Reflective Bible Study

As John describes the time Jesus spent on the cross, he includes a unique detail that draws our attention onto a situation that none of us would want to face. While Jesus is hanging on the cross, John draws our attention onto some women standing near the cross who were close to Jesus, including Jesus’ own mother.

While I believe other gospel writers might include this detail in passing, John draws attention onto it in his gospel because he focuses on a message Jesus shares with His mother, and a disciple who was standing there as well. While the gospel does not name this disciple as John, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that this disciple was John, James’ brother, and one of Jesus’ inner circle of three disciples.

Let’s read these few verses and draw out some things we can learn from what happened. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 19, and we will read it using the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 25, John tells us that:

²⁵ Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶ When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” ²⁷ and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

In these few verses, we discover an amazing picture of Jesus. In these verses, we discover that while Jesus is in unimaginable pain, the focus He has is not on Himself, but on those who are around Him.

In this particular case, Jesus looks down from the cross and He sees His mother, and a disciple that Jesus knows will live longer than Mary. I suspect that Mary would have been at least 25 years older than John, and with life expectancies in that era being shorter than they are today, I suspect that Mary may have passed away within a decade or two following Jesus’ return to heaven.

While we don’t know the details surrounding how long John cared for Mary in his home, I don’t have any reason to doubt that John protected Mary after Jesus was gone.

Reading this event prompts me to ask the question about why Mary wouldn’t have been cared for by Jesus’ brothers or sisters. Earlier in John’s gospel, we see Jesus spending time with His brothers before they leave for a festival without Jesus, and other gospels have Jesus’ mother, brothers, and sisters arriving one day with a message for Jesus while He is preaching.

There is no doubt that Jesus had siblings, but this detail in John’s gospel makes me wonder why John would need to adopt Mary. We might not ever have answers for this question on this side of heaven, but I suspect that Jesus knew what He was asking, and John accepted Jesus’ request to care for Mary.

I wonder too if this request was for Mary as well. I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to lose one of my children, or to watch them die while I cannot stop it. I also do not want to ever experience this or anything even remotely like this. In Jesus’ death, Mary experiences more pain than most people ever would, and I wonder if Jesus connecting Mary with John was a way Mary could continue forward in life with someone who was close to Jesus and who may have been able to remind her of Him.

In Jesus’ death, the prophecy that Simeon shared with Mary came to pass as well. In Luke’s gospel, chapter 2, verses 34 and 35, Simeon tells Mary, “This child [referring to Jesus] is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel. And to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

That last phrase in Simeon’s prophecy came true when Jesus hung on the cross. I wouldn’t doubt that Mary felt like a sword had pierced her soul as she looked up at the face of her Son dying on the cross. I wonder if Jesus’ gift of John was able to help her move forward following this event.

While Jesus would be raised to life the following Sunday, Jesus’ resurrection didn’t really return Jesus to Mary. Instead, Jesus’ resurrection simply was a precursor to Jesus ascending to heaven and not being seen any more. Jesus connecting Mary and John while hanging on the cross was significant because Jesus would no longer be around even if He wasn’t to remain dead.

Regardless of how John and Mary moved forward after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, I am amazed at the darkest part of history, while Jesus was hanging on the cross, He focused on others. While both criminals hanging on crosses with Jesus focused on themselves, and while the soldiers focused on what they could get or win from the death of these three men, Jesus cleanly focused on others till His last breath. Jesus offered forgiveness, and Jesus kept His mind focused on accomplishing the mission that was set before Him.

The cross demonstrates God’s love for us, and everything Jesus does while on the cross helps show this love. Jesus faced the cross for you and for me, and because Jesus faced the cross, paying a debt He did not owe, we can experience a life we don’t deserve when we accept His gift of His perfect life in exchange for ours. When we accept Jesus’ life, we must give up our sinful, sin-stained lives, and step forward with the new life that God gives us. Accepting Jesus’ gift can be done in an instant, but the effects of this decision are seen for the rest of our lives on this earth, and for the rest of eternity with God!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus. Accept the gift of Jesus’ life in exchange for yours and live each day with Jesus’ life shining through the experiences you face as we move together towards eternity.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and Bible study, discover just how much God loves you and what He was willing to go through to make a way available for you to be saved!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue in Mark’s gospel, we come to Jesus’ last stop before He carries the cross out to be crucified. While this may be among the most graphic parts of the gospels, within the cruelty of this event we discover a powerful truth that is easy to miss or ignore. While it is unlikely that any of us would intentionally act like the soldiers in this passage towards Jesus today, something we might do today might actually treat Jesus like these soldiers treated Him, even if we don’t realize it.

Let’s read this passage and discover a subtle trap Satan would love for us to fall into. Our passage is found in Mark’s gospel, chapter 15, and we will read from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 16, Mark tells us that:

¹⁶ The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. ¹⁷ They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. ¹⁸ And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” ¹⁹ Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. ²⁰ And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

As I read this passage, did anything stand out in your mind that you could see yourself doing to Jesus, even unintentionally, that is similar to what these soldiers did?

If you’re at all like me, nothing on the surface in this description would be anything like I would do. I wouldn’t twist a crown of thorns together and set it on Jesus’ head. I wouldn’t beat Jesus over the head with a staff or spit on him. And I wouldn’t mockingly call Him the king of the Jews or make fun of Him.

However, while these soldiers were making fun of Jesus, they were likely doing something even they didn’t realize. While mocking Jesus, they were actually giving Jesus empty, meaningless worship. In the entire history of humanity, only One individual is truly worthy of worship, and this individual is Jesus. Jesus deserves our glory, our honor, our praise, and our worship.

While it is pretty clear by their actions and abuse that these soldiers were not genuinely worshiping Jesus, what specific things made their actions towards Jesus not true worship?

Aside from the abuse, the beating, and the crown of thorns, the worship, or homage, these soldiers gave Jesus did not even hint at including humility, respect, or any of the soldiers’ hearts. The “worship” these soldiers give Jesus is empty because the worship these soldiers give is worthless in both the soldiers’ eyes, and it is worthless in God’s eyes as well.

In addition to God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, Jesus is the only One worthy of our worship and our praise. When we come to worship Jesus and thank Him for what He has done for us, are we bringing Jesus glory, honor, and praise in our worship? More importantly than that, are we bringing our hearts with our worship and our gifts and giving our hearts to God within our worship?

As I have read and studied worship more, I have come to realize just how important giving our hearts to God is when we come to worship Him. Above any other gift, God wants our hearts. If our hearts are not included in our worship to God, then our worship is no more pleasing to God than the soldiers mock-worship was.

For a long time, I found myself going to church every weekend because it was a habit, or a routine, and because I felt it was what God wanted me to do. While there is nothing bad about going to church, when we let church become a habit, and simply be a part of our routine, we risk our worship becoming empty and “heartless”. If our worship doesn’t give our hearts to God, then we could call this heartless worship, and heartless worship is what the soldiers gave Jesus before His crucifixion.

Above anything else, God wants our hearts. Our hearts are the gift that God values the most. If you feel like your worship has become empty, shallow, or routine, I would caution you to not give up on or stop worshiping. Instead, while routine worship isn’t the goal, it is slightly better than no worship at all. Realizing your worship needs help is the first step to helping it get better.

If you feel like your worship isn’t where you would like it to be, what are some ways you can bring your heart back in to your worship? Finding the answer to this question is the best way to revitalize your worship experience, and the answer to this question is best found by bringing your request to God in prayer.

While it seems like our conversation has shifted away from the event we began talking about, let’s circle back around at look at what Jesus experienced leading up to His crucifixion. When we take a step back and look at everything Jesus went through, it is nothing short of horrific. The amount of abuse, hostility, and pain that Jesus went through is about as extreme as I can imagine.

However, what is even more amazing is looking at what Jesus went through and realizing that it was entirely within God’s power to write the details of Jesus’ death. Before history began, God knew the plan of action for when humanity sinned, and He wrote into history every detail surrounding Jesus’ crucifixion weekend. Why then would the Godhead write Jesus’ death into history in what was likely the cruelest, most painful way to die?

As we read what happened to Jesus leading up to the cross, I cannot escape the truth that Jesus chose to face the cruelest death, and path to death, possible because He wanted humanity to know that God loves each of us that much more! God was willing to face the worst humanity could come up with in order to show humanity how much He loves us!

God emptied His heart for us as He calls us to give our hearts to Him! This is an invitation to all of us from a God who loves us more than anything and everything we choose to do to Him, and our invitation from God is an invitation to bring our sin-stained hearts to Him and let Him create new, clean hearts within us!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, continue to intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to bring your heart to God with your worship. If worshiping with your heart is challenging, ask God to help you open your heart to Him and to discover how to bring Him the gift He desires the most – specifically the gift of your heart.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and study, we can open our hearts, minds, and lives to God and let Him transform us into the people He created us to be.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As John shifts his attention onto Jesus facing the cross, we discover a powerful prophecy that was fulfilled in this event, and we see evidence that Pilate was more impressed by Jesus than he was by the religious leaders.

However, leading up to Jesus facing the cross, John describes the road to the crucifixion a little differently than the other gospels. Let’s read about what happened.

Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 19, and we will read it from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 17, John tells us that:

¹⁷ Carrying his own cross, Jesus went out to a place called The Place of the Skull, which in the Hebrew language is called Golgotha.

Let’s pause reading for a moment. While Matthew, Mark, and Luke all describe how part way into Jesus’ trip with the cross, a bystander is called in to help Jesus carry the cross, John does not describe this. Instead, John focused on Jesus carrying his own cross.

While this may seem like a discrepancy, there are at least two ways we can reconcile this supposed conflict. The first is that John focuses on Jesus as He begins the trip, and Jesus starts on the road to Golgotha carrying the cross. None of the gospels say when Simon, the bystander, is called to help, but it could have been as late as Jesus having arrived at the hill, but not having the strength left to climb it.

Another way to reconcile this supposed conflict is by understanding that John may have been referring to Jesus’ spiritual cross. From the prayers in the garden less than 12 hours before this, Jesus had been carrying the sins of humanity on His shoulders, and this was more of a cross, or burden, than the wooden structure Jesus was dragging to the crucifixion site. While carrying humanity’s sins would crush anyone else, Jesus was strong enough, and He carried this spiritual cross when no one else could.

After arriving at the Place of the Skull, John continues in verse 18, telling us that:

¹⁸ There they crucified Jesus. They also crucified two other men, one on each side, with Jesus in the middle. ¹⁹ Pilate wrote a sign and put it on the cross. It read: jesus of nazareth, the king of the jews. ²⁰ The sign was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. Many of the people read the sign, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city. ²¹ The leading priests said to Pilate, “Don’t write, ‘The King of the Jews.’ But write, ‘This man said, “I am the King of the Jews.”’”

²² Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

Let’s pause again briefly because Pilate’s sign and brief conversation with the religious leaders is fascinating. In Pilate’s message, we catch a glimpse of the impact Jesus had on Pilate, and I suspect that Pilate believed Jesus may have even had divinity within Him because of how Pilate responded when hearing the claim that Jesus was God’s Son.

While Pilate didn’t think highly of Jews or the Jewish religion, the children of gods would ultimately be gods and kings in all the other religions of the region, so Jesus being the Jewish God’s Son would make Jesus the King of the Jews.

Pilate understands this, and he also likely understood that Jesus never would have said He was the king of the Jews. From how Jesus frames Himself in His conversations with Pilate, Pilate understood Jesus as much more than simply a Jewish revolutionary.

The words Pilate wrote I suspect were aimed directly at the religious leaders. I suspect that Pilate wrote them as a challenge to them for crucifying their King, even if they didn’t believe Jesus to be that. Pilate’s words challenge the religious leaders because they draw attention to Pilate’s suspicion that Jesus was the Messiah these religious leaders had been waiting for.

Pilate doesn’t change the wording he used because Jesus never made the claim. Pilate wants this message to be a statement aimed at the religious leaders who were the ultimate ones responsible for Jesus’ death.

However, there is another part of the crucifixion event left for us to look at in this episode. Continuing in verse 23, John tells us that:

²³ After the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, with each soldier getting one part. They also took his long shirt, which was all one piece of cloth, woven from top to bottom. ²⁴ So the soldiers said to each other, “We should not tear this into parts. Let’s throw lots to see who will get it.” This happened so that this Scripture would come true:

“They divided my clothes among them,
    and they threw lots for my clothing.”

So the soldiers did this.

When looking at what happened while Jesus was on the cross, and at this prophecy specifically, it is amazing to think that it was predicted centuries before this. Perhaps it was normal for the soldiers to gamble or divide a crucified person’s possessions among themselves, but the way this prophecy is framed is powerful.

This prophecy states that dividing would happen among Jesus’ clothes, but that Jesus’ “long shirt” as this translation describes, or Jesus’ undergarment according to some other translations, would not be divided but instead gambled for. In this prophecy is two direct conditions, and both are fulfilled exactly as predicted.

Jesus had no control over what Roman soldiers would do with His clothing, but God knew, and God gave this prophecy many centuries before to help draw attention to Jesus when the time was right.

Everything in Jesus’ life and ministry focused on and led Jesus to the cross, and this is because Jesus facing the cross opens up salvation for you and me. We have failed God in our lives. We likely will continue to fail God in the future. However, Jesus offers to take our failures and our sins onto Himself, and die a death He did not deserve in order to give us the opportunity to live a life we could never earn and a life that we don’t deserve.

The life Jesus offers us can begin right now, and when it begins, it has the potential to extend into eternity!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to let God lead and guide your life both today, and every day leading towards eternity. Intentionally accept Jesus’ gift to take our sins onto Himself and accept the gift of a new life He offers to us when we accept His life in exchange for ours.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn, grow, and move closer to God each and every day. A personal relationship with God is possible, and it begins when we personally take steps to grow closer to Him through prayer and reading His Word.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or fall away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Mark’s gospel, we come to the morning Jesus is crucified. However, before Jesus is actually nailed to a cross, He must be sentenced to death by the Roman governor, who at this point in history was Pilate. During Jesus’ trial with Pilate, I am amazed how Mark describes this event and how Jesus is ultimately condemned to death without any actual crime being committed.

Let’s read Mark’s gospel record and discover how he describes what happened. Our passage is found in Mark’s gospel, chapter 15, and we will read from the New International Reader’s Version. Starting in verse 1, Mark tells us that:

¹ It was very early in the morning. The chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law, and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they tied Jesus up and led him away. Then they handed him over to Pilate.

² “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

³ The chief priests brought many charges against him. ⁴ So Pilate asked him again, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they charge you with.”

⁵ But Jesus still did not reply. Pilate was amazed.

Pausing reading our passage for a moment, I’m amazed at how Mark describes Jesus’ trial before Pilate. While we didn’t have time to cover it in an earlier episode, Mark describes Jesus acting in a similar way towards Pilate that he does towards the chief priests and religious leaders. When being charged and accused, Jesus simply remained silent.

When reading about Jesus’ silence, part of me wonders why Jesus did this. In the earlier case of the religious leaders looking for a reason to condemn Jesus, it makes a little sense, because while Jesus did not speak, the lies and false testimony begin to break down and fall apart.

However, before Pilate, there is only one set of accusations, and while Mark doesn’t tell us what these leaders accuse Jesus with, there is likely a little bit of truth with a whole bunch of lies.

But this doesn’t really answer the question about why Jesus stayed silent – especially when it would not be sin to speak the truth that He is innocent.

As I ask myself this question, I believe Jesus’ silence is intentional and it tells us something important. By not speaking, Jesus is intentionally, subtly, and willing to take all the lies, false testimony, and really all the sins onto Himself. Even though Jesus had predicted His death numerous times leading up to this weekend, no one present in this event believed Jesus’ mission at this point in history was death. Through Jesus’ silence, He allows all the lies, evil, and sin to rest on His shoulders as He is being questioned and charged by Pilate.

However, Pilate is an inquisitive person, but not entirely bright, especially in this instance.

Continuing in verse 6, after Jesus had remained silent, much to Pilate’s amazement, Mark tells us that:

⁶ It was the usual practice at the Passover Feast to let one prisoner go free. The people could choose the one they wanted. ⁷ A man named Barabbas was in prison. He was there with some other people who had fought against the country’s rulers. They had committed murder while they were fighting against the rulers. ⁸ The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.

⁹ “Do you want me to let the king of the Jews go free?” asked Pilate. ¹⁰ He knew that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him because they wanted to get their own way. ¹¹ But the chief priests stirred up the crowd. So the crowd asked Pilate to let Barabbas go free instead.

¹² “Then what should I do with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.

¹³ “Crucify him!” the crowd shouted.

¹⁴ “Why? What wrong has he done?” asked Pilate.

But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him!”

¹⁵ Pilate wanted to satisfy the crowd. So he let Barabbas go free. He ordered that Jesus be whipped. Then he handed him over to be nailed to a cross.

In this event, Pilate condemns a man to death who he knows has done nothing wrong. The people in the crowd reveal what type of messiah they wanted by requesting Barabbas, who was another potential messiah who had tried to rally people together to overthrow Rome in their region.

In this event, Pilate could see through the deception of the religious leaders, and Pilate knew the religious leaders disliked Jesus because of their pride and His popularity. However, Pilate doesn’t realize that the only people who would have made up the crowd at this early morning trial would have been those who the religious leaders handpicked.

Pilate doesn’t realize this detail until it is likely too late. While the crowd was present and they appeared impartial, this was the morning leading up to one of the biggest events in Jewish culture, which means that most people would be preparing for the festival and not paying attention to the trial taking place.

The crowd shouting in unison, at the prompting of the religious leaders, and likely all the forces of Satan as well, wins out over Pilate’s objective judgment. Pilate can see that the religious leaders have accused an innocent man. Pilate can also see that Jesus is not actively defending Himself, which doesn’t make a lot of sense to Pilate, but lack of a defense does not make false accusations true. Pilate sees the religious leaders’ lies in their actions, attitudes, and behavior.

Pilate knows one person tied up is guilty, while the other person tied up is innocent. Pilate knows Barabbas deserves death, and Jesus does not.

But the crowd’s united voice convinces Pilate to change his accurate judgment and switch the two condemned people. Pilate sentences Jesus to crucifixion, which was the death Barabbas deserved; and Pilate releases Barabbas, which was the outcome Jesus deserved.

In this event, we discover that Jesus willingly chose to take the place of a rebel, a murderer, and a sinner, and in this event Barabbas, the clearly evil, condemned-to-die person, represents you and me. Barabbas represents every human being who has ever lived who deserves to die for their sins but who gets the opportunity of a new free life because of Jesus!

When we accept the gift Jesus offers us through what He for Barabbas by taking Barabbas’ place on the cross, we allow Jesus’ death to cover our sins and we let Him face the death we deserve while He offers us the life He deserves. Through Jesus’ trial before Pilate, we see that Jesus willingly takes the lies, the false testimony, and all the sin onto Himself, and He willingly takes our place and our punishment onto Himself in order to give us a new chance of life that we did not deserve!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, be sure to purposefully and intentionally seek God first. Choose to accept the gift Jesus offers to you and I through what He did for Barabbas on crucifixion weekend. Understand that while Barabbas was a criminal, Jesus wrote history in a way that shows God is willing to take the punishment of sinners and criminals against His law onto Himself. Accept the gift Jesus offers for a new chance at life that isn’t trapped and stained by sin!

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and Bible study, we are able to open our hearts to God and let Him into our lives, and with God in our hearts, He will teach us how He wants us to live, how we can be loving like He loves us, and how to best thank Him through how we live our lives.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or walk away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!