THEN CAME JESUS FORTH

John 19 THEN CAME JESUS FORTH. Dignity in His Person; Courtly in His Bearing; Holy in His Character Godly in His Nature; Manly in His Visibility; Servant-like in His Submission A cluster of thorns sanctified and forever remembered because of Him. Like a sheep led to the slaughter, He comes forth mocked by men. A robe of purple on Him, mans’ feeble attempt at defining royalty. A silent victim has authority in the face of foolish mockery.

The Son of Man; The King of the Jews; The Son of God He feels as a man; He presents as a king; He has all power as Lord Jesus of Nazareth is known to men by His city. He is the King of the Jews yet by people and soldiers shown no pity. He is eternal in His Being – forever in the past and future – the Son of God. In this time and place of His-story, He is fulfilling the written Word.

The Innocent is Condemned; The Victim is Crucified; The Substitute Dies As Sheep silent before shearers; The Lamb led to Slaughter; the Just dies for the Unjust The whole world is guilty before God; the Lamb bears away the world’s sin. The death Christ died was when He was made sin for ungodly men. In our place condemned Jesus suffered alone and died. Now by His grace and love, believers are justified.

Mockery is over; Judgment is done; His Passion has passed Satan has been defeated; Sin’s price has been paid; Death lost its victory Everything the Lord Jesus had to do was accomplished. Every aspect of the work He came to do was finished. Private men came forth publicly and His body carried – To a nearby tomb, where only for the weekend, His body was buried.

“O God, I follow the written words, but inside of me I follow Him and see Him come forth before the hardened eyes and hearts of those who live only for themselves. I follow and see Him come forth from the presence of a deeply embarrassed judge who knows what is right, but does wrong. I see Him come forth through the gates of David’s city – and His own, to die outside the camp, and I willingly go forth unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach. I love Thee Lord Jesus. Amen.”

THE SENTENCE, v.1-16 v.1. The Lord Jesus had been declared not guilty of any crime. He had been sent to Herod, but Herod sent Him back to Pilate. Pilate had no right to scourge an innocent person, but he told the soldiers to do that anyway. v.2. Crown of thorns: proof of the curse God put on the earth [Gal.3:13]. Cursed is anyone who is hanged on a tree. He was bearing our curse. v.3. Purple robe: this was an act of mockery. They placed on Him kingly garments. In Mat.27:28, it is called a scarlet robe. In Lu.23:11 it is called a gorgeous (“lampros”) robe. These were the colors in the veil, tabernacle covering and the gate. Blue and scarlet make purple and “lampros” is white. Smote Him: this fulfills the scripture, “he gave His face to the smiters;” they insulted Him. v.4. Another declaration of innocence: six people declared Him innocent. [1] Judas [2] Pilate’s wife [3] Herod [4] Malefactor [5] Centurion [Pilate] v.5. “Behold, the Man”: Pilate may have been looking for people to be sympathetic towards Jesus when they saw Him beaten. v.6. Chief priests and officers: they had no authority to crucify Him. Jewish law was to stone the one who blasphemed; another declaration of innocence. v.7. Our law: the law commanded blasphemers to be stoned by those who condemned the victim. The Jews accusations against Christ….

He said destroy the temple and He would rebuild it in three days
He said He was the Son of the Blessed, the Son of God
He was a malefactor; a lawbreaker
He would not give tribute to Caesar because He was the King

He stirred up the people v.8. Pilate’s fear: when he heard Jesus was the Son of God, his superstitious mind was fearful v.9. Pilate’s question: “Where did you come from?” Pilate had not acted on what he already knew, so the Lord refused to tell him more. v.10. Pilate’s anger: he was used to prisoners trying to please in order to be let off v.11. Authority: the law doesn’t give authority to set the guilty free and have an innocent one killed. God gave Pilate this authority to work out His plans. Some people are guilty of greater sins than others. v.12. Declared innocent again: he wanted to maintain Caesar’s friendship and did not want the Jews to accuse him to Caesar. He might lose his position. The Jews hated Christ more than they hated Caesar. v.13. Pilate’s decision: the “Pavement” was an elevated place there he could sit above the people and pass sentence. v.14. The Passover: [Num.28:16-17] there were to feasts the Jews kept. One was to remember the salvation of the firstborn before they actually left Egypt, and the other was the feast of unleavened bread. v.15. No king but Caesar: a decision was made in haste and publicly that put them under the rule of others for hundreds of years. v.16. Pilate’s response: he delivered Jesus to be crucified. He chose to please man rather than God. Over all this was God’s sovereign plan to offer His only Son because of our sins [Rom.4:25; 8:32]

THE CRUCIFIXION, 17-24 v.17. Bearing His cross: there is no evidence of Christ being weak. When we read of Simon bearing it “after Jesus,” Mr. Crawford indicates in his book on Luke, Simon had to lift up the post of the cross which would force the Lord to bend lower under the load. The “Place of the Skull,” “Golgotha” (Hebrew); “Calvary,” are all referring to the same place. v.18. Crucified Him: the Jewish leaders and nation were charged with His crucifixion. Peter makes that statement in Acts 2:36, “God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Master and Messiah). Two others: these men were criminals, malefactors, thieves – Jesus was between them. JESUS “IN THE MIDST.”

Acts 2:22. “In the midst of you.” Jesus in the world.
Jn.19:18. “Jesus in the midst.” Jesus on the cross.
Ps.22:14. “My heart… melted in the midst of My bowels.” Jesus in His sufferings.
Ps.22:22. “In the midst of the congregation.” His exaltation.
Ps.110:2. “Rule in the midst of thine enemies.” His future glory.
Rev.1:13. “In the midst of the…candlesticks.” His priestly work.
Isa.12:6; Hos.11:9; Rev.5:6; 7:17; Mat.18:20; Lu.24:36; Jn.20:19,26. “In the midst…” of His people; with His people – the Holy One: in the past—the Peace-Giver; in the present – Jesus Himself; in the future – the Lamb. The Tree of life: [1] in the midst of the garden [Gen.2:9; 3:3] [2] in the midst of the paradise of God [Rev.2:7; 22:2]. The Lord’s People (in the present):
Walk in the midst of trouble [Ps.138:7].
In the midst of people of unclean lips [Isa.6:5].
In the midst of a crooked and perverse generation [Phil.2:15].
In the midst of wolves (as sheep) [Mat.10:16].
In the midst of the fire (walking) [Dan.3:25]. Trespass in the midst: Achan, after the fall of Jericho [Josh.7]. A woman in the midst: condemned by men and the law because of sin [Jn.8:9]. A little child in the midst: the kind of people in the kingdom of heaven [Mat.18:2; Mk. 9:36]. The veil rent in the midst: the way opened to God [Lu.23:45].