John 12:23 - And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
John 17:1-2 - Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.”
6 surprising elements of the glory of the cross
I. Christ’s Willingness to be Cast Out in Order for Us to be Brought in
A. He went to the place of the skull
Exodus 29:14 - But the flesh of the bull and its hide and its refuse, you shall burn with fire outside the camp; it is a sin offering.
Hebrews 13:11-13 - For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
B. He was numbered with the transgressors
Isaiah 53:12 - Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death ,and was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.
II. Christ Endured Being Mocked Even Though He Is the King
A. The mockery of Pilate’s inscription
John 19:19-22 - Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”
B. Jesus’ glory as King is displayed to many
Revelation 19:16 - And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
Philippians 2:8-11 - Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
III. Christ Was Shamed so that We Can be Clothed
A. The soldiers took His clothes and exposed His nakedness
John 19:23 - Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; this was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.”
Psalm 22:18 - They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.
B. Christ took the nakedness and shame of mankind that started in the garden
Genesis 3:7-11 - Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
C. We can be clothed with salvation made available at the cross
Isaiah 61:10 - I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, my soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
Romans 6:11 - Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 13:14 - But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
IV. Christ’s Willingness to be Alone so that We Can be a Part of His Forever Family
A. Jesus’ provision for His mother while suffering
John 19:26-27 - When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.
B. Jesus’ provision for His enemies through suffering and death
Romans 5:8-10 - But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while 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.
V. Christ Was Willing to Thirst so that We Would Never Thirst Again
A. The physical thirst
John 19:28 - After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.”
Psalm 69:21 - They also gave me gall for my food and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
B. The spiritual thirst
John 7:37-39 - Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
VI. Christ Obediently Accomplished the Work of the Father so that We Can Turn from Our Dead Works and Believe in Him
A. By trusting in His finished work
John 19:29-30 - A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
John 10:18 - No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.
John 17:4 - I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.
B. By living out our faith based on what He has accomplished
Ephesians 2:8-10 - For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
What do you think about when you think of glory….think for a moment about some of the pinnacles of earthly glory.
- For some it is winning the state tournament…state champs…that rings for years after high school.
- Maybe it is walking across the platform being the first in your family to get a college degree
- Or the quintessential….Super Bowl Champs….I am going to Disney World….nothing says glory like going on the ride…it’s a small world after all.
The reality is God’s choice to reveal his glory through Jesus, the suffering servant is surprising…it is not what we normally think of glory….I think we often think about glory in terms of a king being coronated after a great military victory with all the pomp and circumstance, every piece of valuable decoration and fine clothing…and a parade though the city with many, many people yelling cheers of adoration.
That is not how our God displayed His glory through the messiah…and yet the amazing sovereign plan of our God to bring about salvation for sinners has reverberated through human history in a way that is unparalleled.
Jesus Himself has been foreshadowing the glory that is coming to His disciples…
John 12:23 — 23 And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
John 17:1–2 — 1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, 2 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.
And so we rejoice in God showing His absolute power and authority over sin and death through the obedience of the son and the glory of the cross.
So today as we continue our series in the Gospel of John we will focus on…
Enjoying Life in His name because of the Glory of the Cross
- With that in mind please turn in your bibles to John Chapter 19 as we read verses 16-30.
- If you need a bible you can find one under the chair in front of you…John 19 is in the back section of the bible, the NT…on page 89.
READ JOHN 19:16-30
With our time this morning let’s look at…6 Surprising Elements of the Glory of the Cross
The first is…
Christ’s willingness to be cast out in order for us to be brought in.
Note that even after the sham trial(s)… Jesus is going willingly…everything He is doing… He is doing out of willing obedience and trust in the father’s sovereign plan…we see that…
He went to the place of the skull
The place of the skull is translated Golgotha in Hebrew, and in Latin it is translated Calvary…regardless of the language…This is significant as you executed people outside the city,.
- Crucifixions were like billboards….as you entered the city, you were warned that if you do not submit to Roman authority, if you are an insurrectionist this will happen to you, because of the power, might, and glory of Rome.
Yet the cross of Christ did so much more… this was more than just a horrible crucifixion…it was a sin offering to show that we have actually rebelled against the true power and authority of the universe God…
- and instead of forced submission, we have the willing obedience of the son to make a way for others to submit to the glorious authority of the Lord….for that to happen there had to not be a brutal warning, but a sin offering…
We see that sin offerings were to be offered outside the city...the shame of our sin needs to be removed, put away as we see in Exodus….
Exodus 29:14 — 14 “But the flesh of the bull and its hide and its refuse, you shall burn with fire outside the camp; it is a sin offering.
- The Author of Hebrews highlights how important it was for Christ to be taken outside the city as an offering for sin…so that we might be sanctified, made holy before God because of the shedding of his blood…
Hebrews 13:11–13 — 11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp. 12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. 13 So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
As followers of Christ, we must marvel at the glory of God on display as Jesus being put out…is our only hope of being brought into God’s city, God’s kingdom…and so it impacts us that we must be willing to also at times bear the reproach of being identified with Christ, that we might also seek to share the good news with others so that they too might be brought in.
Jesus was not only put outside the city, he was crucified between 2 criminals…the scripture says…
He was numbered with the transgressors
Isaiah 53:12 — 12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.
He was crucified between two rebels, so that He could make a way to redeem the rebellious hearts of man that do not want to trust and obey our creator.
Not only was he innocent, but…
Christ endured being mocked even though He is the king.
Note…
The mockery of Pilate’s Inscription
John 19:19–22 — 19 Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” 20 Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’ ” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”
Do you remember what people think comes out of Nazareth?
- Nothing good is the prevailing thought….This is Pilate saying to the Jews…look how strong you are…sure you were able to get your way…but you are so weak as a people and nation, here is your king from Nazareth displayed and hanging on a strong Roman cross.
So it is Pilate seeking a bit of revenge from the Jewish leaders who just finished manipulating a spineless leader…now he wants some petty revenge…and yet the inscription is true…
Pilate wants to Lord his authority over the Jewish leaders, but God is sovereignly displaying His glory in a King who would not send others to suffer and die in his place…but a leader who would suffer and die in the place of not just others…but in the place of rebels and His enemies…
In fact…
Jesus’s glory as King is displayed to many
The whole book of John is laying out Who Jesus is, what He did, so that people will believe in Him…put their faith in what He did on the cross as their only hope of salvation.
The message was written in Hebrew so that all the Jews would have to wrestle with who they believe Jesus to be…It was written in Greek which was the common language of the people of the whole roman empire…and it was written in Latin, the language of the military…
The text says that many of the Jews read this message…and this message, this good news that we have… must be placed before many people in many languages so that people from every tribe and tongue and nation will decide if they will trust in the Messiah…because he is coming again…and then people will see another inscription….
Revelation 19:16 — 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
Pilate was mocking, but God was proclaiming His glory….
Philippians 2:8–11 — 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
We often think about glory as fine linen, and great comfort…but we see God’s glory displayed differently…in fact part of the glory is that…
Christ was shamed so that we can be clothed.
You see …
The soldiers took his clothes and exposed his nakedness
John 19:23 — 23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. 24 So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; this was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.”
The actions of everyone involved were wicked, and yet God had worked out every detail…usually there were 4 soldiers and a centurion overseeing a crucifixion….the soldiers would take the belongings of the person being crucified…in addition to bringing about suffering, they also are looking to shame.
What is amazing is that this is all a part of God’s plan, and the soldiers actions fulfill the word of God in two ways…they divided up a portion of his clothing, and then the seamless tunic they cast lots for….Just think of the detail, that some of His clothes would be divided up in one way and another article would have to be taken a different way…all of it showing the Glory of God who is in charge of every little detail…Sinful man is responsible, and yet God’s plan of salvation in all the little intricate details can not be stopped as this was foretold years before in….
Psalm 22:18 — 18 They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots.
Not only does this show God’s intricate plan of salvation, but it goes back to the very beginning and our need for salvation…you see…
Christ took the nakedness and shame of mankind that started in the garden
Do you remember the first clothing…the first coverings….and why they were needed because of Adam and Eve’s sin and rebellion…
Genesis 3:7–11 — 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. 8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” 11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
The cross shows God’s glorious reversal…where sinful man initially makes covering to try to cover our sin….the Son of man takes on our sin and is stripped and is displayed in shame because of the sinfulness of man.
And because of this, God’s glory is displayed because it addresses our sin and shame in a powerful way, so that …
We can be clothed with salvation made available at the cross
We are to proclaim God’s glory as it says in….
Isaiah 61:10 — 10 I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
We are to put on Christ through Faith…through believing in Him…
Romans 6:11 — 11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
We are made alive, in Christ Jesus…we must be clothed with His perfect obedience, His perfect righteousness….we are clothed by believing Jesus is the Christ, and His work on the cross is what we trust in to be reconciled to our God.
[Share Gospel} – If you know that you do not have a saving relationship with Christ…I want to encourage you to admit the shame of your sin, how it is an offense against your creator, that He had to suffer in your place to make a way for you to be saved…and then take the clothing of Christ he offers you, and trust in Him for your salvation.
Believing friend…if you have trust in Christ…if you have put Him on by faith and you are now alive to God in Christ…you must keep trusting, keep viewing yourself through your relationship with Jesus so that it changes how you live, and it changes what you desire….His glory and no tour own as Romans says….
Romans 13:14 — 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
That my friends is worshiping God above worshipping our desires….not only do we seek to do this because He is our rightful king willing to take our shame, but also we see in this text…
Christ’s willingness to be alone so that we can be a part of His forever family.
Notice….
Jesus’ provision for His mother while suffering
In contrast to the 4 soldiers stripping Jesus …John highlights four women there at the cross…There are differing views if there are 3 or 4 women John is referencing…it is difficult as we know from other gospels there were many women there, but John highlights Jesus’ mother Mary, her sister we infer from other gospel to be Salome the mother of James and John (sons of Zebedee)…That would make John the apostle, one of the sons of zebedee who wrote this gospel Jesus’ Cousin.
Then Mary Clopas appears to be the mother of was mother of James and Joseph …This James is the other James, not James Zebedee…but James the less…younger or shorter?…How would you like to be called Bill the Less or Mike the less….Big Mike/Little Mike….
And then Mary, who was from Magdala, a village near galilee who is listed in all the Gospel being there.
So the point is these are Jesus close’ friends and family, those who have been with him for a long time…
However, Jesus hangs on the cross alone…He is as Psalm 22 states going to be forsaken of the Father….He is going to be alone, and isolated in a way like no other as he bears the wrath of God that mankind deserves….
And even as he must drink this cup of God’s wrath alone, he makes provision for His mother to be taken care of by the apostle John….we read…
John 19:26–27 — 26 When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then He said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.
It is amazing as he suffers, after being scourged, too weak to carry his cross all the way to Calvary, and now fighting for each breath as people who are crucified are basically asphyxiated…He makes sure his mother is taken care of….that shows the glory of our compassionate God….but I believe His glory is displayed even greater.
You see Jesus didn’t just provide protection for his family, he provided a way for His enemies to be protected…
God’s glory is displayed though….
Jesus provision for His enemies through suffering and death
Romans 5:8–10 — 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 10 For if while 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.
It is easy to love those who love you when you are comfortable…much harder to love when you are suffering and much much harder to love your enemies….the soldiers who are stripping you in shame…much harder to love ..and therefore much more glorious.
Doesn’t Jesus prayer recorded in the others gospel come to your mind…Father forgive them…they know not what they do….and yet they were still guilty, and they needed the lamb of God to take away the sins of the world…and they needed to come to believe that he was the messiah, the song of God.. to cloth themselves with Christ to then be a part of His household, part of His kingdom, part of His forever family.
The hour of God glorifying the son continues as every little detail has purpose and points to Who God is, what He has said, and what He is ultimately providing through the cross of Christ.
You see, another surprising element was that…
Christ was willing to thirst so that we would never thirst again.
We first recognize that this was real physical suffering in our place…there was …
The physical thirst
John 19:28 — 28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.”
Jesus knew exactly what He was saying…He knew that this is the plan of the Father being worked out to perfection for His glory and for our salvation….
Jesus says, “I thirst” and it once again shows the glory of God where God’s word is fulfilled perfectly as we see Psalm 69 says…
Psalm 69:21 — 21 They also gave me gall for my food And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
This sour wine, was a wine that slaves and soldiers drank…it was cheap…it was different than the Mryrr or Gall that was offered him earlier…he refused to drink that as it would have numbed his pain…and he was taking the full wrath of God in our place….however there was more than just physical suffering, more than just physical thirst…the Love of the Father and Son, the perfect relationship was going to be dry….so that we would be satisfied and never thirst again…
We must focus also on…
The spiritual thirst
This is the longing in the heart of man that no water can quench…No water will quench Jesus thirst for His relationship with the Father….in fact Jesus has talked before about the spiritual thirst of mankind to be reconciled to the life-giving Spirit of God.
He had said earlier in John 7…
John 7:37–39 — 37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
To provide this living water…Jesus had to thirst so that you and I can have eternal refreshment, fountains of living water welling up in us because we are alive to God in Christ and spiritually made alive, indwelt with the spirit of God.
Each of us must wrestle with what do I thirst for in life…what do I want, that I think will satisfy me…God has given us Himself….That we can be reconciled to our creator and live with purpose for His glory….we are clothed in Christ’s righteousness, and we have the spirit of God living in us molding and shaping us to the glorious image of Christ….
Each of us must wrestle with the question…what else do you want that you think will satisfy you beside an intimate relationship of love with the God of the universe….
The reality is if we are not satisfied in the Lord, if we do not hunger and thirst for righteousness that comes from Him, hunger and thirst to know Him better…we will not obey Him….
That is why the obedience of Christ displays God’s glory so powerfully.
You see…
Christ obediently accomplished the work of the Father so that we can turn from our dead works and believe in Him.
We believe in Him….
By trusting in His finished work
John 19:29–30 — 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
It is finished…He did everything He was supposed to do….He did it willingly…He went to the cross willingly…
In fact he even willingly laid down his life…
John 10:18 — 18 “No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”
The cross brings God glory because Jesus accomplished all that God planned….
John 17:4 — 4 “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.
We also continue to believe in Him, and we continue to bring him glory….
By living out our faith based on what He has accomplished
Ephesians 2:8–10 — 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
- He finished a work, that we being sinners could never accomplish…and so we must humble ourselves and trust what He has done…salvation is by Faith in what Christ has done…
….therefore God gets all the glory and no one can boast…
…but as a result we can by the grace of God live changed lives that God has prepared for us…believing Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and then enjoying life in His name.
[Optional if time] - Before I close in prayer, I just want to read Psalm 22 in its entirety and I want you to think about The glory of God shown through the suffering of Christ for you and for me….Read Psalm 22….
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