Our verse-by-verse journey through Mark's gospel now brings us to Mark chapter 15. We will be looking at verses 16 through 32 as we examine the crucifixion of our Lord. Next week, we will continue beyond the text today in examining the same. Let me read the text to you. Mark 15, beginning in verse 16.

"The soldiers took Him away into the palace (that is the Praetorium), and they called together the whole Roman cohort.

They dressed Him up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; and they began to acclaim Him, 'Hail, King of the Jews!'

They kept beating His head with a reed, and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing before Him.

After they had mocked Him, they took the purple robe off Him and put His own garments on Him. And they led Him out to crucify Him.

They pressed into service a passer-by coming from the country, Simon of Cyrene, (the father of Alexander and Rufus), to bear His cross.

Then they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.

They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh; but He did not take it.

And they crucified Him, and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take.

It was the third hour when they crucified Him.

The inscription of the charge against Him read,

'THE KING OF THE JEWS.'

They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left.

[And the scripture was fulfilled which says, 'And He was numbered with transgressors.']

Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, 'Ha, You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days,

save Yourself and come down from the cross!'

In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, 'He saved others; He cannot save Himself.

Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!' Those who were crucified with Him, were also insulting Him."

I'm sure you join me in saying that I recoil at such savage cruelty that can only flow from the poisoned well of human depravity and the power of Satan. You think about it, no animal would dare do something like this to others and their species. This is of wickedness that is supernatural. And it's sad that there are people today that would still enjoy doing these kinds of things, especially to Christians. From the outside, I would like to ask you a question, why did Jesus suffer and die on the cross? And how you answer this question will really determine two things: one, how much real and lasting joy you will experience over the course of your life? But secondly, it will determine the destiny of your soul for eternity. And I wish to answer this question from the outset. For only then will you be able to somehow grasp and internalize the horrific cruelty that Jesus willingly endured on behalf of all who would trust in Him for salvation.

Why did Jesus suffer and die on the cross? The answer is to be a substitutionary sacrifice in which he would bear the penalty of sin in his own body for sinners; that they might be forgiven; that they might be reconciled to a holy God. The apostle Paul puts it this way in Second Corinthians 5:21, "He made Him, who knew no sin, to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." The crucifixion pictures, dear friends, what we deserve but what Christ endured on our behalf. It is at the very heart of the concept of the atonement. In the atonement, justice and mercy come together. Atonement really is characterized by four truths referenced throughout Scripture: there must be a sacrifice, to remove the guilt and penalty of sin; there must be propitiation to remove the wrath incurred by sin; and there must be reconciliation, to remove the alienation and enmity caused by sin. And then finally, there must be redemption; redemption from the bondage of sin and the curse of the law upon us. This is what we witness in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. And I asked you, is your faith anchored in the finished work of Christ on the cross? Is he your substitute? Or are you content to ignore all of that, and pay for your own sins throughout eternity? My goal this morning is to help sinners see their need for the Savior, but also to help saints contemplate the glory of Christ and his infinite love for us. And in so doing, challenge each of us to learn to love and serve him more. And I must say that central to all of this is knowing the reality, the fact that Jesus knew you from all eternity, so that when he went to the cross, you were on his heart and mind. The Psalmist tells us in Psalm 139, beginning in verse 16, "Your eyes have seen my unformed substance, and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, Oh, God, how vast is the sum of them." You must remember, dear friends, that Jesus suffered on the cross with the full knowledge of who you were and what you would one day be. As your Creator, he was aware of the color of your eyes, the color of your hair, the shape of your face, the color of your skin, the sound of your voice, and the sins that you would commit against him. And as we see in Scripture, the redeemed were basically a love gift from the Father to the Son, his bridal church, because everyone that comes to faith in Christ had their name written in the Lamb's book of life before the foundation of the world. It was for you that he suffered and died. It was your sin that he bore in his body on the cross. His was an actual, not a potential atonement. He did not die to merely make salvation possible for those who might believe. No, he died to actually save those who were predestined to believe. He died for those whom the Father had given him, the elect of God. In Isaiah 53 verse five we read that, "He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities, the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed." It does not say that we were made healable; if we meet certain conditions, that would somehow activate a hypothetically universal atonement. "By his wounds you were healed." Peter says the same thing in First Peter 2:24.

Let me remind you that in scripture we read, that in eternity past, God set his love upon certain individuals, solely because of his good pleasure. He chose them to be saved from sin and damnation and to inherit the blessings of eternal life through the mediatorial work of the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, we read in Ephesians, one beginning in verse four, "...He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world." He goes on to say, "In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Christ, Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will..." He went on to add, "In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us." You see, the Father gave specific individuals to the Son, that He might accomplish their redemption. And he would be a substitutionary sacrifice for a particular people and his atoning work would be efficacious for all those who the Father had given him. John six, beginning in verse 37, Jesus said, "'All that the Father gives Me will come to Me.'" He went on to add, "'...I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me that I should lose nothing, of all that He has given Me.'" In John 17, in the garden, as he poured out his heart before the Father, preparing to go to the cross on our behalf, we read beginning in verse one, lifting up his eyes to heaven, He said, "'Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.'" And he went on to add in verse 24, "'Father, I desire that also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved me before the foundation of the world.'"

So as we reflect upon the hideous cruelty of the cross, I trust that this will cause us all to bow down with utmost humility and behold, the Son of God accomplishing the redemption of all whom the Father had given him in eternity past. And again, I say that this was an actual, definite atonement. Now, some will say, for example, in First John two two, it says, "He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for our sins only, but also for those of the whole world." The Universalist will say that what Jesus did on the cross paid the penalty for everybody, so everyone goes to heaven. That cannot be the case and Scripture refutes that everywhere. What he's referring to there is that the world speaks of all those without distinction, not all without exception. I might add that the context of that text is that John was confronting false teachers, promoting perfectionism and Gnosticism; that somehow only the Gnostics had the secret knowledge to gain spiritual victory. And so John repudiates those errors of exclusivism saying, essentially, that Christ is not the propitiation for our sins only, not just for Jews or just for Gentiles, for Gnostics, and not Christians, or believers in Asia Minor rather than the rest of the world. No, no, no, no. He is the propitiation for the sins of God's people that are scattered throughout the entire world. John 11, I believe verse 51, and following speaks of the same wonder of wonders, dear friends. Jesus said that I came to save people from their sins, Matthew 1:21, not to make them saveable. He did not make a provisional atonement, but an actual atonement. That's why on the cross, he said "'It is finished.'" Not, "It is possible." Redemption was accomplished. Our great high priest actually made purification for sins and with his work completed, he sat down; Hebrews one three. He gave "'...His life as a ransom for many'"; not for all, but for many, Matthew 20:28. And Paul says in Romans five, beginning in verse eight, we have, "...been justified by His blood..." Went on to say, "...while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His son."

Now, from the outset, I'm rehearsing some of this great theology to impress upon you the astounding reality of the sovereign grace and love of God, and the infinite love that he lavished upon you, at the cross, and continues to do so. As I was reflecting upon this, my mind went to an old hymn by Augustus Toplady. I found the verse, it was verse two, "A fountain of never ceasing grace." There was a phrase in there that I remembered from years ago. And the lyrics go like this, "In Thee we have a righteousness by God Himself approved; our rock, our shore foundation, this which never can be moved. Our ransom by the death was paid for all Thy people given; the law, now perfectly obeyed, that they might enter heaven." So dear friends, if you've trusted in Christ, as your Savior today, know that it was for you that he suffered and died.

Now to examine the text this morning, I want to do so under four categories that I hope will be helpful for you. We're going to first of all, look at the calloused comedy, then the cruel cross. Thirdly, the contemptuous charge and finally the celebrated conversions. Now remember the context, Jesus has been mocked, he has been beaten, he's been spat upon, he has been abandoned. And though he was found in innocent, Pilate yielded to the Jewish outcry to avoid an insurrection and get himself in trouble once again with Caesar. So he had Jesus scourged an unimaginably painful torture that typically killed most people. So by now, Jesus' back was shredded, literally to the bone. And with that in mind, we come to verse 16.

"The soldiers took Him away into the palace (that is the Praetorium), and they call together the whole Roman cohort." There will be an audience now of about 600 men. "They dressed Him up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; and they began to acclaim Him, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' They kept beating His head with a reed and spitting on Him and kneeling and bowing before Him." This brings us to the first point, and that is the calloused comedy. Again, here we witness the depths of human depravity do we not? These satanically inspired haters of God. You know, to take pleasure in torturing an innocent victim; to somehow delight in inflicting pain on someone; to revel over the unimaginable sufferings of a helpless individual is the lowest level of humanity. It is the most vile manifestation of human wickedness. I mean, these people were literally depraved sociopaths. And sadly, our world is filled with them today. They even exist in our government. And yet Jesus suffered all of this for you. And for me; those who the Father had given him.

Verse 20, "After they had mocked Him, they took the purple robe off Him and put His own garments on Him." So here is this mock coronation, if you will, of the King of kings. Inconceivable. And sadly, this is how many people view the Lord Jesus Christ today. He's just a joke. You tell people today that he is the King of kings and Lord of lords, that he's returning again, and they laugh at you. They laugh at him. Now, none of this caught Jesus by surprise. He predicted this, as you may recall, in Mark 10 verse 34, where he said, "'They will mock Him and spit on Him and scourge Him and kill Him, and three days later, He will rise again.'" We read a similar prophecy, given many, many years earlier in Isaiah 50, beginning in verse six, "I gave My back to those who strike Me and My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting. For the Lord GOD helps Me; therefore I am not disgraced; therefore, I have set My face like flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed."

John gives us further insight in John 19, beginning in verse one. There we read, "Pilate then took Jesus and scourged Him. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head and put a purple robe on Him. And they began to come up to Him and say, 'Hail, Oh, King of the Jews!' and to give Him slaps in the face.'" Unimaginable cruelty. Verse 4, "Pilate came out again and said to them, 'Behold, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that I find no guilt in Him.' Jesus then came out wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, 'Behold, the Man!'" He was in hopes that somehow the Jews would see this pathetic creature and have mercy on him and be satisfied to allow him to let him go. But instead, verse six, we read, "When the chief priests and the officers saw Him, they cried out saying, 'Crucify, crucify!' Pilate said to them, 'Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no fault, no guilt in Him.'"

Now back to Mark 15, the end of verse 20, "And they lead Him out to crucify Him." The word "out" is important here. We know according to Numbers, 15, verse 35, that executions were always done outside the city. But the writer of Hebrews gives us additional insight in Hebrews 13, beginning with verse 11, we read "For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp." You see, it was outside the camp of the Israelites where refuse was burned. It was the garbage dump where dangerous, wild animals roam. Those who lived outside the camp were the diseased. That's where the lepers lived; those considered unclean. It was a place of disgrace. A place of abandonment, of humiliation. It's where blasphemers and Sabbath breakers were executed. And the same was true outside the gate of Jerusalem. That's where the poorest of the poor live; the outcast, the harlots, the lepers. These are people that lived essentially in perpetual despair. People that were shunned by their family. It would have been heartbreaking to live there, especially for the lepers, who would walk around lamenting, saying, "unclean, unclean, unclean," so that no one would get near them. It was a place for people who don't want to go on living but are afraid to die. It was a place where people had no hope, no joy, no life. No faith because they had no Christ. How sad. What a picture of sinners for whom Christ died, right? He died for us "outside the camp."

Verse 12, of Hebrews 13 goes on to say, "Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate." You see, even as the remains of the sin sacrifices that were offered on the holy place were burned outside the camp, so too Jesus was sacrificed "outside the gate."

Verse 13, goes on to add, "So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach." By the way, this carries the idea of, let's separate ourselves from any religious or worldly ideology in opposition to Christ. Especially in that context, that would include the Levitical system; live outside the camp of the old covenant of Israel. You want to ask yourself, "Do I live outside the camp where grace abounds? Do I choose rather to stay inside the camp where law condemns."

So after mocking Jesus with their callous comedy, Mark simply says at the end of verse 20, "And they led Him out to crucify Him." This brings us now to the second point, and that is the cruel cross. John adds this in John 19:17, "They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross." Now, this would have been the horizontal cross beam, that one would bear upon their back. And imagine now, Jesus' skin and muscles and tendons and ligaments were ripped and exposed. And he had to bear this burden. He obviously couldn't do it for long.

Verse 21, "They pressed into service..." this is from Mark 15, "They pressed into service a passer-by coming from the country, Simon of Cyrene.." That would have been Northern Africa, which is essentially Libya today. And then in parentheses, it says, "(the father of Alexander and Rufus), to bear His cross." Now, while this would have been a random selection, it was indeed a providential appointment. It would appear because of the way Mark wrote this, that these names were familiar to the church there in Rome. Mark's audience must have been familiar with them. In fact, we read in Romans 16, verse 13, the Apostle Paul says, "Greet Rufus, a choice man in the Lord, also his mother." And so Simon and his wife, and perhaps the whole family, came to faith in Christ.

Verse 22, of Mark 15, "Then they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull." Now, this was no doubt a common place for crucifixions. A place where the holes had already been dug. It would have been a place of high visibility because the Romans like to crucify people where everybody would gather or walk by, to see what would happen if you somehow cross Rome. The word "skull" in the Latin is "calvaria," we get our word "calvary" from that. And this was outside Jerusalem's northern wall near the Damascus Gate. There's a rocky hill there that resembles a skull, we don't know for sure why it was called the Place of the Skull. Much of that is speculation. scripture doesn't really say.

Verse 23, goes on to say, "They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not take it." Now, bear in mind that the disciples have abandoned him. But there was a great multitude of people, we know, that we're following him. In fact, in Luke 23, verse 27, we read, "And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him." Now, this doesn't mean that they were disciples of Jesus; there probably worse some, but it was their custom to pay women to mourn when someone was going to the cross, or to mourn at a funeral. And probably someone, or several of them in that company, offered him the painkiller, and it was common for the Jews to offer myrrh to these poor victims going to crucifixion because it was an an analgesic, a narcotic. He also used it for anointing oil and for perfume and for other things. And they were used to doing this because historically by this time, Rome had already crucified about 30,000 people in Israel alone. And after the fall of Jerusalem and ad 70, the Romans ran out of wood to make crosses, they crucified so many people.

And I'm deeply moved by the fact that though Jesus was offered something to reduce the pain, he refused to do anything that would alleviate the agony of his suffering on our behalf. But rather, he would drink to the bitter dregs the full cup of divine wrath that the Father had given him, all because of his obedience to the Father and his love for all whom the Father had given him.

As a footnote, Jesus's response to the mourning women is quite remarkable. We read about it in Luke 23, verse 28, and following, "But Jesus turning to them said, 'Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming, when they will say, "blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have never bore, and the breasts that have never nursed, then they will begin TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, 'FALL ON US,' AND TO THE HILLS, 'COVER US.'" for if they do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?'" That was probably a common proverb; the green wood would be a reference to the young and the strong, the source of life, pointing to Jesus. And the dry wood would speak of the old and the barren and ready to be burned wood; ready to be burned and judgment, focusing primarily on the Jewish nation.

You realize that this would have been Jesus last sermon, a warning. A warning concerning the coming slaughter that would be a few years later, when the Romans came in, and destroyed Jerusalem. But it was also a prophecy that covered a much wider spectrum concerning the judgment upon all, who in their blasphemous unbelief, reject Christ and indulge themselves in the fleeting pleasures of this world over a Savior. Think about this, to pause, to focus in the midst of all of his pain, to break his long silence while enduring such unspeakable agony, and then out of love for them, to give them that sober warning. For indeed, as promised, a day is coming when according to Revelation 19, beginning in verse 15, "From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh, he has a name written, 'KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.'"

So Mark simply says, and "And they crucified Him..." According to verse 25, we know that this is nine o'clock in the morning. Jesus has been up all night he's gone through all of those trials, all of the scourging all of this wickedness. As I began to put some thoughts down to describe crucifixion, I found that I could not improve upon John MacArthur's description. Let me read it to you. "Crucifixion was a prolonged form of dying designed to induce maximum suffering and pain. When the condemned criminal arrived at the place of execution, he was forced onto his back and nailed to the cross as it lay on the ground. The nails measuring five to seven inches long and resembling modern railroad spikes, were driven through the wrists rather than the palms of the hand in order to support the full weight of the victims slumping body. The victim's feet were then secured with a single spike, with the knees bent so that he could push himself up in order to breathe. The nails would tear through the nerves and the wrists and feet, causing severe bolts of pain throughout the victims impaled arms and legs. The cross was then slowly raised until it was vertical. The foot of the cross was subsequently dropped into place in a deep posthole, landing with a reverberating thud that sent excruciating pain jolting through the victim's body. Thought the wounds from the nails caused severe agony they were not intended to be fatal. The normal cause of death was slow suffocation. The hanging position of the body constricted the diaphragm which made it impossible to breathe. In order to get air the victim had to push himself up, placing his weight on the nail wounds in his feet and wrists, and rubbing his lacerated back against the rough wood of the cross. As the victim grew tired, experienced muscle spasms, and became overwhelmed by the pain, his ability to breathe was increasingly hindered. As a result, carbon dioxide would build up in his bloodstream, and he would eventually suffocate to death. If needed, soldiers could hasten asphyxiation by breaking the victim's legs." End court quote.

Once again, to think to dear friends, that he specifically, really, not hypothetically, not potentially, but actually bore my sins and your sins on that tree. I never stopped marveling at so great a salvation. As I think about it, mankind has never devised a more brutal form of torture. The invention of this instrument of death could only be inspired by Satan, who was a murderer from the beginning and what delight he must have had at the sight. But his delight will only add to the eternal torment that awaits him and awaits all who would mock the Lord Jesus.

Verse 24, "And they crucified Him and divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take." We read this prophesied in Psalm 22:18, "They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing, they cast lots." You can just see this little group of soldiers doing this; granite indifference towards what's really going on. This was just another day at the office for them. Certain soldiers had that particular duty.

And verse 25, says, "It was the third hour of which they crucified Him." That would have been 9am. The Jews would count hours of the day beginning at six. So this is the third hour. And again, bear in mind, dear friends that just the night before, Jesus was celebrating Passover with his disciples, and now he is the Passover lamb. I marvel at the Savior's love in his heart of forgiveness, even for those inflicting such unspeakable pain upon him. It's amazing how his heart was still filled with love and forgiveness, not condemnation or revenge. Luke tells us in Luke 9:56, that "'... the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them.'" And we read in Luke 23, verse 34, how he prayed for forgiveness for his tormentors. He said, "'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.'" I'm not exactly sure in the sequence when he said this. I think JC Ryle probably has it right. Here's what he said, quote, "These words, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,' were probably spoken while our Lord was being nailed to the cross, or as soon as the cross was reared up on end. It is worthy of remark that as soon as the blood of the great sacrifice began to flow, the great high priest began to intercede. Do you see the glory of that?" He says, "Although Christ is the sovereign, eternal, omnipotent god, he did not threaten he did not condemn. He did not pronounce doom on his crucifiers. Instead of lashing out against him, he prayed for them." Amazing. He willingly submitted to this kind of indignity, and injustice, and torture. He willingly surrendered his life without resistance, without retaliation, all the while, praying that the Father would be merciful to them and forgive them.

My mind goes to what God says in Isaiah 55. The context here is, the infinite mercy and grace and love of God is beyond anything we can comprehend. There we read beginning in verse eight of Isaiah 55, "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord. 'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts then your thoughts.'"

Well, we've seen the catalyst comedy and the cruel cross, thirdly, notice the contemptuous charge. It's the inscription mentioned in verse 26, "The inscription of the charge against Him read, 'THE KING OF THE JEWS.' John gives us some additional insights here, this very helpful to tell us really what was going on and the reaction of the Jewish leaders. John 19, verse 19, we read, "Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, 'JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.' Therefore, many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, 'Do not write the King of the Jews;’ but that He said, "I am King of the Jews."' Pilate answered, 'What I have written I have written.'" In other words, this was a deliberate insult to the Jews. He knew that this would be extremely offensive to them, it would be a mockery of them; this would be his way of gaining revenge against them for the way that they blackmailed him and essentially forced him to kill an innocent man so that they could maintain their power and their prestige. But isn't it interesting, the inscription was, in fact true.

And Mark says, "They crucified..." verse 27, "...two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left." We'll talk about that more probably next week. And then in verse 28, it says, "[And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'And he was numbered with transgressors."] Now, just as a note, here, there is insufficient textual support for this particular verse, it may not even be in some of your translations. It's not found in the earliest manuscripts, and it was therefore, probably not part of Mark's original gospel. So some translations leave it out completely. Others will bracket it. That said, the statement does reflect Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 53, verse 12, where we read, "He was numbered with the transgressors; yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors."

Back to verse 29, of Mark 15, "Those passing by, were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, 'Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself and come down from the cross!' In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, 'He saved others; He cannot save Himself. Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!' Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him."

It's important to note that this was predicted in Psalm 22. That was a psalm, that is a psalm of lament, A psalm of thanksgiving. But it's often called a psalm of the cross. In fact, all four gospels appeal to its imagery describing Christ's crucifixion. We understand it first in the context of David describing his suffering, but ultimately it pointed to David's greater son, greater King, the Lord Jesus Christ. In Psalm 22, verse seven we read, "'All who see me sneer at me; they separate with the lip.." That was an idiom for sneering. "...They separate with the lip, they wag the head..." --which signifies rejection and astonishment; these are all gestures of contempt-- "...saying, commit yourself to the LORD; let Him deliver Him, let Him rescue him, because He delights in him.'" You know, I find myself again just wanting to turn away from the horror of the scene in my mind. Somehow the cruelty of this kind of derisive gloating just exceeds all others, given his very real experience later on, when he was forsaken by the Father. I mean, Satan knows exactly where to aim his arrows, does he not? He knows exactly how to inflict the greatest wounds that have doubt and discouragement--"I wonder if God is really who he says he is." "I wonder if I can survive all of this." Some of you are probably in that situation today. That's what the enemy would have you to believe. Charles Spurgeon said, "Here the talk is cruelly aimed at the sufferer’s faith; faith in God, which is the tenderest point in a good man soul. The very apple of his eye. They must have learned the diabolical art from Satan himself, for they made rare proficiency in it. According to Matthew 27:39 through 44, there were five forms of taunt hurled at the Lord Jesus. This special piece of mockery is probably mentioned in this psalm, because it is the most bitter of the whole." Spurgeon adds, "It was a biting, sarcastic irony in it, which gives it a bit peculiar venom. It must have stung the man of sorrows to the quick. When we are tormented in the same manner, let us remember Him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, and we shall be comforted."

And again, I think, Oh my, how fully did the Savior divest himself of his glory while on the cross. And we come back again, and we say, my, why would the Lord suffer such infinite scorn and pain? Dear friends, the reason is because he bore our sin. And it's because sin is worthy of utmost contempt, and infinite scorn. Beloved, we would all do well to reevaluate the reproach we deserve because of the sins we love. And we will complain far less of the ridicule that we receive knowing what the Savior endured on our behalf. You know, even if Jesus had performed some miracle like they were wanting; even if he had come down off of the cross, they still wouldn't have believed. You know, they wanted a sign. They got one three days later, did they not? When he rose from the dead, and what did they do? They didn't fall down and worship Him. They bribed soldiers to tell a lie and say that the disciples stole his body. Beloved, the only power that can save a sinner, that can cause a person to repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ is the miracle of regeneration. A Spirit wrought miracle in the soul of a person, causing them to be born again, through the agency of the Holy Spirit, through His Word. And like all unbelievers, the mocking chief priests and scribes, willfully chose not to believe in spite of all of the miracles that they even witnessed.

In fact, Jesus said in Luke 16:31, "'If they did not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.'" The same is true today. That's why the only thing that will change a person's heart is the gospel. In all of its fullness, and all of its purity, in all of its power--that's what the Spirit of God uses to either hardened hearts or soften hearts. That is his prerogative. So we unleash the gospel and let God do what only He can do.

Well, finally in closing, we look at the celebrated conversions. And I'm amazed by all of the saving grace that's occurring even in the midst of this tragedy. We read, for example, in Luke 23, verse 39, and following, "One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him saying, 'Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!' But the other answered, and rebuking him said, 'Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.' And he was saying, 'Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!' Jesus said to him, 'Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.'" A celebrated conversion.

Likewise, later on, we know that the Spirit of God moved upon the heart of a centurion, probably a number of the soldiers, we don't know. But it is recorded in Mark 15:39, "When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He breathed His last, he said, 'Truly, this man was the Son of God!'"

And then we know 50 days later, after the resurrection, was Pentecost--the birth of the church--and we read how 3000 souls were added to the church that day, according to Acts two. And then we go into Acts four, and we read about 5000 more, and it just keeps going and going and going. And you know, many of those who were saved, for example, at Pentecost would have been the same ones that had been mocking him at his crucifixion. And later, we know of a violent Pharisee, who on the road to Damascus, was confronted with the glory of the living Christ. The apostle Paul—later became the Apostle Paul, and there he was radically saved and remember what he told Timothy, and First Timothy one, in verse 12. And by the way, this could be my testimony, and I'm sure yours, "I thank Christ Jesus, our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason, I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience, as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life."

Friends, I would ask you, what have you done with Jesus? Have you embraced Him as your Savior and Lord, acknowledging your sin, coming to him in repentant faith? Or do you mock Him with your mouth? Or perhaps mock him with your indifference? If that is the case, I plead with you today, to examine your heart and cry out for God to save you by his grace. For all of us, may I remind you again. Why did Jesus suffer and die on the cross? To be a substitutionary sacrifice in which he would bear the penalty of the sin of sinners in his body, that they might be forgiven and reconciled to a holy God, all those whom the Father had given him in eternity past. I pray this is true of you. If not, I plead with you to come to faith in Christ. And then with all the saints you could sing that great refrain, "Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin it left a crimson stain, He washed it, white as snow."

Let's pray together. Father, we thank you for the glory of the cross and what that means to us. And I pray that by the power of your Spirit, you will speak to each heart and do that work of grace that only you can do. And we will be careful that in all things Christ will have the preeminence as we await that day, when we see him face to face and his name I pray, Amen.