Our Response to the Cross

Message preached by Bro. Ronald Vinay Kumar on Wednesday of Passion Week

With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.(Mark 15:37, 38)

At the moment Jesus died on the cross, something happened simultaneously at the temple of Jerusalem. Mark wants us to understand that the two events are connected in come way. The temple curtain was 30 feet high and as thick as the span of a man’s hand. It is made from a single piece of material. Suddenly we hear a thunderous ripping sound and the curtain falls in two pieces.

This curtain was actually a terrifying barrier to the ‘Holy of Holies’, the heart of the temple where God was said to live. The whole system was designed to show that it was not an easy thing to come into the presence of God.

The barriers are now down, and there is nothing to prevent us from enjoying a relationship with Him, because Jesus was willing to be sacrificed. Now we can be accepted by God because the punishment we deserve has fallen on Jesus, once and for all.

In this description of the crucifixion focuses not only on Jesus, but also on the reactions of those who witness the event. It is as if Mark is saying, “This is how others responded to what happened at the cross. How will you respond?”

There are a number of different reactions, which are as follows:

Reaction 1: The Busy Soldiers

We first see them mocking Jesus – in particular His claim to be King of the Jews. Then they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him.
(Mark 15:22-24)

There’s a glimmer of compassion here because they know what Jesus is about to suffer. They offer Him wine mixed with myrrh, a bitter drug to help dull the agony, but Jesus did not take it. They then crucify Him. And what is their response to this agonizing spectacle?

Dividing up His clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get. (Mark 15:24)

For the soldiers, the greatest legacy of the cross will be the garments left by the dead man. They’re absorbed in simply doing their job. And as they do so, they notice nothing special about Him. As they are ‘just doing their job’, they are missing the significance of the most important death in history. They are blind to it. No doubt they are doing their job well, but in doing their duty they miss the true legacy of the cross. And there are millions of people today who are like these soldiers. They are occupied with work with doing their duty, with paying their taxes, running their businesses. The daily activities of their intense lives keep them from seeing the significance of the cross.

Reaction 2: The self-satisfied religious

The religious leaders are already convinced that they know the way to God, so Jesus Christ is irrelevant to them. And according to them, the cross proves it.

…the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked Him among themselves. ‘He saved others,’ they said, ‘but he can’t save Himself!’ (Mark 15:31)

They’re convinced that they have their own means of gaining access to God. These types of people who have created their won man-made religion, or who follow their own morality are the most vicious opponents of the cross. Despite their ‘spiritual’ appearance, they do not want to be accepted by God in the way God planned. They are blind to the seriousness of sin, and therefore blind to the true significance of Jesus’ death.

Reaction 3: Pilate, the coward

Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of the area and responsible for the just in the region. Pilate was convinced that Jesus is innocent. He tries again and again to free Jesus from the clutches of the religious authorities. But eventually because of the pressure of the religious authorities, he hands Jesus over to be crucified. Mark 15:15 says that to satisfy the crowd, Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified, even though he new that Jesus is innocent.

Pilate was a crow-pleaser. Like many people, he was unwilling to stand out from the crowd, and he was subject to considerable pressure from those around him. Even though he knows Jesus is innocent, he gives in to the desires of others. When it was really matter, when the world was against him, he won’t stand up for Jesus. Pilate was a coward who abandoned an innocent man, someone who was a great deal more than that.

Reaction 4: The bystanders who came for the show

Mark 15:35, 36 speak about the reaction of an individual in the crowd. The man wishes to see if Elijah will come and rescue Jesus. (In Jewish legend, Elijah was celebrated as one who helped those in need.) The man has a sort of superstitious fascination as he contemplates the cross. He offers Jesus a sponge filled with wine vinegar, presumably to help postpone an inevitable death, but nothing in the scene moves him to awe, reverence, or even pity. He is totally detached from what is happening on the cross.

Some people think it’s fine to be a bystander. They think that they don’t need to do anything in the light of Jesus’ death, that even spectators automatically receive the benefit. But truth is that I only benefit from the death of Jesus if I put my trust in it.

Reaction 5: The Roman centurion

He is a hard-bitten Roman soldier, a veteran in charge of a hundred men. He has doubtless fought many grueling campaigns and seen many men die, but has never seen a man die like this. And as he watches Jesus on the cross, he realizes something:

…when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard His cry and saw how He died, he said, ‘Surely this man was the Son of God!’ (Mark 15:39)

Despite being one of those responsible for carrying out the execution, the centurion acknowledges Jesus to be the Son of God.

The Gospel of Mark is telling us that no one can remain neutral when they consider the cross. We are either too busy like the soldiers, too self-satisfied like the religious, too cowardly like Pilate, or too detached like the bystander. Or even in every odd recognize Jesus as the Son of God like the Roman Centurion. It depends upon us, not any thing else.