(Heb. 12) - 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Thesis: examining the Cross will give us endurance.
Jesus
1) Crucifixion common, for criminals, but this is the Christ!
2) Try to grasp the pain: physical, social, spiritual, emotional
3) But, “for the joy set before Him he endured the Cross”?! Heb.12:2
Judas
1) The greed – 30 pieces of silver?! (some nobler motive?)
2) The guile –
a) waiting “From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over” Mt.26:16
b) greeting “hail, Master/Rabbi”
c) “kiss of Judas”?!
3) The guilt –
a) “is it me?” (he’s onto me?!)
b) “seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver”
c) “hung himself
4) The guest – (Lk.22:3) “Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.”
Satan
1) At the Wilderness Temptation (Mt.4:1-11)
2) Movie, “the Passion” -- Snake at Gethsemane
3) Three days in Hell?! (1Pt.3:19 - ?) C.S.Lewis, L,W,W - slab scene
Gethsemane mob
1) Clubs and torches
2) Brutes and bunglers
3) In over their head
(Jn.18) 4 Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?” 5 “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) 6 When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.
Malchus (lost an ear)
1) Ever hear Jesus, after that night?!
2) Restored ear bring redemption?
3) Would you be M for that night?! The terror? The tenderness? The truth?
4) The scar that brought salvation?!
Caiaphas (& Sanhedrin) (1/3 on 1st outline out of Jn.18)
Jn. 11 “45 Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs. 48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”
49 Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! 50 You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”
51 He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, 52 and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one. 53 So from that day on they plotted to take his life.
1) Selfish, self-serving, secular, un-spiritual
2) “balaam’s ass” prophet!?
3) Plotting vs. pliable?
Pilate (2/3 on 1st outline)
1) Warned – wife told him of her dream.
2) Weary – “what is truth?!”
3) Worldly – he represents Rome; forgets he answers to Heaven?
4) Wiley – swap you Barabbas? (murderer for a messiah?!)
5) Washes his hands, ultimately, saying “I am innocent of the blood of this just person…” What a date with destiny?!!!
6) Wanted to please the people – “Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.” (Mk.15:15
Herod
1) Family of fools? Herod the Great there at Jesus’ birth; Herod the Tetrarch at his death
2) Fornicator – had his brother’s wife (John the Baptist beheaded)
3) Fearful (or hoping for forgiveness?!) – (But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”(Mk.6:16) “…feared John…” (Mk.6:19)
4) “fox” Lk.13:32 opposite of “Lion”; conniving and weak; neither great nor straight. A shriveled soul.
5) Fooled with Jesus
(Lk.23) 8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. 9 He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10 The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.
Peter (3/3 of 1st outline)
1) Declared allegiance
2) Drained sleeper
3) Defended (?!) in the Garden
4) Denied he ever knew Him (three times)
5) Devoted sheep-feeder!
6) Death-destiny disciple
Guards who beat him
(Mk.15) 15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified. 16 The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. 17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” 19 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
1) Cruel - “cat-o’-nine-tails”
2) Sarcastic
3) Humiliating harassment
Barabbas
1) Anthony Quinn movie – haunted memory
2) Could he overhear Pilate bargaining with crowd?
3) “Substitute” – a picture of all of us?!
Crowd
1) Cows – following the crowd; herd mentality
2) coerced by the Leaders – not thinking for themselves
3) Calloused - “let his blood be on us and on our children”
The Ten
1) Hiding
2) Horrified – “what is going on?!”
3) Hopeless
Mark (?) (naked)
(Mk.14) 50 Then everyone deserted him and fled. 51 A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.
1) Amos2:16 “And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the LORD.”
2) Tradition – Last Supper in house of Mark’s family
3) No one remained, not even this valiant, young man; Jesus was all alone.
Simon of Cyrene (cross bearer)
(Mk.15) 21 A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.
1) Initial response? Years later?
2) “father of Alexander and Rufus”?! (these two boys must have grown into well-known Christian leaders)
3) song – “Watch The Lamb” - Ray Boltz
Mary, the mother of Jesus (& the women)
Jn.19:25 “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.”
1) At the Cross
2) At the tomb
3) First witnesses of resurrection
4) First gospel proclaimers?! “he is risen”
(Mt.28) 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.
John
1) Son of Thunder (with his brother, James)
2) one of the “greatest” – “right and left hand…?”
3) With the women at the Cross?!
4) Disciple of Love – he got the message! Jn.3:16
5) Jesus entrusted his mother to this disciple?!
Thieves
(Lk.23) 32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. ” 43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
1) Two attitudes
2) Two requests
3) Two destinies – “today, you will be with me in paradise”
Soldiers who gambled
1) Their next meal vs. the next life?!
2) Sitting at center of universe and all history; and totally oblivious!
3) Shallow, superficial, …
Centurion
(Mt.27) 54 When the centurion and those 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!” (Mk15) 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph.
1) Man who knew death
2) Man who knew deity
Nicodemus
1) Jn.3 Ã Jn.19 ?
2) how did Nicodemus make this journey?
3) from confused questions to devoted adoration
(Jn.19) 38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. 40 Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs.
J Joseph of Arimathea
1) Secret disciple
2) Steady disciple (where are the 12?)
3) Sacrificial disciple
(Mt.27) 57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.
Angels
1) Held their breath in heaven
2) Rejoiced to roll away the stone
3) Encouraged the women to go tell it…
Mary Magdalene (and other women)
1) Seven demons driven out of her by Jesus! (can you identify with MM?!)
2) At the Cross
3) At the tomb
4) First to witness the resurrection
Emmaus Road Pair (Lk.24:13f.)
1) Downcast faces, trudging to Emmaeus
2) Heartburn!
3) Ran back to Jerusalem, rejoicing
Thomas
1) Doubter
2) Confessor
(Jn.20) 24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Which one is you? (and me?!)
