The Bible CourseSample

The trial, the cross and the tomb – the death of Jesus

Reflect:

The cross would be a strange marketing choice for any brand. No major corporation would buy into it. But this symbol of execution has now become the brand logo of a global movement. The cross tells us that God so loved the world that his son was crucified for us.

What do we learn about Jesus at his trial?

Pilate’s view of Jesus was clear – he had nothing on him. He also had the power to free him, but he was under pressure to condemn him, and Jesus made no defence.

Jesus knew what had to happen; the prophet Isaiah had said it centuries earlier: ‘He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter’ (Isaiah 53.7).

Jesus made sure nothing was going to hinder him from fulfilling his role. For sinful people to be made clean, a sinless man had to die in their place.

What are the implications of the cross for us and our world today?

From midday to 3 pm, darkness fell. The curtain of the temple was torn in two as Jesus gave up his spirit. These are not random details; they communicate what the cross is about.

On the cross, Jesus soaked up all of God’s righteous anger towards evil. On the cross, Jesus was banished into deepest, darkest exile. He went there so that we don’t have to. On the cross, Jesus made a way for us to come into God’s presence. For on the cross, the greatest ever swap took place: Jesus took the treatment we deserve, so that we might receive the treatment only he deserves.

In John Bunyan's book, The Pilgrim’s Progress, the pilgrim – whose name is Christian – makes his way up a hill, with a grave at the bottom and a cross at the top. He has got used to carrying a heavy rucksack of sin but, as he comes up to the cross, the burden falls off his shoulders and rolls down the hill and into the grave. Forgiven and freed, he 'gave three leaps for joy, and went on singing'.

Respond

Are you struggling today? Remember that for us to go free, Jesus had to die. Knowing he was faithful to us then, do we think he’ll abandon us now? He will not.