The Good News!

Have you ever been in a situation where if you said anything it would probably be wrong? Sometimes saying nothing says everything. There is great power in silence. Jesus, tied up, beaten, mocked with his blood stained clothes ripped off…says nothing in his defense. It is as if all of heaven went silent. Did the angels, who were at the ready to rescue, hold their breath as they watched the Son of God being nailed to a cross? Was all of heaven focused on God’s face to receive on order to rescue His Son?

The order never came. God was silent. His will to save us must be accomplished. The sacrifice of His One and Only Son, the Perfect One, must die for our sin. Yes, God was silent. Jesus was silent. Both knew the mission must be completed.

Mark 15, The Message
15 At dawn’s first light, the high priests, with the religious leaders and scholars, arranged a conference with the entire Jewish Council. After tying Jesus securely, they took him out and presented him to Pilate.

2-3 Pilate asked him, “Are you the ‘King of the Jews’?”

He answered, “If you say so.” The high priests let loose a barrage of accusations.

4-5 Pilate asked again, “Aren’t you going to answer anything? That’s quite a list of accusations.” Still, he said nothing. Pilate was impressed, really impressed.

6-10 It was a custom at the Feast to release a prisoner, anyone the people asked for. There was one prisoner called Barabbas, locked up with the insurrectionists who had committed murder during the uprising against Rome. As the crowd came up and began to present its petition for him to release a prisoner, Pilate anticipated them: “Do you want me to release the King of the Jews to you?” Pilate knew by this time that it was through sheer spite that the high priests had turned Jesus over to him.

11-12 But the high priests by then had worked up the crowd to ask for the release of Barabbas. Pilate came back, “So what do I do with this man you call King of the Jews?”

13 They yelled, “Nail him to a cross!”

14 Pilate objected, “But for what crime?”

But they yelled all the louder, “Nail him to a cross!”

15 Pilate gave the crowd what it wanted, set Barabbas free and turned Jesus over for whipping and crucifixion.

16-20 The soldiers took Jesus into the palace (called Praetorium) and called together the entire brigade. They dressed him up in purple and put a crown plaited from a thornbush on his head. Then they began their mockery: “Bravo, King of the Jews!” They banged on his head with a club, spit on him, and knelt down in mock worship. After they had had their fun, they took off the purple cape and put his own clothes back on him. Then they marched out to nail him to the cross.

The gospel writer cannot bring himself to fully describe the horror of being nailed to a cross of rough wood. He is a bit allusive about the pain, agony and sheer torture and humiliation of humans the Romans put criminals through to make them a public example. Jesus did no wrong. He was not a criminal. But He was silent in His defense. Powerfully silent. He could have stopped it all. But he did not. He went through torture so our relationship with our Creator, God, Our Father, could be restored.

His mission to seek and to save lost, drowning in hope and despair, people then and now was worth all the pain and suffering He would go through. Do we really understand this? WE were worth HIS suffering, death, going to hell and back for us, as our Victor over sin and eternal destruction! We were/are worth His powerful silence! He allowed all that happened so that we might be set free from sins of our own selfishness, pride, greed, jealousy, and anything else that stands between God and us. WE were bought back, redeemed, at a high price!

Debt-free, if we believe. Wow. Why aren’t we living like we believe? Why does peace allude us? Why do our smiles of inner peace and joy escape us at times…in the rough times? Because God is God and we are not. BUT, we can be restored by turning our faces back to the Only One who can satisfy our souls. We can let Him show us His best way for us once more. We can repent.

Dear Heavenly Father, To think we are not worth much is a ridiculous thought right now. The evil one is constantly making us feel less than, in our own eyes. That makes us serve less, be joy-less and have less peace. No more! Your Word reminds us how much You love and cherish Your created. Thank you for your powerful silence that took you to the cross for my sin and the sins of all who believe. There are not enough words for Your more than enough actions to restore our relationship with You. So hear my heart…
In Jesus Name, Amen