Peter Barnes : Mark 15:16-39
SERMON NOTES: RESPONDING TO THE CRUCIFIED ONE (Mark 15:16-39)
What did people make of a crucified Messiah? And what do they make of Him today?
- Some will mock His person.
– 15:16-20. They see Jesus as one who is said to be King of the Jews – 15:12. They mock Jesus savagely. They dress Him in a purple cloak, signifying royalty (note Acts 16:14), and place a crown of thorns on His head. Then they salute Him with a kind of sarcastic ‘Long live the king’. And they kneel before Him in the final act of mockery.
- Some will mock His message.
– 15:29-32. They centre on Jesus’ message of salvation:
(a) Mark 14:58; John 2:18-22. The temple was where the sacrifices for sin took place; Jesus is where the sacrifice for sin takes place.
(b) Jesus says that He did not come to save Himself from the cross but to save sinners through the cross – Mark 10:45.
- Some will have no idea.
– 15:34-35. Some bystanders think Jesus is calling out to Elijah as some kind of patron saint of sufferers. They obviously have no idea of Psalm 22 – see Ps.22:1-5, 27.
- Some will believe Him.
– 15:39. He is a Gentile, a centurion, a member of the Roman occupying army, but the Spirit enabled him to see Jesus crucified as the Son of God. See Mark 1:1. How much did the centurion understand? I have no real idea; but he is on the right track.
Four responses to the crucified Jesus. Where do you see yourself?