Mark 15:16-32

Please do open your Bibles again to Mark chapter 15.

Mark 15 · chapter mention

It's on page 852.

I'll be looking at verses 16 to 20 this evening.

!

Lord God, help us to see the glory of Christ this evening.

Help us to see the victory that he has won for us on the cross.

And help us to cling to him all the more.

May we find hope and comfort and all that we need in him.

We pray this in his name. Amen.

Amen.

In 2003, Banksy, the famous street artist,

he painted an iconic parachuting rat on the side of a building in Melbourne, Australia.

And it was a treasured piece of work in Australia.

And many consider it a priceless piece of art.

But one day in 2010, the local council came along.

They saw the spray paint and they destroyed it by cleaning it off.

They thought it was some sort of gang-related graffiti.

And so they destroyed it.

And they thought they were doing the world good by getting rid of it, didn't they?

But what were they actually doing?

They were actually destroying a masterpiece.

There was a real irony here.

They had no idea what they were doing.

And that is what's going on in our passage here.

These soldiers think that they were doing the world good by getting rid of Jesus.

By mocking him.

They thought he deserved it.

But what was the reality?

They were actually destroying a masterpiece.

There is a real irony here.

Now, irony, the word irony is a word I want us to think about for a moment.

Irony in storytelling is when the characters in a story think something isn't true.

But we, the audience, we know that it is true.

That's what irony is.

So think of the film Jaws.

People are swimming in the sea.

They think it's safe.

They think everything's normal.

But then we, the audience, we hear something.

Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun.

We know the reality.

We hear that music.

And we know the reality that there's a shark in the water.

We, the audience, know the reality is the opposite of what the characters think.

That is irony.

That is dramatic irony.

And that is what Mark is doing in this passage.

He's presenting a moment of dramatic irony.

The soldiers mock Jesus by pretending he's a king.

And they make fun of him.

But actually, he is the king.

So look at the scene here.

So verse 16, Jesus is led inside a palace.

And they gather together the whole battalion around him.

He's like a king over an army.

And verse 17, they clothed him in a purple cloak.

Purple was a very expensive and royal color in those days.

They put royal robes on him.

In verse 17, twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on him.

He's crowned.

Verse 18, they began to salute him.

And what do they call him?

Hail, king of the Jews.

Verse 19, they struck him on the head, spat on him, knelt down in homage to him.

They bow down to him.

What do these soldiers think is the reality?

They think this man is no king.

They dress him up as a king to show everyone how unkingly he is.

But what is the reality?

What are we meant to know?

This is actually the king.

They think they're doing good, but they're destroying a masterpiece.

They think everything is normal, but we hear the real music.

But it's not the Jaws theme music.

It's the music of a coronation.

It's trumpets and horns and choirs and harps and violins and a royal band, all signaling to us,

this is actually the king.

That is what Mark is presenting us with here.

This is dramatic irony.

He's doing this to emphasize that Jesus is actually the king.

And he's doing this to make a point, to show us the reality of what the soldiers missed,

to show us what's really going on at the cross.

So the past few weeks, we've seen that all the events leading up to the cross have been there to show us what's really happening at the cross.

They're kind of like a red carpet.

You look at the red carpet, and it tells you what's going on at the main event.

And we've seen these events, and we've seen what's going on at the cross.

Jesus is dying for sinners.

He's being condemned by the divine judge so that rebels go free.

Well, here we see something else about the cross.

We see that the cross was the enthronement of Jesus.

It's where he became king.

And that is the big thing to see today, that the cross was the enthronement of Jesus.

But before we unpack that,

we need to see that dramatic irony like this,

it only works if there's an author behind it.

This scene only makes sense and has meaning if it's designed to be like this.

This isn't just a coincidence that these soldiers mock the true king by dressing him up as a king.

Note, there's an author behind this.

But Mark is not the real author of these events.

Mark didn't make these events happen.

No, God is the author of these events.

This was all planned by God.

The cross was planned by God.

And this is the first thing I want us to see today before we get to our main point.

The cross was planned by God.

In all these events we have seen so far,

all these red carpet moments that show us the main event,

the cross, what it's all about,

all these events,

they're not,

this isn't just coincidence.

It's not like,

oh, Jesus was condemned by Pilate.

Oh, and he was condemned by God.

Oh, that's a funny coincidence.

Or, oh, Jesus is mocked as a king,

and he's the true king.

Oh, that's a funny coincidence.

No, this isn't Mark just making up poetic connections.

No, these events took place the way they did,

and they all point to the cross because God planned it.

God authored all of this to show the world what the cross is really about.

And we need to grasp this.

The cross was planned by God.

And we see this all the way back in the Old Testament.

Isaiah 53 speaks of this suffering servant

who will save his people by suffering for them.

Speaking of Jesus.

And Isaiah writes,

it was the will of the Lord to crush him.

It was God's will to crush Jesus.

God crushed his own son.

It was in God's will to do this.

The cross wasn't an unfortunate accident.

No, it was the son's will and the father's will

for Jesus to go to the cross.

It was in God's plan.

It was always his desire.

The cross was planned by God.

And in the New Testament,

the apostle Peter preaches at Pentecost,

and he says this,

Jesus was delivered up according to the definite plan

and foreknowledge of God.

It's clear.

The cross was planned by God.

This wasn't an unfortunate accident

that God then turned into a good thing.

No, the cross was planned by God from eternity

to be salvation,

to be the way that Jesus becomes king.

It was God's will to make his son king.

That was his will in heaven.

And God has constructed all these events

so that his will would be done on earth

as it is in heaven.

So that heaven played out on earth.

His will in heaven can be seen in his will on earth.

These earthly events show us

the true spiritual heavenly reality.

That is why the earthly court with Pilate

shows us the heavenly court of God's justice.

And that is why today,

these soldiers mocking Jesus

shows us the reality of the cross.

This happened because God wanted to show us something,

something about Jesus and the cross.

God is showing us actually

the cross is Jesus' enthronement.

The cross was the enthronement of Jesus.

Which brings us back to our main point,

which is where we're going to spend the rest of our time,

back to our main point.

The cross was the enthronement of Jesus.

So we need to answer now,

well, how was the cross the enthronement of Jesus?

We can kind of see how he was a sacrifice, can't we?

Sacrifices need to die for sins.

We can kind of see how he's a substitute, right?

He died instead of sinners.

But how was the cross the enthronement of Jesus?

How does that make him a king?

As the soldiers place a crown of thorn on Jesus,

why is Mark telling us that,

well, Jesus is actually a king?

Well, we need to understand what a king does.

A king does two things.

A king defeats his enemies,

and a king rules his people.

A king defeats his enemies,

and a king rules his people.

And ever since the fall,

the world has desperately needed a king.

A king to defeat the enemies of the world,

and a king to rule the people of this world.

So let's ask, why is the world today the way it is?

It's because we're needing a king to completely rule over this world.

In the fall, we rejected God as king.

We didn't want God to rule over us,

and instead we chose to follow Satan.

And we let sin rule over us instead.

Sin controlled us and governed us.

It had power over us.

Paul says in Romans,

sin reigned in death.

Sin was a king over us.

It reigned.

We were slaves to sin.

That is the problem of this world.

Sin reigns.

It has a king-like grip over the world.

When sin reigns,

we can't help but sin.

Sin is king in the lives of those without Christ.

Lives are destroyed in this life,

and perish in the next,

because sin is king over them.

And because sin reigned over us,

death reigned over us.

The wages of sin is death,

and so death reigned.

Without Christ,

death is like a king over us.

We can't escape it.

We simply do what it says.

We die.

Without Christ,

death has dominion over us.

And not only that,

in the fall,

Satan was let loose into this world.

He's been like a king over us.

Jesus calls him the ruler of this world.

Paul calls him the prince of the power of the air.

Satan's evil forces are called rulers and authorities in this world.

Satan is the enemy of God,

and he's the opposing king in this world.

And so, while this is God's world,

he's in complete control.

He's always the king of creation.

Satan has had a king-like influence over us.

He's had power over us,

making us follow him,

leading us into sin and evil,

and he's accusing us in our sin.

And eventually,

he seeks to drag us to hell.

Death.

This is what's wrong with the world.

These are the enemies.

It's sin, death,

Satan, and hell.

And what do we need?

We need a king to defeat them.

The world has been in desperate need

to end the reign of these enemies,

to end their power,

and to destroy them.

And we need a good king to come in and rule.

The world needs a king to be enthroned.

And in Mark today,

we see that long-awaited king.

Mark is telling us,

this is that king.

While the soldiers think they're mocking Jesus,

what is the music that we hear?

It's trumpets.

It's a royal band,

a king's coronation.

The cross was the enthronement of Jesus.

But if a king defeats enemies,

and a king rules his people,

how does the cross do that?

How does that make Jesus king?

Well, for those in Christ,

on the cross,

our sin was taken off us

and laid on Jesus.

He bore our sins.

He became sin for us.

And so when Jesus died,

he took all our sin to the grave with him.

It was destroyed.

It was dealt with.

So whatever sin,

whatever reign sin had over you,

it's ended.

It's dead.

Sin had guilt over you,

but that was buried,

dead,

in the grave.

There is no guilt living over you.

But also,

sin's power over you

has now been broken.

before,

we couldn't help but sin.

Sin was king over us,

reigned over us,

but on the cross,

Jesus tore that king

off the throne of our hearts.

He broke the power of sin.

So we can now obey God.

We can now stop sinning.

That king's sin

no longer reigns over you.

Now,

it needs to be said,

that doesn't mean Christians

will never sin.

No,

sin will still dwell in us

until glory.

But it does mean

the power,

the reign of sin

is broken.

For those in Christ,

sin is not king

over your heart now.

Jesus is king

over your heart now.

He rules over you.

The love for Jesus

and the desire

to please him

and serve him

and obey him,

that has power

over you now.

When you come to the cross,

you come to a king

and his love

grips your heart.

He becomes your king.

Sin has been dethroned

in your life.

Jesus now reigns.

So if you don't have Christ

as your king here tonight,

you need to know,

you may think you're free,

but actually sin reigns over you.

You have a king

that you don't realize

and Christ can set you free.

You need a better

and perfect king.

So don't be like these soldiers.

Don't miss the king

in front of you.

Come to the cross.

The cross was the enthronement

of Jesus.

But sin

wasn't the only enemy

defeated on the cross.

Satan was defeated

on the cross.

Do you know what

Satan's name means?

Do you know what Satan means?

Satan means

the accuser.

The power of Satan

is to accuse.

He's like an evil lawyer

who sees your sin

and your guilt

and accuses you

before God.

Look what this person did.

Look what they deserve.

And he leads us into more sin

to accuse us all the more.

Satan's power in this world

is to accuse.

Accuses of the debt

we owe

because of our sin.

But Paul tells us

what happened on the cross.

Jesus cancelled

the record of debt

that stood against us

with its legal demands.

This he set aside

nailing it to the cross.

He disarmed

the rulers

and authorities

and put them

to open shame

by triumphing over them.

On the cross

Christ

took the accuser's power

away from him.

He disarmed him.

How?

Because there is nothing

Satan can accuse you

with anymore.

There is no sin

reigning over you.

There is no guilt

hanging over you.

As you stand before

the judgment seat of God

Satan can accuse you

all he likes.

It means nothing.

Because all your sin

has been paid for

Satan can say

nothing about you

before God.

Christ is our king

and on the cross

he has disarmed Satan.

Taken away his weapons

destroyed his power.

Satan has nothing on you.

And now

Satan is just

awaiting his doom

where he will be

gone forever.

And that day

is certain

because Christ

has already conquered

him on the cross.

And so if you're not

a Christian here today

without Christ

Satan can still

accuse you.

He can bring

charges against you

and God will see

those charges

and he'll see

them as true.

Your sin

is not covered

by Christ.

The legal demands

still weigh on you

and you need

a king

to disarm

Satan.

To destroy

any power

he has

to accuse you.

Christ is the king

who disarms

all the weapons

of Satan.

He's disarmed

his accusations

and he's also

disarmed

death itself.

Hebrews says

Jesus destroyed

the one

who has the power

of death.

That is the devil.

When the devil

accuses you

he accuses you

for the punishment

of death.

The wages of sin

is death.

Death is his weapon

as well.

But if there's

no guilt

then there's

no death.

When Christ

dealt with your guilt

he ended

the reign

of death

over you.

Death looks

like it has

its grip

on this world.

Like it

rains,

like it's

winning.

And yes

unless Christ

returns

we will

all die.

But death

will not

win.

Death

has been

dethroned.

Eternal

life is

coming.

That is what

Christ did on

the cross.

He made sure

death will

no longer

rule in this

world.

And who

rules instead?

death,

a new ruler

full of life.

Eternal

life.

He now

reigns over

this world.

The gracious

king who

holds the keys

of death

in Hades.

It's

Jesus Christ.

And he's

conquered death

so that

one day

death will

be no more.

Not just

dethroned

but gone.

Jesus has

defeated the

enemy of

death for

you.

The cross

was the

enthronement

of Jesus.

Did you

see what

they placed

on Jesus'

head in

verse 17?

Twisting

together a

crown of

thorns

they put it

on him.

It's no

coincidence

it's a

crown of

thorns.

Do you

remember what

was a part

of the curse

in Genesis

3?

Cursed

is the

ground

because of

you.

Thorns

and

thistles

it shall

bring forth

for you.

Jesus

carried the

curse of

the world

thorns

on his

head as

he went

to the

cross.

This is

the spiritual

reality.

Jesus

freed the

world from

its curse.

He's a

king who

rescued not

just his

people from

their curse.

He rescued

the whole

universe.

So when

these soldiers

salute Jesus

and say

hail king

of the

Jews

how right

they were

but also

they had no

idea what

they were

saying.

This isn't

just king

of the

Jews.

This is

the king

of the

universe.

As they

place the

purple cloak

on Jesus

the royal

robes

as they

place the

crown of

thorns

on him

as they

salute

him

as they

kneel

before him

they think

they're

mocking

him

but really

their actions

are showing

the world

this is the

king to

restore the

world.

world.

So this

irony that

we see

here it's

really

significant.

This is

telling us

something huge.

This is the

king God

has planned

to bring.

This is how

the world is

going to be

restored and

ruled again.

And what's

even more

ironic

this mockery

was actually

sending Jesus

to his

enthronement

wasn't it?

they led

him out

sent him

out to

be crucified.

These

soldiers

thought they

were nailing

him to

a cross

but they

were seating

him on

a throne.

And now

Jesus rules

over his

people as

we come to

the cross

and find

forgiveness.

It is at

the cross

the enemies

of sin

and Satan

and death

are defeated

for us.

And it's at

the cross

we find a

new king.

A king

who rules

over us

with grace.

We become

a people

united around

this crucified

king.

He's purchased

a people

with his

blood and

now we

belong to

him and

we joyfully

serve this

king.

It is the

cross,

this man,

this message,

this crucified

king that

sends us to

our knees

in wonder.

It is this

king that

gathers us

here today

in worship

and now we

bow before

him in awe

before the

king of

kings.

So don't

be like these

soldiers,

don't miss

what is right

in front of

you.

The cross

was the

enthronement

of Jesus

and now he

reigns as

king of

kings.

Let me

pray.

pray.

Let me

pray.

Let me

pray.

Let me

pray.

Let me

pray.

Let me