ResponsiveReiding

From Matthew 27:57-61 / Who’s in Your Tomb?

Joseph of Arimathea. From all the accounts combined, we learn that he was a wealthy man; a member of the Sanhedrin; that he buried Jesus with the assistance of Nicodemus; that he had not consented to Jesus’ condemnation by the Sanhedrin, and, that he was a disciple of Jesus. He was not someone who just heard Jesus and secretly believed, but he was a follower, a learner, a true disciple.

Note first: That God has His people in all sorts of unexpected places.

If the Scripture had not recorded it, no one would have suspected that any in the Jewish leadership which condemned Jesus was actually one of His disciples. And yet here Joseph is.

One wonders how Joseph walked such a fine line when his fellow leaders were so violently opposed to Jesus? Somehow he did it. One thinks too of Joanna, who was married to Herod’s own household manager (Luke 8:3). She was apparently one of those who financially supported Jesus in His ministry. Or consider the closing of Paul’s letter to the Philippians when he sends greetings from the saints of “Caesar’s household.”

No doubt, some today would look on such with great suspicion and wonder how they could serve in such places without compromise. But we forget examples such as Joseph ruling over Egypt, while also being required to marry the daughter of a pagan priest. Or Daniel, serving several pagan and even brutal administrations in Babylon. Yet they they were. Serving God in the most unlikely of places.

I know it is popular in some circles to place an almost magical superiority to those who labor in direct ministry – pastors, preachers, teachers, etc. But it is more the norm, and just as blessed and sovereignly appointed to serve God where you are.

Has God placed you in a strange and difficult secular environment? Do not lament it – embrace it. Be God’s light in that place. Do not measure your impact or importance by some invented metric of ministry. Be light there. Be salt there. Let God have the freedom to place you where He deems best in His plans and purposes – though the direct connection to those plans and purposes may not be revealed to us. Sanctify your labors, whatever they may be by serving as unto the Lord in them. The prophet Amos never disowned being a sheepherder and a fig-picker from Tekoa. But he was God’s man too. And so are everyone of His disciples, wherever His providence may have placed you.

Ryle writes cogently here: “This fact is full of comfort and encouragement. It shews us that there are some quiet, retiring souls on earth, who know the Lord, and the Lord knows them, and yet they are little known by the church. It shews us that there are diversities of gifts among Christ’s people. There are some who glorify Christ passively, and some who glorify Him actively. There are some whose vocation it is to build the Church, and fill a public place, and there are some who only come forward, like Joseph, in times of special need. But each and all are led by one Spirit, and each and all glorify God in their several ways.” Ryle, J. C. 1860. Expository Thoughts on Matthew. New York: Robert Carter & Brothers.

Note second: The wonder of the Gospel revealed in the use of Joseph’s tomb.

In Jesus’ occupying Joseph’s grave, we have the doctrine of substitution writ large.

Jesus didn’t just die for our sins, He took His place in our grave. In the place that denominates once and for all that death is final and hints of no unfinished work. This is the work of faith that all who trust in Christ are bid to do – to consider our grave as already filled. That Jesus not only died for us, He was buried for us. There is no going back. The old life is sealed away and cannot be revisited. He took all of our punishment, all of our sin, all of the justice due to us. He submitted to every last aspect of God’s judgment.

Throughout the centuries, as Christians were called upon to recite the Apostle’s Creed, or see it reformulated to accommodate baptismal candidates, the confession was similar to this:

Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth?

Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father?

Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy universal Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?

There has always been an emphasis placed upon the burial of Jesus, not only His death and resurrection. Burial is the proof that the death has really occured. That the sufferings are over. That the debt has been satisfied once and for all. And that there is no going back.

The tomb Joseph placed Jesus in, was one he had purchased and constructed for himself. So let me ask you, who occupied your tomb? Has Jesus died and been buried in your place? Have you taken His death for yours, and placed Him in your tomb so that you never fear death and judgment again? Is the work of saving grace really complete to you in your heart and mind as a tangible and lasting reality?

If so, then think one step further with me. So, that tomb is now empty as well – in the absolute hope and promise of the resurrection. Indeed, Christian, for all who look to Christ as their sin-bearer, their substitute – the grave we once thought was ours, has already been occupied – and emptied. And we are free in Him!

Hallelujah!

From Matthew 27:55-56 / 3 Women

As was common in Jesus’ day, women of some substance would often become benefactors of teachers and other notable figures. So we read here of Mary Magdalene. But with her stand Jesus’ mother – Mary, and most likely, Salome, Mary’s sister and Jesus’ aunt. It is quite a trio. In truth, we know precious little about them excepting Jesus’ Mother of whom we know the most from the Biblical record.

Note first: It is a simple fact of history that in times of great distress, often, women display a courage in the face of what seems to be hopeless – that ought to make many men ashamed.

By this time in the narrative, virtually all of Jesus’ disciples have run for cover. The seeming lone exception to that is John, whom John’s Gospel records was also at Mary’s side at the crucifixion. But the rest? Gone. Fled. Most from the Garden, and then Peter from the scene at the High Priest’s house. And yet here these three stand. Looking on from a distance, but unwilling to run and hide.

There is a God-given strength in women which is too often forgotten. A portion remaining of the imago dei that finds particular expression in the female sex. How many (if not most) will see their husbands pass before they do, and must face life alone when most vulnerable? Such widows are all around us. And how many have had weak, cowardly and selfish husbands abandon a family, leaving the wife and mother to fend for herself and her off-spring. This too ought to make very many men blush with shame.

And yet so strong is this God given grace, that countless women have raised their children all alone, eked out the most meager of livings to provide what they could, and subsisted on very little to provide and protect – when that is the God-given domain of men?

Ever since Eden, when Adam first abdicated his responsibility to provide for and protect Eve, resulting in humanity’s defection from God, women have been forced to fill roles they were never designed for. It has left both society and the Church with great and grave disorder.

Men, take note. At this horrific scene, there were “many women there, looking on at a distance” – when all the proud boasters that they would rather die with Jesus than abandon Him – were no where to be seen. The sin of cowardice is a great one indeed.

Note second: How often in Church history, it has been a small cadre of faithful women who have kept the doors of the local Church open, when the men have gone off after other things.

There is a feminine instinct for faithfulness that has persisted even through the Fall that makes itself known when the Church is in dark days. A propensity toward devotion that has sadly waned in the male sex, and by grace has been preserved in women. It has led many a godly woman to remain faithful to the house of God when a careless or godless husband offers little support or even opposition to their mate’s desire to serve The Lord. It is a loud and resounding rebuke.

Note third: The feminization of the Church, is a sure sign of male failure.

It is widely lamented in conservative circles that there has been an explosive growth in female pastors and leadership in the Church. But there should be no surprise, when we look at the lack of solid male leadership taking its proper role. And not male leadership by way of chest-thumping “me Tarzan you Jane” faux-masculinity – but leadership in the true sense of men going somewhere, and bidding others to come along.

If as a men, husbands, or mere Christians, we ourselves are not seeking Christ, pursuing holiness, ordering our lives in such a way that they display that we are on our way to Heaven and to conformity to the image of Christ – is it any wonder if no one follows?

When leadership by doing and going, has been supplanted by leadership by commanding and demanding, it is no surprise at all that respect is lost and chaos ensues.

As I was taught in science class in High School; “nature abhors a vacuum.” It is true in the physical realm and in the spiritual as well. When sound, God-fearing, Christ-seeking, purposeful men provide no leadership in the Church, others will be drawn in an attempt to fill the vacuum. Yes, it will leave the Church inherently disordered. On the one hand, since the Fall, women will seek offices and roles not their own – but perhaps even more importantly, men have stepped aside from true spiritual leadership. And I find us more to blame than those who have been drawn into the vacancy we’ve left.

Note last: The exposition of Luke 7:47 the presence of Mary Magdalene is. “Her sins, which are many, are forgive – for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”

No, the account in Luke 7 is not of Mary Magdalene, though many of tried to make a connection. There is no textual basis for the link. But the principle still applies.

We are only told about this Mary, that 7 demons had been cast out of her. Tales of her being a prostitute and other charges are unfounded. All we know is that she had been at one time in severe bondage to malevolent spirits, and that Jesus had set her free.

We can easily see why Jesus’ mother was there – this was her Son’s murder. And we can easily see why Salome was there – Mary was her sister, and Jesus her nephew. But this Mary? She had no natural connection to Jesus. There was no self-benefit to be found supporting such a malefactor as Jesus was charged with being. No. Mary is here, because she had been loved much by the Redeemer. She had been freed from her bondage to Satan’s minions. She had been forgiven her sins and her trespasses. She had been cleansed and forgiven of so much – that her reciprocal love was very great indeed. She has no problem being linked with Jesus publicly.

Nothing will make our love for Christ braver and more fervent, than a clearer apprehension of what we’ve truly been forgiven of, and freed from in Christ.

Why does our love for Him wane so? Because we have a light view of our own sin, what its true penalty was before God, and therefore what a price Jesus paid that we might be forgiven and restored to the Father.

Every attempt at self-justification and the minimizing of our sin, has a direct and proportional impact on the diminishing of Christ’s love for us, and ours for Him. It cannot be avoided.

It is true, we can be led into a morbid and unhealthy fixation on our own sin – but only if in it, we fail to look at the Cross and see its every facet met in the life, death, burial and resurrection of Christ – and of the inheritance to be made ours at His return. We have no need to see any part of our being through rose colored glasses, if we will but see Him in all of His mediatorial glory.

There stands Mary Magdalene. Notorious in her previous bondage to evil. Gazing on the Lamb of God, who in His death, took all of her sin and guilt and shame upon Himself, that she might be counted righteous in Him.

How about you?

From Matthew 27:51-54 / The Torn Curtain

Note first: What a double miracle is given to us in this account.

And when I refer to a double miracle, I am not referring to the physical miracle of the veil being torn.

As for the physical veil, there were actually 2 veils in the Temple. One, separated the courtyard from the sanctuary – where the table of shewbread, the altar of incense and the 7 branched candlestick were. Only the priests could enter here, none of the lay people. And it would have been remarkable, and visible to all if this were the curtain torn.

The second curtain was that which separated the sanctuary – or holy place” – from the Holy of Holies – where the Ark of the Covenant resided. Only the High Priest, and that, only once a year could go behind this veil. And He could do that only on the Day of Atonement. If anyone else were to go in there, they would be killed instantly. We know from the Old Testament that the garment the High Priest wore for that special occasion had a series of bells sewn into its bottom fringe. The idea was that as long as those bells were tinkling, those outside knew the Priest was still alive and walking and that the Atonement sacrifice had been accepted. Some say in addition that there was a cord around one of the High Priest’s ankles, so that if he did die in there, his body could be retrieved by pulling him out with this cord. Whether this part is true or not I do not know.

While some debate just which veil Matthew is referring to here, the writer to the Hebrews seems to put the arguments to rest. See: Hebrews 4:16; 6:19–20; 9:11–28 and especially Heb. 10:19-22 – “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”

Here then is the double miracle. That God the Father, upon the death of Jesus, tore that inner curtain from top to bottom, so that Christ could enter in for us – and make the way for us to enter in too – AND, so that the glory of God always veiled behind that curtain could now spill out into the world.

Sin has been met. A full atonement has been made. The glory of God goes out into all the world through the preaching of the Gospel, and everyone who hears and believes is invited to come and be reconciled fully to the Father without fear!

Glory!

And I would be remiss if I tried to couch all of this in better words than those already penned by J. C. Ryle: “The rending of the veil proclaimed the termination and passing away of the ceremonial law. It was a sign that the old dispensation of sacrifices and ordinances was no longer needed. Its work was done. Its occupation was gone, from the moment that Christ died. There was no more need of an earthly high priest, and a mercy seat, and a sprinkling of blood, and an offering up of incense, and a day of atonement. The true High Priest had at length appeared. The true Lamb of God had been slain. The true mercy seat was at length revealed. The figures and shadows were no longer wanted. May we all remember this! To set up an altar, and a sacrifice, and a priesthood now, is to light a candle at noon-day.

That rending of the veil proclaimed the opening of the way of salvation to all mankind. The way into the presence of God was unknown to the Gentile, and only seen dimly by the Jew, until Christ died. But Christ having now offered up a perfect sacrifice, and obtained eternal redemption, the darkness and mystery were to pass away. All were to be invited now to draw near to God with boldness, and approach Him with confidence, by faith in Jesus. A door was thrown open, and a way of life set before the whole world. May we all remember this! From the time that Jesus died, the way of peace was never meant to be shrouded in mystery. There was to be no reserve. The Gospel was the revelation of a mystery, which had been hid from ages and generations. To clothe religion now with mystery, is to mistake the grand characteristic of Christianity.

Let us turn from the story of the crucifixion, every time we read it, with hearts full of praise. Let us praise God for the confidence it gives us, as to the ground of our hope of pardon. Our sins may be many and great, but the payment made by our Great Substitute far outweighs them all.—Let us praise God for the view it gives us of the love of our Father in heaven. He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, will surely with Him give us all things.—Not least, let us praise God for the view it gives us of the sympathy of Jesus with all His believing people. He can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows what suffering is. He is just the Saviour that an infirm body, with a weak heart, in an evil world, requires.¹

¹ Ryle, J. C. 1860. Expository Thoughts on Matthew. New York: Robert Carter & Brothers.

Hallelujah!

Note second: We are never to build much on areas of Scripture that are unique and ill-defined.

It is of particular interest, that this event is not more widely entertained – either in Jesus’ day or ours. Even the most ancient commentators give it very little attention. That the Holy Spirit left but very scant details indicates to us that the spectacular nature of it is not to become a curious diversion. Yet, in our day, how many are diverted by what appear to be little more than parlour tricks by the religious charlatans that plague Christianity in the United States especially.

Here then s a great lesson – no matter how spectacular, no matter how supernatural and stupendous – when we are talking about the death of Jesus The Christ – it barely warrants attention. We are back to the Mount of Transfiguration: Listen to HIM!

A number of commentators note that the problem with our inserted punctuation (not in the original) most likely leads to a misreading. It probably should read that upon the earthquake, many tombs broke open. Then, upon Jesus’ resurrection, some saints were raised too and entered the City as proof of the supernatural work of Christ’s resurrection.

In any event, we are not given leave to speculate beyond what is written – and to stand in awe of the miracle.

Let us be content to accept that Jesus’ death and resurrection are so full of cosmic importance, that it has rippling effects we cannot even begin to fully take in and understand. It is a true wonder. Let us then just bow before the spectacle of it all – and give God our sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving.

Christ has died. Salvation has come. Let us believe – and praise Him.

From Matthew 27:45-50 / Forsaken

“My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”

These are some of the most enigmatic words in the whole of Scripture. And there is no end of speculation on exactly what they mean.

Surely, Jesus knew He was not abandoned in totality even as in His final gasp He said “Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit.” He knew His Father was still the One to whom He could and should commit Himself. While He felt the full weight of the wrath of God – for what else is His full wrath but to feel oneself utterly forsaken by Him? To have no part in rejoicing in His felt goodness, grace, mercy, love and favor – this Beloved is the very essence of Hell itself. Abandoned by God. Separate from the source of all goodness.

And yet – there is this divine paradox. He at the very same moment can commit Himself to the Father – for he knows what the Father is about in sacrificing the Son. He is making the atonement whereby guilty sinners might be cleansed from every stain, and reconciled to the Father to experience the fullness of what it means to have God and to be had by God as dear children. He is satisfying the eternal justice of the perfectly holy God on behalf of others.

Astounding!

So what then DOES this cry mean?

Whatever else, it cannot mean less than this:

1. Father – take note of why you forsake me now, that those who you have given me might be one with us. Remember your plan. Take full note of my willing sacrifice, and save your people.

2. And more, since these words are quoted from Psalm 22. With David in that Psalm He is saying: “I feel so forsaken, yet I know the good outcome of it all. I know as that Psalm goes on that “You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel” and that even though “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd and my tongue sticks to my jaws” – yet! “From You comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear Him. The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him shall praise the Lord.” In the last day “they shall come and proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn, that He has done it.”

And lastly –

3. Ah my Father – what a thing you are doing in this! This is why you have forsaken me, and it fills my broken heart with the joy of this salvation accomplished.

What a redeemer is Jesus the Christ.

From Matthew 27:32-44 / Simon of Cyrene

As I was going in the gate,

I saw Him, beaten sore

I gasped to see one wounded so

What cruelties He bore

A roaring crowd surrounded Him

I’d no idea why

I’d not traversed from Libya

To see some stranger die

It was the time of Holy Days

And that is why I came

To celebrate Passover here

To honor Yahweh’s name

And with me here were my two sons

I winced that they would see

A man half dead, and dragging lone

A crossbeam through the street

When all at once a shouting voice

Broke through my mind-shocked spell

A soldier’s grip now wrenching me

I spun and nearly fell

“Go pick it up” he shouted loud

And pointed to the beam

The One who had been bearing it

Became too weak it seemed

I tried to extricate myself

With words, to no avail

They forced me under penalty

My two son’s faces paled

I neared the timber wet with blood

The Convict said no word

Or if He did, with all the din

I doubt I would have heard

So following behind Him now

I dragged the wooden beam

I wondered if the gawking crowd

Thought we a guilty team

It would not be for many days

I’d understand it all

The truth that this poor “convict” was

The glorious Lord of all

At first I thought, His cross, I bore

That day through Salem’s road

Unfairly seized and put upon

To bear a villain’s load

Until Christ’s Gospel preached to me

My blinded eyes unveiled

And saving grace transformed my sight

So truth at last prevailed

It was my cross He bore that day

My guilt had put Him there

My sin was laid upon His back

The Father’s wrath to bear

By grace He let me feel the weight

A bit, of sin’s dread due

But only just as far as where

He’d be my substitute

When once we’d reached Golgotha’s hill

T’was He they nailed, not me

The perfect Lamb of God had died

That I might be set free

My guilt, my shame, my every sin

He paid the fullest price

The sinless Son of God that day

Became my sacrifice

And so I plead with you my friend

Come see Him hanging there

In love, your willing substitute

Your guilt and shame to bear

But more, look on to when He rose

When raised up from the dead

Ascending to the Father’s side

The Church’s living Head

To where He intercedes for all

Those His by faith and grace

Forever sealed the promise that

One day, we’ll see His face

From Matthew 27:27-31 / Whom do you serve?

Note first: Apart from the crucifixion itself, Mathew devotes only these 5 verses to Jesus’ physical suffering at the hands of the Romans. Mark allots the same. Luke merely glosses with one sentence, and John only 3 verses.

I am grateful for the tempered reports of the Gospel writers in this regard. It is often the case, that the brutality and cruelty take center stage, rather than who it was that was suffering and why. Preoccupation with the gory details diverts the eye from the from the purpose of it all and becomes morbid. One thinks of Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ.

Yes, Jesus suffered, but what He suffered is not as important as THAT He suffered, and in our place and for our sin. The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). The means and method are secondary, except in the fulfillment of prophecy and in the symbolism of Jesus’ death as a foul criminal of the lowest sort.

How many stripes He endured, how the whip was fashioned and wielded, what He felt, how much blood was lost, etc., these are all useless to us. Speculative and morbid in curiosity.

Here is what is important: “he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?” (Isa. 53:2-8)

If these considerations are not the chief of our focus, we have missed the glory and wonder of our salvation. Christ, has died for us!

Note second: How the mocking of the Romans all centers around one thing: Jesus’ Kingship. The robe, the crown, the faux scepter – the mocking kneeling – all of it.

And herein lies the key to understanding human condemnation – we do not want anyone – even God, to rule over us. We want complete human autonomy. This is the cosmic rebellion of the which the human race is guilty.

Many are those who love the idea of Jesus as Savior, delivering them from the wrath of God and Hell.

Many love the concept of a sympathetic deity, a healer, and a help in times of trouble.

But the truth of the Scripture is, we cannot have Him in all of saving benefits, if we still reject Him as King over our lives. As one having the absolute right of supremacy over our entire being.

R.C. Sproul notes: [At the time of the Gospel writers] “Christians were considered enemies of the established order of Rome and guilty of treason for their refusal to subscribe to the cult of emperor worship. The test for loyalty to the empire was the public recitation of the words “Kaiser kurios” (“Caesar is lord”). Christians refused to recite this oath, even when it cost them their lives. When they were called on to utter it, they would substitute “Iesous ho Kurios” (“Jesus is Lord”). Christians were willing to pay their taxes, to give honor to Caesar where honor was due, to render to Caesar those things that were Caesar’s. However, the exalted title Lord belonged to Jesus alone, and Christians paid with their lives to maintain that assertion.”^{11 Sproul, R. C. 2009. Who Is Jesus?. Vol. 1. The Crucial Questions Series. Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust Publishing.}

Beloved, this remains the great cosmic question for each and every one of us – not simply do we believe Jesus was real, lived a sinless life and died on the cross for our sins? – these are simple facts even the demons know to be true (James 2:19).

Do we know Him as who He is in all of His divine glory as our Savior, God and true King of our being? King over all of us, all we have and all we are? For rejection of Him as King, is the very fundamental rejection of Him in His crucifixion.

We may look on the Roman soldiers as violent brutes, but before they mocked Him as King, the Jews gathered had already proclaimed “We have no king but Caesar.”

It is no less damnable to say – in our hearts if not out loud: “I have no king but, me.”

Note third: It is this very cosmic rebellion that Jesus’ blood atones for – and provides full and free forgiveness for all who come to Him in faith.

Won’t you come today? You will find Him the wisest, sweetest, most benevolent, faithful, merciful, gracious, tender and loving King. Infinitely better than yourself, with all your enslaving passions.

As the old Bob Dylan song said:

[Verse 1]

You may be an ambassador to England or France

You may like to gamble, you might like to dance

You may be the heavyweight champion of the world

You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls

[Chorus]

But you’re going to have to serve somebody, yes indeed

You’re going to have to serve somebody

Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord

But you’re going to have to serve somebody

[Verse 2]

You might be a rock ’n’ roll addict prancing on the stage

You might have drugs at your command, women in a cage

You may be a business man or some high-degree thief

They may call you Doctor or they may call you Chief

[Chorus]

But you’re going to have to serve somebody, yes indeed

You’re going to have to serve somebody

Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord

But you’re going to have to serve somebody

[Verse 3]

You may be a state trooper, you might be a young Turk

You may be the head of some big TV network

You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame

You may be living in another country under another name

We all have to, and do serve somebody. Who, is your Lord?

From Matthew 27:15-26 / Another Jesus

In Paul’s 2nd letter to the Church at Corinth, he is concerned that through the influence of some, other sin the Church might be “led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” (2 Cor. 11:3) He then gives them 3 examples of this can happen. The first of the 3 is one that is all too common even today – when someone proclaims “another Jesus than the one we proclaimed to you.” (vs. 4)

So it today that we find cults and false religions re-casting the Jesus of the Bible to meet their own ends. It is a demonic deception of the highest order. A few ready examples will demonstrate this.

In Mormonism, Jesus is not the eternal Son of God, the 2nd member of the Trinity, but is in fact the spirit brother of Satan himself. And a man who ascended to become a god, the way all the men who obey the tenets of Mormonism faithfully can do as well. He is not the Jesus of the Bible at all.

In the doctrine of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jesus is not “God”, but a god, a created being by God. He is in fact Michael the Archangel.

Christian Science too denies the divinity of Jesus, and merely some sort of spiritual “son” of God.

Examples could be multiplied endlessly. But as John Owen once famously wrote: “the ancient Christians told those men the truth,—namely, that “as they had feigned unto themselves an imaginary Christ, so they should have an imaginary salvation only.”¹¹ Owen, John. n.d. The Works of John Owen. Edited by William H. Goold. Vol. 1. Edinburgh: T&T Clark.

What does this have to do with our text? As it turns out, while the textual evidence is not absolute, we do see that a number of ancient manuscripts of Matthew’s Gospel, in both vss. 16 & 17 read in effect: “Whom do you want me to release for you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Christ?” The Barabbas’ forename was Jesus, the same as Jesus the son of Joseph and Mary. So the question becomes – Which Jesus do you want: The real Jesus, the Son of God, or some other Jesus, one who shares your fallenness and sin and you feel more comfortable with?

And this dear reader, is a most necessary question for us today.

I believe it was Mark Twain who once quipped that God made us in His own image, and we’ve been returning the favor ever since.

As the Children of Israel in the wilderness, when under Aaron’s weak leadership they cast a golden calf – they didn’t switch Gods – in fact after seeing the calf they called that calf the Lord! Yahweh.

We must be absolutely clear on this issue beloved, if we would be saved from our sins, reconciled to the Father and granted everlasting life. We cannot, we dare not have another Jesus. We must have the Jesus of the Bible.

The one we are to trust in with all our hearts – must be the Lord Jesus Christ of the Bible if we are to have a true salvation, and, true help in our time of need.

‌Running to the wrong Jesus is as helpful as getting the time from a wrist watch tattoo. It may have the appearance of the real – but in the end, it is an utter fake.

‌The Jesus we need is the Jesus of the Bible – so magnificently above all the fakes as the heavens are above the earth. And He is magnificent!

‌In J.C. Ryle’s incomparable book: “Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots” – Ryle makes the observation that: “It would be well if professing Christians in modern days studied the four Gospels more than they do. No doubt all Scripture is profitable. It is not wise to exalt one part of the Bible at the expense of another. But I think it would be good for some who are very familiar with the Epistles, if they knew a little more about Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John…I say it because I want professing Christians to know more about Christ. It is well to be acquainted with all the doctrines and principles of Christianity. It is better to be acquainted with Christ Himself. It is well to be familiar with faith, and grace, and justification, and sanctification. They are all matters “pertaining to the King.” But it is far better to be familiar with Jesus Himself, to see the King’s own face, and to behold His beauty. This is one secret of eminent holiness. He that would be conformed to Christ’s image, and become a Christ-like man, must be constantly studying Christ Himself…Now the Gospels were written to make us acquainted with Christ. The Holy Ghost has told us the story of His life and death,—His sayings and His doings, four times over. Four different inspired hands have drawn the picture of the Saviour. His ways, His manners, His feelings, His wisdom, His grace, His patience, His love, His power, are graciously unfolded to us by four different witnesses. Ought not the sheep to be familiar with the Shepherd? Ought not the patient to be familiar with the Physician? Ought not the bride to be familiar with the Bridegroom? Ought not the sinner to be familiar with the Saviour? Beyond doubt it ought to be so. The Gospels were written to make men familiar with Christ, and therefore I wish men to study the Gospels.” _{Ryle, J. C. Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots. William Hunt and Company, 1889, pp. 278–79.}

‌Spurgeon preached: “Depend upon it, there are countless holy influences which flow from the habitual maintenance of great thoughts of God, as there are incalculable mischiefs which flow from our small thoughts of him. The root of all false theology is belittling God; and the essence of true divinity is greatening God, magnifying him, and enlarging our conceptions of his majesty and his glory to the utmost degree.”

‌In trouble, trial and tribulation, we need the glorious,stupendous, magnificent Christ of the Bible.

‌Do you remember that great confession of Nebuchadnezzar after God restored him from his humiliation? Daniel 4:34–35 “At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?””

‌This is The Lord we are being exhorted to trust in – and He is worthy of such trust.

‌You will not read Christ exalting words like these in any religion or cult, and you would certainly never invent them yourself.

‌THIS, is the Jesus of the Bible.

‌Trust HIM with your salvation.

‌Trust HIM in all His promises and that the rewards of Christ are greater than any pleasure of sin.

‌Trust HIM in His holiness, faithfulness, power, goodness, grace, mercy and love.

‌Trust the LORD, with all your heart. Trust Him as God eternal – one with the Father.

‌If you are not a Christian yet – this is the one you must trust in order to be saved from the wrath of God for your sin: Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.””

‌And Believer – there is no one else you can absolutely trust with every care, burden, need, concern and trial: Psalm 112:6–8 “For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.”

‌Beloved, this is so vastly important. I need to be sure we do not let this need to know Christ in His fullness pass by without pressing it.

‌Everything hangs on it.

From Matthew 27:11-14 / The Silence of The Lamb

Note first: As we’ve already seen, when Jesus was tried at Caiaphas’ house (26:57-68) He never answered any of the charges that were leveled against Him. Even though those charges were all false.

Now, He is before Pilate – the Roman authority over the region. Once again Jesus is subject to a host of accusations, but once again He remains silent. It is a startling scene. Jesus Himself as we well know – as His accusers well know – was innocent of all those things with which He was charged. What we observed once is brought into focus again so that we do not miss the emphasis. In His role as our sin-bearing substitute, Jesus is fulfilling Isa. 53:7 “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”

He is exegeting Isa. 53 in the flesh. Not as a theological abstraction, but in reality.

And why was it this way? Because as Isaiah goes on to say: “Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isa. 53:10-11) He makes no defence, because He is bearing OUR guilt. He is making Himself responsible for our sins. He is willingly being charged with our sins, so that He make take our punishment upon the Cross, so that all who put their faith in His atoning sacrifice may be accounted righteous with His righteousness.

This, is the Gospel. The Gospel placed so fully before us that we cannot miss it. All other false Gospels and theories surrounding Jesus’ death find their demise here. He will not try to acquit Himself, because He is willingly taking the whole of the just accusations against human sinfulness upon Himself.

Do not run by this passage Beloved. Stop and ponder it, carefully. It is not a cast off or incidental moment.

When He was first taken in the Garden, He told His captors that He was at liberty to appeal to the Father for a host of angels to deliver Him. But He didn’t. He never tried to avoid what was just before Him. For to do so would do 2 things: 1 – To fail to do the Father’s will. 2 – Leave us in our trespasses and sins. It would condemn us. Neither of which He would do. No matter the cost.

What a Savior!

Reader, if you are not a Christian yet today, then please listen to me. There is no sin so wicked, so long indulged in, so deeply ingrained into your soul, that Jesus’ did not account for in His death. He offered no exceptions. He made not the slightest hint that anything was excepted. He has removed every barrier to your salvation in His substitution. He has opened the door to flee to the Father. You may come and cry out “have mercy on me!” and know that there is absolute provision for your every wickedness. God put Him forward as a propitiation – a satisfaction in His blood – to be received by faith. He can cleanse you of all your guilt, and every shame, when you bow before Him, confess your sin, and rely on His death, burial and resurrection alone, for complete reconciliation to the Father. Come to Him today!

And fellow Believer, you who even after years of walking with Christ have found that sin remains a constant inward enemy, and has caused you to stumble and fall – remember that all of your sins were still in the future when He died for you. As yet you had committed none of them. And He is neither shocked nor dismayed at your stumblings. His blood remains sufficient until the day you wake in His likeness. Maybe you need to refresh yourself in the Gospel yet again today, so that you may walk with Him in freedom once again. As the hymn writer said: “Jesus paid it all; All to Him owe; sin had left a crimson satin; He washed it, white as snow.”

Note second: Once again we see that His only response is in terms of His identity.

Pilate’s question was no doubt cast only in terms of whether or not Jesus would claim to be King of the Jews so as to stand in political opposition to Caesar. Hence Jesus’ qualified answer. Yes, He is King of the Jews, but not in the way Pilate imagined. As John would elucidate in his account – Jesus would tell Pilate: “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” (John 18:36)

He remains both just, and the justifier of all who come to Him by faith. He will never deny Himself, even when totally misunderstood. He remains, King of the Jews. More, He is “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” (Rev. 19:16).

And one day, the entire cosmos will see it it and own it as true. “God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11)

Note third: As we cited above from Isa. 53 – “It was the will of the Father to crush Him.”

Jesus did not interpose Himself on sinner’s behalf in opposition to the Father – but in fulfilling the Father’s will. Father, Son and Holy Spirit entered into a divine conspiracy to rescue fallen men and women through this astounding plan of salvation.

Jesus didn’t appease an unwilling God, but rather satisfied the Father’s inviolable holiness and justice by dying in our place.

What a wonder this salvation is. No wonder the writer to the Hebrews says that it is so profound, that even the angels strain to peer into it so as to understand the amazing mystery it is.

Hallelujah!

From Matthew 27:1-10 / Too Little, Too Late

Note first: What a difference there is between regret and repentance.

It is common today for some to say that repentance (usually appealing to the word – metanoia in the Greek) is merely a change of mind. And while a change of one’s mind is included in genuine repentance, that is not ALL that repentance includes. Someone may well regret the results of some of their decisions, and change their mind as to whether or not some decision or the other was a good one – without changing the fundamental course of his or her life. And so it seems in the case of Judas.

As one commentator notes: “Judas is “seized with remorse” (from Greek metamelomai). This verb is much rarer in the New Testament than the typical verb for “repenting” (metanoeō) and seems here to refer to a change of mind or feeling of regret, which falls considerably short of full-fledged repentance (cf. 2 Cor 7:8, in which such remorse precedes repentance;11 Blomberg, Craig. 1992. Matthew. Vol. 22. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

Many regret their sins and the results, so few truly repent, and in the power of the Spirit plot a new course in following Christ.

Note second: That some repentance may be too late.

The text appears to indicate that Judas did not change his mind (vs. 3) until after Jesus was sent to Pilate and condemned. It was too late then to change any course. The damage was done. As with Esau, Heb. 12 tells us he found no chance to repent even though he sought it tearfully. He had made an irreversible decision, just as Judas had.

Does this mean neither could find forgiveness with God? Not necessarily, unless Judas’ act falls under the category of having blasphemed the Spirit by denying what Christ had done was by the Spirit – by which reasoning he sold Jesus out. But by another irreversible decision, that of suicide, he precluded any possibility of repentance by his own hand.

Like those Jesus referenced in Matthew 7:21-23 and 25:31-46 – when the day of judgment arrives, it will be too late to cast off sin and obey Christ.

And who knows when that day will come?

Note fourth: No good works can be used to mitigate our sins.

Does doing something good for the poor with Judas’ returned money in any way, in even the tiniest way mitigate the evil done by virtue of Jesus’ betrayal? Of course not. Nor should we ever treat the good done by those who trade on the back of The Gospel as though it offsets the wickedness otherwise done by those who rob people in God’s name.

Many a televangelist (and others) can point to great good done through the contributions extorted from their hearers. But know well that salvation is no a matter of somehow balancing cosmic scales of good works versus bad works. That is false religion altogether. A man or woman must be right with God through the imputed righteousness of Christ – borne out in a life lived unto Him. As cited above, in the last day, some will point to their exorcisms, mighty works and prophesies done in the name of Jesus – all to no avail because they did not walk with Him in holiness.

Note fourth: The only real difference between Judas and Peter – was grace. God’s grace.

O how great debtors to grace all the redeemed are! There is little doubt I would have been Judas too, had it not been for grace. Had it not been that Jesus preserves some from themselves, when none of us would preserve ourselves. I know that God’s grace is a sovereign gifts, for I know full well I would never have chosen Him, if He had not chosen me. And so it is with all who have come to saving faith.

And yet, if you are not a Christian today – nothing holds you back from coming and receiving that very same grace today – since He has given us warrant to proclaim its availability to every living creature (Mark 16:15-16).

As Jonathan Edwards once preached: “Come to Christ and accept salvation. You are invited to come to Christ, heartily to close with Him, and to trust in Him for salvation. If you do so, you shall have the benefit of His glorious contrivance. You shall have the benefit of all, as much as if the whole had been contrived for you alone. God has already contrived everything that is needful for your salvation; and there is nothing wanting but your consent. Since God has taken this matter of the redemption of sinners into His own hand, He has made a thorough work of it. He has not left it for you to finish. Satisfaction is already made; righteousness is already wrought out; death and hell are already conquered. The Redeemer has already taken possession of glory, and keeps it in His hands to bestow on them who come to Him. There were many difficulties in the way, but they are all removed. The Savior has already triumphed over all, and is at the right hand of God to give eternal life to His people. Salvation is already brought to your door; and the Savior stands, knocks, and calls that you would open to Him so that He might bring it to you. There remains nothing but your consent. All the difficulty now remaining is with your own heart. If you perish now, it must be wholly at your door. It must be because you would not come to Christ that you might have life, and because you virtually choose death rather than life.” – ^{This when he preached on Matt. 23:37. Quoted from Soli Deo Gloria’s Devotions from the Pen of Jonathan Edwards.}

“Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let that grace now, like a fetter,
Bind my yielded heart to Thee.
Let me know Thee in Thy fullness;
Guide me by Thy mighty hand,
Till, transformed, in Thine own image
In Thy presence I shall stand.

Come to Christ today, while the day of grace is still dawning.

From Matthew 26:69-75 / Peter on Trial

While Jesus stood confronted with false charges by the religious hierarchy of the day, Peter was confronted with an accusation of mere association, and that, by only an anonymous servant girl. By law, she could not even give testimony in court. But Peter is wilted before her and the others. O how cowardice can grip the soul of even the most stalwart at times. I have felt this wicked tendency in myself more times than I wish to admit.

Note first: How even very great men may commit the gravest of sins.

Few in Church history will be able to match Peter’s boldness in the days to come – before any and all. He proves in time to be a lion for The Faith. But here, he denies his Lord in the most profane way. Still, in days to come, he will suffer any loss gladly for the name of Christ. In Acts 5, he will stand before the very ones who condemned Jesus to death, refuse to back down from preaching the Gospel irrespective of their threats, and will leave rejoicing that he was counted worthy to suffer dishonor “for the name.”

What a restoring God we serve.

Note second: Sins do not die. We die to them, but they do not die to us.

Scripture enjoins us to “put to death the deeds of the flesh” (Rom. 8:13), but that does not imply that sins or sinful tendencies themselves actually die. We will have to take up our cross daily in this regard. So it is Peter will have to face this weakness in himself again. Paul records his confrontation with Peter in Galatians 2 when he buckled under the gaze of “certain men from James” and eating with the Gentiles.

Who knows how many unrecorded seasons of wrestling with this tendency Peter went through before his martyrdom? But history would tell us he proved faithful to the end.

Beloved, do not imagine that any sin – though it lay dormant for many years – may not at the slightest provocation rise up again in an instant. As The Father warned Cain: “sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.” (Gen. 4:7)

Many a sincere man or woman of God has despaired because they find some sin rising up over and over to tempt them. But do not despair. Sin WILL NOT have dominion over you. (Rom. 6:14) Fight the good fight of faith. Keep looking to Jesus. He will sustain you. And the day WILL come when sin will be no more. Take heart as you see our brother Peter continue to prosecute his battle.

Note third: The nature of true repentance.

While Peter fails so miserably here, it will be but a very short time before he stands at Pentecost with a boldness in proclaiming Christ which shook the world.

It is grieving in our day to see so many in Church leadership falling into disqualifying sin. But what sets Peter apart is the measure of repentance. We never read of his attempt to mitigate his sin. He never points the finger at any other(s). He does not water it down any place. We read of no attempts to explain his sin in any way so as to make it less heinous. Nor does he try to thrust himself into the limelight. He doesn’t try to reinstate himself, to recover his “ministry.” Even after Jesus appears to Peter and the others in John 20 – what is Peter’s next move? “Peter said to them, I am going fishing.” ‘“ He is bereft of any notion of establishing a ministry or anything of the sort. How unlike those today.

No, when he hears the cock crow, when it dawns upon him what he’s done, he goes out, and weeps bitterly; the word there implying even violently. This is not some tepid, weepy tear over getting caught, for no one accused him of anything – this is his own heart violently rending itself at the reality of his wickedness.

He models what Paul will later unpack as “godly repentance” in 2 Cor. 7. Godly repentance produces true, deep grief, and the expending of every effort to clear oneself of such things going forward. It fills the heart with indignation at self, fear over how wicked the sin is, a longing to show oneself better for Christ, zealous for what is good and fully receiving all due punishment. And how does this show itself? Above all things – in owning and proclaiming Christ publicly and under any threat by any group whatsoever. A total reversal from his former course.

True repentance always requires a reversal of one’s former course. No matter what the besetting sin itself was.

Note lastly: How in due time, Jesus restores His erring son.

Oh blessed Redeemer! How your mercy and your grace transcend all of our guilt and our shame.

What a Savior!