Surely

Hark 15:39...And when the centurion who stood facing him,saw

that he so cried out, and gave up the s p i r i t , he said surely

t h i s m a n i s t h e S o n o f G o d . ;

S U R E L Y

One man, and one man only is w h o l l y competent to tell us the

story of the death ofJesus. That man is this roman centurion.

-It was this c e n t u r i o n , who sent his band of men across the

brook Kedron in the soft m o o n l i g h t to arrest Jesus.

-It was this centurion who guarded Jesus as he was lead to

the house of C a i a p h a s , and then marched him as a dangerous

rebel, first to the Palace of P i l a t e , and then to the High

R i s e of Herod, and back to the Palace of P i l a t e .

-It was this centurion that overheard the strange p a r l e y i n g

between Jesus and Pilate.(Are you a king? ..John 18;33-38).

-It was this centurion that s u p e r i n t e n d e d the scourging of Jesus.

-It was the centurion, who looked on when the soldiers mocked him

-It was by the l i p s of this centurion that the message of

P i l a t e s wife reached the governors ears. It was from the

l i p s of this centurion, that Simon of Cyrene (A man of

Afrocentic ethnicity) was to help with the cross of Jesus.

At his word of command the glittering spears began to move

along the way to Calvary.

-It was this centurion that saw that the n a i l s were driven in

his hand, and then stood with watchful eye and open ears, in

the strength of his roman discipline, and marked how Jesus died.

Of t h i s man we know nothing certainly until he stands in the

light of the dying face of Jesus.

-That he,was a soldier assures us of the ingrained habit of

obedience, a man with perfect courage, a man of unflinching loyalty,a man of honesty, and a greatly s i m p l y heart.

-That he was a Roman S o l d i e r , suggest to us that he belonged

to the lost dauntless army the world has known, in fact their

deeds of valor went back through an almost unbroken record

of success through seven centuries.

-That he was a centurion tells us that he was a man in middle

life,a man who had seen service, and had risen through

merit to his high command. It may be safely said that among

the centurions of the Roman army, he was said to be the very

flower of honor and chivalry. A Colon Powell, so to speak.

However, Let us examine, and interview the man that commited the crucial crime of mankind. Come and go with me back to Golgotha's

Hill. While we are there. Let us attenuate the setting of ONE who CURSED JESUS, ONE WHO CAME TO JESUS, AND THE ONE THAT CRUCIFIED JESUS.

Tradition speak of the thief on the cross as the only convert to Jesus. However according to Matthew 12:v34c says out of the abundance of the heart a man speaketh. Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass that who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Roman 10:9 that if thou shall confess with thou mouth the Lord Jesus

and believe God hath raised Jesus from the dead, Thou shall be saved. And this time, this centurion speaks, he say 'TRULY THIS IS THE SON OF GOD'-HE MAKES AN EXCLAMATION!,A DECLARATION AND AN IDENTIFICATION!

a. Exclamation-Surely

b. Declaration - T h i s was

c. Identification - THE S O N OF GOD

So there was ONE that cursed Jesus

there was ONE that crucified Jesus

and there were TWO that CAME to Jesus-66 1/3%

came to know him. Stay with me.

Let us look at the CRUEL OFFENSE.

An offense that is so cruel that

c r i m i n a l justice system..

it was outlawed by the criminal justice system.

Matthew 27 v.26...Then release he (the centurion) unto them;

and when he (the centurion) had scourged Jesus; he (the

centurion) delivered him (Jesus) to be crucified. The cruel

offense is that he (the centurion) turned him (JESUS) over

causally, calmly, and criminally, and he though so little of

it that in verse 5 4 says that he sat down, and watched him die there.