Monday, September 22, 2008

Mark, chapter 15

1 ¶ And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.

This Wednesday. I’m not going to get into a specific argument about the day of the week that Christ was crucified, though.

The council always goes against the truth of the Lord. The only reference to a council that is righteous is the one in the millennium that Christ talks about in the sermon on the mount.

These rulers are in subjection to the Roman governor.

2 And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it.
A Gentile like Pilate is only interested in who is going to be in charge. This was his first concern. Jesus says the equivalent of “you said it”.

3 And the chief priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing.

You want to drive people crazy who are doing you wrong. Don’t say anything. Whenever I’ve had the moral courage to use it, it has done wonders. There is authority in silence.

4 And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they witness against thee.
5 But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marvelled.
6 Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired.
7 And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection.
8 And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done unto them.
9 But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews?
10 For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy.
11 But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them.

The world will take a person who is guilty of murder over the sinless Son of God. That’s just the way the world is.

12 And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews?
13 And they cried out again, Crucify him.
14 Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.
15 ¶ And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

Pilate is a typical politician, pandering to the people. All of them lie and are afraid of the people. Rarely do they have the courage of their convictions and usually too late after a long line of cowardice. Being a politician is not consistent with being a Christian.

16 And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band.
17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,

The Romans put this robe on him. The robe is to make fun of him, a mockery of his kingship.

18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.

Notice the mockery of Jesus.

21 And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.

Alexander and Rufus must have been important Christians eventually. Rufus is mentioned in Romans 16. There are a couple of Alexanders mentioned. But the one in 1 Timothy 1:20 might be him. Notice it doesn’t say Jesus fell down like the Roman Catholic myth states.

22 ¶ And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.

Golgotha is the Hebrew while Calvary is from the Latin. The place of the skull would be linked to cranium.

23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.
24 And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.

Psalm 22:18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.

25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.

This is nine o’clock in the morning.

26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
27 And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.

The entire human race is on a cross. Either you are on his left hand or on his right. One will receive Him and one will reject.

28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors.

Isaiah 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,
30 Save thyself, and come down from the cross.

Proverbs 22:7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.

31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
32 Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.
33 ¶ And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.

This is noon, our time. Here is a physical sign for the Romans.

34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

This is 3pm our time. He is quoting Psalm 22 for you to see.

Psalm 22:1 To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?

Read the rest of the Psalm and notice those of us who are born again through Christ.

Psalm 22:30 A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.

We deserve to be forsaken by our God. If we had not received what Christ did for us on the cross, we would be doomed to Hell. At that point, God the Father turned his back on what was a worm on the cross. This is what Jesus Christ did for us. This makes me more ashamed when I am led apart by my own lusts and sin.

35 And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias.
36 And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.

Psalm 69:21 They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

The Jews are looking for Elijah to come back.

Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

But they didn’t know that a type of Elijah had already come but he wasn’t received.

Matthew 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. 15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.

John 10:18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.

The holy of holies is open to all of us now. It was not torn from bottom to top by a man but by God from top to bottom. This is a religious sign for the Jews. Both nature and the temple have revealed Him.

39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.

This person was saved at this point. The acknowledgement, responding to what he hears, understanding that Jesus is God in the flesh, is what is necessary for salvation.

40 There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
41 (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem.

Women played a prominent role in Jesus’ earthly ministry but are not given a command to lead. They are not responsible for what the apostles are given. This does not imply inferiority. There are several Mary’s other than His human mother.

42 ¶ And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,

Here is why everyone says that Christ was crucified on Friday because the Sabbath would have been Saturday even though it is said in different places that he spent three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Matthew 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

But, this isn’t a regular Sabbath but a special Sabbath. This was a special high Sabbath.

John 19:31 The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
Read Leviticus 23 carefully.

Jesus spent three days and nights in the grave and at some point on Saturday night He arose. Jesus is killed on the Passover and the next day is a Sabbath and so is the next Wednesday in addition to the regular Sabbath.

43 Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.

It was very common for a person to stay on a cross for a long time before they died but usually not ripped to shreds like Jesus was. People under crucifixion often stayed up there and slowly died. It was a brutal death.

45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.

Here, he gives permission.

46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.

Isaiah 53:9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Genesis 41:42 And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;

Exodus 28:39 And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework.

Revelation 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

By the way, the so called Shroud of Turin is a fraud.

John 20:4 So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. 5 And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.
6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.

There are, in fact, two pieces; a wrapping for the body and a wrapping for the face. The Shroud of Turin is a one piece shroud that has the image of a complete man. It is a fraud, another Roman Catholic myth to con the suckers.

47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.

Luke 8 tells us that Mary Magdalene had seven devils removed from her. The Bible does not say she was a prostitute, which is another Pagan/Christian myth.

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