The Death Of God

Amen. Well, please take your Bibles and open them up again to John chapter 19.

John 19 · chapter mention

Only three more sermons left in the Gospel of John, if you can believe it.

We've made our way now to the cross of Christ.

Chapter 19, and I'll pick up in the second half of verse 16.

We'll read through the end of the chapter, and when you found that there in your Bibles,

John 19, 16 through the end of the chapter,

if you would, let's please stand in honor of the reading of God's Word.

So they took Jesus, and he went out bearing his own cross to the place called the place of a skull,

which in Aramaic is called Golgotha.

There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.

Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross.

It read, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.

Many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city,

and it was written in Aramaic, in Latin, and in Greek.

So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate,

Do not write the King of the Jews, but rather this man said I am King of the Jews.

Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts,

one part for each soldier, also his tunic.

But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.

So they said to one another, Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to see whose it shall be.

This was to fulfill the scripture, which says,

They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.

So the soldiers did these things.

But standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister,

Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby,

he said to his mother, Woman, behold your son.

Then he said to the disciple, Behold your mother.

And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said to fulfill the scripture,

I thirst.

A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch

and held it to his mouth.

When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said,

It is finished.

And he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Since it was the day of preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath,

for that Sabbath was a high day,

the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken,

and that they might be taken away.

So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other,

who had been crucified with him.

But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead,

they did not break his legs.

But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear,

and at once there came out blood and water.

He who saw it has borne witness.

His testimony is true.

And he knows that he is telling the truth that you also may believe.

For these things took place that the scripture might be fulfilled.

Not one of his bones will be broken.

And again, another scripture says,

They will look on him whom they have pierced.

After these things, Joseph of Arimathea,

who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews,

asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus.

And Pilate gave him permission.

So he came and took away his body.

Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night,

came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes,

about 75 pounds in weight.

So they took the body of Jesus,

and bound it in linen cloths with the spices,

as is the burial custom of the Jews.

Now in the place where he was crucified,

there was a garden.

And in the garden, a new tomb,

in which no one had yet been laid.

So because of the Jewish day of preparation,

since the tomb was close at hand,

they laid Jesus there.

This is God's holy word.

Let's pray once more.

Lord, as we've come here to this crucial moment

in the Gospel of John,

this crucial moment in human history,

Father, we pray that we would,

with fresh eyes,

see the truth of the cross.

And as John would have us,

Lord, we pray that we would see it,

hear it, and believe that Jesus is

exactly who he claims to be.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You may be seated.

What do you think

is the most important question

a person could ask?

Your answer to that question

might depend on who you ask.

And I read a couple of articles this week

just searching for what others

might have to say about that question.

Harvard Business Review

published an article several years ago

arguing that the most important question

a person could ask is,

why am I here?

That's a good question.

It's a question of purpose.

Another article that I read this week,

it listed 15 important questions to ask.

What are my values?

Am I living in accordance with my values?

We're numbers one and two on the list.

How can I better take care of myself?

Was on there.

How can I improve the lives of others?

Was on there.

All of them pretty good questions.

And when you stop and think about it,

you realize that so much of our life

is shaped and defined

by the answers that we give

to certain key questions.

Who am I going to marry?

Where am I going to live?

What kind of work am I going to give myself to?

But if I could add in my two cents

to that conversation,

I'd like to just point out

that all of these questions

have one thing in common.

Did you notice what they were?

They all start in the wrong place.

All of these questions begin with us.

And interestingly enough,

what I'd like to point out this morning

is that the most important question

that any of us could possibly ask this morning

doesn't begin with us at all.

The most important question we could ask is,

who is Jesus?

Who is this man, Jesus?

And what we've seen in the Gospel of John

is he's been trying to answer

that question for us all along.

He began in chapter one,

telling us,

in the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was God.

And the Word was with God.

This Word has come down

and has become flesh

and dwelt among us.

We've seen His glory,

glory as of the only Son

from the Father,

full of grace and truth.

We've seen these claims

from the lips of Jesus,

that I am the light of the world.

I am the good shepherd of the sheep.

I am the door of the sheep.

I am the resurrection and the life.

He's claiming for us,

building a case,

that this man, Jesus,

is God in the flesh.

He is the Christ,

the Son of God,

and that by believing,

we might have life in His name.

See, these are bold claims,

aren't they?

And John is making a bold claim

for us this morning.

And as we follow Jesus now

to this crucial moment,

as He prepares to suffer

and die on the cross,

now is the time

where we have to settle

this question in our minds.

John is forcing us this morning

to pick a side.

Is He who He claims to be

or is He not?

What John gives us this morning

is a claim and a case.

The claim is that Jesus is King.

He is the Messiah,

the Son of God.

And then He builds this case for us

to substantiate that claim

by pointing us to four Old Testament passages

that prophesy the death of Jesus on the cross.

So, the claim and the case.

First, let's consider the claim.

Look there to verse 16 with me.

Verse 16 says that they took Jesus

and He went out bearing His own cross

to the place called the place of a skull,

which in Aramaic is called Golgotha.

And there they crucified Him

and with Him two others,

one on either side,

and Jesus in between them.

It was customary for the condemned criminal

to carry the cross beam,

the horizontal cross beam,

on their back as a part of the sentence.

And this, after being beaten and whipped

nearly to the point of death,

but just nearly,

the Romans were very skilled at this.

They knew exactly how far

they could push the guilty party,

the condemned party,

before the point of death.

And they prolonged the suffering

as long as they possibly could

while beating them

as much as they possibly could.

The condemned would carry

that wooden cross beam

to the place of their execution

where the upright beam

would likely already be in place.

They would be forced to lay down

on their back

and have their arms secured

to the beam,

whether by tying them there

or in the case of Jesus,

by nailing them in place.

And then the Romans would then

lift up that horizontal beam

with the criminal attached

and secure the horizontal beam

to the vertical beam

and then fasten their feet

to the vertical beam

in the same way that they did

the arms.

We know from the other gospel writers,

Jesus carried His cross

as far as the city gates

before collapsing.

He was so weary

and so exhausted

from the beating

that He had endured

to that point.

Simon of Cyrene

was enlisted to carry

the cross the rest of the way.

And John tells us

that Jesus was lifted up

and He was crucified

alongside two others.

There were three men

crucified that day,

but He was crucified there

between two thieves,

one on His left,

one on His right.

We know from Luke's account

that one of the criminals

railed at Him

if you are who you say you are,

come down.

Bring us down with you.

Save yourself and us

if you are who you say you are.

But the other criminal,

we know,

rebuked Him and said,

we're guilty.

We're receiving what's due

for our sins,

but this man on the middle cross

is innocent.

And He asked Him,

Jesus, remember me

when you come into your kingdom.

This last moment,

this guilty criminal

believed that Jesus

was in fact the King,

that He was in fact

headed to His kingdom,

and that if He so desired,

He could bring

even a guilty criminal

along with Him.

And Jesus told him,

truly I tell you,

today,

you will be with me

in paradise.

It was also customary

for the crime of the accused

to be written down

and fastened

to the top of the cross

right there

in public eye

for all to see.

And the goal here

is not just public execution,

it was public humiliation.

They did this in public.

They wrote this sentence

in three languages

right there

in the side of the city

on a hill

so that anybody

who walked by

might be able to look up

and see the shame

and the guilt

of the condemned party.

They wanted to shame

the accused.

So verse 19,

it tells us that

Pilate wrote a message

and put it up on the cross.

And here's what it said,

Jesus of Nazareth,

the King of the Jews.

Naturally,

the chief priests

of the Jews

tried to correct him.

They didn't like

what that sign said.

They said,

don't write

the King of the Jews,

rather write

this man said

I am King of the Jews.

Do you see the difference?

The King of the Jews,

an identity claim

or this man simply said

I am King of the Jews.

That's his crime.

He claimed to be King

but was in fact

not.

Pilate said,

I have written

what I have written.

What I want us to see

and understand

is that this inscription

hanging there

above the head of Christ

written there

in three languages

so that any

who looked up

and read

might read it.

This was a claim.

This is a bold statement.

It's a truth claim.

This man,

Jesus,

is King.

The man on the cross

that you are crucifying

is King.

This is the claim

that John's been making

all along

that Jesus,

this man,

is the King.

Not just a King

but this is

the Messiah.

This is the King

that we've been waiting for.

God promised David

all the way back

in 2 Samuel 7

a King from His line

who would rule forever,

whose kingdom

would have no end.

Jesus is that King.

John's claiming

that Jesus is the King

from Daniel chapter 7

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

who was promised,

prophesied

that He would have

glory and a kingdom

that all peoples

and nations

and languages

should serve Him.

An everlasting dominion

which shall not pass away,

a kingdom

that shall not be destroyed.

This is the claim

John is making.

And you can agree

with that claim

or you can disagree

with that claim

but you cannot

ignore

that claim.

And you cannot

be neutral

here.

John is forcing us

to take

a side.

I was at a coffee shop

the other day

and I had my Bible open.

I was studying

and writing

and preparing

for a message

and somebody

struck up

a conversation

with me

and as we talked

we started talking

about what I was reading,

what we were doing

and we started talking

about the Bible

and he said,

you know,

you really ought

to meet Bill.

I'm making that name up.

Not you, Bill.

Sorry.

It's a fake name.

Bill.

You ought to meet Bill.

He's in here all the time.

He talks about

religious things.

He knows a lot

about the Bible

and other religions too.

And another man

that was at the same table

he piped up

at that point

and he said,

oh yeah,

you know,

Bill is,

he's not one of those

unreasonable Christians.

He's the most

reasonable Christian

you will ever meet.

And so Bill,

what he does

is he just basically

says that there's

something good

that you can pluck

out of just about

every religion

and he finds the good

in all of it

and he's very,

very,

very reasonable.

And so what I said

in the moment

was,

well that's interesting.

I'd love to meet Bill

and talk about that.

It wasn't the right time

to get all the way

into it right then

and I do hope

one day I will get

to meet Bill

and talk with him

about these things.

But what I thought

was,

I guess that makes me

unreasonable.

I guess I'm one of

those unreasonable

Christians

that thinks that

there actually

is a truth

or an untruth

that he is king,

he may be king,

he isn't king

are not all

equally valid

answers to the

question,

who is Jesus?

Do you see the issue

here?

This is a black and white

yes or no proposition.

Either he is not

king of all the earth

and if he's not,

disregard him,

ignore him,

forget this.

But if he is,

then that defines

every other question

we might ever ask

about our life.

The question,

who is Jesus,

defines

every other

question

you could ever

ask.

What is my purpose

if he's king

is to honor him?

I wonder what

you would say

if

someone found out

you believe

Jesus Christ

is Lord,

absolute truth

statement.

And they told you,

I think that

that is unreasonable.

I wonder how

you would respond.

What John does

in the rest of our

passage,

what I want us to see

is he builds

a case here

to substantiate

this claim.

From the Old Testament,

he shows us

that this isn't

just some religious

mumbo-jumbo,

some unfounded

claim that we

made up to say

we follow Christ,

Christ is our king.

No,

he takes the Old Testament,

these passages

written thousands

of years before

Jesus was born,

thousands of years

before the events

of the cross

and he says

we've been talking

about this moment

all along.

So second,

let's consider

the case

that John makes

here for us.

I praise God

that we have

good reason

to believe

that Jesus Christ

is Lord.

John builds

the case

with four

Old Testament

prophecies

that are fulfilled

in the death

of Jesus.

I want us to look here.

This is exhibit

A, B, C, and D.

Look with me

to verse 23.

John says,

when the soldiers

had crucified

Jesus,

they took his garments

and divided them

into four pieces,

four parts.

One part

for each soldier

and also

his tunic.

But the tunic

was seamless,

woven in one piece

from top to bottom

and so they said

to one another,

let us not tear it

but cast lots

for it

to see

whose it shall be.

Why in the world

does John

feel the need

to include

this seemingly

meaningless detail

about Jesus' crucifixion?

Why does he feel

the need

to tell us

about his clothing

and what the Romans

did with his clothes?

Well, he says there

in verse 24,

look there,

this was to fulfill

the scripture

which says,

they divided

my garments

among them

and for my clothing

they cast lots.

This is exhibit A.

And I just want you

to note here

that whenever John

says something like

this was to fulfill

the scripture

or this happened

in order that

scripture might be fulfilled,

we ought to marvel

at this.

And when we're reading

our Bibles

and we come across

something like this,

slow down

and dig backwards

in the Old Testament

to see the link

that he's making.

We tend to just

jump right past this

but when we see

that he's doing this,

what he's doing

is he is building

a case for us

from the Old Testament

that we might believe

what he's saying

about Jesus

here in the New Testament.

This is proof

of the identity

of Jesus.

He's quoting

the Old Testament

scriptures written

centuries before

the events of the cross

and he's telling us

that this moment

was planned out

by God

before the ages began.

It has been foretold

and prophesied

all along

every step of the way

in the Old Testament

and now we're here

and it's executed

perfectly

in the life

and death

and resurrection

of Jesus.

So,

exhibit A.

Here he's quoting

from Psalm 22.

You can turn there

if you like.

I'm going to read it

for you.

You'll recognize it

as I read it.

Psalm 22

begins like this.

My God,

my God,

why have you

forsaken me?

Do you recognize that?

You recognize this

because

this is,

these are Jesus' words.

Jesus quotes this psalm

up on the cross.

Psalm 22 continues

verse 6.

Verse 14.

It says,

I am poured out

like water

and all my bones

are out of joint.

My heart is like wax.

It is melted

within my breast.

My strength

is dried up

like a pot shirt

and my tongue

sticks to my jaws.

You lay me

in the dust

of death.

In verse 18,

Psalm 22,

they divide

my garments

among them

and for my clothing

they cast

lots.

You realize

the Romans

likely would have

had no idea

what Psalm 22

said.

And it seems

like such a

small detail.

But John

here as he stands

at the foot

of the cross

as he reflects

on what he's

seeing,

he says,

it was written

so the soldiers

did these

things.

He's showing us

that the death

of Jesus

down to the

very smallest

details

was exactly

as was written

centuries before

it happened.

Exhibit B,

verse 28.

John tells us

yet another

fulfillment

in verse 28.

He says,

after this,

that is,

after Jesus

entrusts his mother

into the care

of John,

he says,

Jesus,

knowing that all

was now finished,

said to fulfill

the scripture.

Do you notice that?

Do you see that

phrase?

He said,

to fulfill the

scripture,

I thirst.

You can only

imagine the

physical anguish

that Jesus is

experiencing here

in this moment.

The loss of blood

and sweat.

He's been up all

night having his

body pushed to

the breaking point.

We know that he

was under such

physical duress

that his body

literally sweat

blood in the

garden as he

prayed.

prayed.

Here's a good

time for a

reminder that

we have to

remember as we

look at these

accounts of the

cross that this

man, Jesus,

is both God

and man.

This is God

in the flesh,

God incarnate.

The word of God

became flesh and

dwelt among us.

Jesus is both

God and man,

not 50% one or

the other.

He is 100%

God,

100% man.

the eternal

son of God

took on our

physical weakness,

stepped into our

physical weakness

in order to

redeem us.

And we see his

humanity on full

display here as

we march to the

cross in the

suffering.

The eternal

all sufficient

son of God

who in his

divine nature

has never needed

anything.

Here in his

humanity, in his

human nature,

says I thirst.

And again,

John shows us

that Jesus is

quoting again

here from the

Psalms.

This time,

Psalm chapter

Psalms 69 · chapter mention

69.

I'll start at

verse 16 of

Psalm chapter

Psalms 69 · chapter mention

69.

Answer me,

O Lord,

for your

steadfast love

is good.

According to

your abundant

mercy,

turn to me.

Hide not your

face from your

servant, for I am

in distress.

Make haste to

answer me.

Draw near to

my soul.

Redeem me.

Ransom me

because of my

enemies.

Verse 19.

You know my

reproach and my

shame and my

dishonor.

My foes are

all known to

you.

Reproaches have

broken my heart

so that I am in

despair.

I looked for

pity, but there

was none.

And for

comforters, but I

found none.

Listen to this,

verse 21.

They gave me

poison for food

and for my

thirst.

They gave me

sour wine to

drink.

And so John

says, back in

our passage at

verse 29, a

jar full of

sour wine stood

there.

So they put a

sponge full of

the sour wine on

a hyssop branch

and they held it

to his mouth.

For my thirst,

they gave me

sour wine to

drink.

Does this sound

like coincidence

to you?

Maybe.

And maybe you

could chalk up

the garment

thing to

coincidence.

Maybe.

But this is at

least a little

bit odd, isn't

it?

These Old

Testament passages

of these events

dividing garments,

sour wine, and

here it's happening

in real life and

in real history and

real time.

John is witnessing

these things,

recording them

for us and he

says, this is a

little bit odd,

isn't it?

Isn't this a

little bit more

than coincidence?

Just think about

it for a minute.

I know we get so

used to what we

know from the

scriptures, but when

you zoom out and

just recognize this,

these are Psalms of

David all the way

back here in the

Old Testament.

Psalms of David,

the king, Old

Testament David,

king of Israel,

David.

He wrote these

Psalms roughly a

thousand years before

Jesus was born.

But John is saying

that this Psalm of

King David all the

way back here in

the Old Testament

was pointing forward

to a greater,

truer, more

accurate fulfillment

in the true

king.

John is showing

us Jesus isn't

just quoting these

Psalms, he is

fulfilling them.

they are written

about him.

I love Luke

Luke 24 · chapter mention

chapter 24.

That may be one of

my favorite chapters

in the whole Bible.

After the resurrection

of Christ, he goes,

he walks with his

disciples on the road

to Emmaus.

His disciples are kept

from recognizing him.

They're discouraged by

his death.

They're processing all

these things that have

happened.

And he says to them

in verse 25 of Luke

Luke 24 · chapter mention

chapter 24,

O foolish ones

and slow of heart

to believe all

that the prophets

have spoken.

Was it not necessary

that the Christ

should suffer these

things and enter

into his glory?

And beginning with

Moses

and all the

prophets,

he interpreted to

them in all the

scriptures the things

concerning himself.

Did you hear that?

beginning with Moses.

That's where Jesus

went when he wanted

to explain to his

disciples the

significance of the

cross.

You know where he

went?

Moses and the

prophets and all

the Old Testament

scriptures and he

interpreted to them

all the things

concerning himself.

What would I give

to be a part of

that Bible study?

There are

There's a pastor

out of Atlanta.

A very popular

pastor who

over the past

several years

he made a claim

that said,

you know,

to reach the

current generation

we really ought to

unhitch our

Christianity from

the New Testament.

Have you heard

this?

excuse me,

from the Old

Testament.

In order to reach

our current climate,

our current

generation,

we have to

unhitch Christianity

from the Old

Testament.

I hope you see

the point that

John is making

is exactly the

opposite.

Christianity

unhitched from

the Old Testament

isn't Christianity

at all.

We cannot have

an unhitched

Christianity.

Our gospel

is thoroughly

hitched to

all of the

scriptures,

prophets,

Moses,

the Psalms,

all the way

from Genesis

to Malachi.

If it's not

properly hitched,

it's not

believable.

The gospel,

the death of

Christ,

His resurrection

is rooted

in an eternal

plan of God

that He has

worked out

in human history

and foretold

from the very

first pages

of Genesis.

Jesus.

The point

that He was

making and

the point

that John

is making

is this.

All the

scriptures

are about

Jesus.

All the

Old Testament

scriptures

have been

talking about

His death

and His

resurrection,

the reign

of the King.

The cross

is not a

tragic accident.

The cross

is a perfect

fulfillment

of the eternal

plan of God.

Which is why

here in verse

30 of our

passage,

John says

this,

when Jesus

had received

the sour

wine,

He said,

it is

finished.

And He

bowed His

head and

gave up

His spirit.

What is

finished?

If we

remove the

Old Testament

scriptures,

what in the

world is

Jesus saying

is finished?

That word

there, it

means fulfillment,

it means

completion,

it speaks

about the

complete carrying

out of a

task given

to you

by an

authority.

This is

the fulfillment,

the complete

fulfillment of

the task that

was given to

Jesus by the

Father.

It means

His suffering

is finished.

His

obedience,

the plan of

God written

and foretold in

all the scriptures,

the plan of

God for the

Son of God

to bear the

wrath of God

for the people

of God

is finished.

His suffering

on behalf of

sinners and the

place of sinners

is finished,

which means

for us who

bowed the

knee to the

crucified King,

for us it

is finished.

Our separation

from God

is finished.

The curse of

sin for you

who believe

is finished.

The weight of

sin and guilt

that we used

to bear,

the sting of

death,

the powers of

darkness that

stand against

you for us

who are in

Christ,

it is finished,

is nailed to

the cross and

I bear it no

more as we

sing often.

That's glorious

news.

John tells us

in verse 31

that since it

was the day of

preparation so

that the bodies

would not remain

on the cross on

the Sabbath for

that Sabbath was

a high day,

the Jews asked

Pilate that their

legs might be

broken and that

they might be

taken away.

Again, the

normal practice

for a Roman

crucifixion was

to just let the

victim hang on

the cross until

they died.

And even then,

they would let

the bodies stay

and be eaten

by the birds.

They're in the

sight of all

the people.

Out of

observance of

the upcoming

Sabbath day and

that being a

high holy day

with Passover

approaching,

the Jews asked

Pilate to go

ahead and break

the legs of

the criminals,

get it over

with.

This would

keep them

from being

able to push

up the weight

of their bodies

and essentially

with their legs

broken,

they would

suffocate there

on the cross.

And they

started with

the other two

thieves on

either side,

but as they

made their way

to Jesus,

they discovered

that this man

was already

dead.

So instead of

breaking his

legs,

says they

pierced his

side with a

spear and at

once there

came out

blood and

water.

We often

sing another

song,

a rock of

ages cleft

for me.

Let me hide

myself in

thee, let

the water

and the

blood from

thy wounded

side which

flowed be

of sin the

double cure,

save from

wrath and

make me

pure.

And again

John says

that this,

even this,

down to the

very finest

details of the

last seconds of

Jesus' earthly

life before

the resurrection,

all of this

happened in

fulfillment of

the scriptures.

He says in

verse 35,

he who saw

it has borne

witness,

his testimony

is true,

he knows he's

telling the

truth that you

also may

believe.

It's as if

he's saying

maybe you can

write off the

first as

coincidence,

maybe you can

write off the

second thing as

coincidence,

but this is so

clearly in line

with scripture,

it's so clearly

a fulfillment of

the divine word,

I was there and

I saw them

pierce his side

with a spear,

and you gotta do

something with

that.

He won't let us

ignore it,

will he?

So John says

this is exhibit

C and D,

verse 36,

says these things

took place that

the scriptures

might be fulfilled,

not one of his

bones will be

broken.

And again,

another scripture

says they will

look on him

whom they

have pierced.

He's shown us

two from the

Psalms,

and now in this

third fulfillment,

exhibit C,

he takes you all

the way back to

Exodus,

to Moses,

Exodus 12,

Exodus 12:46

verse 46,

where the law

was given,

instructions for

the Passover

lamb,

preparing the

Passover lamb

for the sacrifice,

and it says of

the Passover lamb

that you shall not

break any of

its bones.

Now John the

Baptist has

hinted about this

already,

all the way back

in chapter 1,

as he saw Jesus,

you remember what

he said?

Behold the,

what?

The lamb of

God,

who takes away

the sin of the

world.

John the Baptist

understood,

he's been talking

about this all the

way back in

chapter 1,

and now,

here on the

Friday before

the Passover,

John tells us

that the true

Passover lamb

is sacrificed

to take away

our sin,

not one of

his bones

are broken.

Is it coincidence?

All the way

back to Moses,

he says it's not

only what they

didn't do,

it's also what

they did do,

it's also

fulfillment.

They didn't break

his bones,

that's fulfillment

in Moses,

but they did

pierce his side,

and John says

that's fulfillment,

of Zechariah 12

Zechariah 12:10

verse 10,

which says,

they will look

on him whom

they have

pierced.

Do you see

the case

that's being

made here?

Our

religion,

Christianity,

our belief

in a sovereign

God,

and a reigning

King,

Jesus Christ,

that is a

thoroughly

founded and

reasonable belief

because of

the scriptures.

You begin to

look at all

the evidence,

all the many

scriptures,

the way they

weave together

to find their

fulfillment perfectly

to a T,

and just this

one man and

the events of

his life,

his death,

and soon to

be his

resurrection,

when you take

all of this

into account,

you start to

wonder,

how can all

of this be

accidental?

How could

this all be

just coincidence?

What are the

odds of all

of this coming

together exactly

as the

Old Testament

said that

it would?

I've mentioned

this study

before.

It's appropriate,

I think,

to mention it

again this

morning.

Dr. Peter

Stoner,

he was the

former chairman

of the

Department of

Mathematics

and Astronomy

at Pasadena

City College

and a believer,

and he set

out to

calculate the

mathematical

probability,

the mathematical

probability of

just one

person

fulfilling

just eight

of the

clearest

messianic

prophecies.

So he

looked through

all of the

messianic

prophecies of

the Old

Testament,

and there

are way

more than

eight,

but he

whittled it

down to

make this

as friendly

as he

possibly

could to

skeptics

and non-believers

and said,

let's just

read eight

statements here

from the Old

Testament and

calculate the

probability that

those eight

statements would

come true

and be fulfilled

in just one

man.

And what he

determined

was this,

he said,

the chance

that any

one man

might have

fulfilled all

eight prophecies

is one

in ten to

the seventeenth.

That would be

one in,

I can't even

read this number,

one in one

hundred quadrillion.

That's one

with seventeen

zeros at the

end,

right?

And we can

hardly imagine,

our minds

can't really

comprehend

that type

of number.

One in

one hundred

quadrillion.

Dr. Stoner

goes on,

he says,

if we were

to take

one in

one hundred

quadrillion,

if we were

to take

ten to

the seventeenth

silver dollars

and lay

them all

over the

face of

the state

of Texas,

they would

cover the

entire state

of Texas

two feet

deep.

Now,

take one

of those

silver dollars,

and mark

it,

get a

sharpie,

mark it

up,

however

you'd like

to mark

it,

throw it

back in

the mask,

stir up

the whole

lot

thoroughly,

blindfold a

man and

tell him

he can

walk as

far as

he'd

possibly

like,

as far

as he'd

wish,

but he

must pick

up that

one

marked

silver

dollar.

What

is the

chance

he would

have

of getting

the right

one?

He says

he would

have just

the same

chance

that the

prophets

would have

had of

writing those

eight

prophecies,

and having

them all

come true

in any

one man.

See,

the point

John is

making is

that Jesus'

death is

not accidental.

This is

fulfillment of

the eternal

plan of

God.

The case,

I believe the

case is clear.

This man,

Jesus,

is exactly

who he

claimed to

be.

He is the

promised king,

king,

and if

that's

true,

then now,

now that

that's

settled,

now we

can begin

to ask

the question,

well,

what does

that mean

for me?

If you're

with us

and you're

not a

believer,

what that

means for

you,

this is a

call to

repent and

bow the

knee to

King

Jesus.

It is a

call for

you to

stop raging

against his

rightful rule

in your

life and

in the

world and

to humble

yourself,

if you

still have

breath in

your lungs,

you still

have the

opportunity

now like

the thief

on a

cross to

say,

I believe

you're the

king,

would you

please forgive

me and

carry me

into your

kingdom?

And for

the believer,

church,

the fact that

Jesus Christ

is king,

that's reason

to rejoice

at this

death on a

cross that

we're so

familiar with,

the death

of Jesus

that we

read about

weekly and

especially

here at

Easter,

is not

accidental,

he did

not die

a meaningless

death,

he died

to conquer

our enemies,

to deliver

us out of

the domain

of darkness

and to

transfer us

into the

kingdom of

God.

He came

to perfectly

obey in

our place

and to

die in

our place

so that

he can

say on

our behalf

that it

is

finished.

The

Westminster

Shorter

Catechism

asks the

question,

how does

Christ

execute

the office

of a

king?

And it

answers,

Christ

executes

the office

of a

king in

subduing

us to

himself,

in ruling

and defending

us,

in restraining

and conquering

all his

and our

enemies.

John

closes

this chapter

out by

telling us

about Jesus'

burial.

He says