B25a-devotions

Matthew 27:38-44

Alternative devotions for Wednesday 31st December

These verses of scripture describe the awful suspense of death. Jesus hung on the cross awaiting death and bearing the agony and the taunts of others, and Matthew recorded the cruel facts; the jeering from those who passed by, the mockery of the chief priests, and finally the unpleasant scoffing of the outlaws crucified next to Him. Some of these taunts were the result of misunderstanding, others were malicious, and yet others expressed deep truths of God’s saving love completely unbeknown to those who sneered.

From Jesus’ point of view, this was his last hour of testing. He began his ministry being tested by Satan (4:1-11), and was then tested throughout his ministry by the Pharisees (see ch.12), Peter (16:22-23) and the chief priests and elders (chapter 21f.). He was also tested by the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane (26:36ff), and it continued throughout His trial and crucifixion. In this passage, the passers by tested Him saying ‘if you are the Son of God …’ (27:40).

Two outlaws (27:38,44) Two outlaws were crucified next to Jesus. Tradition generally regards these two as thieves, but the word used by Matthew is for a political insurrectionist, or a terrorist, and I have translated the word as ‘outlaws’. Jesus was killed between two people who represented all that Jesus had spent his life repudiating. He had refused to conform to the aspirations of zealots who wanted a Messiah to throw the Romans out of Israel, so when the two outlaws (27:44) taunted him, it is likely that they would have derided Him for not living up to expectations of a true Messiah.

The disciples had asked to be at Jesus’ right and left hand side (20:20-23), but they were not; this was not the kind of glory they had in mind, or were even prepared to undergo. The whole scene reminds us of part of Isaiah’s prophecy (Isaiah 53:12) ‘he was numbered with the transgressors’. We are shocked to read that Jesus was treated as a common criminal and thief, but as Jesus fulfilled even this small prophecy, He was obedient to the great plan of God for the Salvation of humanity. What extraordinary qualities Jesus possessed!

Those who passed by (27:39,40) Surely, ‘the King of the Jews’ could not be subject to crucifixion! This was the assumption of passers by about what they saw; how could God have anything to do with this? Moreover, they did not believe that the Temple would not be torn down, least of all by one man, or that anyone could save himself (27:40) and clamber down from a cross. They would not have seen the connection between what they were said and did, and the words of Psalm 22 (v7) ‘all who see me mock at me, they make mouths at me, they shake their heads …’ (see also Lamentations 2:15). These people may have heard gossip about a man from Galilee who said He would tear the Temple down and build it in three days, but at such a distance from the truth of what Jesus really said, there was little hope that Jesus’ work would be understood.

In the Praetorium, Jesus had been subject to a ‘mock’ coronation, with crown, robe, and sceptre, and the public humiliation He received was the opposite of the public acclamation that a King might expect upon coronation. Rather, the very words ‘if you are the son of God’ echo the temptations of Satan in the wilderness (4:3,6) in which Jesus tempted to exploit His privileged status. While Jesus was impaled upon the cross, it was indeed possible for Him to come down; but Jesus’ power was shown in His mastery of both Himself and God’s will in the Garden of Gethsemane. There was no possibility of a fracture between God’s will and Jesus. He would stay on the cross.

The mockery of the chief priests (27:41,42) Whilst those who passed by spoke directly to Jesus, the chief priests and elders spoke about Jesus and the crucifixion amongst themselves, in front of Jesus (‘he saved others …’ v42), adding further insults by copying the mockery of others who passed by. In this the chief priests and elders were joined by the ‘scribes’ (27:41), the scholars of the day who usually kept themselves clear of politics, but were happy to see Jesus’ challenge to their authority come to an end. The irony of everything they said about Jesus was palpable. They appeared to recognise that Jesus had indeed saved others (27:42) and laughed at Him with their ignorant challenge to Him to use His power to save Himself. The irony was on them, for they did not understand that it was precisely by not saving Himself that He was indeed now saving others.

The mockery in verse 42 also included recognition of the words written above Jesus’ head. The soldiers had written ‘This is Jesus, the King of the Jews’, but whilst the chief priests would not accept this, they nevertheless used the words to mock Jesus by saying ‘He is the King of Israel, let him come down from the cross …’. They were as ignorant of the purposes of God as the passers by, who had demanded the same miracle. The biblical scholars, the priestly hierarchy and all the Israelite leadership showed themselves to be no more knowledgeable than ordinary people, demanding signs and yet unable to see the sign unfolding before them.

Let God save Him now (27:43) The final insult hurled at Jesus was the implication that God has abandoned Him. The inter-testamental book, ‘the Wisdom of Solomon’, well known in Jesus’ day, speaks of plots made by the wicked against a ‘poor and honest man’, culminating in this telling statement; ‘If the just man is God’s son, God will stretch out His hand to him and save him from the clutches of his enemies’ (2:19,20). It is possible that this was itself derived from Psalm 22:8 ‘Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver -- let him rescue the one in whom he delights!" So when the chief priests said ‘He trusts in God, let God save Him now, if He wants to …’ they were quoting the Wisdom of Solomon and the psalm in mockery, not recognising what they were doing. What an ignorance of scripture!

The last irony is that they shouted ‘He said, “I am God’s Son”’, when Jesus never did say this. It was His mission to enable others to say this about Him; and they did, starting with Peter (16:16) and ending with Caiaphas (26:63,64). In time, people would recognise this as the essential truth about Jesus: what a tragedy. Nevertheless, there is one magnificent truth about this whole passage of scripture, and it is this. The glory of the Cross was that Jesus did not come down from it, He stayed on it.

38 Two outlaws were crucified with him, one on his right, and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by jeered at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, ‘So, you would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself then! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God.’

41 The chief priests, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him in the same way, saying, 42 ‘He saved others; doesn’t he have the power to save himself? He is the King of Israel, let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God save him now, if he wants to; for he said, “I am God's Son.”’

44 The outlaws who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.

Holy Lord, Creator of all things, God and ruler of everything,

Come and work in power amongst us, and make yourself known.

May the baby Jesus not only stir our hearts but change our minds;

May the young man Jesus not only inspire us but challenge our opinions;

Then, the Holy Spirit will set us aflame in love, and in service and worship,

And what is born in us this Christmas will bear real fruit this coming year:

AMEN

What is Sunday without the worship of the Lord?

What is Monday without honouring Him at work?

What is Tuesday without giving the Saviour His due?

What is Wednesday without discovering Him in others?

What is Thursday without enjoying ourselves in Christ?

What is Friday without sharing the Gospel with a friend?

What is Saturday without enjoying our rest in Him?

What is any day without the presence of our Lord?

And what does life mean without His creative touch?

So why not let each glorious day be His, through worship?

And why not let Him guide each one of us, every single day?

Weekly Theme: The Coming Year

The world marks the coming of the New Year with zeal and increasingly elaborate celebrations; pray against the evils that can make this into a foolish excess and waste.

On-going prayers

Give thank to God for all the blessings of Christmas time
Pray about the on-going strife between Israel and Palestine
Pray and give thanks for those who work in Christian missions

THIS IS THE ALTERNATIVE BIBLE STUDY FOR TODAY - ON THIS PAGE ONLY, and the discipleship page see below

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