The deeper meaning of The death of the Lord Jesus

Investigating the death of the Lord Jesus, I return again to the commentary He gave Himself.

 Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 22  all record His comments about the bread and the cup. “This is my body”- I suggest He was saying to the disciples , like the unleavened bread of the Passover feast, ‘ I have been sent by God, I am unleavened (undefiled)  in the world, I am now available for sacrifice to God and for mankind.’ Luke confirms this by adding along with the apostle Paul  - “given for you”.

Then He refers to the cup (apparently a special cup in the Passover ceremony), by saying “this is my blood”. The commentary He gives, explains the symbolism.

Matthew 26:28 “ blood of the covenant, poured out for many, for the forgiveness of sins”

“ blood of the covenant”-  this would take every Jewish mind back to the communication of Jehovah to Israel through Moses. Their only acceptance in that covenant was on the basis of sacrifice, the basis of shed blood. The NT letter to the Hebrews explains in detail how this is relevant for believers today, with this summary – “ He (Jesus Christ) entered once for all into the holy places (heaven itself) not by means of the blood of goats and bulls, but by means of His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.” (Hebrews 9:12).

So the question of ‘blood shed’ arises. This really deserves an extended study from Genesis to Revelation. In the brevity of this article I will give my summary :-

Genesis – When Abel was killed by Cain, God said “the voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground”

              To Noah God said “you shall not eat the flesh with it’s life , that is the blood”

 Exodus – to Moses God said “When I see the blood I will pass over you”

                Again for Aaron “ He shall take some of the blood and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat.......”

Using a concordance to trace the frequent use  of the term ‘blood’ and ‘blood shed’ I conclude that beyond the literal blood, was the meaning of a life taken, or given. Sometimes in war, sometimes by murder and sometimes by sacrifice. In the Old Covenant which was rather physical, God called for much animal blood to be shed, to be sprinkled in the tabernacle  and temple. The Israelites were thus confronted with the costliness of sin, the cost of redemption, the cost of atonement and acceptance, forgiveness and peace. While the Israelites saw much of this, I suggest that the blood was primarily for the eye of God ( “when I see the blood”  Sprinkled “in the holy place”). Yes the blood was a symbol of something, or someone dying in their stead.

So it was that sombre night in Jerusalem,  the Lord said “My blood....  for YOU” (Luke 22) Thus the Lord describes His life being given for others.

In Matthew’s quotation, the Lord includes “ for the forgiveness of sins”  - these Jewish disciples well knew that  forgiveness came at a price – the sin offering, the trespass offering, and so  the Lord in His death pays the debt of sin! The cross of shame becomes an alter of sacrifice!

Some have maintained that His blood was shed in the garden, by the crown of thorns, when he was whipped etc – well physically that may well be true, but following through the theme of sacrifice, I suggest His blood was shed when He ‘gave up His Spirit’. This was not something of man’s doing. This was the good Shepherd , according to the commandment of the Father,  ‘laying down His life for the sheep (John 10). John records the soldier drawing blood and water from the Saviour’s side, which I see as the confirmation that death had already taken place. Paul , Peter and John all develop the truth that Jesus ‘yielded up Himself as an offering and a sacrifice to God on our behalf’.

When we come to the book of Revelation, the people are “ washed in the blood of the Lamb” . To the natural mind this is rightly obnoxious, but to those who understand God’s holy hatred of sin, the divinely instructed means of sacrifice the value of the Lamb of God  -- this symbolic language is vibrant with precious meaning i.e. to be cleansed , accepted  by virtue of the once for all sacrifice of Him who said “My blood shed for you”.

Little wonder that this ‘breaking of bread’ became special to the Christians. By this they could intelligently remember the Lord’s death. Intelligent about the event, but so much more – intelligent as to who died, how He died, why He died !

I would  encourage all who are able, to search deeply into these heavenly truths. It  will cause you to bow and worship.

John McKee

Death Of Christ explained by Christ

Passover explanation of the death of Christ.

          On the night the Lord Jesus was betrayed, He was deliberate in partaking of the Passover meal. He sent two disciples to prepare, and when the evening came, He said to them “ with desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer, for I say unto you, I will not eat thereof until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

        This most significant statement throws heavenly light on the moment, the hour, the days and the whole of time! Here is a prophetic statement explaining what was about to happen with its connection to history past and history future.

       In brief – ‘His suffering was that of the Passover lamb to effect redemption. The once slain lamb would be pre-eminent in the kingdom of God forever.

       You have noticed that I am going deeper than recounting the story of the unjust trials, the pain of crucifixion etc. Before any of that happened the Lord Jesus pointed His followers to the deeper meaning. Let me pursue the Passover story a little. From the beginning of human history, lambs were offered in sacrifice to God. Abraham made an outstanding statement to Isaac his son – “my son God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering” .  Could it be that this is what the Lord Jesus was referring to when He said “Abraham rejoiced to see My day. He saw it and was glad” (John 8:56).

       The Passover was put in place by God as a means to protect the Israelites from the righteous judgements of God.   True, the gods of Egypt deserved judgement , but how interesting that the Israelites with all their privilege, were not exempt from the judgement of God ( ‘for all have sinned both Jew and Gentile’ ) Only by the death of the lamb ( Exodus 12) , the blood applied to the doorway, was there safety from the judgement of God. Please note that this Passover did set them free from the slavery in Egypt, but of greater importance was the blood of the lamb for the eye of God. So it is when we discern the meaning of the cross, it matters most who God saw ( Jesus, as a lamb without blemish or spot) and what God saw (the precious blood of Christ 1 Peter 1 ).

So putting together the teaching of the Lord about the Passover and the detail of the original purpose, we see the deeper meaning of the sufferings of Christ. Paul put it quite bluntly “Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed for us”  (1 Corinthians 5:7 )  The apostle Peter brings all this together so well in 1 Peter 1:14-21. I would like to explain Peter’s reference to the Passover by paraphrasing it to give an expanded historical setting and present day relevance.

     1 Peter 1:14

Previously we lived according to our passions and feelings which were misguided because of our ignorance of God’s ways. But now that we have repented and turned to God , we ought to live as those obeying God. We must remember that God remains holy and although He shows us mercy and grace through love, the objective is to make us like Himself – holy. We are privileged to call God our Father, but we do well to remember that God’s judgements still hold us accountable for our actions. The wonderful truth is that although we became debtors to God because of  our failure and offensive to God because of our sin, breaking God’s law incurring a curse, God provided a lamb for redemption, for a ransom. God did not pay our debt with silver or gold, but by the precious blood of a lamb, the Lamb of God ( as identified by John the Baptist ),  who was without blemish in His person and character, and without spot  even though He lived in a very spotty, defiling  world.  This was something God planned before He made the world and was expressed in symbol at the Jewish festival of Passover , but in reality the true Lamb of God has now been made known in Jesus Christ.

It is now our responsibility and opportunity to know God, not through the rituals of law, but through Jesus Christ our Lord. God has verified His acceptance of the Lamb along with the promise of eternal life by raising Jesus from the dead – risen to die no more, risen to sit at the right hand of God in the glory of an all powerful intercessor.

Indeed this should create real faith in God that effects real change in our lives and give real hope for eternity. This good news , this word from God, when received, brings about new birth  and new life.

                            End of paraphrase

Reflect for a moment on the firstborn son in Egypt

– without a lamb  - death

-      By the death of the lamb – alive, indeed alive to God, for God said of the redeemed firstborn  “ it is mine”

So it is that Jesus, once crucified has in resurrection become “the firstborn among many brethren” ( Romans 8:29 )

Is it any wonder that He shall be known eternally as ‘ the Lamb that was slain’.  

We are so blessed to be among those who are redeemed to God by His blood ( Revelation 5 ).

As the Lord Jesus said the Passover would be fulfilled, so it has been fulfilled.

Maybe I need to clarify the meaning of 'redemption', 'blood of the lamb' , 'firstborn' 'sacrifice'

                    yes maybe next time

johnmckee@internode.on.net

The Cross of Christ - an investigation

          The death of the Lord Jesus must be understood from the whole of the Bible. In my purposed brief explanations, it is important to see the broad sweep of Divine revelation – from the Lamb foreordained before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 1:20) through to the Lamb upon the eternal throne (Revelation 22:3). This along with many other pointers, show the crucifixion of Jesus was no surprise, no martyrdom, but rather, as Peter preached “ He was delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.....” (Acts 2:23).

      To see the final objective of God  - a redeemed people worshipping a once slain redeemer – gives much clarity to understanding the ‘why?’ of so many details. E.g. why He was judged by Jew and Gentile.

     I would like to make another general observation -  in the book of Acts , the death of the Lord is seldom explained as the basis of forgiveness. This is developed in the teaching letters. Forgiveness is in His Name  implies both who He was and the death and resurrection He  accomplished. His death is more often presented as a cause for repentance. When His death is explained in the letters of the apostles, it is often connected to the terms – redemption, ransom, remission, sacrifice, offering, suffering etc. To understand the terms, the Old Testament is vital.

  

      It is most important to notice that often when the Lord Jesus was foretelling His death, He referred to the Old Testament or implied it’s truth  to give meaning to the cross e.g. “ I will smite the Shepherd and the sheep will be scattered.” (Mark 14.27)

    Another preliminary to my investigation is the care needed to discern the symbolism, metaphors etc frequently used in the Old and New Testaments. The one which I will later look at is “shed blood” – is it literal , a metaphor, a  generality or what? Well the Bible does give an answer, and we do well to let the Bible speak for itself rather than force the Bible to say what we want it to say.

     I find I must restrain myself from building a mountain of interpretation upon a minor detail  e.g. The Lord said “It is finished”  - I love the thought that the work of salvation was declared finished and the debt of sin paid, however I have little support from any other scripture that this is the meaning of “It is finished”. It could have referred to the fulfilment of scripture. Or the finish of the suffering , or the giving up of His life.

So let us proceed with due care and diligence!

John McKee  

jhnmckee@internode.on.net

Why must He die

The death of the Lord Jesus Christ.

       This most important historical event needs to be evaluated in history, in scripture, in the purpose of God, in its ongoing effect today, in its eternal value etc.

       Some people think about the Lord’s death once a year, others remember His death once a quarter or once a month. I grew up among Christians who spent time at least each week remembering the death of the Saviour. After fifty years regularly remembering, studying the Lord’s death, I find  ‘the well is exceedingly deep and very satisfying’  - I mean that I never weary of meditating on the multifaceted details of the death of the Lord Jesus.

       In this blog I will ask some questions and later give answers.

Note  -  I posted several articles on the ‘cross of Christ’  a year or two back. They should be found in the archives to the right.

Questions

   Why did Jesus die if he could have prevented such shameful end?

     Why must his death be executed at the hands of Jews and Gentiles  with        such injustice and torture?

       What does the Bible teach about the three hours of darkness?

         When was his blood shed?

          What sufferings were for atonement?

           Who did he die for?

            Where was he while his body lay  in the tomb?

Enough to start with?????????

Pray that the Holy Spirit will give wisdom to answer accurately  and to the glory of God.

PS if you want to follow this series, you can enter your email at the bottom of the page and each blog will be sent to you. I will not be harassing anyone, in fact I don’t think I am able to know who is getting the emails.

John McKee

Good news for the whole world

      If repentance and forgiveness from God is good news, what are we doing to spread it? The Gospel of Luke is followed by the book of Acts.  This is the ongoing history of the Gospel going out from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth.

        I notice readers of this blogsite are from  many different parts of the world. I would be delighted to hear of your service to Christ , spreading the Gospel. Sent your story to 

johnmckee@internode.on.net

Repentance - forgiveness

My meditations in Luke have come to the last chapter and I would like you to think on just two words from the risen Lord.

“Repentance”  and   “Forgiveness”

The need for repentance has been clearly highlighted in the narrative by Dr Luke. Jesus taught the need for a change of mind about money. He called for a change of commitment from self orientated things to total commitment to Himself. He denounced hypocrisy.  His story about the Pharisee and the tax collector illustrates the repentance that counts.  The Pharisee was all boasting in himself. The tax collector put briefly –“God be merciful to me the sinner” Jesus  commented on this as the real way to blessing. Indeed the Lord made known what it was that caused joy in heaven – when someone like the prodigal son came to his senses and said “ I will arise and go to my father, and say I am not worthy..........”

It is wonderful that God grants us the opportunity to repent and it is wise for us to turn from our own way to choose God’s way.

Forgiveness in our world is often taken to mean ‘no revenge’, letting a hurt go so that we do not become embittered. On a human level that is true. With God it is somewhat different. He is and always has been a forgiving God, but He is wiser than to just let people get away with it. God is complete in holiness and calls each sin into account. Just like a speeding fine, the law must be applied and all my pleas for forgiveness will fail until the fine is paid. So it is with God. He who understands the debt of sin, the fine incurred, the consequences of an unpaid fine (the wages of sin is death), He chose not to overlook the debt, but chose to pay the debt Himself. The Old Testament sacrifices illustrate the costliness of sin, and Jesus here states that it was necessary for Him to suffer (on the cross) so that forgiveness might be freely offered to people of all nations. This is good news that “Christ died for our sins” and now that He lives, He is able to make the blessing real in the lives of all who choose to change (repent).

This forgiveness which is based on the debt of sin being paid in the death of Christ leads to God being triumphant in His holiness, His grace achieves its objective (reconciliation) and His love is satisfied (relationship of children) and His name is honoured in righteousness.

How good it is to see things as God sees them!

How good it is to respond in faith and be blessed by God.

John McKee

The suffering Saviour

Luke 22/23

My recent meditations of Luke have centred upon the sufferings of the Messiah. These chapters are so full of precious truth. I will recommend some of the profitable ways of meditating on them.

Highlight the verses which contain a prophetic implication – prophecy by the Lord Jesus about His impending death ( It was no accident).

Carefully study the trial of the Jesus – before the Sanhedrin, before Pilate, before Herod – all being illegal by their own standards. It is interesting to see the Lord vindicated as righteous on all occasions. Also note how the Lord controls the situation e.g. before the Sanhedrin He answers no accusations except the one concerning His personal identity. This is just what He wanted – the opportunity to declare before the highest earthly court who He really was. (link this with Daniel 7) Any false messiah would have denied , knowing that under Moses law a false claim to be messiah meant the death penalty.

Before Pilate the Lord Jesus focuses on His identity as being ‘from above’.

Trace through these chapters, the physical suffering of the Lord – being bound, buffeted, scourged and crucified.

Trace again the mental suffering of the Lord – betrayed, forsaken, unjustly tried, spit upon, lifted up on a cross as a transgressor, mocked by soldiers and those who should have given Him praise.   Then go deeper to the spiritual sufferings – the distraught prayer of Gethsemane, the denial of God’s authority in Jewish judgement, the anguish of knowing the awful consequences  for the people of Jerusalem and the  ultimate desertedness of the three hours of darkness.

It is important to observe His unbroken consciousness of God throughout the ordeal. From the prayer of the garden, to the final prayer on the cross, the Lord Jesus was not only in full command of Himself, but also in complete understanding of what was happening in the Father’s will.

His own summary is important - ‘ought not Christ to have suffered these things and enter into His glory.’ (24.26)

It is right to be touched by the tragedy of the cross, but it is so important to be converted by understanding God at work at the cross. This is why the teachings of the apostles are so important.

“God spared not His own Son, but gave Him up for us all”  (Romans 8)

For you, for me.

John McKee    comments welcome johnmckee@internode.on.net