Matthew Ch27v45-54 - Jesus Dies

Just to remind people that we do have a sheet, a little worksheet.

There may be some on the table. You're very welcome to go and get one of the tables as you came in.

And a Bible which is on the stand as well so you can follow along.

And there's pens there as well.

And the title of the talk, as you see on the screen, is Jesus Dies.

It's just a bit confusing. For some reason, I seem to mess it up every week in one way or another.

So, well, what the best thing to do is, is just start with Jesus Dies and just follow the titles on the screen.

And that will tell you which page you should be on next.

Yeah. I'm not even going to try and tell you how to do it. I'm confused myself.

But there we are.

So, let's turn in our Bibles to Matthew chapter 27.

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

And we're going to read from verse 45 down to verse 54.

Matthew 27, verse 45 to 54.

Matthew 27:45–54

Let's hear God's Word.

When some of those standing there heard this, they said,

He's calling Elijah.

Immediately, one of them ran and got a sponge.

He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff and offered it to Jesus to drink.

The rest said,

Now leave him alone.

Let's see if Elijah comes to save him.

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice,

he gave up his spirit.

At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

The earth shook, the rocks split, and the tombs broke open.

The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.

They came out of the tombs after Jesus' resurrection

and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

When the centurion and those who were with him were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake

and all that had happened,

they were terrified and exclaimed,

Surely he was the Son of God.

Well, let's pray.

Our Father God, we thank you for Matthew's account of the life of Christ,

his death, his resurrection.

And we thank you, Father, that we can read these words today,

knowing that they are your words, your voice to us.

And we pray that what we hear and what perhaps may be familiar to us

would have power

and would change us

and would cause each one of us

to worship you

and to love you

with all our heart,

our soul,

our minds.

That we would do this for your glory,

for our good

and for the blessing

of all those around us.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, over the month of April,

we're looking at the Easter account,

the events surrounding the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Last week, we looked at the trial and the execution,

and today we're specifically going to focus on his death.

So keep an eye on the text,

Matthew 27, 45 to 54.

And there's three extraordinary things that happen.

Darkness falls,

a curtain tears,

and tombs open.

Now what connects these three events

is the death of Jesus.

They all happen

as Jesus dies.

So what do they all mean?

Well, let's look at one each in turn.

First,

darkness falls

on the land.

Jesus has been crucified

early in the morning.

And from what we can see

or what appears to everybody else,

there doesn't seem to be anything different

about the crucifixion of Jesus

to anybody else who's been crucified.

But then,

at twelve midday,

something very strange happens.

Look at verse 45.

From noon

until three in the afternoon,

darkness came over

all the land.

When the sun is at its highest

and brightest,

everything

goes dark.

Literally,

it's saying

it became dark

with darkness.

So it's not an eclipse.

We might say

it went pitch

black.

In the middle of the day,

darkness

descends.

You know what it was like yesterday,

what a beautiful

sunny day it was.

Well, you think

at twelve o'clock

midday yesterday

for your town,

for Carragalline,

to just go

pitch black.

what

is going on

with the darkness.

Well, have a look back

at Matthew chapter 24.

Matthew 24 · chapter mention

Just go back

a couple of chapters.

Chapter 24,

verse 29.

Jesus has been

speaking about

future events

and he's talking about

what's going to happen

at the

very end of time.

So Matthew 24

and verse 29.

Immediately

after the distress

of those days,

so the days

leading up

to the end

of the time,

he says,

the sun will be

darkened

and the moon

will not give

its light.

The stars

will fall

from the sky,

the heavenly bodies

will be shaken.

Then will appear

the sign

of the Son of Man

in heaven

and then all

the peoples

of the earth

or the peoples

of the land

will mourn

when they see

the Son of Man

coming on the clouds

of heaven

with power

and great glory.

at the very

end of the age,

Jesus says,

at the end

of time

when the Son

of Man

comes,

he's going

to come

and wrap

everything up

in the whole

history of the world.

He's going to come

and bring his judgment

and the sign

of his coming

is going

to be

darkness.

Verse 29,

the sun

will be

darkened

and the moon

will not

give its

light.

Back to

Matthew 27.

In other words,

when darkness

descends,

it's a sign

that God

is bringing

his

judgment.

So what does

the darkness

teach us?

Well,

three things.

First,

it's God's

judgment

on sin.

again,

look at

verse 45.

It tells us

that darkness

came over

the whole

land.

God is

displaying

his

displeasure

at the

injustice

of all

that's

taking

place.

God is

rightfully

angry

at the

false

charges

and lies,

the

disciples'

betrayal

and denial,

the mocking

and abuse

that's

taken place.

And God's

judgment

falls on

the people

because they

have all

rejected

God's

king.

You see,

God takes

sin

personally

because it

is personal

to God.

He can't

ignore the

things that

have happened.

He can't

pretend that

it doesn't

matter and

brush it

under the

carpet.

It does

matter.

God is

grieved with

the injustice,

the lies,

the mocking

and the

rejection.

And God

is grieved

with all

the terror

and the

wars that

we see

happening.

It must

be judged.

But not

only that,

judgment

falls on

Jesus.

Look at

verse 46.

About three

in the

afternoon,

Jesus

cried out

in a

loud voice,

Eli,

Eli,

Lamech

Sabachthani,

which means

my God,

my God,

why have

you forsaken

me?

Now,

this should

surprise us

because,

remember,

judgment has

fallen on

the land

because of

the people's

sin.

So,

we would

expect the

people to

be mourning

and crying

out,

my God,

my God,

why have

you forsaken

us?

But they

don't,

do they?

Out of

the darkness,

it's

Jesus

who cries

out.

Of all

the people

who are

there,

there is

only one

who experiences

the weight

of judgment.

You see,

Jesus'

cry is

much more

than just

physical

pain.

It's one

of spiritual

agony.

Jesus,

who is

one with

the Father,

who enjoys

the Father's

delight and

pleasure for

all eternity,

is forsaken

as he dies.

He's cut

off.

Jesus isn't

crying out

here to

his Father,

what are

you doing

to me?

Or why

is this

happening to

me?

Jesus knows

exactly why

he's come.

Look at

verse 47.

When some

of those

standing there

heard this,

he said,

he's calling

Elijah.

Verse 49,

now leave

him alone,

let's see if

Elijah comes

to save

him.

It's not

Jesus who

needs saving.

God is

saving us

through his

Son.

His cry

is one

of absorbing

the judgment

that humanity

deserves.

As Jesus

bears the

weight of

sin,

he is

forsaken,

abandoned,

separated from

the Father.

He takes

the darkness

of hell

for you

and for

me,

because that's

what hell

is.

It's

separation

from God,

being cut

off from

all God's

goodness

and glory.

No

forgiveness,

no peace,

no mercy,

no joy,

no happiness,

cut off

from all

that is

beautiful

and good.

So as the

darkness

falls,

only one

voice is

heard,

because Jesus

is taking

the judgment

on our

behalf.

There's one

other thing

to learn

from the

darkness.

As the

darkness

falls,

it reminds

us that

there is a

greater and

a more final

judgment to

come.

In one

sense,

as Jesus

dies on

the cross,

the judgment

of the

future has

been brought

forward.

God in

his love

and his

kindness

is giving

the world

people

opportunity

to find

salvation

in Jesus

and so we

can turn

to him

today and

we can

trust him

today and

say,

Jesus,

you take

the judgment

for me.

but in

another sense,

all that

is happening

at Jesus

on the

cross is

pointing to

an ultimate

judgment,

a future

judgment to

come when

all wrongs

of this

world will

be corrected,

that every

injustice we

hear about

and see

will be dealt

with.

There will

be no

hiding place.

Everyone

will come

before God

and will have

to face

him.

But the

point of

all that

Matthew is

teaching us

is this,

either Jesus

takes the

darkness for

you or

you will

take the

darkness.

Either Jesus

takes it

or you

take it.

So first,

darkness

falls on

the land.

The second

big thing

that we see

happening

is that

the curtain

tears

in the

temple.

Look at

verse 51.

At that

moment,

at what

moment?

Well,

go back

to verse

50.

When Jesus

had cried

out again

in a loud

voice,

he gave

up his

spirit.

As Jesus

died,

at that

moment,

the curtain

of the

temple was

torn in

two from

top to

bottom.

Matthew

wants us

to see

that there

is a

direct

connection

between

the

instance

Jesus

dies

and the

curtain

in the

temple

tearing.

They

happen

simultaneously.

Why?

What does

it all

mean?

Well,

first we

got to

understand

that access

to God

is denied.

The temple

was hugely

significant.

It represented

God's presence

amongst the

people.

And when you

entered into

the temple,

there was a

series of

rooms you

would go

through,

and as you

went through

these rooms,

it brought

you closer

to God.

So to

try and

imagine and

understand what

it was like,

think of this

hall here as

inside the

temple.

Outside the

car park was

the courtyard

where people

could come.

And then once

you entered,

suppose you

came in through

those tubble

doors there,

you would come

into the first

room which was

called the

holy place.

And at the

end of the

holy place where

that blue screen

is,

behind that

was a room

called the

holy of

holies.

And it was

inside this

room that

God's presence

was represented.

The only

problem was

there was

this huge

curtain,

60 feet

high,

I don't know

what, maybe

half the

height of

this ceiling

again,

and about

30 feet

wide, so

the width

of this

hall.

And this

curtain was

just one

piece of

material, not

like our

curtains where

they kind of

divide in

two, but

one ginormous

curtain, about

as thick as

a hand.

It acted as

a barrier, a

wall.

Stop, no

entry.

God was

separate from

the people,

the holy from

the unholy, the

pure from the

impure.

People were

literally, by

this curtain,

shut out from

God's presence.

It was a

physical reminder

of a

spiritual

reality,

that my

sin,

our failure,

means access

to God is

denied.

You can't

get close

to God.

So how do

we get

through this

barrier?

How do we

get through so

that we can

enjoy God

without fear?

Well, the

barrier is

broken, isn't

it?

As Jesus

dies,

verse 51,

at that very

moment, the

curtain in the

temple was

torn in two,

the barrier is

ripped apart.

Imagine a

curtain this

size and it

being torn

apart.

But how

does Jesus'

death achieve

it?

Jesus died,

what, maybe

a kilometre

away from

where the

temple was?

How did

Jesus'

death achieve

it?

Well, remember

what keeps us

out of God's

presence is

is our sin.

Sin and

God don't

mix together.

But remember

the darkness

has already

fallen on

Jesus, so

at that very

moment as

Jesus dies,

he's taking

the sin upon

himself for

all who will

trust in him.

He becomes

unholy so

that we might

be made

holy.

He becomes

impure so

that we are

made pure.

as Jesus

dies, the

barrier is

broken.

You see, this

is something

that God

does for us.

Did you

notice how

the curtain

was torn?

Verse 51,

from top

to bottom.

Sixty feet

high, the

curtain

begins to

rip.

I mean, if it

was man

doing it, if

you try to

rip something,

you go from

bottom to

top and

you pull

and it

rips apart.

Well, this

is torn

from top

to bottom.

This wasn't

an act of

man.

This was a

direct

intervention

by God

himself.

God is

saying, I

am going

to do

for you

what you

will never

be able to

do for

yourself.

I am

going to

open up

the way

for you

to come

to me.

And as

God looks

at his

son dying

on the

cross,

he is

pleased with

all that

his son has

achieved.

And so

he rips

open the

curtain,

almost a

ripping of

celebration.

He breaks

the barrier

down so

that we

can be

welcomed

in.

Access

is given,

no longer

shut out in

fear,

instead

welcomed

and

embraced

by the

Father.

The author

of Hebrews

helps us

to understand

this.

You can

keep your

finger in

Matthew 27

and jump

forward to

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10.

Hebrews 10

Hebrews 10:19

verse 19.

So we're

thinking about

the curtain

being torn

as Jesus

dies.

And because

of that we

have access

to God.

And this is

what the

author picks

up on.

Therefore,

because of

Jesus'

death,

brothers and

sisters,

since we

have

confidence,

underline that,

confidence,

to enter the

most holy

place,

by the

blood of

Jesus,

by his

death,

by a

new and

living way,

open for

us,

through the

curtain,

that is

his body.

The picture

is vivid,

isn't it?

as Jesus

himself is torn

at the cross,

as his body

has been

ripped apart

by the crucifixion,

so the curtain

is torn in two.

Welcome.

Don't fear.

Come in.

And look at the

warm invitation,

verse 22.

let us draw

near to God

with a sincere

heart and

with full

assurance

that faith

brings,

having our

hearts sprinkled

to cleanse us

from a guilty

conscience and

having our bodies

washed with

pure water.

sin.

The only thing

that stops us

enjoying the

delight and

pleasure of the

Father is

sin.

That's the only

thing.

And the only

one who can

deal with it

is Jesus,

and he has

dealt with it.

So the

invitation is,

come,

let us draw

near to God.

What are you

waiting for?

What better

offer is

there?

Come in.

Access is

opened.

The way is

there for you

to come and

enjoy the

Father.

We no longer

have to hide

in shame

or cower

in our

guilt.

He washes

you.

He cleanses

you internally

and eternally

forever and

forever so

that we can

enjoy the

Father.

By the

death of

Jesus,

we,

you and

I,

are made

holy.

so that

we can

enter into

his presence

every day.

We don't

enter his

presence as

we come

into this

building.

We are

with him

wherever we

go and

he is

with us.

So darkness

falls on

the land

and the

curtain

tears

in the

temple.

people.

The third

big event

is that

tombs

open

by the

earthquake.

As Jesus

dies,

something else

takes place.

Let's go

back to

Matthew

Matthew 27 · chapter mention

chapter 27.

As Jesus

dies,

pick it up

at the end

of verse

51.

As Jesus

cries out

in a loud

voice,

we are

told that

the earth

shook,

the rocks

split,

and the

tombs

broke

open.

Well,

you say

there is

nothing surprising

there.

Earthquakes

are common

enough in

some parts

of the world

and they

were very

common

there.

And

tombs

being above

ground

and cut

into the

rock,

well,

very often

they were

split open

and,

well,

that was

just

normal.

But what

is surprising

is what

comes out

of the

tombs.

That's

what should

shock us.

Look at

verse 52.

The tombs

broke open.

The bodies

of many

holy people

who had

died

were raised

to life.

amazing!

When have

you ever

seen that?

Bodies

walking

out of

a tomb.

Now,

the problem

is,

we can

get sidetracked

by all

of this.

Let's

read verse

52 again.

The tombs

broke open.

The bodies

of many

holy people

had died

and were

raised to

life.

They came

out of the

tombs

after

Jesus'

resurrection

and went

into the

holy city,

that's

Jerusalem,

and appeared

to many

people.

Question

time.

When were

the bodies

raised to

life?

When the

tombs broke

open?

Or after

Jesus was

raised to

life?

Or,

did the

tombs break

open as

Jesus died,

and then

they all

stayed inside

the tomb,

kind of

peering out,

you know,

when,

when,

when,

when,

when,

when,

when,

when can

we go?

Waiting for

Jesus to

rise,

and there,

Jesus

rise,

they go

into the

city.

What's

going on?

Strange,

isn't it?

well,

I don't

think we

should get

bogged down

with the

order of

things.

You can

read all

the

commentaries

at home,

and you'll

find that

people take

different slants

and different

views on

the order

of things.

The point

is that

we don't

get sidetracked

from the

main point,

because what

we learn

from this

is just

incredible.

Two things.

first,

death

defeats

death.

Matthew's

account is

clear.

As Jesus

died,

at that

very moment,

an earthquake

took place,

tombs were

opened,

the rocks

split open,

and bodies

that had been

wrapped up in

their cloth

and put in

the tomb

were raised

to life.

We don't

even know

who they

were,

we don't

know how

long they

had been

dead.

The fact

is,

they were

dead,

and now

they're

alive.

That's

the point.

Jesus'

death

defeats

death.

His death

is a

death in

place of

my death

and your

death.

Again,

the author

of Hebrews

helps us.

I have it

on the screen

for you.

that by

his death,

by the

death of

Jesus,

he might

break the

power of

him who

holds the

power of

death,

that is the

devil,

and free

those who

all their

lives were

held in

slavery by

their fear

of death.

death.

The world

lives in

fear of

dying,

and Jesus

has freed

us from

that fear.

You see,

the devil's

only power

over you

and I

is to

stand before

the Father

and accuse

us like a

prosecution in

a court.

He brings

all the

evidence before

him.

Look at

their sin.

Look at

Johnny

Grant's

sin.

Look at

the mess

and the

failure of

his life.

And he

brings before

the Father,

here's the

charge,

here's the

punishment,

Johnny

Grant must

die.

Death is

what he

deserves.

Jesus

steps forward.

Death has

been dealt

with.

Johnny

Grant's

sin has

been paid.

Therefore,

his death

has been

dealt with

once and

for all.

Yes,

we will

die,

but death

is not

the end.

for those

who hope

in Jesus.

His

death

defeats

my death.

But not

only are

these bodies

raised,

look where

the people

went,

verse 53.

They came

out of the

tombs after

Jesus'

resurrection

and went

into the

holy city

and appeared

to many

people.

The holy

city was

of course

Jerusalem.

But it's

also a

reference,

and I

think he

uses this

phrase

particularly

and

specifically

holy city

because the

holy city

was a

reference to

the eternal

city.

The new

Jerusalem to

come at

the end

of time

where God

would be

with his

people and

dwell with

us forever.

You see,

Jesus'

death

reveals to

us what

we can

expect.

The events

that happened

here in

Matthew point

forward to

something

wonderful.

These

raised bodies

to life

who walk

out of

their tombs

and these

living people

who find

their way

into the

city of

Jerusalem

is a

foretaste

of what

awaits

for all

God's

people.

This is

what the

death of

Jesus has

achieved.

Death is

defeated

and there

is a

future

hope.

One day

the risen

Lord Jesus

is going

to return

and our

graves,

if we're

buried,

are going

to be

burst

open and

we will

walk out

of our

graves

and we

will walk

into the

eternal

city of

God.

Does that

amaze you?

it amazes

me and

I can't

wait.

Don't

get

sidetracked

by the

order of

events.

Did they

come out

of the

tomb on

Friday?

Did they

come out

of the

tomb on

Saturday?

Were they

hiding in

there before?

Be

amazed.

Be

amazed at

what God

has done.

You see

all of

this.

should

lead us

to

humble

worship.

Look at

the response

of the

soldiers,

verse 54.

When the

centurion,

he's the

leader,

the head

of a

hundred

soldiers,

a hundred

soldiers

who are

guarding

Jesus.

When the

centurion

and those

were with

him who

were guarding

Jesus saw

the earthquake

and all

that had

happened,

they were

terrified and

exclaimed,

surely he

was the

son of

God.

These

soldiers were

the first

witnesses to

what?

What does it

say?

To all

that had

happened.

The darkness

falling,

the curtain

tearing,

the tombs

opening.

They were

present,

they heard,

they saw

all that had

happened.

and as

they reflected

on all

that had

happened,

they were

terrified.

Better

translated as

some of your

versions might

have it,

they were

filled with

awe.

Filled

with awe

and amazement.

It means

to hold in

admiration

and deep

respect and

to worship.

you see

these

hardened

soldiers

who spent

their entire

working life

torturing

people and

executing

people on

crosses and

killing

people,

reflected and

took to

heart all

these events

and all

that had

happened and

as they

reflected,

they saw

behind these

events,

before them

was the

son of

God.

God,

this

bloody

and dead

man on

a cross

was the

God,

man,

Jesus

Christ.

And it

all began

to make

sense.

The darkness

that fell,

they deserved

it, but it

fell on this

man before

us.

The curtain

opening in

the temple

so that

these

hardened

soldiers

could be

forgiven.

and welcomed

into the

presence of

God.

The tomb's

opening,

pointing forward

to these

soldiers'

future hope

that they

could have

a future

with God.

Is it

possible?

Absolutely.

Awestruck.

They

humbly

worship

Jesus

Christ.

Christ.

We look

back to

these events.

The darkness

falls,

the curtain

tears

open,

the tombs

burst

open.

Let us

worship

the man

who is

God.

Worship

him,

love

him,

serve

him.

That's

what we're

going to

do right

now.

We're

going to

respond in

song and

we're going

to worship.

We have

two songs.

One is

reflective,

meditative,

as we

worship

the man

who is

God.

I invite

you to

stand as

we sing

together.

give

us

together.

Yes,