And they cast lots, dividing up His
garmens among themselves. Luke 23:34
Continuing on the theme...here is the
passage that fulfills the prophecy of Psalm 22 we studied yesterday.
David sees Jesus, torn and battered, forsaken by God, suffering
immensely, and the added insult of taking the one thing he had, his
clothes, and shooting craps to divide them up. I don't know why they
would have wanted them. Were they a keepsake of the biggest day in
history? I imagine they were blood-stained themselves if they made it
up to the crucifixion site. Who would want bloody clothes even if
they were unique and valuable? Blood doesn't really wash out very
well unless they had some sort of peroxide that would take it out
that I don't know about. Or if they were taken off and taken to the
hill with him, was it a reward for the soldiers to get the victims'
possessions? I'm not that historically knowledgeable, but there had
to be something to be gained from owning them.
But the clothes were not the only thing
being divided that day. For there were other divisions. The disciples
and Jesus' mother and other women stood weeping while the rulers
mocked him. His followers were sharply divided from His condemners.
Then there were the soldiers, who also became divided...they started
by mocking, but after the earthquake, one declared that He was a
righteous man and knew this was wrong. It said the people looked on.
Some were convinced that He deserved this for declaring Himself God,
and other convinced that He was the Messiah and that this made no
sense.
And then there were the criminals. They
were divided, one on his right and one on his left. Matthew 27:44
says they were both insulting Him, saying He should save Himself. But
Luke gives a different story. Is this a contradiction in scripture?
No, I don't think so...because all of scripture is true. So let's
work this out...
Jesus was on the cross for 3 hours.
Many things happened over this time. Jesus forgave verbally. He
talked to God out loud, crying out using Old Testament scripture. He
took care of His mother. They had posted a sign above Him charging
Him with being the Kings of the Jews. And in this time I do believe
that the heart of one robber, as the Matthew text called him, melted.
Even in the unrighteous death of Christ, He was not unrighteous. Even
though blameless, He did not blame. He took this whole thing with an
air about Him that showed that this was a mission, not a mistake.
And the robber saw and realized that Jesus had done nothing to
deserve the death that He was dying. And I never noticed before that
he asked Jesus to remember him when He comes into His kingdom. What
was Jesus charged with? Being the King of the Jews. We don't know if
this robber was a Jew or not, but he realized that Jesus was THE
KING, and that His kingdom was not of this world. That was the sort
of kingdom, that of righteousness, sacrifice, love, caring, peace,
and purpose, that he wanted to be a part of. He was begging not to
suffer eternally for his sins. He realized that the earthly suffering
he had brought on himself, and his eternal condition was not looking
a whole lot better. But Jesus...He could and would do something about
it, and when Jesus said he would be with Him that very day in
paradise, well, that poor man could die in peace. Jesus divided the
criminals. One looked only at the external, mortal, and selfish
condition and scorned the one who would take his sin, and the other
knew his pitiful state, his need to be saved from more than a mortal
death, and looked to the one He knew had the power and authority to
let him into the kingdom. Jesus divides people today into those same
camps. There are the scorners and there are the followers, the
accusers and the confessors, those who blame everything on someone
else, and those who take responsibility for their errors and ask for
forgiveness and new life.
So which side of the cross are you on?
Or is your own heart divided? Are you not sure what to think of the
cross, the men on it, or the reason He would suffer for you? Pick up
a Bible. Read the New Testament first...you don't have to read it in
order. Start with John, then Luke, then Matthew or Mark. Then move to
Acts, read a few of the smaller letters, and then Corinthians. Save
Revelation til you understand who this Jesus is...and then take on
the first few chapters to see that He deals with the church before He
deals with the rest of the sinful world, and then recreates
everything so that sin will no longer have an effect on the universe.
Jesus calls you, He sets the example
for you, and He tells you who He is, how much He loves you, and how
that love is played out in a person's life when the Spirit comes and
takes residence in your life. Don't skip any of it, or just turn to a
preacher or church to figure these things out. Spend time with the
One who calls you. We are called the Bride of Christ, which implies
an intimate relationship, not just a king and His subjects. We are
brides, brothers, priests, friends, and children, and all that those
titles imply. Draw near, marvel like the thief did, and come to the
same point he did. You won't regret it.
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