Matthew
27:32-66
Sermon Notes
Quaking
Mockers
July 2,
2017
Lynchburg,
Virginia
EXHORDIUM
We
now arrive at the crucifixion. But before we get there the enemies of Jesus
take one last victory lap. Well, it is not even a victory lap. Before they make
their way around the first corner, the ground is shaking, the sun goes dark and
the Roman world begins to repent.
Some of the enemies of Christ are
quickly conquered. As Spurgeon mentions in his commentary on this passage, the
worst type of fellows often respond more readily than the religious or academic
men of the day.
The
cruel and vile soldiers acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God. The Pharisees
prepare to kill Him again if He has the audacity to rise from the dead.
EXEGESIS
Matthew 27:32 And as
they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to
bear his cross.
Let
us all be like Simon of Cyrene, who must take up our cross and follow Jesus.
To
follow Jesus was not a victory lap or the place of ease and adulation as the
disciples had imagined. Rather, it was this place taken by Simon. To follow
Jesus is to follow a trail of blood to the place where sins are crucified among
a mocking crowd. This place, seemingly the place of shame, is rather a place of
honor. To suffer persecution for Christ’s sake, is to be seated with Him in
high esteem.
33 And when they were come unto a place called
Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, 34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with
gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.
There
is a great deal of speculation about the wine mixed with gall and/or myrrh. It
was some sort of drug, probably administered prior to nailing the victim to the
cross. It would put him in a state of stupor so that they could get their job
done more easily. Jesus would have none of it. He would take the full suffering
of the cross.
35 And they crucified
him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which
was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture
did they cast lots.
36 And sitting down they
watched him there;
They
were unbelieving but curious. At least one centurion’s watching was rewarded.
Even
these men, who gambled for the robe of Jesus, got more than they bargained for.
They are here covered in sins but at least one of them was later clothed in
Christ.
37 And set up over his
head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
In
Latin- King of the Romans, and in Greek- King of the Gentiles and in
Hebrew-King of the Jews.
38 Then were there two
thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. 39 And they that passed by
reviled him, wagging their heads, 40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple,
and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God,
come down from the cross. 41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him,
with the scribes and elders, said, 42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he
be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will
believe him. 43 He
trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am
the Son of God. 44 The
thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.
Jesus
was crucified with thieves but even here He extends grace.
Unbelief
must have its vent. See, I told you He was a liar and a fake. He has not
delivered us. The Romans mock, He cannot deliver these wretched Jews. One of
the thieves mock, He is just like us. The chief priests, scribes and elders
mock. A miracle worker? Get off the cross then! Do that and we will believe. No
you won’t! Not even if One were to rise from the dead!
45 Now from the sixth
hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.
It
is darkness as Jesus becomes sin on our behalf. Jesus laments the rift in the
Godhead. Not in the essence of the Godhead. Father, Son and Spirit are
essentially One, immutable and unchangeable. However, Jesus, the man was a
perfect Son and had no occasion to suffer the wrath of His Father. But now, the
perfect Adam has willingly taken the punishment of all the disobedient sons, so
darkness must ensue.
46 And about the ninth
hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is
to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Jesus
quotes Psalm 22, an ejaculation of fear and dismay as God’s immediate presence
has left Him. David must have felt this sort of dismay as well. Sometimes we
feel as if God has abandoned us. Never was that feeling so keen as in the
person of the sinless Jesus. But God did not leave Jesus alone. As we read down
the Psalm, God, the Father heard His cry and delivered His soul from Sheol.
Furthermore, the Spirit brought the body of Jesus back to life on the third
day.
47 Some of them that
stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for
Elias. 48 And
straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with
vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. 49 The rest said, Let be,
let us see whether Elias will come to save him.
There
was a report that Elijah was to come before the Messiah. Here, some watching
mistake Jesus’s words as a call for Elijah. They try to revive Him so that they
can see if Elijah will show up to rescue Him. To some extent this was another
fleeting hope for some who watched.
But
Jesus was not calling for Elijah. In fact, the promised Elijah had already come
in the person of John the Baptist. He came in the power and spirit of Elijah
and he, too, was martyred for speaking the truth.
50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud
voice, yielded up the ghost.
Jesus
gave Himself up. He yielded up the ghost. He did not simply die of His wounds.
He gave Himself up to death. He was delivered by the hands of wicked men but
according to the will of the Father. Even now, He must willingly die and He
does so.
51 And, behold, the veil
of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did
quake, and the rocks rent; 52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of
the saints which slept arose,
The
enemies of Christ kept the veil in the temple, perpetuating their greedy and
self-conceited ways. Jesus now exposes them, revealing the holy places where
all men might now dwell.
The
world was in a tumult. This perfect Son, this perfect human, could not die
without the Earth rebelling. The ground quakes, the rocks break, the curtain
tears, the graves break open, and the dead are brought to life.
53 And came out of the
graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto
many.
54 Now when the
centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and
those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the
Son of God.
This
is the good confession, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. The events of the
death of Christ made at least one man a believer. This man had tremendous
influence. Centurions oversaw a group of about 80 men. Some Centurions
commanded a cohort, consisting of 480 men. This man is at least convinced
enough to make a profession about who Jesus really was.
55 And many women were
there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto
him: 56 Among which was Mary
Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s
children.
The
women were watching these events, Mary Magdalene, the other Mary and James and
John’s mother.
Matt. 27:57
When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named
Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple: 58 He went to Pilate, and begged the body of
Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.
Pilate is surprised that Jesus is so soon dead.
Crucifixion often made men linger to death. This is also an indication that
Jesus died willingly before the natural process took its course.
Joseph is connected to Nicodemus. These two were
secret believers. They had come to Jesus by night. Jesus told them that He
would be lifted up, like Moses’s brazen serpent (John 3:14-15).
They, too, were told that passage we all know,
John 3:16.
These two men now come and seek the body of
Jesus. They believe. They have looked upon Him who was lifted up, that
whosoever looks upon the Son of God by faith shall be saved.
Jesus even told Nicodemus and Joseph that men
loved the darkness rather than the light. And these two men had come to see
Jesus in the darkness. Why? Because they were afraid of the Jews. But now they
are emboldened to belief come whatsoever may.
59 And when Joseph had
taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had
hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre,
and departed.
Jesus lay in the tomb of Joseph. Joseph was rich
but he was a man of fear and of darkness. Jesus may lay in Joseph’s tomb for him.
Not even the rich and mighty can escape death. How much more the poor and
powerless?
61 And there was Mary
Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.
Why were they sitting and waiting? Hoping?
Despairing? They later come to the tomb with burial spices so at least by then
they had given up hope of Resurrection.
62 Now the next day,
that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came
together unto Pilate, 63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said,
while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. 64 Command therefore that
the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by
night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead:
so the last error shall be worse than the first.
The Pharisees have their story and they are
sticking to it. The Pharisees did hear Jesus say that He would rise from the
dead. They prove here that they are fighting against God. They fear that Jesus
will indeed rise and need the help of Roman soldiers to keep Him dead.
Spurgeon points out the just a short time before
the leaders had used Jesus’s words about Resurrection to try to prove that
Jesus was a malefactor who wanted to physically destroy the Temple. They show
here that there accusations were trumped up. They knew that He was speaking
about the Resurrection of His body.
Again, divine irony sets in. Because they have
rejected Him and destroyed His body, the true Temple of God, their earthly
temple was also destroyed, not one stone left upon another.
65 Pilate said unto
them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. 66 So they went, and made
the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.
Ironically, the Pharisees’ action here is a strong
proof of the Resurrection. They did not believe Jesus would rise from the dead.
Or, if He did, they wanted soldiers there to take Him prisoner again. But the
fact of a Roman watch on the tomb guarantees that none of Jesus’s peevish
disciples could have come and stolen the body. This makes their after-story
quite pitiful. The soldiers themselves would have nothing to do with such a
dangerous story, had the Pharisees not given them large money to tell the lie
that they had fallen asleep on the watch.
EXHORTATION
The
great message here is in the victory of Jesus. It looks like death. It looks
like the enemies win the day. It looks like though the ground shakes and though
the sun hides his face, that the enemies of Christ have finally won.
But, like Paul Harvey, we have to tell
the rest of the story. The Resurrection is coming. The enemies of Christ are
thwarted. The enemies of Christ even unwittingly advance the cause of Christ.
Whether submitting to Christ or
resisting Christ, the will of the Lord will be done. The enemies receive their
just due, Judas, Pilate, the leaders of Israel. But there is grace for those
who call upon Jesus. One thief dies and meets His maker who casts him into the
lake of fire. The other thief dies and goes to paradise with Jesus.
Both had sufficient time for
repentance. Both behold the face of Christ. But only one looked to Him for the
forgiveness of sins.
The
words written in Latin and Hebrew and Greek, declare to the world that Jesus is
the King. This is true.
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