U-turn (Day 18) Jesus put on a cross | Pr Michael Cai

Hello, everyone, made the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

I am passed the mic from ex Singapore. So to day is day eighteen

of the Yeu Turn Time flies. We are almost at the finish line.

So to day we're going to talk about Jesus being put on the cross.

The verses for today are from Matthew, chapter twenty seven, verse twenty seven

to forty four. These verses describes the mockery and suffering of Jesus before his

crucifixion. The Roman soldiers ridiculed Jesus, placed a crown of thorns on his

head and the scarlet robe on his back, held him mockingly as the king

of the Jews, and after further humiliation and physical abuse, the soldiers led

him away to be crucified and gold goutha. Jesus was raised up on the

cross and was crucified alongside two robbers. The passer by and the religious leaders

continued to mock him, challenged him to save himself and to come down from

the cross. For the whole time, Jesus just remained silent, fulfilling his

sacrificial role as the messiah for the salvation of humanity. So back in the

days of my youth, some of you might have watched this movie. So

there's this movie called The Passion of the Christ, but this movie was the

talk of the town. My parents, alongside a merry bird of aunties and

uncles, they embark on a pilgrimage to the cinema to watch this movie.

So the movie had a rating of M eighteen and it was deemed too mature

for my tender eyes. So I was left in the position of a babysitter,

and I was tosked to take care of my younger brothers while the adults

went on to watch the show. While he wasn't long before I could also

claim the mental of being doubt, at least by the very loosest of definitions.

With this newfound autonomy, I secured a copy of the movie, ready

to finally uncover the mystery that has intrigued me for years, and to think

I was prepared for what laid hit. Indeed, the eighteen rating was warranted.

The movie portrayed the violence that was inflicted upon Jesus. He didn't pull

any punctures. It was an unflinching portrayal, from the scourging to the beating,

the mocking to the agonizing moments when he was nil to the cross.

It was a graphic visualization of the suffering Jesus had to go through. The

Gospel describing great details the suffering Jesus had to go through. As by reading

the account in the Gospels, I thought to myself, why did Jesus have

to go through all that suffering? If his role as a messiah was to

die for us, then why is Theah need to suffer so much before he

died? He's fully men, and he is also fully God. Here's a

man who turned water into wine, calmed the storm, healed the sake,

raise the dead. So indeed, just as describes and Pharisees mocked him and

told him to save himself, he really begs the question. If he could

command the elements and ban the laws of nature, why can't he save himself.

So first of all, Jesus had to go through all that suffering because

he understood it was for the fulfillment of prophecies. In Isaiah fifty three,

the verses there described the man of sorrow From Asa fifty three, verse three

to five, he is despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows,

and acquainted with grief, as we heed, as it were our face

from him. He was despised, and we did not esteem him. Surely

he had borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions.

He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon

him, and by his stripes we are healed. So his suffering was necessary

to fulfill the prophecies. His suffering was necessary for our healing the chastisement of

our peace. His punishment enabled us to have peace. In Isaiah fifty three,

verse twelve, it continues, and he was numbered with the transgressors,

and Jesus was crucified between two criminals and fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy. Another prophecy that

he fulfilled Psalms twenty two, verse sixteen. For dogs have surrounded me.

The congregation of the wicked has enclosed me. They peers my hands and my

feet. So this was fulfilled when Jesus, his hands and his feet were

peers and kneel to the cross. In Psalms twenty two, verse seven to

eight all those who see me ridicule me. They shoot out the lips,

they shake their head, saying, he trusted in the Lord, Let him

rescue him, let him deliver him, since he delights in him. And

this was fulfilled when Jesus was mocked and insulted by those who passed by,

as well as by the religious leaders. The religious leaders, they were all

asking for a sign from Jesus. Even when Jesus was hung on the cross,

they told him, bring yourself down from the cross, and we will

be leave in you. Even at that moment in time, the perverse generation

calls up for a sign, but Jesus said earlier, no sign will be

given to this generation other than the sign of Jonah, which represents the resurrection

of Jesus three days later. So Jesus had to go through all that suffering

because he knew that he had to fulfill the prophecies. Another reason for his

suffering was for his identification with our suffering. So in his suffering, Jesus

fully identified with the human condition. He experienced betrayal, abandonment by his disciples,

physical pain, mental anguish, humiliation. In hebrewsh that the four verse

fifty the Word of God say, for we do not have a high priest

who cannot sympathize with our weakness, but was in all points tempted as we

are, yet without sin. So whatever pain you are going through right now,

Jesus understands that pain. With that understanding, he can be a mediator

for us. And with that understanding he can also be a role model for

us, in that since he has suffered, he leaves us an example so

that we might follow in his footsteps when we go through our suffering, as

well to show us that through our own trials we can continue to have faith

at hope in him. And finally, the last reason for his commitment to

go through all that pain and suffering, all those humiliation, is his love

for each and every one of us and his obedience to the Father. His

willingness to go through the pain and suffering is the ottomate demonstration of his love

for us and his submission to the will of the Father. Jesus, in

his divine all knowing nature, knew the road ahead was paved with pain,

he with humiliation. He knew that before he died he had to go through

all that suffering so that the people will know that prophecies have been fulfilled,

so the people will know that he is indeed the Messiah, that they can

turn to him and be saved King. So can you imagine the death of

love required to embrace such a path That he knows how much suffering there is

in the path of it, But yet he chose to do it because he

loves us. He chose to do it because he wants to obey God.

Jesus had to suffer because it was required as part of the sacrifice for sin.

The blood that was shed, the shame that was endured, the pain

that he had to go through, it demonstrated the devastating nature of sin.

Jesus was our lamb, our lamb, who will slay our land without blemish,

with the sins of the world laid upon him. That was why the

suffering was so great. He had to be expected, ridiculed, had to

wear a crown of thorns. He was kneel to the cross that his bruised

and broken body stripped against the wood. Because of God's plan, Jesus sake

himself, the son of men, must suffer, must be killed, and

he understood that this was God's plan for the salvation of the world. So

his commitment to the cross, it was for his love for us, It

was for his obedience to the Father. He was not kept on the cross

by the nails in such a sense. The nails were only symbolic because it

was his love and obedience that kept him there. So let us hold fast

to this reminder in every moment of doubt, in every seison of struggle.

The story of the Cross tells us an eternal truth. There is no length

to which God will not go, no death, he will not rich to

save those that he loves, just as how Jesus was committed to the cross

despite all the suffering and shame. It is time for us now to reflect

upon our commitment to follow Jesus. Taking out the cross is a one way

street. There is no turning back to the old ways. All things have

passed away. The cost of following Christ the cause of discipleship. We have

to embrace it. This might involve persecution, suffering, hardship, and the

daily challenges of living out our faith in the world that often stands in opposition

to the values of the Kingdom. People in those days look at the king

of the Jews that expected a king that comes in his glory to set them

free from the oppression that they are facing. But God has a way that

is greater than our imagination. God's plan for salvation and his concept of kingship

were vastly different and more profound than the popular expectations. Jesus, the King

of the Jews, did not come to establish and earthquaking them through force or

political power. His past to kingship was marked by suffering, sacrifice, humiliation,

and ultimately the Cross. Thus reconsidered the way that even breaks through to

come in our lives. For His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. His

ways are better than our ways. That we may think that you know,

picture success in a certain way, but God's perspective of success in our lives

are vastly different from our perspective. So let us take this time doing our

devotion to understand that God can work in ways that is beyond our imagination.

As we're close to this devotion, let us pray Eternal God, Heavening Father,

we stand in all of your grace. As we reflect upon the narrative

today, we are confronted with the profound suffering and humiliation en dealed by your

son. We are moved by the realization of how he was humiliated and the

pain that he had to go through to bear the weights of our sins upon

his shoulders. Lord, in your infinite wisdom, you offer us a path

of redemption and the promise of eternal life through your son. We stand in

awe of this great sacrifice as we contemplate the journey to the cross. Lord,

we pray that you help us understand more deeply the cause of our own

salvation. Let us examine our own lives, reflect our own ways, so

that we can fully align ourselves with your will and your purpose. Teach us,

o Lord, to embrace the call to take out across daily following the

footsteps of Jesus, demonstrating his love, his humility, and obedience in every

aspect of our lives. Grant us the courage to face our own trials with

the same grace as Jesus did, with the same trust in your providence.

Remembering always the example that Jesus had set for us, we thank your Father

for the grace, for the blessings, for the favor, for the mercy

that you have lavished upon us. Lord, as we consider today's passage,

let us not take for granted the sacrifice made on our behalf strengthen our determination

to live as faithful disciples, to live as good stewards, to live as

faithful messengers, so that we can bring your message of love and salvation to

the ends of the earth. We thank you, we praise you, we

pray all this in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.