The last week of Jesus’ life was a rollercoaster ride for the Son of Man. His face was set toward Jerusalem as He marched toward His fate. But this was a fate He chose. Neither the Jews nor the Romans forced this upon Him. He would lay down His life willingly, even when the people He was dying for despised Him.
“For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” (John 10:17-18 ESV).
He was, indeed, the promised Messiah. But the Messiah promised in the Old Testament was not the Messiah the people were waiting for. They were expecting a King to bring honor back to Israel as He would lead the people of God to victory over the Romans and the Gentile nations.
His kingdom was not of this world, yet He would bring a victory more powerful than His people could ever imagine. He would do more than conquer the nations of the earth- He would conquer the powers and principalities in the heavenly places.
He could do this because He was God who came to earth and lived as a man. He had honor in heaven since He was the worshiped God and Creator of the world. Yet,
“who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,” (Philippians 2:6 ESV).
So, Jesus took on the form of a man. Paul said that even though He could have grasped equality with God,
“but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:7-8 ESV).
While on earth, the Son of God suffered indignities at the hands of the people He chose to be His chosen people, He suffered cruelty at the hands of people He ordained to have power upon the earth, and He was despised by the very people He created and breathed life into, making them living souls who were created in His image.
He did all this, having laid down the honor due Him as the all-powerful, all-knowing, omnipresent living God. And when the people’s shepherds feasted on the sheep, Jesus pronounced woes upon them. When the leaders hung heavy burdens upon the weak that they themselves would not carry, He condemned them for it. As He marched toward the cross, Jesus took honor away from the leaders, and the people bestowed the honor upon Him.
“The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.
So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (John 12:12-13 ESV).
This was the breaking point for the leaders. They loved the praises of men, and they despised losing honor to Jesus.
“So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.” (John 12:19 ESV).
So, they demanded that Jesus stop the people from ascribing this honor to Him. They believed this was honor due to them, the leaders of the people, men chosen by God and given this authority. Luke tells us this resentment boiled over to the point,
“And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” (Luke 19:39 ESV).
But in reality, this was honor that belonged to the Son of Man. Yet even then, it was only a fraction of the honor that was truly His by right. His response is the epitome of understatement:
“He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” (Luke 19:40 ESV).
As He entered the last week of His life upon the earth, Jesus does so with the people ascribing honor to Him. But the Scribes and Pharisees would work their evil to rob God of His ascribed honor. By the end of the week, these same men and women who shouted, “Hosanna!” would shout, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”
The cross represented shame and humiliation. Paul reminds us,
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us--for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”--” (Galatians 3:13 ESV).
Imagine, the One Who created all things allowed Himself to suffer the indignity and shame of dying this horrible death. The honor He took from the Pharisees, Scribes, and Sadducees when He entered Jerusalem upon a colt and then pronounced woes upon them was returned to the leaders when they convinced the people to demand His crucifixion and release Barabbas in His place.
The people had welcomed Him as a King, but when it was evident that He would not lead a revolt against Rome and restore David’s throne on earth, they chose a violent murderer who at least had tried to fight against Rome.
All had forsaken Him except a few faithful women and devoted disciples. He knew He could have stopped it all in a moment. He had the authority and power to stop this shame at any time. Earlier, He had reminded Peter,
“Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53 ESV).
But He didn’t. Though He could have, He didn’t.
The Bible makes it clear that He did not want to endure this humiliation. No one on earth deserved it less than He. In the garden, He prayed earnestly that the cup would pass from Him. But He remained in faithful obedience to the Father’s will.
The Hebrew writer looks back on this very event when He reminds us,
“looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2 ESV).
He endured the cross.
He despised the shame.
And He allowed His creation to take away the honor due Him.
But the loss of honor was temporary. Three days to be precise. For the Father would not let this loss of honor persist. Man may have thought he gained honor from Jesus by putting Him to death on the cross, but Almighty God would have the last word in restoring honor to His beloved Son. The resurrection was the Father’s vindication of His Son, restoring His honor and then, seating Him at His right hand.
“that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” (Ephesians 1:20-21 ESV).
The cross brought shame to Jesus that He despised, but He suffered that indignity willingly so He could be my savior. It was love that kept Him on the cross, and it was love that raised Him in power so we can also do what He did and overcome death through Him.
I am reading Deuteronomy in my daily Bible reading. Moses is about to die and recounts what God has done for them in the 40 years they have wandered in the wilderness.
Moses recounts how the spies did not trust God, leading to 40 years of wandering as God punished them for their faithlessness.
I had always thought they brought back a bad report, and immediately, God said, “That's it! I am punishing you!” But Moses tells a different story.
Moses reminded the people that He had tried to convince them to believe Joshua and Caleb's report and trust in God. It was only after they continued to doubt that God judged them.
People often paint God as a short-tempered being Who flies off the handle whenever He doesn't get what He wants. But the Scriptures paint a different picture. He is full of grace, forgiveness, and long-suffering patience.
Listen to Moses as he looks back on that event.
“Then I said to you, 'Do not be in dread or afraid of them. The LORD your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes,
and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.'
Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the LORD your God,
who went before you in the way to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go.” (Deuteronomy 1:29-33 ESV).
Our God gives us more patience during our stubbornness than we deserve. Rather than condemn Him for His judgment, let's praise and thank Him for His grace and patience for us.
I am reading Psalm in my daily Bible reading. In the 15th Psalm, the psalmist speaks about the one who does what is righteous.
“in whose eyes a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; who swears to his own hurt and does not change;” (Psalm 15:4 ESV).
Do we keep our word, even when it hurts, or are we quick to go back on our oath when the consequences hurt or may be inconvenient?
With men, it is common to keep our word when it costs us nothing, but we are different when we stand by our word because we are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, even when it hurts to do so.
Do we keep our oaths, even when it hurts?
I am reading Psalm in my daily Bible reading. I read a verse I find great comfort in that I want to share. I pray it gives you comfort too.
“The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand.” (Psalm 37:23-24 ESV).
How wonderful it is that the Lord can protect us from falling when we stumble.
How many times do we worry about making the “right decision?” This can be a cause of great consternation, can't it?
When we worry about making all the right decisions, we should remember that the Lord is powerful enough and good enough to keep us from falling even when we stumble.
God can help us not just take the right steps in wisdom but can also support us regardless of the steps we do take.
When Elijah was distraught about being pursued for standing for the Lord, he thought he was alone in his zeal for the Lord.
“He said, “I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” (1 Kings 19:14 ESV).
But God let him know that he wasn't the only one. Seven thousand people did not bow their knees or kiss Baal.
“Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” (1 Kings 19:18 ESV).
We often use this passage to highlight how God comforted Elijah by showing him he was not alone. But I find comfort in knowing that even when we are insignificant in the eyes of men, we do not fall through the cracks with God.
Not only did God know what the great prophet Elijah was doing for Him, but He knew what seven thousand nameless men and women were doing for Him.
In a society where we may be nothing but a number to most, God knows exactly who we are and where we stand. Because God knew the seven thousand who never bowed their knees to Baal, I know He knows me and how I stand for Him, even if no one else does.
I am preaching tomorrow morning. We're going to look at the Sovereignty of God through the lessons God taught King Nebuchadnezzar about sovereignty.
I think this is a topic we really need to think about. Our society seems to care less about His sovereignty. I heard one young lady on a video say she was an atheist, and even if Jesus Himself came to her and proved He was God, she still wouldn't worship Him.
My heart hurts seeing our society move further away from God. Our sovereign God will only let us go so far before exerting His sovereignty. Sooner or later, every knee will bow to Jesus, and every tongue will confess Him as Lord.
We will either kneel and confess voluntarily as His servants or as His conquered foes. The pride, arrogance, and rebellion we see in people today will be replaced with fear, trembling, recognition, and regret.
In the end, Jesus will exert His sovereignty over all His creation. I pray we all bend the knee now before it is too late.
I am reading Psalm in my daily Bible reading. In the 78th Psalm, we read about God's grace and patience with men.
“Yet he, being compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them; he restrained his anger often and did not stir up all his wrath.
He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passes and comes not again.” (Psalm 78:38-39 ESV).
Sometimes, I think we hold ourselves to the same perfection standard as God. While we do not make excuses for sins, the bottom line is that we will always be imperfect people because we are not God.
Only God is perfect. What a wonderful Pslam that acknowledges that our God understands that we are but flesh. He understands our frailties because He made us. He knows us better than we know ourselves.
While we should not stop walking with God because we assume that God will overlook our weaknesses, we need to remember that God knows very well that we are not Him. He does not expect us to be Him.
Paul says a similar thing this way:
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:1-2 ESV).
What a great God we serve who loves us in our imperfections and is committed to transforming us through the power of His Spirit into something greater than we could be without Him.