Crucifixion of Christ
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Forgive Them
Forgive Them
The first thing Jesus said on the cross was , “forgive them”. Jesus knew that the Father would hold all those involved in putting him on the cross accountable for his death. He pleaded their forgiveness because of their ignorance. So who are the ones who put him on the cross? I see four groups that put Jesus on the cross: The pharisees, the crowd, the Romans, and all sinners.
Pharisees
Pharisees
The Pharisees hated Jesus because he posed a threat to their religious authority. Jesus was not teaching traditional Judaism. He was teaching the gospel of salvation alone by faith alone in Christ alone. Judaism was a legalistic religion that the pharisees used to oppress the people of Israel. They would demand obedience to the law, that they didn’t keep themselves, to punish and make money off of the people’s sin.
The pharisees were the one’s who profited from the sacrifices sold in the temple and the money changers who robbed the people to buy the sacrifices. Jesus teachings threatened them and they sought to destroy Him. Matt. 26:3-4
Matthew 26:3–4 (NASB95)
Then the chief priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in the court of the high priest, named Caiaphas; and they plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him.
Jesus posed a threat to their way of life so they sought to kill Him. Jesus continues to pose a threat to people’s way of life. He desires righteousness in an evil world. In order to follow Him you must change your life by repenting of your sins. This means turning away from those sinful things in your life that you desire.
Many people don’t want to change and as a result never receive the forgiveness Jesus prayed for. Many people want to be accepted for the way they are. This is not biblical! Following Christ means making Him Lord of your life. Obeying His commandments is a sign of His lordship. John 14:15
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
The Crowd
The Crowd
The crowd allowed the chief priests to persuade them to crucify Jesus. The chief priests used the mob mentality to get the crowd to go along with their wicked plan to kill Jesus . Mark 15:11-13
Mark 15:11–13 (NASB95)
But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to ask him to release Barabbas for them instead. Answering again, Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?” They shouted back, “Crucify Him!”
The crowd who once shouted Hosanna were the very ones who were now shouting “crucify Him!” John12 :13
took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.”
They allowed what they knew to be true to be manipulated by a group of people who were wicked. Who do you allow to persuade you?
There are some groups that are seeking to destroy the ways of Christ. LGBTQ, Black lives Matter, KKK, Woke crowd, many social media platforms and even some news media affiliations. We must not buy into their lies. We must be willing to stand and share the truth with them. We must not compromise Biblical truth to gain acceptance from them. We must not seek harm to them but instead pray and share truth with them.
The Roman Government
The Roman Government
The Pharisees looked tot he Roman government to solve their problem with Jesus. They did not have the authority to crucify Jesus. They turned to Pilate who was the ruling Roman official to fix their “Jesus Problem”.
Pilate trued to release Jesus because he found no reason to crucify Him. Unfortunately to appease the crowd he crucified Jesus. He used his authority to crucify Jesus.
What Pilate didn’t know was that he was given that power by God to carry out God’s plan. John 19:11
Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”
If we are looking to the government to solve our problems, then we are looking at the wrong place. The gospel of Jesus Christ and a relationship with Him solves many of our problems. That begins with us!
All Sinners
All Sinners
The very reason Jesus had to be crucified was for the sins of every sinner. That is every one. Romans 3:23
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Forgiveness is found in Jesus Christ.
Be With Me In Paradise
Be With Me In Paradise
Jesus was crucified with two criminals. One on each side. They were both guilty of sin and the crimes they had commited. One of the criminals was hurling abuse at Jesus demanding that Jesus rescue him from his punishment. Jesus refused to remove this man’s punishment. As a matter of fact the crucifixion was only the beginning of this man’s punishment.
The other criminal treated Jesus differently. He confessed Jesus as the Son of God. Luke 23:42
And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!”
This criminal did not make excuses for his sin and crimes but took responsibility for them. He turned to Jesus for the forgiveness of those sins. Jesus forgave him and made a tremendous promise. Luke 23:43
And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
Jesus makes the the same offer to us. The question is which criminal are you? Do you hurl abuses at Jesus by not making Him your Lord or are you willing to submit to the Lordship of Jesus.
Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit.
Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit.
Jesus completed His purpose on earth. He reconciled man to God. as a matter of fact the gospel of John 19:30
Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
Jesus has brought salvation to all who will repent of their sins and make Jesus Lord of their life.
He has paid the penalty for our sins by taking our punishment on the cross. We deserve the death that he died. He was our substitute and gave himself up for us.
Though salvation is available to all. John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
it is not automatic. You must repent of your sins and make Jesus Lord of your life.
We are all like the criminals on the cross in that we are all guilty. The question is which criminal will you be?