God's Holiness, Man's Wickedness, Jesus' Humility

seated

we are in Matthew chapter 27 today and I tell you what in in prepping this.

This is challenging. This is this is history. This is bike. Culmination of History it's it's the most important event in history leading up to an end in in henceforth it it's it's all of that and I'm like, oh man. Where am I going to go? Am I going to get this done? There are 66 verses in Matthew chapter 27.

That's a lot to take in. And so we're not going to do all of it. We're going to be looking specifically at vs. 45 through 46 and reading through those and talking about that but it's amazing how when we look at all of this everything that happens in Matthew chapter 27 is is a continuation of everything that goes on and in Matthew chapter 26 that chapters 26 and 27 all happen in a 24 to 36 hour time frame. That's how quickly things are going on in the Life of Christ as he's ending his life 24 to 36 hours.

This is the most important Thursday into a Friday and all of human history in these two chapters of scripture. What Ulysses go ahead and have a word of prayer and we're going to get into what we can get into here. Father I thank you so much.

Thank you so much for what we see in the sacrifice here in Christ in chapter 27. I thank you for his is willingness to go to the cross for us. I think you for him saying I will be the sacrifice that these people cannot pay. Thank you that in him choosing that route.

There's forgiveness of life for us. Fathers we dig into your word today speak to our hearts teach us convictus. moving us to love honor and obey you all thing. This in Jesus name I pray amen. Tulsa last week Chris priest out of chapter 26 and then we saw Jesus being anointed and and the Lord's Supper being instituted in Jesus going to the symphony to pray and Judas betraying Jesus and Jesus being arrested and we saw the Sham trial before Caiaphas and we saw the council scribes and Elders. We saw all of that stuff and is Dawn comes. Bright as the sun is starting to rise were brought into chapter 27 of Matthew. Verses 1 & 2 of chapter 27 and Matthew are those this Council describes an elders and they bring Jesus before Pilate who is the Roman Governor now they do that because they want him put to death, but they have no Authority anymore to do that. When the Romans came into Israel. They took over they said look you guys already have a good set of laws real let you run your country by your laws because your laws are are good their moral that they work but death sentences are out. I know that your law say that you can have death sentences based on your laws. You got to run it through us first. That's our one rule because in Rome you couldn't be put to death. If you were Roman citizen except for very specific reason to make the Romans want to control of that. So they bring Jesus before Pilate and I'm one into trying to get pilot to to okay all of this. Verse 3 Matthew takes a little bit of a sidestep and it's interesting because I got Sheridan small group this morning. I'm a documentary. Junkie, but PBS nerd is actually the way I'm afraid you phrased it that I will I will always have a flea is not around the house. There will always be a documentary on and Matthew Reitz scripture through the Holy Spirit like a document. And I'm into that right so he's very detailed on what's Happening anniversary. He takes us a side step is all this is going on to has been up all night if he if he had some time to sleep, but it Don he realizes what he's done. Let me see that in chatan verse 3 and in and he's he's just realized that because of him his betrayal is condemned Jesus. And it goes to the scribes and the elders in the in the high priest and says take take the money back. I let him go take the money back. If we don't want your money. You've done what you've done. you have to live with your consequences and he's turned away and he's guilt-ridden and he goes out and he hangs himself. And the council describes they take the money because it's now blood money. They know it's dirty money and they're like no we can't accept it as a tithe and offering to the temple. So instead they go out and buy a field plow poppers to be buried in it. The creator of a graveyard so to speak and all of that happens in in starting with verse 3 through through about 10 min and verse 11. They bring Jesus before Pilate his Hearing in his in his trial and pilate asked Jesus. Are you the king of the Jews and Jesus answered you've said so

You said so.

And when the Council of the scribes in the elders, they asked Jesus. He doesn't even bother to answer them cuz he knows they've already made up their mind their hearts are hardened their set if he doesn't answer them.

pilate asked Jesus to defend himself and he doesn't he knows this is my God. The father wants for me. I'm going willingly. Verse 15 pilot is trying to absolve himself. He knows he's putting an innocent man to death. He knows that he knows it that at this point. He's giving in to mob mentality and he goes over and he brings out Barabbas this notorious criminal. This guy was a zealot The Sky Had instigated the uprising against the Romans. He had murdered there were several things that Barabbas it done. That was not good. And and he brings him up and he asked the crowd who should be released for the Passover because pilot head and honored the Passover by releasing criminals. And so who is it Paramus? Jesus unknown Thug

a holy man of God and the crowd Cries Out free Barabbas give us Barabbas the crowd prize. And if they do that.

It's just so I know how it walks over in any starts washing his hands. Right. I'm washing my hands of this. His blood is on your hands not on mine. Which is not true.

It was on his just as much as ours in the crowd is under the influence of the chief priests and Elders to choose Barabbas over Jesus. And so they call out for him to be crucified.

Brabus does all those things any releases Jesus to be scourged and then hand it over for crucifixion. Not typically in Roman culture. The scourging alone would be your punishment. Once you were scourged you were done if you survive the scourging. That was enough in Roman times to say you don't deserve a prison sentence and there's nothing else you're done. That's how bad a scourging was. there is there is nothing that they can portray in film most of us in your pricing The Passion of the Christ. When is gauri is it was during the scene of the scourging? It wasn't fully accurate.

The amount of scarring in the amount of a flesh ripped off didn't do justice. And I and I say if you survived the scourging because that was a big deal. It was not unusual for people to pray lose up to a pint of pint and a half of blood during the scourging. And then if you think about that much blood being lost in just your skin being flayed. the amount of space for infection to come in this was this was a horrible horrible abuse of a of a body that the Romans indoor disease is punishment. And then not only did he have him scourged which typically was the end. Now you have to carry your cross go up to Golgotha and he sent him away after the scourging to be crucified.

We see them as as he continues on. And is is Jesus's being taken away from from Pilots House that they stripped him naked? They put a a royal Scarlet robe around him. They place the crown of thorns on his head. They spit on him and they continue to beating that they literally take a switch to start beat me with a switch on top of the scourging. He's already had boards digging into his into a scalp. And the soldiers kneel before him sarcastically saying Hail to the King of the Jews just a mockery that's going on looking at verse 27 is now something to think about.

At this point it would appear that Jesus is hadn't really no sleep since Wednesday night.

Where were Friday morning? The last recorded time that we see that Jesus possibly slept was Wednesday evening. He's been up for this time. All night, he's been beaten and severely from the scourging. He hasn't had food or drink since the small amount of bread and wine he had from that unfinished Passover meal the apostles.

He's exhausted. He's weak. Part of the Roman crucifixion was you carried your own cross. That you you cared your own Implement of deaf to its place of execution. Jesus was trying to do that and he was he was too tired and he's too weak. It's on verse 32 the Roman soldiers make Simon the Cyrene carry Jesus's cross for him. You grab him out of the crowd you do in the whole time is happening. All of the mocking in the abuse has not stopped. It's still going on.

They offered him wine mixed with gall. Make it bitter but it also made it poisonous.

And when they offer that to Jesus he didn't take it.

Play stripping naked again. And this time they cast lots for his clothing. roll a dice game of craps to win Jesus clothing

Then they hang across on the sign that says this is Jesus the king of the Jews and the passers-by continue to Mock and torment and verbally you claim to be able to destroy the temple and rebuild it in 3 days and save yourself. If you're truly the summit Son of God come down off that cross. Any hung between two robbers in the one on his right said to him mocking he saved others, but he cannot save himself. And that brings us the passage. We want to read today versus 45 through 55.

Reverse 45 Matthew 27 now from the sixth hour. There was Darkness over the all the land until the ninth hour. And what about the ninth hour? Jesus cried out in a loud voice ain't Eli Eli Lama sabachthani. That is my God my God. Why have you forsaken me? Some of the bystanders hearing it said man is calling for Elijah. And one of them at rent ran and took a sponge and filled it with the sour wine and put it on the Reed and gave it to him saying giving it to him to drink. But the other said wait and let us see whether Elijah will come and save him. And Jesus cried out again and with a loud voice yielded is Spirit.

And behold the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and the Earth shook in the Rocks were split the tombs also were opened and many bodies of the Saints would fall asleep or raised I coming out of the tombs after his resurrection. They went into the holy city and appeared to Mini. when the Centurion and those who were with him? Keeping watch over Jesus all the earthquake and what took place. They were filled with on said truly. This was the son of God.

And there were many there were also many women there looking on from a distance would follow Jesus From Galilee ministering to him among whom or Mary Magdalene. And Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

that moment

so powerful

so powerful sacrifice given really by our savior verse 57 then Joseph of Arimathea of a wealthy man goes to pile and ask permission to give Jesus body a proper burial and he prepares the body any places it in his family's tomb. The chief priests fearing Jesus disciples were going to try to steal the body as pilot to place armed guards around the Tomb in the Tomb is then sealed and a guard was placed there. It's just so so much in this passage of scripture and it is the centerpiece. I said earlier of of all human history. Is that that moment this is the moment that determines our eternity?

At the cross we see God's holiness. We see our wickedness. And we see the humility of Jesus through it all.

So as we look at this again, this is all the continuation all of 26 and 27 are or this one story leading up to this moment. Or Jesus dies and it is death. It is not a swooning. It is not a passing out. It is it is deaf. We see in the other gospels. They check to make sure it's death. They stick him under his ribs with a spear that pierced his lungs there is suffocation evidence because he bleeds as well as water fluid had built up in his lungs. We know that it was deaf.

It wasn't just a blacking out or passing out a swooning or those sorts of things.

It's through chapters 26 and 27 of the Book of Matthew. We see that God is Sovereign above all he is the creator of the universe and he made it all he knows it all he sustains it all he owns it all it is his to do with as he sees fit.

That means he has authority over all of it. God has the authority to govern us and we belong to him. We have no rights in that.

God has all the rights. God's already been leads to God's righteousness. God is righteous above all now, we can't fathom up. It's hard for us to even think about it, but God. Has never had a wrong spot.

Never had the wrong thought he is never done a wrong deed.

He's never had a wrong motive.

And he has never said a wrong thing. It's hard for us. Cuz even even when we sometimes do the right thing, we may have a wrong motive. Even when we mean to do the right thing it winds up being a wrong deed.

And the number of times that I have said the wrong thing, I lost count years ago. I just stopped. I know this about me.

God is Sovereign through all of that and he is righteous and all of that and even though God's sovereignty and God's righteousness are evident. We have rejected his sovereignty in our lives. We have despised his righteousness. We are a rebellious. race of people we turn our back on the creator of all. human nature since Genesis chapter 3

Is the exact opposite of God in terms of his righteousness?

We purposefully have wrong thought we purposefully do wrong. We purposefully say wrong things. We purposefully reject God is human nature. And it's been that way since Genesis chapter 3 and that's what brings about God's Wrath now. Nobody likes to talk about the wrath of God. Nobody does what it's scary to be like this picture God especially Jesus in the New Testament is being a God of all love and if you're evolved love you, then you can't have rap wrong. Rap is because of God's love.

I'll look at that a little bit. All of this rejection of us toward God brings about this wrath and if it is earned and it is deserved.

God is just in all of his Rap God is still righteous in all of his Wrath. And God's Wrath is completely in line with his character. The wrath of God should be seen as something pure and loving to those of us who know him. Mankind sinful nature is destroying mankind. Right. We see that you had that discussion and small-group today. We just see everything deteriorating around us. Sid is destroying that which God created.

Think about this a minute. It is good and it is just for God to hate that which destroys his creation.

Think about that a minute.

It is good and it is just for God to hate that which destroys his creation. Mankind sinful nature is destroying God's creation. You should hate that sound for me.

We cannot ignore God's Wrath or it cannot be ignored. It is real it is there so the fact that it is good and just for God to hate that which destroys is great and shows us that God is loving toward all of this creation.

All of it and I get that too thick with me. This seems like a conflict that seems like how can he hate the thing that's destroying his creation when he created the thing that's what I'm having a moment, right?

A good just loving God who has wrath. That's who he is and he will act upon it. We just need to know that and understand that when we read this passage of scripture. We can see the wickedness of mankind throughout it. Right the mocking of Jesus the false trial the spitting on him the beating of him. Is all of the stuff is there. The Jewish leaders have denied rejecting accuse arrest and falsely judge Jesus Christ the son of the Living God. All of that is it in with the wickedness of mankind the Roman leaders sentencing crucify falsely. son of the Living God the soldiers mock beat Scourge strip spit on the son of the Living God the crowds ridicule revile mock Shout at the man the death of the son of the Living God the disciples. We forget about them a little bit in this. Where were they?

It already scattered.

Already scattered Peter and already denied three times. And no one of those disciples except for John we learned in one of the later gospels is at the cross with Jesus when he died.

They had already scattered the disciples men who had lived with Jesus for the last three and a half years or so. I betrayed him. Denied him disobeyed him scattered from him and deserted him. at this time

Church hear this We are those people.

We are those.

We can read scripture and we can pretend that we wouldn't say that we can pretend that we wouldn't do that. We would meet Jesus. I never be like that don't lie to yourself. Don't do it. The truth is if you dig deep in your heart. You would have said it. You have done it and honestly, you might do it again.

Mob mentality knows no end.

We are these people in my heart. I know that I am more like the crowds. In my heart. I know I'm more like the disciples running and hiding and fleeing that I want to be. I know this about me. My failures revile ridicule and mock Jesus regularly.

I disobey and heartbreakingly. I admit to I deny him.

I need to repent that. So we didn't have to ask how can a righteous God be loving to rebellious? centers or do his Wrath How does that even happen and that's where the beauty of the humility of Jesus Christ Falls in? That is where this happened. We see that price that work here. Jesus becomes our substitute.

All of that that he took out when he cries out my God my God. Why have you forsaken me?

That means something so much more than just what we think it does often. See Jesus becomes our substitute. He died our death. We know that the penalty for sin is death Romans. 6:23 tells us that right. Jesus had no sin yet. He died. Because he was our substitute. He was the Passover Lamb who saved with his blood just like that Passover Lamb in Exodus.

He is the Covenant keeper who seals us with his blood.

For Christ went to the Cross. We were headed towards Eternal death. But because Christ of what price did on that cross, we now have eternal life.

You cried out my God my God. Why have you forsaken me?

That statement is going to be so powerful and we look at that. It's so important for us to understand why he's crying that out. Jesus is our substitute. He's also our propitiation.

What is a fancy word propitiation? Write Paul uses that in Romans chapter 3 verse 25 and it means it's something in this case someone.

Turns away the Wrath that we deserve taking away our sin. Jesus is our propitiation. He turns God's Wrath away from us. And takes away our sin in this moment. He's doing that as he's on that cross cuz he's hanging there.

He's doing just that.

What happened at the cross wasn't primary of physical suffering like we want to picture it and I think many of us have sat through the sermon where they've taken the medical description of a crucifixion in and he's had that you've heard that the crushing of the lungs and and in the the Suffocation that takes place in how how you're hanging and you have to bring up through torn ligaments and tendons in your arms all of that. And yes, Jesus suffered a horrible physical death But the spiritual suffering that Jesus goes through on that cross is huge. Don't neglect to look at that part. Here is a Triune God God the Father God the son God the Holy Spirit. And here they are a a unified God. in three parts

to reconcile himself unto the people. He created separates himself out 4:33 or 3 years. And we don't think about the Son of God was separated from the father and the Holy Spirit for 33 physical years here on Earth. Better Than Love itself had to be a little bit of suffering that we don't think about often.

But this spiritual suffering that we see that Jesus endured. It is is huge because it was spiritual suffering as Jesus endured the wrath of God the father on him to Jesus drank that whole stop. And that moment you drink that whole Cup of Wrath. So that you and I don't have to.

we don't have that huge

before the cross we were afraid of God. Because of what Jesus did on the cross now we can be friends with God. huge

huge all of this was done to reconcile us back to God Jesus suffered the separation we deserve when he cries out my God my God. Why have you forsaken me? Get this he's not crying out because he's afraid. Jesus Is Not Crying Out because he has doubt. Jesus is not crying out because he has confusion about what's going on. He's not crying out because of unbelief or despair he cries out because when he drink the wrath of God we deserve is our propitiation in our substitute. He was separated from God for a moment.

He was crying out in a spiritual agony.

As the God the Father not look at him or have any Fellowship him as the sins of all mankind on him in the wrap Came Upon him. Understand this he was still in the presence of God, but he was cut off from the favorable presence of God.

Jesus has never not known being in the favorable presence of God the Father. And in this moment as he's taking the Raf in is not God's favor on him, but it is the Wrath.

Oh the agony of that the pain of that.

the Heartbreak Jesus suffered in that

Jesus was cut off from the favorable presence of God, and he took on the full payment for our sins before the cross. We cannot be in God's presence. But because of what Jesus did on that cross we are now invited into God's presence.

Think about that. How much that is how important that is. This is it this moment.

Jesus on the cross eternity is defined. Is it an eternity?

Away from the wrath of God in his favorable presents. Where's the new eternity in the wrath of God in hell?

What it is, what's the difference between here? Sometimes we think of hell is this place where God's not present we heard Pastor said with her preacher Santa Ana and I don't know that it's 100% that way we we forget that God is still judge jury, executioner and Warden in that prison called hell. It's where the wrath of man or the wrath of God is poured out into eternity on those who have rejected him. the demons Satan and man alike

stuff that's what's happening there and is Jesus is taking that raff in for that moment.

So that you and I don't have to.

first to say that

and it take that lightly such a disservice.

Such a mockery again what he went through.

As it lays on our hearts as we think about this all of this leads us to the 224 Lee proper responses.

Surrender your heart mind and soul art mind and strength to God. I'm done. Yours you take it. Can't do anything with it anyway. And if you have already done that. Second response should be proclaim the gospel.

Anywhere everywhere you go as you are going as we get into that next week a little bit has you are going for claim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Look at what he has done for you tell others this story that Jesus sacrificed himself willingly.

So that you do not spend an eternity drinking of the cup of the wrath of God.

We're going to have our call to action here in a moment.

and

we need to ask ourselves some things really quickly. Am I proclaiming if I if I'm claiming to have Jesus Christ in my life? Am I living it? Am I proclaiming the gospel with my words and my actions? Am I doing that? And if if I'm not sure where I'm at, maybe I maybe I'm feeling fuzzy about where I'm at with Jesus right now. Maybe I'm I like church. I like to go there like to hang out with people, but maybe I don't know for sure that when Cod looks at me, he calls me a friend. He calls me his child. Maybe I'm not 100% on that then today's the day to do it surrender it. It's it's a simple cry out. I sinned against you most holy God. I need your forgiveness in my life. Exit. All it takes is not at there's not some magic for every pray. There's not some anything other than just saying Jesus. I'm not capable of doing it you do it in me. I know I have sinned against you and I want to turn my back to my sin and turn my face to you. Try that out.

As we enter into this time of call to action invitation.

Again, what are your responses? Maybe you know you have Christ in your ear you're assured of that but the proclaiming of the Gospel to others for your struggling. I want invite you to just take the time to pray in your seat at the altar. It real with him. I know these people name them by name. Need to hear the gospel.

Make Me Brave enough to do it share it with them. Give me the courage and strength honor you that way to not make what happened on that Friday 2000 years ago a mockery because I don't Proclaim what you've taught me to Proclaim.

Father is coming right now. Again, thanking you for this moment in history.

about about Jesus's death

We have nothing.

We could never pay the price we owe for the sin we have. Thank you, Jesus for being willing to do that.

father for those of us who know we need to Proclaim more

I get such a heavy thing on our hearts a desire to share the gospel that we can't help but not do it. The father for those of us who know maybe don't know you.

today's today Holy Spirit move in US

to want that the desire that knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Sikh that Saving Grace

Jesus name I pray