Cross Examination

One of the signs of our time is identify theft. It is bad enough when someone gets a hold of your card, but it can be even more frustrating if we are not able to right anything because the bank or insurance company, etc. does not believe that you are who you say you are.

In one notorious case of identity theft, the criminal, a convicted felon, not only incurred more than $100,000 of credit card debt, obtained a federal home loan, and bought homes, motorcycles, and handguns in the victim's name, but called his victim to taunt him -- saying that he could continue to pose as the victim for as long as he wanted because identity theft was not a federal crime at that time -- before filing for bankruptcy, also in the victim's name. While the victim and his wife spent more than four years and more than $15,000 of their own money to restore their credit and reputation, the criminal served a brief sentence for making a false statement to procure a firearm, but made no restitution to his victim for any of the harm he had caused. This case, and others like it, prompted Congress in 1998 to create a new federal offense of identity theft.

There are few things more tragic than for someone to be executed for a crime they didn't commit.

Jesus is being executed for crimes he did not commit. He is being ridiculed and mocked as an impostor king, when in fact he is the king. His identityhas been stolen. He is beaten and tortured and belittled as a “wanna be” when He is the real deal.

Setting

Jesus has now been sentenced by Pilate to be crucified. He has already been beaten and presented back to the people. They have cried out, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate has finally relented and given him over to be crucified. But before the grisly death sentence is carried out, Jesus becomes the object of mockery by the soldiers.

16 The soldiers took Him into the headquarters of the governor; and the rest of the soldiers in the detachment gathered there, hundreds of them (the entire regiment).

More than likely these soldiers had come with Pilate from Caesarea to Jerusalem to help him in maintaining order during the celebration of the Passover. These soldiers likely had had run-ins with these Jews before, had come to hate them, and had no sympathy for the Jew’s independence movement. They may also have resented having to be in this tense festival setting. Thus, they would have no sympathy at all with one who was said to be the King of the Jews.

The grudges these soldiers had were more than just petty differences and rivalries regarding the Jews; these hard feelings had lingered for years. Now they had their chance for revenge for they had at their disposal the “King of the Jews.” They had some time to pass before the execution could be carried out and chose to pass it by mocking Jesus.

17 They put a purple robe on Him and made a crown of thorns that they forced onto His head,

Mark doesn’t say what the robe they put on Jesus was. It may have been an old discarded robe that a Roman soldier would wear. Or perhaps even just an old rug that was faded. It was supposed to be purple for royalty but it was just a faded mockery of royalty.

The crown they gave Jesus was woven out of a nearby thorn bush. Caesar wore a wreath for a crown which was a symbol of divinity.

Is there any significance to the crown of thorns?

Genesis 3:18

William Hendriksen points out that in Genesis 3:18, as part of the curse, the ground is said to produce thorns and thistles as a result of Adam’s fall. Jesus now bears the curse symbolically of that fall. In order to deliver us and all creation from that curse brought by sin, He took on that curse itself. The soldiers didn’t know that but in wearing the crown, Jesus was showing how he was about to bear the curse for sin.

Once Jesus is appropriately clothed, the mocking begins in earnest:

18 and they began to cry out in mock salute.Soldiers: Hail to the King of the Jews!

They greeted Him as they would greet a king: “Hail, king of the Jews!” Their greeting was a variation of the greeting given to Caesar:“Hail Caesar, victor!”

Mark's focus is more on the mocking than on the physical suffering.

Why is that?

There was much more honor in that time. A person'sname meant everything to them. Shame was a big deal.

How different it is today.

Think about it:

When we bear the name of Christ in claiming to be Christians, and we behave shamefully, we drag his name through the mud.

19 For a long while they beat Him on the head with a reed, spat upon Him, and knelt down as if to honor Him.

The other gospels tell us that they also gave Jesus a stick or a staff because a King needs to have a scepter as well. It would be the stick they would use to beat him with. Luke says, they also blindfolded him and kept asking him, ‘Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?’ And so here is Jesus, the Son of God, dressed as a shabby, beaten king.

They spat on Him, showing their utter contempt for him. The spitting may have been a parody on the kiss of homage which was customary in the East. Only instead of kissing his cheek, they spit on his face. They bow before Him in mock adoration.

Humiliating prisoners through verbal and physical abuse (bringing shame) was a common practice in the Roman culture, but did they go too far? Do you think mob mentalityplayed a role in thesoldiers’ response toJesus?

How wicked does a person have to be, to mock and torture another human for entertainment?

Why should we behumbled by His willingness to be ridiculed and crucified?

Does this world still mock Jesus? Do we still mock Jesus?

One attempt at blasphemy and mocking, called “Judas,” is from Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” album. In the “song” she sings about how she’s in love with the betrayer of Jesus.

When he calls to me, I am readyI'll wash his feet with my hair if he needsForgive him when his tongue lies through his brainEven after three times, he betrays meI'll bring him down, bring him down, downA king with no crown, king with no crownI'm just a holy fool, oh baby it's so cruelBut I'm still in love withJudas, baby

At the Grammy Awards, Nicki Minaj, portrayed an exorcism laden with religious and sexual imagery.She first appeared on the red carpet in a red hooded robe, on the arm of an elderly man dressed as the pope.

During the ceremony, with a stained-glass background resembling a cathedral, the 29-year-old took to the stage to beltout her single "Roman Holiday," featuring a cast of back-up dancers dressed as altar boys and Catholic monks, and ended with a rendition of "O Come All Ye Faithful.”

In San Francisco, a gay group employs the cross, the crown of thorns and men with beards as part of their “contest.”

But what about us? Do we mock Jesus today? Certainly we wouldn’t do it as blatantly as these soldiers did. We as Christians wouldn’t humiliate or berate our Lord. We understand who Jesus is and all that he did.

The soldiers mocked Jesus because they didn’t take Him seriously. We too often mock Jesus by not taking Him seriously.

We say, “Yes, Jesus, you are Lord of my life! But I’ll do what I want to do with my life. I’ll do what is good for me first and foremost.” We say, “Yes, Jesus, you are King of all. As long as your kingship over me is limited to Sundays and church activities. As long as I’m free to pursue whatever I want the rest of the week. Yes, Lord, you are king, but my money is mine, not yours and I’ll do withit what I want.”

We say, “Yes, Jesus, I am one of your disciples; I am a Christian!” And yet the way we live sometimes makes a mockery of the name we bear as Christians. We lose our temper; we argue or hurt others by mocking them or gossiping about them. We say, “Yes, Jesus you are my Lord and Savior, but I don’t have time for you. I don’t have time to learn more of what you want by reading the Bible. I don’t talk with you in prayer enough to have a meaningful relationship with you.”We mock Jesus aswell because weoften don’t take him seriously in our lives.

People can profess anything they please, but a person’s life speaks louder than their profession! As someone once said, “What you do speaks so loud that I can’t hear what you say.” When we claim to love Jesus but refuse to serve Him, we are no better than the soldiers who mocked the King the day they crucified Him.

Galatians 6:7: “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked; for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.”

Mark 15:20 (VOICE)

20 When they had finished mocking Him, they stripped off His purple robe and put His own clothes back on Him. Then they took Him away to be executed.

We Should Be Humbled.

Jesus suffered undeservedly, while we have easily merited our suffering. His suffering wassubstitutionary, our is vicarious. His led to wrath, ours leads to glory. He wore a cloak as theymocked his kingship in order that we may be clothed in his righteousness. He held a mockscepter that the soldiers subsequently beat him with in order that we might rule with him. Hewore a crown of thorns that we may receive the crown of glory. Praise be to God for his mercyand love!

Mark 15:37-39 (VOICE)37 Then Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and He took His last breath.38 At that moment, the curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.39 The Roman Centurion, the soldier in charge of the executions, stood in front of Jesus, [heard His words,] and saw the manner of His death.

Centurion: Surely this man was the Son of God!

So what caused the centurion to believe?

It was what he SAW and HEARD that changed his heart.

Imagine if you will, you were the centurion of the soldiers that chose to have a bit of cruel fun with Jesus. To play a little game of mocking with this “king” and condemned prisoner.

You watch as this man, this Jesus, took all this ridicule without the slightest bit of revolt. He was calmer than any condemned man you have ever seen.

You know crucifixion was designed to be a slow, painful, smothering death. But once again, you notice something different about Jesus. You’ve seen many a man fight and struggle to their last ounce of strength as he was nailed to his cross. But not this one. With remarkable calmness Jesus almost voluntarily accepted his fate.

Throughout the day, you saw Jesus raise his head to speak a number of times. Once he even looked down at you with what can only be described as a look of love and say, “Father forgive them. They know not what they do.” You’re used to hearing curse words, not forgiving words.

When he could muster up the strength, Jesus continued to offer remarkable concern to his mother and even to the one being crucified next to him. More and more you witness this Jesus was not ordinary but extraordinary.

Soon afterwards, you hear Jesus shout one last time: “It is finished! Father, into thy hands I commend my Spirit!” And he bowed his head and died.

You heard something the other soldiers ignored. You saw something they overlooked.You heard Jesus’ cry and he saw how Jesus died.

What made the difference? Why would the other soldiers respond in fear while the Centurion responded with praise?

When the day was done… what the Centurion was “looking at” wasn’t judgment. The entire message this Centurion saw that day from Jesus on the Cross was forgiveness. That was because, unlike the other soldiers that day, the Centurion was "looking at“ Jesus on the cross.

When others look at us, can they see God’s mercy? God’s love? Canthey see Jesus? Because of ourexample, do others see Jesus as the Son of God and believe?

Mark 16:1-8 (VOICE)16 1-2 At the rising of the sun, after the Sabbath on the first day of the week, the two Marys and Salome brought sweet-smelling spices they had purchased to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. 3 Along the way, they wondered to themselves how they would roll the heavy stone away from the opening. 4 But when they arrived, the stone was already rolled away in spite of its weight and size.5 Stepping through the opening, they were startled to see a young man in a white robe seated inside and to the right.Man in White: 6 Don’t be afraid. You came seeking Jesus of Nazareth, the One who was crucified. He is gone. He has risen. See the place where His body was laid. 7 Go back, and tell Peter and His disciples that He goes before you into Galilee, just as He said. You will see Him there when you arrive.8 The women went out quickly; and when they were outside the tomb, they ran away trembling and astonished. Along their way, they didn’t stop to say anything to anyone because they were too afraid.

Sometimes I think it is hard to be astonished or amazed any more, because we see and “learn” so much from TV, movies, and internet.

But sometimes, words just fail. The deepest moments of our lives take us where words cannot go. We try. We speak. But when it comes down to it, the words seem so small. The moment is nothing short of amazing.

Example: We spend months getting ready for the birth of a child. We wait. We paint the nursery. Moms get poked and prodded. They get sick. They get too big for their clothes. Dads watch and wonder. But then that moment comes. A first breath. The cry of a new voice pierces the air. And, suddenly, everything – everything – in our lives is different.

There is joy. But that is not all. We see those small eyes and little hands, that frail body, and – maybe for the first time in our lives – we know how frail life can be. And we feel – maybe for the first time – the weight of responsibility. Here is a life that needs you. We feel joy. We feel fear. We feel something awesome.

But you know what really amazes me? Why Popeye and Bluto would fight over Olive Oil. Was it money? I don’t get it. It’s amazing.

But sometimes the further we move away from the event, it looses some of its wonder and amazement?

When what Jesus has already done for us through His death and resurrection loses its wonder and amazement, we start to live earthly …selfish lives.

We stop sharing the Good news.

We stop having visitors at church.

We stop going to any “special trouble: to glorify God.

Has this happened to you?

Have you lost your amazement?

Do we look with awe and amazement at the fact that Jesus saw us as someone he could love and even die for?

Do we live in awe and amazement of Jesus? Do approach the Scriptures anticipating what Jesus is about to do in us and through us?

Do we look with awe and amazement on the fact that the power and authority of Jesus is still active today, in every corner of the earth?

We need to be amazed by Jesus. The problem is that some people aren’t amazed at all about him. Others might have been amazed at first but over time the amazing things about Jesus became old news and lost their impact.

We need to avoid the temptation to see the familiar story of Jesus’ death and resurrection as just “the same old thing.” We need to ask God to help us see the events through the eyes of the original witnesses and to be amazed at how that weekend changed the world—including our lives.

Be Humbled, Believe,

Be Amazed

Scenes on the Path to Calvary—Alan CarrThe King is Mocked—Pastor JerryMocking the King—Brett ScollardMocking Jesus—Michael StarkSurely This Was The Son Of God—Jeff StriteA Soldier’s Story-- Jay MccluskeyAre you Amazed-Thomas BowenLesson Plan April 20—Ronald CressETB Take Away Notes for 20 April—Rod O-Neil

Greek billionaire shipping kings Stavros Niarchos and Aristotle Onassis carried on one of the most intense personal and professional rivalries during the past century. Once, Niarchos commissioned Salvador Dali to paint his portrait. The fee was $15,000. But Niarchos only came to one sitting. Once Dali had made a rough sketch, he

told him to finish the rest of the painting without him.

Miffed, Dali did as he was told. But he got his revenge by painting a nude body attached to Niarchos’ head. Adding insult to injury, he also raised the fee to $50,000, and sold the painting to Onassis.

A few weeks later, Onassis invited Niarchos to lunch at his home, where he had the Dali painting prominently displayed on the dining room wall. Niarchos took one look, swallowed hard, and said to Onassis: “All right, how much do you want for the painting?” “$75,000,” answered his rival. Niarchos promptly paid up

and left with the portrait, which was never seen again.