What does the cross tell us about Jesus? (Mark 15:21-29)

A woman wants to stab you with a sharp object.  Will you let her?

A man knocks on your door, and when you open it he demands that you answer his questions.  What will you do? 

A truck drives up behind you.  It is travelling at speed.  When you look in your rear-view mirror you can see the driver waving at you to get out of the way.  What should you do?

I suppose the answer to the above questions depends on whether you recognise that the woman about to stab you is a medic holding a syringe, that the man at the door is a policeman, and that the truck on your tail is a fire-engine! 

Recognising who someone is enables us to respond to them in an appropriate manner.  This is certainly the case when it comes to Jesus.  To respond to him appropriately we need to recognise who he really is and know what he is about.    

Mark opens his gospel by telling us who Jesus is, the beginning of the gospel of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (1:1).  He then shows Jesus acting in ways that point to his true identity—including doing things that only God can do, such as forgiving sin and calming storms.  Sadly, because of the hardness of their hearts, his own disciples fail to grasp that this is God’s promised king.  But then in 8:29 we see that their eyes have been opened.  In response to Jesus’ question “Who do you say I am?” Peter replies, “You are the Christ.”  This response marks the turning point of the gospel.

Immediately Jesus tells them that he will be killed and after three days will rise again.  Peter objects.  The disciples’ eyes have been opened to see that Jesus is God’s promised king, but they do not yet see clearly; they have not yet grasped what sort of Messiah he is.  From this point on the issue changes from who Jesus is (He is the Christ) to what sort of Christ is he (He is the suffering servant who lays down his life for his people).

In this morning’s reading we see someone who grasps these two things.  And when the centurion, who stood there in front of the Jesus, heard this cry and saw how he died, he said, “Surly this man was the Son of God.”  This is the climax of Mark’s Gospel.  Here is the man who sees the connection between the Christ and the cross.  He realises that Jesus is the Son of God as he lays down his life for his people.  

Let’s look at what he heard and saw so that we might know who Jesus really is and so be able to respond to him appropriately! 

The crucifixion as proof that Jesus had failed[1] (verses 21-32)

One of the encouraging things about Mark’s Gospel is how authentic it feels.  Look at verse 21: A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.  Why does Mark include this little detail that Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus?  Presumably because those that Mark was writing to knew of Alexander and Rufus—‘you know Alexander and Rufus, well this man Simon was their Father.’ 

It was customary for men who were being crucified to carry the beam of their cross to the place of their crucifixion, however Jesus had been so weakened from his flogging that he was not able to.  So Simon was forced to carry it for him.

They brought Jesus to Golgotha. There he was offered wine mixed with myrrh.[2]  It was formulated to numb the pain.  But Jesus refused.  He would have his senses fully intact as he endured the agony of the cross.  Then we read what must be the most understated words in the gospel—and they crucified him.[3]  Mark doesn’t describe the nails that were driven into Jesus’ body or the blood that would have surrounded his wounds.  He doesn’t need to.  Those that he was writing to, the church in Rome, knew what took place at crucifixions.  They knew what an awful way it was to be put to death. 

Look at the reactions of those who are witnessing these things!  There are the soldiers who cast lots for his clothing.  They are entirely indifferent to Jesus’ suffering.  There are people who pass by and hurl insults at him.  There are the religious leaders who mock him among themselves.  Those being crucified with him heap abuse on him.  Jesus endured this shame for you and me!  Indeed as we speak of the crucified Jesus today we can expect that many will respond to him in a similar fashion—there will be those for whom it just doesn’t matter, those who like to view the message of Christianity as ridiculous, and those who respond with hostility to the mere mention of our Saviour!

To those who viewed Jesus with indifference and hostility the cross must have looked like proof that Jesus had failed.  Here hangs a man who had once attracted large crowds and amazed people with his words and deeds.  Now he has been deserted and is about to die!  Yet these verses point us, not to failure, but to victory.  There is irony in this account!  The charge above his head, mockingly, read THE KING OF THE JEWS.  That is who he is.  Indeed in his death this king is establishing his kingdom.  Those passing by challenge him to come down from the cross and save yourself, the religious leaders mock him among themselves saying “He saved others . . .  but he cannot save himself—but the truth is he will not save himself in order that he may save others.  This is not failure, as the people had presumed.  This is the greatest of victories!

The crucifixion as a demonstration of who Jesus is (33-39)

At the sixth hour (noon) darkness came over the land until the ninth hour (3pm).[4] In the Old Testament darkness during the day was a sign of God’s judgement (Amos 8:9; Ex. 10:21-22).  Jesus is being judged!  Why?  For sin!  But not for his sin, for he was the only truly innocent person who has ever lived, but for our sin.  On the cross Jesus experiences God’s righteous anger.  On the cross Jesus experiences separation from the Father’s love.  On the cross Jesus experiences these things that we deserve so that we, the guilty ones, might know forgiveness and eternal life!

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  The crowd thought that he was calling Elijah.[5]  He was actually quoting Psalm 22.  Like many of the teachers of those days by quoting the first verse he may have been referring his people to the rest of that psalm.  These words are a real cry of anguish.  Here is the depth of Jesus’ suffering.  Here is Jesus feeling forsaken by God.  And here is a pointer to how Jesus viewed what was happening!

Psalm 22 is one of the clearest pointers in the Old Testament to the cross.  Listen to the following verses and see if you can see the connection with the crucifixion:

                        All who see me mock me and hurl insults, shaking their heads (verse 7)

                        They have pierced my hands and my feet (verse 16)

They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing (verse 18)

Jesus knows that he is undergoing what the Old Testament had said would happen to the Messiah.  He knows that he is carrying out the plan of the Father.  Indeed if you read to the end of that psalm you will see that it speaks of the deliverance God would bring to his people—Jesus knew that this is what he was achieving.   This is not failure, this is God’s promises being fulfilled.

As Jesus dies something remarkable happens on the other side of the city, in the temple the curtain is torn from top to bottom.  This curtain, which was as thick as a man’s hand, was the barrier to the Holy of Holies[6] (where God was thought to dwell).  It demonstrated that it was no easy thing to come into God’s presence: only one man, once a year, could go beyond that curtain—the High Priest on the Day of Atonement.  It was a reminder that because of our rebellion and sin there was a great barrier between people and God.  But now because Jesus has dealt with sin that barrier has been broken down.  Now there is nothing to prevent us from enjoying a relationship with him.  Because of the cross we can be accepted into God’s presence.

Remember that coming into God’s presence is not the result of anything we do.  It is not the result of fervent singing or prayer—we don’t work our way into God’s presence!  Coming into God’s presence is the result of what Jesus has done for us on the cross.  When we put our faith in Christ God makes his dwelling in us through his Spirit.  As his people we live in his presence and are invited to approach his throne of grace with confidence.  We have been brought into God’s presence simply because Jesus has dealt with our unworthiness to be there!     

And when the centurion who stood in front of Jesus, heard the cry and saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”  These words are surprising.  For a Roman crucifixion was an unmentionably shameful way to die.  Yet as this Roman watches Jesus die he sees him as the Son of God—a title Romans only applied to the Emperor, who was associated with power and triumph.[7]  As this man witnesses the manner in which Jesus accepts his death his eyes are opened to see that here is the true Son of God.  While the religious leaders of that day refused to accept that Jesus was the promised Christ and his own disciples would not accept that the Christ must suffer, this Roman—a Gentile—recognises Jesus through his suffering.  Indeed this man is the forerunner of many Romans, including many of Mark’s first readers, who, as the gospel is brought to all peoples, would declare that the crucified Jesus is indeed the Son of God.

Conclusion

Do you remember at the start of the sermon I said that we need to recognise who someone is in order to respond to them appropriately?  This is the case with Jesus—we need to truly understand who he is if we are to respond to him as we ought!  We see who he is when, with the centurion, we recognise two things!

Firstly, we need to see that Jesus is God’s promised king—the Christ, the true Son of God.  This was the main point of the first half of this gospel.  If we think that Jesus is just one of many religious leaders we are sadly mistaken.  If we think that Jesus only wants to be our best friend we haven’t fully grasped who he is.  Jesus comes as God’s promised king who demands our utmost allegiance.  He is to be served above all others.

Secondly, we need to recognise what sort of king the Christ is.  The centurion saw the connection between the Christ and the cross.  The second half of this gospel focuses on what sort of Messiah Jesus is—he is the suffering-servant who lays down his life for his people.  Our response to this is to take up our cross and follow him.  Following a suffering saviour is a demanding thing, and we are to follow his example of service as we serve each other.

Here is God’s promised king, who comes as a suffering servant to lay down his life for his people.  As we pray let’s spend a few moments thinking about what our response to him should be.

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[1] Heading adapted from Kim Swinthinbank preaching at All Soul’s Langham Place, on website.

[2] Apparently compassionate women from Jerusalem made this drink for condemned criminals. 

[3] In verse 25 we read that it was the third hour when they crucified him (9am).  This seems to contradict John’s account, which says that the trial before Pilate was not quite over by the sixth hour.  Some of the suggestions that have been suggested to this problem are (1) John was using Roman time (in which the sixth hour was 6 am not 12 noon), (2) this is an error of a copyist (the letter that stands for three is similar to the letter that stands for six), and (3) that verse 25 was added by an early copyist.  Wessell suggests that the second explanation is the most likely. 

[4] ‘The Christian chronographer Julius Africanus (A..D. 170-240) writes about the crucifixion.  He reports the remarks of Thallus, a Roman or Syrian who wrote about the history of the eastern Mediterranean c. A.D. 52.  The work is now lost, but Africanus tells us about Thallus’s third volume.  There he comments on the crucifixion of Jesus and the accompanying earthquakes and darkness.  Thallus simply explained that this darkness was an eclipse of the sun.  This explanation Africanus took as irrational because if the crucifixion occurred at Passover there would have been a full moon, which would prevent such an eclipse.  Even if coming from Christian sources, Thallus’s remark is significant because it shows that details about the crucifixion were widespread enough that a non-Christian writer wanted to refute them.’  Bock (2002) Studying the Historical Jesus, Apollos. p. 52.

[5] Thinking that Eloi, was ‘Elijah’?

[6] There were two curtains in the temple.  There was an outer temple that prevented gentiles entering the inner temple and there was the inner curtain which separated the inner temple from the Holy of Holies.  I think it is more likely that Mark wants us to understand this verses as referring to the inner curtain.  Hebrews 9:8-10, 12; 10:19-20 tells us of the barrier being broken down between ourselves and God.

[7] Barnett, (1991) The Servant King, Aquila. p. 298.