Obedient Even To Death
9.30am
Good Friday 6 April 2007
Readings:
Mark 10:32-34; 14:43-46, 55-56,
60-64; 15:1, 16-20, 22, 24-27, 33-37; 16:1-6
"In
your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind Christ
Jesus had: Who ... being made in human likeness ... humbled himself by becoming
obedient to death - even death on a cross."[1]
We call today 'Good' Friday, and yet there
was nothing good about what we did as human beings on this day almost two
thousand years ago. It was the darkest
day in all of human history. On this day
we took Jesus, the Son of God, and put him to death by one of the most
excruciatingly painful ways of execution ever devised by humankind - death by
crucifixion. We can only call this day
'good' because God stepped in to bring good out of our evil. Knowing full well what we would do with his
Son, God used it to accomplish the salvation of the world.
This
morning we turn the clock back two thousand years and examine what
happened. In the Bible readings set down
for Good Friday this year we are directed to Psalm 22, a song of David's that
foretells with amazing accuracy almost one thousand years before the event what
took place at the crucifixion. The Psalm
begins with Jesus words from the cross,
"My
God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"[2] It foretells the abuse Christ received as he
hung on the cross.
"I am scorned by everyone, despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults,
shaking their heads. 'He trusts in the
Lord,' they say, 'let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him, since he delights in him."[3] This Psalm refers to his thirst;
"My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and
my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth."[4] It speaks of the nails used to secure him to
the cross, and the soldiers throwing dice to see who would have his garments -
"...they pierce my hands and my feet. ... They divide my clothes among them and cast
lots for my garments."[5]
The
readings also include Isaiah 52:13-53:12, a message of hope given at a very low
time in Israel's
history. Many of God's people were in
exile in Babylon,
despairing of ever seeing their own country again. Into this dark hour Isaiah brought words that
spoke of a different future for God's people, the promise of a new
tomorrow. Listen to how clearly he
describes the crucifixion.
"He was despised and rejected of men, a man
of sorrows, and acquainted with grief ... he was wounded for our transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him;
and with his stripes we are healed. All
we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the
Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."[6]
That the events of the first Good Friday are
so accurately foretold shows that what happened was no surprise to God. In fact, Isaiah says, "it was the Lord's will to ... cause him to suffer ... the Lord makes his
life an offering for sin."[7] Nothing we do ever surprises God, but as Paul
says, "we know that in all things God
works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his
purpose."[8]
The leaflet
you were given as you entered the church this morning, carries the title
'he knew what would
happen... but he still went ahead.' The Bible passages taken from the Gospel of Mark,
speak of Jesus' obedience to God. Let's
listen as the first passage is read to us.
Mark 10:32-34 (GNB)
Narrator: Jesus and his disciples were now on
the road going up to Jerusalem. Jesus was going ahead of the disciples, who
were filled with alarm; the people who followed behind were afraid. Once again Jesus took the twelve disciples
aside and spoke of the things that were going to happen to him. He told them,
Jesus: "Listen, we're going up to Jerusalem where the Son
of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the
Law. They'll condemn him to death and
then hand him over to the Gentiles, who'll make fun of him; but three days
later he'll rise to life."
This is the
second time that Jesus had spoken to his disciples about what was going to
happen to him. In Mark
8, immediately after Peter's confession that he was the Messiah, Jesus says,
"The
Son of Man must suffer many things..." and then repeats what we have just
heard. Jesus knew he would die in Jerusalem at the hands of
his own people, but he did not for one moment turn aside from the Father's
purpose for his life. This was why he
had come. Luke puts the purposefulness
of Jesus' going to Jerusalem
even clearer. He says,
"As the time approached
for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem."[9] In the passage read for us did you notice
that it said,
"Jesus was going ahead of the disciples?" There was no hesitation on his part. He was willing to be obedient to his Father,
even if it meant death on a cross. We
can capture something of how his disciples felt about this from the words, they
"were filled with alarm." They
were amazed, astonished, awe-struck that he would do this, knowing full well
what awaited him in Jerusalem. Little wonder they were afraid.
In the words from Mark
10, Jesus mentioned six things that were going to happen to him. The first thing he specifies is that he would
be
- BETRAYED "The Son of Man will be
handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law..." Listen to what happened.
Mark 14:43-46 (GNB)
Narrator: Jesus was still speaking when Judas,
one of the twelve disciples, arrived.
With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs and sent by the chief
priests, the teachers of the Law, and the elders. The traitor had given the crowd a signal:
Judas: "The man I kiss is the one you
want. Arrest him and take him away under
guard."
Narrator: As soon as Judas arrived he went up
to Jesus and said,
Judas: "Teacher!"
Narrator: ...and kissed him. So they arrested Jesus and held him tight.
When Jesus
had gathered earlier that evening to eat the Passover meal with his disciples,
he said to them,
"I tell you that one of you will betray me... one of you twelve... The Son of Man will die as the Scriptures say
he will; but how terrible for that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would have been better for that man if he
had never been born."[10] What Judas did could never be undone. He had
to live with the eternal consequence of his actions. We know from Matthew's account of these
events that after Jesus had been condemned, Judas realised the enormity of his
crime in betraying an innocent man, returned the money he had been given to the
chief priests, and went out and hung himself.
The Book of Acts has an even more gruesome account of his end.
[11] The amazing thing is that even although Jesus
knew Judas would betray him, he still chose him to be one of the twelve
apostles. You would have noted that
Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss? It was
common at that time for disciples to greet their teacher with a kiss as a token
of respect. But to betray one teacher's
with a kiss was unthinkable.
Jesus knew he would be betrayed,
but he still went ahead.
The second thing that Jesus
predicted was that he would be
-
CONDEMNED He said, "...they will
condemn him to death..." Listen
as these next verses are read to us.
Mark 14:55-56, 60-64 (GNB)
Narrator: The chief priests and the whole
Council tried to find some evidence against Jesus in order to put him to death,
but they couldn't find any. Many
witnesses told lies against Jesus, but their stories didn't agree. ... The
High Priest stood up in front of them all and questioned Jesus,
High Priest: "Have you no answer to the accusation
they bring against you?"
Narrator: But Jesus kept quiet and wouldn't say
a word. Again the High Priest questioned
him.
High
Priest: "Are you the Messiah, the
Son of the Blessed God?"
Narrator: Jesus answered.
Jesus: "I am, and you will see the Son
of Man seated at the right side of the Almighty and coming with the clouds of
heaven!"
Narrator: The High Priest tore his robes and
said,
High Priest: "We don't need any more witnesses! You heard his blasphemy. What's your decision?"
Narrator: They all voted against him: He was guilty and should be put to death.
The Book of
Deuteronomy clearly states that no one could be condemned except on the
evidence of more than one witness. In
Deuteronomy it says,
"On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is
to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only
one witness."[12] And further on it emphasises this again.
"One witness is not enough to convict
anyone accused of any crime or offence they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony
of two or three witnesses."[13] At the trial of Jesus before the Jewish
Council the witnesses told lies about Jesus.
Not one of their stories agreed.
If the chief priest were to follow their own laws it should have been
the witnesses who were condemned, not Jesus, because Deuteronomy says,
"If a
malicious witness takes the stand to accuse someone of a crime, the two
involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the Lord before the
priests and the judges who are in office at the time. The judges must make a thorough
investigation, and if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony,
then do to the false witness as that witness intended to do to the other
party. You must purge this evil from
among you."[14] The chief priests were not interested in
doing what was right, and they were willing to bend the rules as much as they
needed to be rid of Jesus. The fact that Jesus was condemned on the evidence of
his own words, made a complete mockery of the trial. It was a travesty of human justice.
Although Jesus knew he would be
condemned, he still went ahead.
Next Jesus tells us that he would
be
-
HANDED OVER "...and
then hand him over to the Gentiles." Listen again to what the Gospel
writer says.
Mark 15:1 (GNB)
Narrator: Early in the morning the chief priests
met hurriedly with the elders, the teachers of the Law, and the whole Council,
and made their plans. They put Jesus in
chains, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.
The Jews
were not allowed to execute anyone. They
could not administer capital punishment.
Such cases had to be referred to the Roman Governor, Pilate on this
occasion. Historians may differ on how
they interpret the next sequence of events leading up to Jesus' death, but
there is little doubt that the chief priests very cleverly outmanoeuvred
Pilate. He was no match for their
cunning. Twice in Luke's account of the
crucifixion we are told that Pilate said,
"I find no basis for a charge
against this man."[15] He
wanted to release Jesus, because he knew
"it was out of envy that the chief
priests had handed Jesus over to him."[16] Now it was a custom of the governor to
release a prisoner at the Passover Festival, and so the crowd asked Pilate to
do this for them. Pilate, thinking that
he might be able to secure the release of Jesus by this means, said to the
crowd,
"Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?"[17]
But the chief priests seized this chance to stir up the crowd to have Pilate
release the murderer, Barabbas. What was
he to do with Jesus, then? Again at the
instigation of the priests the crowd shouted,
"Crucify him!" Pilate tried to reason with them. '
Why?
What crime has he committed?' But
they shouted all the louder, 'Crucify him!'" Then come some telling words,
"Wanting to
satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to
be crucified."[18] The words
"Wanting to satisfy the crowd..."
say it all.
Rather than have a
riot on his hands that would have put him in a bad light with his superiors
with whom he was already having problems, Pilate gave in to their demands. Imagine having your name indelibly etched in
the annals of history as the one who, wanting to satisfy the demands of an
unruly crowd, sanctioned the death of an innocent man, and he none other than
the Son of God. How truly the writer to
the Proverbs expressed it when he said,
"The fear of others lays a snare..."[19] That is the legacy Pilate left, and
wherever the Easter story is told Pilate's weakness is broadcast to the
world. But are we not as guilty when we
have an opportunity to stand up for the Master, but choose to remain silent out
of fear of what others might think? It
takes courage to do what is right. It
takes courage to make a stand with Jesus, be it at school, or work, or among
our friends.
Jesus
knew he would be handed over to the Gentiles, but he still went ahead.
Next Jesus said he would be
- MISTREATED "...who will make fun of
him, spit on him, whip him..."
Listen to what Mark
says.
Mark 15:16-20 (GNB)
Narrator: The soldiers took Jesus inside to the
courtyard of the governor's palace and called together the rest of the
company. They put a purple robe on
Jesus, made a crown out of thorny branches, and put it on his head. Then they began to salute him:
Soldiers: "Long
live the King of the Jews!"
Narrator: They beat him over the head with a
stick, spat on him, fell on their knees, and bowed down to him. When they'd finished making fun of him, they
took off the purple robe and put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
Consider for a moment what took
place in that courtyard. First the
soldiers "called together the rest of the company." There would have been a large number of Roman
soldiers in Jerusalem
at that time being the Jewish Passover festival. It was always an occasion ripe for political
unrest. This would be why Pilate was in Jerusalem as he was usually at his headquarters in Caesarea. These
soldiers who held the Jews in contempt revelled at the opportunity to make
sport of one of its number. Remember
this came after Pilate had had Jesus flogged, which is stated in the verse
immediately before the ones we have just heard.
We read, "They put a purple robe on him" probably an old military
tunic of that colour, "made a crown out of thorny branches, and put it on
his head." They mocked his kingship,
and beat him over the head with a stick, each time the thorns of the crown
piercing deeper and deeper into his head.
These soldiers were having fun, each trying to outdo the other in ridiculing
Jesus. They "spat on him", a sign
of utter contempt. I remember being
revolted at a new immigrant who spat on the tile floor in Royal Oak Mall and
did nothing to clean it up. This person
obviously thought nothing of it as it was probably a perfectly natural thing to
do in the country this person came from, but it made me think of what it must
have been like for Jesus to have that done to him.
Jesus knew he would be mistreated,
but he still went ahead.
Next Jesus said he would be
-
KILLED "...and kill him..." Listen again to what Mark says.
Mark 15:22, 24-27, 33-37 (GNB)
Narrator: They took Jesus to a place called Golgotha, which means 'The Place of the Skull.' ...Then they crucified him and divided his
clothes among themselves, throwing dice to see who'd get which piece of
clothing. It was nine o'clock in the
morning when they crucified him. The
notice of accusation against him said: 'The King of the Jews.' They also crucified two bandits with Jesus,
one on his right and the other on his left. ...
At
midday the whole country was covered with darkness, which lasted for three
hours. At three o'clock Jesus cried out
with a loud shout...
Jesus: "Eloi,
Eloi, Lema sabachthani?"
Narrator: ...which
means, 'My God, my God, why did you abandon me?' Some of the people there heard him and said.
Some People: "Listen, he's
calling for Elijah!"
Narrator: One
of them ran up with a sponge, soaked it in cheap wine, and put it on the end of
a stick. Then he held it up to Jesus'
lips and said...
One Person: "Wait! Let's see if Elijah is coming to bring him
down from the cross!"
Narrator: With
a loud cry Jesus died.
The Bible is amazingly silent on
the details of Jesus' crucifixion. How
much is encompassed in the words, "Then they crucified him..." The Bible does not focus on the physical
sufferings of Jesus on the cross, but highlights the moment when God turned his
back on his Son. Jesus experienced in
that moment what hell is really like, being separated from the One who is
altogether loving, altogether good, who is the light of life, and who alone
brings true freedom. He experienced that
for us so that we need never be separated from God because of our sins, but be
reconciled to him.
Why did Jesus go to Jerusalem knowing what
was going to happen to him?
Listen to
what Jesus said,
Narrator: "The Son of Man didn't come to be
served; he came to serve and to give his life to redeem many people."[20]
Another part of the Bible tells
us:
Narrator: "[Jesus] has appeared once and for
all, to remove sin through the sacrifice of himself. Everyone must die once, and after that be
judged by God. In the same manner Christ
also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many."[21]
Jesus, knowing full well what
would happen, still went ahead because he is the Lamb of God who takes away the
sin of the world - your sin and mine.
They were nailed to the cross.
To make this personal to each one
of us this morning, I invite you now to write on the piece of paper you were
given as you entered, either something for which you need God's forgiveness
now, or something in the past for which you have received his forgiveness and
for which you are grateful. Once you
have written it down, fold the paper in half and then come forward and nail it
to the cross, quietly claiming and thanking God for his forgiveness. As this is happening we will sing a number of
songs.