Matthew 27: Crucified (3)
Pray Psalm 22.1-5.
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent.
But You are holy,
Enthroned in the praises of Israel.
Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
They cried to You, and were delivered;
They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
Sing Psalm 22.1-5.
St. Christopher: Beneath the Cross of Jesus
Upon the cross of Cal’vry He suffered ’neath the rod;
alone, He cried out, “Why have You forsaken Me, My God?”
As day to bitter darkness turned, the Savior of the blessed
cried, “Father, answer Me, I pray; restore Me to Your rest!”
But You, O God are holy, enthroned on Israel’s praise,
our fathers trusted You and You were faithful all their days.
They cried to You; they trusted You, and never came to shame;
for You delivered them, O God, by Your great holy Name.
Read Matthew 27.1-44; meditate on verses 27-44.
What makes people so filled with hate?
Prepare.
1. How many different ways did Jesus suffer physically?
2. Why was this necessary (v. 35)?
Meditate.
The brutality to which Jesus was subjected by the Romans is something we can imagine, but not know. We can imagine what it is to be spat upon, to have our head pierced with thorns, to be beaten with a rod, stripped, and mocked. We can taste the bitterness of gall and imagine what it was like to have spikes driven through our hands and feet, then to be elevated in shame and agony for all to see, mock, and scorn.
This is what we deserve for our sins. The sins the Romans committed against Jesus in that moment were only what we would have done or clamored for, and these too are all laid on Jesus. On the cross, Jesus bore God’s wrath against us, and carried our sins away as far as the east is from the west. The sudden darkness that gathered around this ugly scene was all the sins of everyone who ever lived or will live, descending on Jesus, the Sin Attractor, that He might bear them all away.
God became Man to pay a debt He did not owe, for us, who have incurred a debt of sin we cannot pay (Anselm). Only through Jesus, through His suffering, are we free to know, love, and serve God forever. When we think of Jesus, let us think first of His suffering, from which He has freed us by His love.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
Reading this passage of Scripture is heart-rending.
This unspeakable cruelty was foisted upon the perfect Son of Man—the sacrificial Lamb of God.
The pain was psychological, emotional, and physical.
It was humiliating and degrading.
Our minds cannot comprehend bearing an iota of what He suffered.
Yet He did this for His enemies. He did it for us.
“But God demonstrates His Own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son,
much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Rom. 5.8-10).
Saved to respond, as He did, to everything in His life.
“Blessed are you,” He tells us, “when they revile and persecute you,
and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven,
for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt. 5.11, 12).
And thus they persecuted Me.
“Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
the chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
and by His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned, every one, to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Is. 53.4-6).
O Sacred Head, now wounded, With grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded With thorns, Thine only crown;
O Sacred Head, what glory, What bliss till now was Thine!
Yet, though despised and gory, I joy to call Thee mine.
What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered Was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, But Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor, Vouchsafe to me Thy grace.
What language shall I borrow To thank Thee, dearest Friend,
For this Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
O make me Thine forever; And should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never Outlive my love to Thee.
(Bernard of Clairvaux, 12th century)
Reflect.
1. Take a few moments right now to give Jesus abundant thanks and praise for paying the debt of our sin.
2. Thank and praise Him for enduring all the suffering and mocking.
3. Thank and praise and rejoice in Him for the forgiveness of sins and the gift of eternal life with Him.
Adam tasted the sweetness of the apple and obtained the bitterness of death for the whole human race. In contrast to this, the Lord tasted the bitterness of gall and obtained our restoration from death’s sting to the sweetness of life. He took on Himself the bitterness of gall in order to extinguish in us the bitterness of death. He received acrid vinegar into Himself but poured out for us the precious wine of His blood. He suffered evil and returned good. He accepted death and gave life. Chromatus (fl. 400), Tractate on Matthew 19.7
Pray Psalm 22.6-18.
Wait on the Lord. See Him in His suffering. Enter His suffering with prayers of thanks and praise. Confess your sins, and go forth resolved to walk in newness of life with Jesus.
Sing Psalm 22.6-18.
St. Christopher: Beneath the Cross of Jesus
Despised by men, the Savior was more a worm than man.
They mocked, “He trusted God, let Him redeem Him if He can!
Let God deliver Him if He indeed delights in Him!”
Thus scorned they Jesus as He died in pain and anguish grim.
Like raging bulls they bellowed, like lions set to feast.
Each gaping mouth raged loudly like an all-consuming beast.
Like water slipped His life away, disjointed hanged He high;
His tongue clung to His jaws as He prepared His heart to die.
His foes, like dogs around Him, with glee did gloat and stare.
They pierced His hands and feet; they stole the garments He did wear.
Though not a bone was broken as He promised in His Word,
yet, wounded for our sins, thus died creation’s sov’reign LORD.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: This week: Our Read Moore podcast features excerpts from the book, Patrick: A Devotional History. Our Crosfigell teaching letter is pursuing a series on the spiritual poetry of the Celtic Revival. The ReVision column continues our study of “Everyday Christianity”. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
