By: Pastor Rick Smith

“And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid. And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him…” (Mark 10:32). We have been meditating on traveling with Jesus on the road to Calvary – in particular, we have been looking at how Jesus prepared His disciples for what would take place at Calvary. In our meditation on these things I think that we should consider why Jesus came. The angel to Joseph said, “And (Mary) will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21). Christmas and Easter (the Resurrection day) are join together in this verse. Jesus came to save sinners (Mark 10:45, 1 Timothy 1:15), but the cross was the means by which the Father determined that we should be saved. The Lamb of God must be slain and His blood applied to our souls for us to be saved. Jesus took our place and died for our sins taking our punishment. As we listen to what Jesus said to the twelve and the others who were following Him to Jerusalem, remember that Jesus was leading the way to Calvary.

“And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him, Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death…” (Mark 10:32b-33a). Jesus told His disciples that He was going to be killed at Jerusalem. Jesus told them that He was going to be betrayed and turned over to the chief priests and the scribes. Two Jewish authorities were going to judge Jesus: the ecclesiastical authorities, which were the chief priests, and the theological authorities, which were the scribes. These held great power, but had no authority to execute anyone. The Jewish authorities could condemn Jesus, but they had no authority to execute Him. In telling these things to His disciples Jesus revealed that He knew all that was about to happen to Him in Jerusalem. Despite this Jesus willingly led the way to Jerusalem and His upcoming death on the cross.

“…and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles: And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him…” (Mark 10:33b-34a). The Jews were not an autonomous government. As we have seen they only had ecclesiastical and theological authority. They did not have the authority to execute Jesus. For that they needed a governmental authority and that government was under the control of the Romans. So they did what no Jew ever did, and that is to turn one of their own over to the Romans. The Romans, under Caesar, had only one rule that they governed by. They wanted to maintain peace and to back that peace they had the legions of Rome and Pontius Pilate, the governor. Jesus said that the Romans would do more that kill Him, they would mock, flog, spit on Him, and then kill Him. The Romans executed by the means of crucifixion. Jesus is now prophesying to His disciples how He would die. The Romans used crucifixion as a means of controlling those they conquered. It was a method that was cruel beyond measure to the victim and it was visually terrifying to those that observed the practice in action. It would be horrible to go through the process of dying on the cross, but it would be an unimaginable misery to think of someone you cared about dying that way. This is what the disciples could not grasp. They could not imagine Jesus dying on the cross.

The disciples and the others that followed had already heard what Jesus had said on the other two occasions about His death. Mark 10:32 tells us as they followed Jesus in the way that “…they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid.” Jesus had already spoken of His upcoming suffering and death. It is clear that they were following Jesus to His rejection, suffering, and death. Some believe that Jesus was trying to comfort them through this time with what He told them. Whether or not that was true, we don’t know. But it was necessary that those that followed Jesus clearly understood that what was about to take place was in the prophesied will and plan of God the Father. “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:10-11).

Three times Jesus told His disciples of His death and three times Jesus ended with this precious promise: “…and the third day he shall rise again.” Each time that Jesus said it His disciples seemed to have missed it. Don’t you miss that promise, because your salvation and mine depend upon that one very precious promise. Why did Jesus come? Jesus came to be the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. Belief in Jesus centers on both His death and resurrection. So “…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9). Repent now of your sins and put your trust in Jesus Christ as your risen Lord and Savior. I pray that you will.

If you have any questions, we invite you to visit with us this Sunday. Worship at 10:50 A.M. We are located at 711 West Washington Ave. Check our sermon videos on Youtube @ricksmith2541. Send comments and prayer requests to prayerlinecmbc@gmail.com.

Rick Smith is the Pastor at Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Artesia.