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!
*And Isaiah 40:10-17 gives us an idea of the strength of our God:
10. Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him.
11. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.
12. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, measured heaven with a span and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?
13. Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or as His counselor has taught Him?
14. With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding?
15. Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the balance; look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.
16. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
17. All nations before Him are as nothing, and they are counted by Him less than nothing and worthless.
*But this same Lord God humbled Himself to need help carrying His cross. Less than a week before Jesus died on the cross, He rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Matthew 21:1-3 began that part of the story by saying:
1. Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
2. saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me.
3. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord has need of them,' and immediately he will send them.''
*"The Lord has need of them." That is an astonishing statement. The One who couldn't possibly need anything chose to need those animals. Jesus chose to need that donkey. He chose to need help carrying His cross. And through His great humility, Jesus chose to need us too!
*Simon had no idea of the impact he was having that day. And here is a great lesson for us: One day we will be going along, minding our own business. And the Lord will allow us to be put in a situation, maybe a very difficult situation, where we can do immeasurable good. The Lord had a plan for Simon that day, and rest assured that God has a plan for our lives too.
3. BUT JESUS WAS ASSISTED FOR US, AND HE WAS IN AGONY FOR US.
*Verses 33-36 remind us that the Lord went through maximum agony for us:
33. And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull,
34. they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.
35. Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.''
36. Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.
*"Then they crucified Him." It is certainly not possible for us to understand all that the Lord went through when He suffered and died on the cross for our sins. But Lee Strobel helped us understand the physical suffering by explaining that 5 to 7 inch spikes were driven through the Lord's wrists. Those spikes crushed the median nerve, which we call the funny bone. Experts say this would be like squeezing your funny bone with a pair of pliers. Death by crucifixion was so painful that a new word was created to describe it. That word is "excruciating," which comes from the Latin words meaning "out of the cross."
*After Jesus' wrists and feet were nailed securely, He was hoisted to hang on the cross. Death from crucifixion was basically a very slow death by suffocation. People on the cross could breathe in, but they couldn't breathe out unless they pushed up with their feet, and of course they did. It was excruciating pain, and it could go on for days. (4)
*The Lord went through maximum agony for us. Verse 34 tells us that "they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink." Mark 15:23 tells us that "they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it."
*The vinegar or sour wine they tried to give the Lord to drink also contained some gall and myrrh. Gall was a painkilling drug made from something like poppies. The myrrh gave the sour wine a better flavor, and like the gall, it had a narcotic and stupefying effect. But Jesus refused to take those painkillers. (5)
*The Lord could have taken something for the pain, but He didn't do it. Jesus suffered in full for us, so that we might have His forgiveness in full. And you will have God's forgiveness in full by trusting in our Risen Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
4. JESUS WAS IN AGONY FOR US, AND HE WAS ANTAGONIZED FOR US.
*We see this truth in vs. 37-44:
37. And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him: THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
38. Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.
39. And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads
40. and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.''
41. Likewise the chief priests, also mocking with the scribes and elders, said,
42. "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.
43. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'''
44. Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.
*On top of everything else, the Lord had to put up with all of that venomous mockery. Jesus was blasphemed and insulted by those who passed by. He was mocked by the murderous chief priests, scribes, and elders. And surely the Lord could have come down from the cross any time He wanted to. It never was the nails that held Jesus to the cross. It was His love for His Heavenly Father, and His love for us that kept Jesus on the cross. The Lord was even antagonized by the robbers hanging on crosses beside Him.
5. BUT JESUS WAS ABSOLUTELY WILLING TO SAVE US.
*It is surprising to me that Jesus was reviled by the robbers who hung on the crosses beside Him. They taunted Him with the same kind of blasphemous insults. But thank God that wasn't the end of the story for one of those robbers. One of those condemned robbers got saved that day!
*Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Luke 23 tells us the rest of his story. And this is such an important part of that day, please listen to Luke 23:34-43:
34. Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.'' And they divided His garments and cast lots.
35. And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, "He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.''
36. And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine,
37. and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.''
38. And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
39. Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.''
40. But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
41. And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.''
42. Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.''
43. And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.''
*What a transformation! How in the world did that happen? How did that thief get saved?
[1] ONE KEY WAS THAT HE RECOGNIZED HIS SINFULNESS.
*That's why in vs. 40-41, he said this to the other thief: "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.'' The thief who was saved saw his own sinfulness. There on the cross, he had a total transformation in his heart. And seeing his sinfulness was a big part of the process.
[2] BUT THE SAVED THIEF ALSO RECOGNIZED JESUS' RIGHTEOUSNESS.
*In vs. 41 he compared himself and the other robber to Jesus and said, "We receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.'' The saved thief saw the Lord's infinite goodness. He had surely heard about the Lord's goodness during Jesus' 3-year ministry.
*But what made the eternal difference was that the saved thief could also see the goodness of Christ on the cross. He saw Christ's goodness in a love so strong that Jesus even loved His enemies. In the face of all the mocking and sneering abuse, in the face of torturous punishment as Jesus suffered on the cross, in vs. 34, the thief heard Jesus say, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.'' D. L. Moody concluded that this prayer must have been what converted the thief on the cross. Nothing else could reach him, until he saw the great love of Jesus on the cross. (6)
*James McCullen said that the Lord's love was great enough to give His life, not for the righteous, but for the unrighteous, not for the good, but for sinners, not just for His friends, but even for His enemies. And at the cross, we find out just how valuable we are to God. But the value doesn't come from our goodness, it comes from the Lord's infinite goodness and love." (7)
[3] THE SAVED THIEF RECOGNIZED JESUS' RIGHTEOUSNESS. AND HE WAS WILLING TO RELY ON JESUS.
*We can see this robber's faith in the request he made to Jesus in vs. 42: "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." What faith he had in Jesus Christ! That request was based on faith that Jesus was bigger than the cross, and even bigger than death. What faith! -- Jesus was still hanging on the cross, not risen from the dead. The stone had not been rolled away. But the saved thief believed that Jesus would live and reign forever. And he trusted that the Lord could save him. Then in vs. 43, the saved thief trusted that the Lord would save him, because there Jesus replied, "Surely, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.''
[4] THE SAVED THIEF WAS SAVED BECAUSE HE WAS WILLING TO RELY ON JESUS, AND BECAUSE HE HAD A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS.
*In vs. 43 Jesus told the saved thief, "Today you will be with Me in Paradise." Not just "Today you will be in Paradise," but "Today you will be with Me in Paradise!" This wonderful statement reminds us that the heart of Christianity is a relationship. The heart of Christianity is a personal relationship with God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit of God who comes to live in our hearts when we believe in Jesus.
*When we trust in Jesus, God becomes our Heavenly Father, our Brother, and our Best Friend. When we trust in Jesus, we get to know God in a personal way. This crucial truth was revealed on the night before the cross when Jesus was praying to His Heavenly Father. In John 17:2-3 Jesus spoke of Himself in the third person and said this to His Father, "You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."
CONCLUSION:
*When we trust in Jesus Christ, we get to know God in a personal way. Do you have this kind of personal relationship with Jesus? This is the most important question as we focus on the cross of Christ. Our Risen Savior will save you too, if you will receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior.
*And we all should receive Jesus, because He was abused for us, He was in agony for us, He was even antagonized for us. But Jesus is still willing to save you, if you will put your trust in Him! Call on the Lord to save you now, as we go back to God in prayer. And thank God for the cross of Jesus Christ!
(1) "A Physician Looks at Crucifixion" - NELSON'S COMPLETE BOOK OF STORIES, ILLUSTRATIONS & QUOTES by Robert J. Morgan - Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers - 2000
(2) Sources:
-Adapted from BARCLAY'S DAILY BIBLE STUDY SERIES (NT) by William Barclay, Revised Edition - Copyright 1975 - First published by the Saint Andrew Press, Edinburgh, Scotland - The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -- Public Domain - "The Soldiers' Mockery" - Matthew 27:27-31 - https://bibleportal.com/commentary/section/william-barclay/the-soldiers-mockery-matthew-2727-31
-SermonCentral sermon "Jesus is Alive - True or False?" by Lee Strobel - Matthew 28:1-20
(3) Sources:
-ted from WORD PICTURES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT by Archibald Thomas (A. T.) Robertson - Published in 1930-1933 - Matthew 27:32 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(4) SermonCentral sermon "Jesus is Alive - True or False?" by Lee Strobel - Matthew 28:1-20
(5) Sources:
-STRONG'S HEBREW AND GREEK DICTIONARIES - from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong, S.T.D., LL.D. - Published in 1890; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-THAYER'S GREEK DEFINITIONS - Published in 1886, 1889; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(6) Original source unknown for D. L. Moody's conclusion
(7) Cross & Crown Sermon: "Forgiveness: the Road Less Traveled" by James McCullen - Luke 23:34, Eph 4:32
