Brought to the Light

Well, would you please turn with me in your Bibles back to that passage that we've read in Mark's Gospel, Mark chapter 15.

Mark 15 · chapter mention

We're going to work through a fair part of this chapter tonight, so there's not any one specific verse to look at, just to consider some of the people that are recorded for us around the death of Jesus.

Let's bow our heads in prayer, though, before we begin. Heavenly Father, as we come to this great passage of Scripture,

that we've already spent time in this morning, we pray, Father, for your blessing and wisdom to be given to us.

May the Holy Spirit himself be at work here tonight. We pray that hearts will be opened, that you would enable particularly those who have not yet come to know you as a Savior,

who have not yet come to know Jesus and find delight in him alone. We pray, Father, that you would open their hearts tonight,

that you would be a good God and merciful in all of your ways.

And so help us, Lord, to look towards Christ Jesus for all of our salvation and our hope.

And may we know the truth of God and the blessing of God alive in our hearts.

We ask all of this in Jesus' name. Amen.

So Mark, as he records for us the events of Golgotha and the crucifixion of Jesus,

he gives us quite a lot of information about not only the events that have happened themselves,

but some of the, what we could call, eyewitnesses to these events.

It's like the other gospel writers, Mark is relying on sources,

and he wants us to be able to have confidence in these sources.

So when he tells us, for example, about Simon of Cyrene, who was compelled to carry the cross of Jesus,

he identifies Simon by saying he is the father of Rufus and Alexander.

And so presumably those reading this in the early church would be able to go and find Rufus and Alexander or Simon himself,

but they would know who this was because of who he has said he is.

And so that lends us that confidence that Mark's intention is not to record a made-up tale or an imaginary story.

He wants us to have confidence that this is history.

This is not only is it theological truth, as we were thinking a bit about this morning,

but it's also historical truth, that these things really happened,

and we can have some confidence in them as well.

I want this evening to look just at four of these people that he mentions around the cross

and see what role they actually play in the events of the cross.

The main thing, of course, is to see Jesus, because that's the point of all of the Gospels.

The Gospels want us to see Christ, and therefore tonight what I hope we can do is maybe see Christ

through the eyes of these other characters,

and that we will be inspired to have faith and to trust in him

because of what we read and discover.

Firstly, then, there are two robbers who are crucified with Jesus,

one on his left, one on his right.

So Jesus is on a cross in the center.

He is therefore presumably the main event.

These two other people who are crucified with him are not as important.

They don't get inscriptions written above their heads saying what their crimes were,

or certainly none that are recorded for us, just that they were robbers.

We tend to remember the significance of them from another Gospel,

which tells us about the interaction between one of the two who came to faith.

And that journey for them was in these last few hours as Jesus died on the cross with them.

And there's that wonderful truth that's given to one of these men.

Today, you will be with me in paradise.

But Mark shares no such details.

What he tells us is that Jesus was crucified as king of the Jews

between a pair of thieves,

who in one throwaway phrase, actually, Mark says,

those who were crucified with him also reviled him.

This tells us a lot about the cross.

One of the things I mentioned this morning was that the Father was present in all of this.

that God's purposes are being worked out and fulfilled in the crucifixion of Jesus.

And the way in which Jesus is crucified

between these two thieves

is evidence of that.

It shows us

the contempt

that Pilate had

for the Jews.

The way Pilate

sticks up this sign

it tells us

that

Pilate despised the Jewish people.

There's no reverence

in Pilate's sign.

When Pilate says, this is the king of the Jews,

he's really mocking,

pouring scorn on the Jewish hope.

And that's part of

what was necessary

in the crucifixion of Jesus.

That as he died,

he was to be subjected

to scorn.

That's part of the cup

that he has to drink.

It's part of the experience

that he has to endure

at the cross

dying in our place.

Because we deserve

scorn.

We deserve

mockery.

And we should remember

that the cross

is a place

not where Jesus

deserves these things

but where we

deserve them.

And so as we think

about the cross

we should think

about what our

own sinful

shame

deserves.

The shame

of our sin

deserves

public derision.

We are by nature

rebels

against

a holy

God

who has made us

and given us

enormous gifts

and great blessings

and good things.

And we have

turned

and we have

spat in his face

in our rebellion.

We have chosen

to say

I will live

as a sinner

away from you.

I don't need

to follow you.

I don't need

your ways.

I don't need

your laws

and your direction

for life.

I will do

my own thing.

And increasingly

in our day

and generation

that

is becoming

ever more prevalent.

Radical expressions

of individualism.

that we're seeing

today

are just an

ongoing

rebellion

against God's

pattern

for human life.

And those

who rebel

against such

a gracious

God

deserve

shame.

They deserve

public

humiliation.

persecution.

And so

Pilate's

attempt to

humiliate

the Jews

tells us

a little

of what we

deserve

and a lot

about what

Christ

has done

for us.

Jesus

is not

as well

that the

actual

crucifixion

itself

among

these

two

thieves

places

Jesus

among

common

criminals.

And again

this is part

of the

Father's

purpose

being worked

out in

full.

It's not

a coincidence.

If you see

in verse

28

missing in

some of

the earliest

manuscripts

so it's

only footnoted

in our

ESVs.

But verse

28

it tells

us

this little

phrase

that this

was done

to fulfill

scripture.

The fulfillment

of scripture

is absolutely

everywhere

around the

cross.

It's there

as the

soldiers

cast lots

for the

garments of

Jesus

and it's

there as

he is

crucified

on the

central

cross

between

two

common

criminals.

You go

back to

the prophecies

of Isaiah

and you

see there

that Jesus

was numbered

in his

death

with the

transgressors.

When Jesus

goes to die

for his

people

even that

is not

something that

takes place

in a

magnificent

hall.

It's not

something that

takes place

in a place

of glory

and triumph.

It's a

place of

shame and

derision.

It's a

place of

scorning and

mocking that

belongs to

common

criminals.

And there

our Lord

was rejected

and died

for his

people.

God

the Father

was in

all of

this.

These

things happen

by divine

appointment.

They are no

mere accident

and they're

to tell us

and to

confirm to

us what

Jesus did

at the

cross.

He takes

upon himself

the derision

that our

sin

deserves.

He goes

to die

like a

common

criminal

because that

is what

we

deserve.

He

becomes

sin

for us

and is

therefore

experiencing

the

humiliation

that the

defeat of

sin at the

hands of

God's wrath

deserves.

It is an

awful place.

It is not

a pleasant

place

because it

is a

place

where sin

gets

what it

deserved.

The awful

reality of

course is

that this

points us

towards the

reality of

sin itself

in our

lives if

we find

ourselves

without

Christ.

If we

find ourselves

without

Jesus then

one day

a day of

judgment

will come.

A day

when our

sin will

catch up

with us

and there

we would

experience

the lostness

and the

shame

and the

derision

of going

into a

lost

eternity

away from

God

and the

comfort

and the

peace

and the

hope

of the

new

heavens

and the

new

earth.

It is a

place the

Bible

describes

as the

second

death.

It is

an awful

terrifying

scene

but some

of that

was poured

out

at

Golgotha

because

at

Golgotha

Jesus

tasted

that

rejection

for us

and carried

away

our

sin.

But there is

hope

entangled

in all of

this as

well

because

that day

you remember

there was

supposed to

have been

a third

insurrectionist

a third

robber

a third

murderer

put to

death

by the

Romans

made

an object

of that

derision

and that's

this man

Barabbas

and the

great

likelihood

is

it's not

drawing

an unfair

conclusion

to say

this

the cross

on which

Jesus

dies

is

Barabbas

cross

he is

the leader

of the

insurrection

he is

the one

who belongs

on that

central cross

that day

and so

as we

think about

the fact

that Jesus

is crucified

among two

robbers

let us

remember

that Jesus

takes the

place of

someone

spared

that Jesus

on that

day

literally

took the

place of

someone

spared

that

Barabbas

receives

a second

chance

now it's

interesting

we don't

know anything

about him

we can't

say who

else he

is

we don't

know of

any

recording

of anything

more about

him in

the Bible

or in

contemporary

secular

records

I'm not

sure

Josephus

I don't

think

mentions

him

he's

one of

the most

famous

authors

on this

event

from outside

of scripture

but you

have to

wonder

don't you

what did

Barabbas

make of

the second

chance

was he

inspired by

it to

turn his

life around

did he

go and

find some

miraculous

good thing

to do

with the

rest of

his

days

did he

devote

himself

to

charity

or did

he squander

the grace

that was

shown him

that day

did he

continue

in his

path of

sin and

rejection of

the authorities

perhaps committing

himself to that

life of crime

and finding

himself ultimately

defeated

and futile

Jesus took

someone else's

cross

the just

in the place

of the unjust

the innocent

in the place

of the guilty

this is our

king

this is the

one who today

we have

celebrated

dying in our

place

and remembered

that

and the

question

for us

therefore

tonight

is a

simple

one

did he

die

for you

did he

take

your

place

and the

rejection

you deserve

the second

group are

the crowd

and the

priests

and the

scribes

it's a

crowd made

up of

probably

local

people

Jerusalem

at this

point

it's a

very busy

city

it's full

of people

who've

come to

Jerusalem

for the

feast

for the

Passover

and so

the numbers

in the

city

are greatly

inflated

it would

probably

be stretching

things a

little bit

to say

that this

crowd are

literally

the same

people

who a

week

earlier

have been

acclaiming

Jesus

as the

son of

David

the one

who is

blessed

in the

name

of the

Lord

who

comes

to

set

his

people

free

waving

palm

branches

on their

clothes

before him

as he

entered

the city

on a

donkey

but

nevertheless

they

represent

the people

of Israel

and the

world

and

they

have an

interesting

thing to

say to

us

Mark

tells us

what their

cry is

come down

from the

cross

you who

would

destroy

the temple

and rebuild

it in

three days

save

yourself

and come

down

from the

cross

this tells

us again

a few

things about

people and

what is

happening at

the cross

one of the

things it

tells us

is for

certain

that without

the regenerating

work of God

and his grace

in our lives

we will not

get what

is going

on here

we might

understand the

facts

and so we

might be able

to read a

passage like

this and say

Jesus was

crucified

we might be

able to say

it was an

unjust death

we might be

able to

repeat the

theology

and say

well you

know

somehow God

was dealing

with sin

in this

and that's

how sin

is forgiven

but actually

at a deeper

level

there will be

no embrace

or understanding

of this

the people

are like

that

unless God

has begun

a work of

regeneration

in us

the things

of God

God's way

of doing

things

God's word

and his

wisdom

will often

wash over

us completely

and so

tonight I

want to

encourage you

in this way

that God

is not

tonight

wanting

you to

be ignorant

he shows

you an

example

of a

group of

people

who are

perhaps

aligned

the same

way you

are

perhaps

impressed

at the

things

Jesus

is claimed

to have

done

you who

said you

would destroy

the temple

and raise

it up

again in

three days

but who

missed the

point

of his

death

you might

say to

yourself

Jesus is

someone who

is worth

listening to

someone who

is worth

following

he's got

wise things

to say

about how

we should

love one

another

he's got

wise things

to say

about how

we should

forgive one

another

he's got

wise things

to say

about how

we should

live

sacrificially

and show

kindness to

people in

need

you might

say there's

lots of

good things

about Jesus

but when it

comes down

to the

crunch

when it

comes to

his death

your response

is

well if you

really want

to impress

me

do something

different

and in

fact what's

going on

here is

people

unwittingly

I think

are joining

in the

chorus

of Satan

and the

fallen angels

themselves

because right

back at the

beginning of

Mark's gospel

somebody has

said something

similar to

Jesus previously

the devil

has come to

Jesus to

tempt him

and one

of the

temptations

that was

put before

Jesus

was to

say simply

this

there is a

quick way

out

the devil

took him

to a pinnacle

of a high

mountain

and showed

him all the

nations of

the earth

and said

to him

all of this

can be

yours

if you

would just

bow before

me for a

moment

pay homage

to me

show your

loyalty to

my authority

and Jesus

of course

rejects the

temptation

he dismisses

Satan's

claims

and locks

himself in

to the

mission that's

before him

and this is

the great

temptation

that's always

before Jesus

that somehow

the glory

can be

achieved

without having

to do the

hard difficult

thing of

the cross

we'll believe

in you

if you'll

show us

the spectacle

of coming

down from

the cross

we'll

believe you

if you do

something truly

miraculous at

this moment

and that is

don't die

but rather

choose to

live

and these

words are

echoing in

the ears of

Jesus as

the darkness

descends over

him and

the father's

face is

turned away

there's an

easy way out

of this

you can have

our allegiance

if just

you would do

the opposite

to what

you have

agreed from

all eternity

to do

if only

you would

avoid

the shame

and the

derision

of the

cross

then we

would trust

you

and we

would love

you

and maybe

that's the

kind of

bargains

you want

to make

with Jesus

yourself

today

it's

often is

isn't it

so often

the way

we treat

God

we say

well

you give

me something

that I

want

some

spectacle

that I

want to

see

some

wonderful

thing

that's

just

going to

be

enough

to

convince

me

on

my

terms

and

then I

will

give

you

my

allegiance

and yet

tonight

what we're

reminded of

here is

that Jesus

demands

our

allegiance

because

of what

he has

done

because

he has

already

taken

our

sin

upon

himself

and

then

gone

to

the

cross

and

died

in

our

place

and

risen

again

on

the

third

day

the

victory

is

already

his

and

we

foolishly

sometimes

think

that we

can offer

some

alternative

route

the

crowd

you see

they want

the opposite

of what

God

wants

their

hearts

are not

aligned

to

God's

way

and

they

long

for

something

different

but

you know

their

jeers

also

tell us

something

of

hope

because

at

the

cross

and

in

the

agony

of

the

cross

and

in

the

agony

of

experiencing

the

rejection

of

the

father

the

agony

that

finds

its

culmination

in

that

verse

we

were

considering

this

morning

my

God

my

God

why

have

you

forsaken

me

Jesus

chose

not

to

listen

to

the

jeers

of

the

crowd

he

chose

not

to

listen

to

the

chief

priests

and

the

scribes

and

the

Pharisees

he

chose

rather

obedience

to

the

mission

that

he

had

from

the

father

and

that

tonight

is

where

our

salvation

ultimately

lies

that

Jesus

did

what

was

necessary

for

your

salvation

and

mine

that

at

the

cross

the

blood

price

of

salvation

of

forgiveness

of

atonement

of

propitiation

the

covering

of

our

sin

it

was

done

in

completeness

by

Jesus

and

he

chose

to

do

it

he

chose

at that

moment

not

to

unleash

the

legions

of

angels

who

are

standing

by

perplexed

that

the

son

of

God

is

about

to

go

through

all

of

this

he

chose

not

to

abandon

the

mission

that

the

father

has

given

him

and

find

an

easy

way

out

he

chose

to

suffer

and

die

in

the

place

of

his

people

this

is

my

king

this

is

the

one

who

did

this

for

me

and

tonight

I

would

ask

you

would

you

want

him

to

have

done

it

for

you

do

you

want

this

gospel

do

you

want

this

good

news

that

Jesus

laid

down

his

life

for

his

people

there

was

also

then

the

centurion

and

the

centurion

is

here

a

Roman

officer

probably

Italian

probably

Roman

in

fact

from

the

city

of

Rome

itself

and

Mark

is

it's

interesting

actually

to

read

this

because

Mark

is

writing

probably

in

dependence

on

Peter's

own

eyewitness

events

of these

events

and Peter

is

probably

ministering

in

Rome

itself

at

this

point

and

so

Mark

is

writing

chiefly

I

think

for

a

Roman

audience

and

so

it's

interesting

that

he

highlights

at

the

cross

this

Roman

centurion

and

these

Gentile

Christians

hear about

a

Gentile

convert

at

the

cross

what

Mark

tells us

simply

is this

that

the

Roman

centurion

believed

the

reason

the

reason

we

can

say

that

is

because

the

Roman

centurion

expresses

a

statement

that

nature

does

not

reveal

when

the

centurion

says

truly

this

was

the

son

of

God

that's

telling us

something

about

his

heart

he is

confessing

the

lordship

of

Jesus

he's

probably

a

centurion

who

has

been

involved

earlier

in the

day

in the

mocking

of

Jesus

when

he

was

handed

over

to

the

Roman

garrison

in

the

praetorium

he's

probably

actually

been

there

for

part

of

the

trial

he's

been

standing

close

by

Pontius

Pilate

all

day

and

he's

heard

the

trial

of

Jesus

he's

heard

the

allegations

that

were

made

against

him

he's

heard

the

false

allegations

like

Pilate

he's

recognized

probably

that

there

is

falsehood

and

lies

been

spun

by

the

chief

priests

who

out

of

envy

want

rid

of

Jesus

but

what

really

convinces

him

in

the

end

is

not

the

unjustness

of

what

he

has

seen

in

the

trial

it

is

the

manner

of

his

death

he's

a

Roman

who

thinks

the

gods

are

untouchable

a

Roman

who

thinks

that

the

gods

are

divine

beings

who

live

miles

above

us

and

we

can

have

no

interaction

with

them

and

they

cannot

be

affected

by

the

things

that

happen

to

us

or

the

things

that

happen

among

us

and

yet

here

is

someone

who

is

accused

of

taking

on

himself

the

title

of

God

the

divine

title

of

being

the

son

of

God

and

yet

he

dies

for

his

people

he

dies

in

such

an

awful

way

he

at

the

end

of

it

is

convinced

this

is

the

son

of

God

these

are

not

natural

words

for

that

man

to

have

expressed

they're

far

outside

his

experience

and

so we

have

to

ask

what

what's

persuaded

him

what's

changed

his

mind

what's

he

recognized

and

he

recognizes

!

simply

Jesus

that

Jesus

at

the

cross

does

something

messianic

that

Jesus

at

the

cross

does

something

that

matters

something

that

demands

his

attention

that

demands

his

allegiance

that

demands

things

in his

life

not

be

the

same

again

and

he

confesses

truly

this

was

the

son

of

God

and

so

in

Mark's

gospel

we

have

a

story

at

the

cross

itself

of

someone

who

came

to

faith

seeing

first

hand

Jesus

death

and

tonight

I

would

ask

you

can

that

be

true

of

you

and

can

it

simply

be

true

of

you

that

someone

would

die

for

you

and

you

seen

them

would

say

this

is

my

saviour

this

is

my

God

this

is

the

one

whom

I

will

trust

this

is

the

one

to

whom

I

will

owe

my

allegiance

in

whom