Each night while performing his tricks, he would wave his magic stick and “poof,” something would disappear.
However, his parrot kept telling on him saying,
• “It's up his sleeve!”
• “It's in his pocket!”
• “It's in his shoe!”
• “It's in his back pocket!"
This annoyed the magician greatly.
One night, while he was doing his tricks, the ship's boiler blew up and the ship sank.
The magician was able to grab onto a table and survived.
The parrot also made it to the table and survived.
The parrot and the man were drifting at sea together when the parrot said after a little while, "I give up... what did you do with the ship?"
A misconception is to interpret something incorrectly.
As we read the New Testament, many of the Jews had a misconception about Christ’s coming.
They thought that Christ had come to set up His Kingdom on earth.
This is not what He had come to do!
The Jews failed to understand the two-fold ministry of Christ.
1) His first coming was to die for the sins of mankind.
2) His second coming would be to set up His Kingdom on earth during the millennium
The Jews and even the Lord’s own disciples had a difficult time understanding that.
We can see the MISCONCEPTION in Matthew 20:20-24, we read, “Then came to him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.”
They literally thought He had come to set up His Kingdom.
• He was doing all kinds of miracles
• He was drawing large crowds to follow Him
• His popularity was widespread, and the politicians and the religious leaders knew that He could have the multitudes vote Him in as their king.
HE WAS THAT POPULAR!
We read in Matthew 4:25 “Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.”
But then the most horrible thing that ever happened on the face of the earth took place a short time later.
We see -
I. “And they crucified him…”
Look at these words in Matt. 27:35 “And they crucified him...”
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger was watching one of the segments on Newmax television and the host of this program was dealing with transgenderism.
And the host of the program said I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT WE ARE HAVING TO TALK ABOUT MEN WHO THINKS THEY ARE WOMEN FEEL THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO COMPEIT WITH WOMEN IN THEIR SPORTS!!!
This is difficult to understand!!!
Something even more difficult to understand is when we read, “And they crucified the Son of God…”
The mention of these four words should cause all of us to stop and meditate on this simple statement, “And they crucified Him…”
Illus: In March of 2004 four Americans were killed in Iraq. They were viciously attacked while driving in their car.
After they were killed, the news showed what looked like thousands of people rejoicing over their death as they dragged their bodies down the street and hung them from a bridge.
The American military immediately began studying the videos of this horrendous crime and they said they are going to find the culprits and make them pay for what they did.
WHO DID THIS AWFUL THING?
We do not have a video to show us who nailed Jesus to the cross, but we do have the Word of God.
Who is the “they” referring to?
The “They” are many people but one group was….
(1)THE JEWS
DID THE JEWS CRUCIFY HIM?
According to the scriptures they certainly had a part in it.
Pilate asked if he should free Barabbas or Jesus of Nazareth in Matthew 27:21. Much to Pilate’s dismay, the mob yelled, “Barabbas!”
The Bible says this about the Jews:
(1) John 1:11 “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
• If he had come and set up His Kingdom they would have accepted Him.
• If He had been born in a royal palace instead of a stable they would have accepted Him.
• If He had ridden a white stallion into Jerusalem instead of a donkey they would have accepted Him.
The Bible tells us that, “He came unto His own, AND HIS OWN RECEIVED HIM NOT.”
The Bible also says something about the Jews concerning His death.
Matthew 27:24-25 “When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.”
The Jews can try and wash their hands of His crucifixion if they want to, but the Word of God makes it clear they are part of the crowd that crucified Him. They had a very significant part in having Him crucified
Every time I hear about the blood shed of the Jews I think of what they said. Let “His blood be one us, and on our children.”
The Jew’s rejection of the Son of God as their Messiah brought HIS BLOOD ON THEM AND THEIR CHILDREN.
When they said let His blood be on us and our children it was the worst mistake of their life.
And today when lost people reject the Lord Jesus it is the worst mistake of their life. Because they are making the same bad mistake the Jews made.
Illus: When the Mel Gibson made the movie about “The Passion Of The Christ” came out, the Jews protested the movie vehemently.
They felt that it might cause anti-Semitic feelings in this country toward the Jews.
They did not want us to think that the Jews were the reason for His death on the cross.
WHO ARE THE “THEY” THAT CRUCIFIED HIM?
Certainly it was the Jews who Rejected Him!!!
(2) There were others…
Such as:
• The guards
• The politicians
• The religious leaders
• The crowd
But these are not the only ones WHO CRUCIFIED THE SON OF GOD!!!
Who are the “they” that crucified the Son of God?
(3) Every sinner that has ever lived on this earth had a part in it.
Our sins put Him on that cross as much as the Roman soldiers that drove the spikes in his hands.
Even though the Bible makes it clear the “THEY” are the Jews, guards, politicians, religious leaders, crowd and us I am going to show you in a few minutes none of these are the ones who ACTUALLY CRUCIFIED HIM!!!
But before I show you this we need to ask ourselves WHY DID THIS TRAGIC THING HAPPEN?
This tragic event has to go down as the worst case of injustice that has ever happened on the face of the earth.
Illus: We sometimes hear about men who spend 20 or 30 years in prison for something they did not have a thing to do with. This is certainly an INJUSTICE!
But still it can’t compare to the INJUSTICE done to the Lord Jesus.
Illus: If a highway patrolman pulls me over and gives me a speeding ticket when I am not speeding, it would be an injustice.
But in another way it would not be an injustice because many times I have been speeding and never got caught.
The reason this is the worst case of injustice is because the Lord Jesus lived a perfect life, a sinless life, and still they NAILED HIM TO A CROSS!
WHY DID GOD ALLOW THIS INJUSTICE TO TAKE PLACE?
He certainly could have stopped it.
He could have stopped it …
• During the trial
• During the mocking
• During the time they were nailing Him to the Cross
• During the time He was hanging on the cross
At any given time, God the Father could have stopped the crucifixion of His beloved Son.
WHY DID HE ALLOW THIS INJUSTICE?
The reason He did not stop it was because of His love for us.
His crucifixion was planned before the foundations of the world.
Before one sinner was born, God in is Omniscience knew he would sin and God made provision for his sins before he ever sinned.
Look at Rev. 13:8, “…THE LAMB SLAIN FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD.”
While this may be the greatest INJUSTICE to ever take place, it was also JUSTICE IN PROGRESS!
When He was on that cross He was bearing your sins and my sins. JUSTICE WAS BEING DONE!
There was no earthly way to pay the price of redemption for mankind, but there was a heavenly way – God’s way!
It was through the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
1 Pet. 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with THE PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:”
We see that THEY NAILED JESUS TO THE CROSS but they did something else…
II. THEY GAMBLED OVER HIS GARMENTS
Matt. 27:35, “And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots:”
It is interesting that these soldiers are gambling over a piece of the clothing of Jesus.
Illus: As a reward for being the executioners, they get to keep the belongings of the one crucified.
We read in John 19:23-24, “Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be (why did they do this?) that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.”
Everything the Lord did was to fulfill prophecy.
As He cried out from the cross, “It is finished,” He was saying, “I HAVE FULFILLED ALL PROPHECY CONCERNING MY COMING.”
When these soldiers gambled over his garment, they were fulfilling prophecy.
Look at what was prophesied of the Lord hundreds of years before He came and died.
Look at Psa. 22:16-18, “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.”
When the Lord died for our sins He was practically naked on that cross. He said…”They look and stare upon me…”
All of this that is taking place is a fulfillment of the scriptures.
Illus: Again, when the Mel Gibson movie of “The Passion Of The Christ” came out, look how the evil elite crowd of Hollywood began to protest this movie.
LET ME TELL YOU WHY THEY PROTESTED THIS MOVIE ABOUT CHRIST!
One of the things we heard was it was so violent. Since when has Hollywood been concerned about making movies that do not contain violence?
It is only when they began to show how evil men mocked Jesus, tortured Him, and whipped Him that they begin to protest violence.
The reason they wanted this movie to be a failure at the box office was because they DO NOT WANT THE NAME OF CHRIST MENTIONED.
Remember, in Acts 4:18 Peter and John were forbidden to speak the name of Jesus. We read, “And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.”
Listen, evil men have not changed. They do not care what is put on the television screen, BUT DO NOT SHOW HOW THE LORD SUFFERED FOR OUR SINS!
When that movie came out, the name of Jesus was being talked about every day. This ungodly world wants Jesus DEAD, BURIED AND FORGOTTEN!
They are just like those soldiers that gambled for the Lord’s clothing.
• They are gambling that God will not notice their sin
• They are gambling that God will not punish them
• They are gambling that God will bless them in spite of disobedience
• They are gambling that God will not hold them accountable for their words
When it comes to Christ, men not only gamble with His clothing, they are gambling with the false idea that they can put Him out of their life and everything will turn out all right! NO IT WILL NOT!!!
Illus: But sinful man had better remember the old adage: Never gamble with more than you can afford to lose!
And if they continue the route of rejection they are going to lose more than they can afford.
We see that
I. THEY NAILED JESUS TO THE CROSS,
II. THEY GAMBLED OVER HIS GARMENTS, and ....
III. THEY GAVE A TESTIMONY
They had ample proof that that Jesus was the Son of God.
Look at Mark 15:31 “Likewise also the chief priests mocking SAID among themselves with the scribes, HE SAVED OTHERS; himself he cannot save.”
These were some very foolish people.
Notice, they admitted that He had power beyond theirs. They said, “He saved others”.
• They knew He had saved some from sickness
• They knew He had saved some from deformity
• They knew He had saved some from death
• They knew He had saved some from demon possession
• They knew He had saved some from a life of sin
They said that He could not save Himself.
The fact is He could have saved Himself.
Illus: He could have called ten thousand angels down to rescue Him from the cross.
But had he saved Himself, He could not have saved us!
There are people today living who think they have lived such a wicked life that God cannot save them.
But they are wrong!!!
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
There’s nothing complicated about the plan of salvation. John 3:16-17 we read, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
There is only one thing that can keep a sinner from being saved.
John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
The Lord Jesus was crucified for our sins. He paid the price for us to have eternal life.
And the reason that all sinners will die and go to a Christ less eternity is because they WOULD NOT COME TO HIM FOR SALVATION.
He did all He could do on the cross of Calvary and now it is the responsibility of the sinner to COME TO HIM FOR SALVATION.
Conclusion:
I showed you throughout this sermon that the JEWS, Roman soliders, Religious crowd, guards or us were the ones who crucified the Lord Jesus to the cross.
Now I want to show you none of these crucified the Lord Jesus.
Yes, they nailed Him to the cross, but they are not the ones who crucified the Lord Jesus.
The Bible tells us WHO crucified Jesus:
Look at Rom. 8:32 – “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”
Look at John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
WHO crucified Jesus?
GOD DID!
It was not the spikes that held Him on that cross; it was God’s love for mankind.
God so loved you and I that He gave His only begotten Son to die on the cross so that you and I would NOT be eternally lost.
When God saves us He gives us eternal life. He is only going to die for our sins ONCE the scriptures tell us. But once He saves us He gives us ETERNAL LIFE.
Jesus died for you and for me.
• They crucified Him
• They buried Him
• But He rose from the grave to prove that He was the Savior of the world.
Before I close this sermon let me clear up a misconception that lost people have.
They believe that if they accept the Lord as their Savior they have to live a perfect life and they know they cannot do it.
Listen nobody but the Lord Jesus lived a perfect life free from sin.
When a lost person accepts the Lord the Bible says they are BORN AGAIN! That means they become spiritually a BABE IN CHRIST.
As a Babe they grow spiritually they will become MORE LIKE CHRIST and MATUIRE each day spiritually.
Do not make the mistake the Jews made and REJECT CHRIST. If you do it will be the worst MISTAKE you can ever make.
I. THEY NAILED JESUS TO THE CROSS
II. THEY GAMBLED OVER HIS GARMENTS
III. THEY GAVE A TESTIMONY
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