently than we do today. Basically, they had the Law or Moses' Books, the former prophets starting with Joshua, the latter prophets starting with Jeremiah, and the Holy Writings starting with the Psalms.
*Zechariah was in the section that started with Jeremiah, and that whole section was identified by the name of the first book. This is the same kind of thing that Jesus did in Luke 24:44 when He called the whole last section of the Old Testament "Psalms." There Jesus said: "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.'' (4)
*The actual prophecy is from Zechariah 11:12-13 says:
12. Then I said to them, "If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain.'' So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver.
13. And the LORD said to me, "Throw it to the potter'' that princely price they set on me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD for the potter.
*God gave that prophecy to Zechariah over 500 years before Jesus was born. And the fulfillment of that very precise, somewhat obscure prophecy gives us strong proof that the Bible is the Word of God. Plus, it's just one of over 300 prophecies about Jesus that have already been fulfilled!
*And this is so vitally important, because if the Bible is not the Word of God, then we have no foundation for our faith. If the Bible isn't the Word of God, we could never be sure that God came into the world on the first Christmas day, that Jesus was born of a virgin, that He lived a sinless life, that He died on the cross for our sins, that He rose again from the dead. And that Jesus Christ will save anyone who will trust in Him and receive Him as their Lord and Savior.
CONCLUSION:
*But the Bible is the Word of God! Fulfilled prophecies prove it. And as Jesus said in Matthew 24:35, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." Psalm 119:89 also says, "Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven."
*So Christians, we can have rock-solid hope in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! God is in control, victory belongs to the Lord, and Jesus has given His everlasting victory to us. Now we can echo Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:57 and say, "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
*But if you have never received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, call on the Lord to save you right now as we go back to God in prayer, and you will have His victory too.
(1) JOHN GILL'S EXPOSITION OF THE BIBLE by Dr. John Gill, D. D. - 1697-1771 - Published in 1746-1766, 1816 - Matthew 27:1 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(2) Adapted from JOHN GILL'S EXPOSITION OF THE BIBLE by Dr. John Gill, D. D. - 1697-1771 - Published in 1746-1766, 1816 - Matthew 27:3 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(3) http://www.space.com/17137-how-hot-is-the-sun.html
(4) Sources:
-JOHN GILL'S EXPOSITION OF THE BIBLE by Dr. John Gill, D. D. - 1697-1771 - Published in 1746-1766, 1816 - Matthew 27:9 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-THROUGH THE BIBLE WITH J. VERNON MCGEE by J. Vernon McGee - Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville - Copyright 1981 - "The Sanhedrin Delivers Jesus to Pilate" - Matthew 27:1-10 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
