"The Passion Of The Christ"
2004 : Week 10 | Website Version
This week’s message is another one from our friend Jon Bricker. Jon’s message provides more information on the sacrifice Jesus made at Calvary and Mel Gibson’s ‘Passion’.
Mark 10:45, as revealed by the Holy Spirit to Jon Bricker…
With the release of Mel Gibson’s movie, “The Passion of Christ”, there has also come much talk about the crucifixion of Jesus. The movie has certainly brought about a renewed interest in the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus of Nazareth. I want to answer three of the most important questions surrounding Jesus and the crucifixion – why was He and is He so controversial, what is the significance of His death, and how is His death relevant to you and me.
First of all, why all the controversy around this Man? For 2,000 years, no other person has had the controversy surrounding him or her that Jesus has had. Why? Because of whom He claimed to be. And who did He claim to be?
- The One whom God sent to die for the sins of His people:
“I did not come to be served but to serve and give my life as a ransom in the place of the many (Mark 10:45).”
- The Judge:
“And when he saw their faith, he said, ‘Man, your sins are forgiven you.’ (Luke 5:20)”
- Equal to the Father:
“I and the Father are one (John 10:30).”
“Whoever has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9).”
- The only way to God:
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6).”
Here is the significance – While Jesus was dying on the cross, He was suffering not for anything that He did. He never sinned. He was dying for the sins of others. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” As Jesus hung there, the sins of others were laid upon Him and He, according to the Bible, was, “wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:5).”
And third, how does Jesus’ death affect you and me? This is the most important question you’ll ever have to answer – how does the death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, affect you? What relevance does it have in your life? Was there anything that Jesus’ accomplished on the cross those twelve hours on behalf of you? Was there, is there, a connection between you and the death of Jesus Christ?
The Bible says that when Jesus died, He died for all who will believe in Him. The death He died, He died not because of what He had done, but because of what sinners that God loves had done. See, God is a loving and merciful God, but He is also absolutely holy and righteous and just. And justice demands that the guilty be punished. And they will be… “They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might. (2 Thess. 1:9)”
But the problem is that we are all guilty – “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).” The number one problem you and I will face in this life is not economic or relational or health related. It is our own guilt before a holy and just God. Our own conscience condemns us before God. But because of God’s love, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to suffer in the place of all who put their faith in Him… “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him (John 3:36).”
So, the question is yours to answer…did Jesus accomplish anything on the cross for you? The Bible says that question finds its answer in whom you are trusting and believing in for eternal life. Are you trusting in your own good works to save you, or do you realize that no amount of good works can justify a sinner in the eyes of a perfect and holy God except the work that Jesus Christ, the perfect Son of God, did on the cross. Your only hope of making peace with God is through trusting in Jesus. Will you trust him today?
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).”
