Some Savior
Mark 15:1-20
Think of one picture of Jesus—what image first comes to mind?
-Jesus as a baby...the little Lord Jesus no crying He makes
-Jesus knocking at the door
-Jesus posing for a church directory photo
-Jesus walking on the water
-Jesus blessing the children
-Jesus praying in
-the triumphal entry
into
-the Last Supper
-Jesus as described in Revelation
--Read
Revelation 29:11-16
None of those are bad, of course, it’s just that...
-we tend to forget that Jesus was born into a poor, Middle Eastern
Jewish family...so chances are He looked less like Fabio and,
more like someone who would, frankly, today provoke the
suspicions of every passenger and security officer at KCI
--if you want to talk about racial profiling, have Jesus try to board
a Delta Airlines
jet bound for D.C. or
-our picture of Jesus is so far from complete that if we actually were
to see the real Jesus, I don’t think we’d even recognize Him
--what’s missing from our pictures is the most critical one of all...
and it’s the part a vast majority of us have chosen to lock away
and pretend never existed
---but in doing so, we’re left with no clue why the Son of God
came to earth and took on human flesh...and we have no
clue who He really is...and neither do we have a clue
about the depth of His suffering, the wretched stench of
our sin, nor the lengths His love can reach
The part of the story, as well as the part of Jesus we just wish would
go away is found in Mark 15:1-20 [Read]
“If only that weren’t part of the story,” we think, “then we wouldn’t
have such a difficult time believing.”
-the truth is—and hear this clearly—without this part of the story we
would have no one worth believing in
Picture Jesus—but not as child-blesser nor a miracle-worker, not as a
water-walker nor a dead-raiser, not a fish-n-loaf-multiplier, not a
leper-healer nor a sight-giver, not a moral-teacher nor a nice guy
I want you to imagine Jesus by listening how the prophet Isaiah, the
four Gospels, and
Paul’s letter to the church at
Jesus, the Savior, the Son of God
He was rejected
-betrayed
-seized
-arrested
He was denied
He was despised...
-a man of sorrows
-familiar with
suffering
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him
-there was nothing in His appearance that would attract us to Him
He was afflicted
-crushed
-wounded
-bruised
-oppressed
-cut off
-stricken
-beaten
-flogged
-spit upon
-slapped
-hit..
--...and hit again...
--...and again in the head with a wooden
staff
His appearance was disfigured beyond that of any man
-His form was marred
beyond human likeness
--to the point
where many were horrified by the sight of Him
He was sneered at
-mocked
-insulted
-ridiculed
-humiliated
-pierced
He was considered the worst of sinners
-a criminal
But He was innocent
But...He was still executed...
-...crucified like
the vilest of criminals
-...murdered in cold
blood
-...like a sheep led
to the slaughter
And that’s what the Bible says about Him
-imagine what His critics and enemies would say!
And when it appears Jesus’ life work and His life itself are imploding
around Him...when His followers—into whom He’d invested so
much—have deserted Him out of fear...when evil seems to have the
upper hand and darkness rules the day...
-onto the stage of history parades Pontius Pilate and his entourage
Pilate is the Prefect, or Governor, of Judea...appointed by
oversee this territory
-Pilate ruled from 26 until 36 A.D.
--he lived on the Mediterranean coastal
city of
---in fact, in 1961, archaeologists discovered an inscription at
the Roman amphitheater in
Pilate, Prefect of
--he enjoyed the perks of royalty...a palace, a personal security
detail, authority over thousands of Roman soldiers, sunsets
over the
-one ancient historian said that Pilate was selected for this position
not because of his leadership abilities, but because of his political
connections (implying he wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer)
When Pilate would visit
palace built by King Herod the Great
-it was a blatant show of ridiculous wealth and unlimited power in a
world of abject poverty
--I picture him pretending to be Caesar...sitting by a fire and
contemplating how he would go about conquering the civilized
world...and how he obviously could do it better than those
politicians
and generals in
So when Jesus is brought before Pilate, there could not be a contrast
more black and white than this
-Pilate is living the lifestyles of the Roman rich and famous...he has
the clothes, the chariots, the servants, and the bling to prove how
incredible he is
--Jesus has the wardrobe of a common peasant...he has no
home, much less a palace...and there are no chariots, no
servants, and definitely no bling
---and about the only thing this proves is that Jesus, who
claims to be God, must have escaped from those nice,
young men in their clean, white coats
--only one of these two men could have any legitimate claim to
be divine...and by the looks of things, it’s sure not Jesus
Pilate has all of this power...power over the people...power over the
Jewish religious leaders who are determined to see Jesus dead...
with one word Pilate could, by force, clear out the whole mob...he
has the power to do the right thing, to release Jesus...to set Him free
-Pilate has all this power...but he is too weak to use it
Jesus, on the other hand—now this is the weird part—has absolute,
ultimate power...power over all creation...power over the events that
seem to be escalating out of control...with one word, Jesus, could
summon thousands of angels who are standing at the ready, waiting
to sweep in and remove the Holy Son of God from the bloody hands
of these sinners
-Jesus truly has all this power...but He is too strong to use it
He could cut a deal with Pilate or do a magic trick to impress him and
therefore secure His own release—and I’m convinced Pilate is
practically begging Jesus to do just that
But in the end, the temptation to forsake His mission could not sway
the man who would not be the king they wanted Him to be
-He bares His back and allows the bone and the metal imbedded
in the whip to slice open His holy flesh...to rip out chunks of
muscle and tendon with each merciless strike
-He wears on His face the imprints of the hands and fists—hands
and fists that He created—as He is beaten for sport
-He humbly accepts the robe and the thorns
-He chooses to endure the ridicule of His tormentors...and the
smug, callous indifference of His self-righteous accusers
And if you can imagine Jesus that way—what do you see?
-do you see power...or weakness?
-do you see wisdom...or foolishness?
-do you see some Savior... or the almost laughable end of one man’s
pathetic attempt to change the world?
Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 (NLT)
And He willingly chooses this way...because it is the way of the cross
...and only the way of the cross leads Him to you...and to me
2 Corinthians 5:21
à God
made Him who knew no sin to be sin for
us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
Not only does this path lead to our salvation—if that weren’t enough
—but in His pain and His abandonment He identifies with us
-when we are subject to betrayal or loss or grief, Jesus—our Savior
and our Lord—is able to say, “I know. I have been there.”
--in fact, it is in our suffering that we find Him...He’s not only been
there, He is still there—not suffering—but He is there, ready to
meet us in
our suffering...assuring us we will never be alone
2 Corinthians 1:5
à For
just as the sufferings of Christ flow over
into our lives, so also through Christ our
comfort overflows.
-which is exactly
why Paul is able to go on to write in 2
Corinthians
4:8-9 à We are hard pressed on every side, but not
crushed;
perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed.
--if you are suffering...God is now closer to you than ever
We have this confidence because we have a Savior who was willing
to bear unimaginable anguish—suffering we deserved—because of
His love for
us...because of His grace...and because, as 2 Peter
3:9 reminds us à He is
patient with you, not wanting anyone to
perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
What it comes down to is this: we each stand in Pilate’s position
-we have Jesus—not a conquering king, but a suffering Savior—and
He’s standing before us
--and we ask
the same question Pontius Pilate asked in Mark
15:12...it’s the same question that has been posed billions
upon
billions of times over the last 2000 years à What shall I
do, then, with the one you call the
king of the Jews?
What will you do?
-will you reject Him...unwilling to believe He could be the Savior?
-or will you, in faith, embrace Him...recognizing that only Jesus
could ever save you?
The choice is up to you...what will you do, then, with the One they
call the king of the Jews?