Killing Jesus
Today I was out for a ride on my mountain bike. I use this
time to get exercise and have some quite time. Ironically I listen to loud
music but that is what I consider quite time, I can explain when someone has an
hour or so. One of the songs I was listening to by “In the mist of lions” a
great Christian screamer band, mentioned the famous phrase uttered by Jesus as
he died on the Cross, “forgive them for they know not what they do (what they
are doing)” (Luke 23:34 NASB).
I began to think about the meaning of this verse. Thinking
back to many sermons I have heard on the subject most attribute Jesus’ comment
to the men casting lots for his clothes, to us as sinners, to the ones who put
him on the cross, or ultimately to the fact he was dying on the cross at the
hands of man. The most common meaning is said to be Jesus was talking about the
ones who killed him that they know not what they do and then it is applied to
us as Christians. As I thought about the meaning I realized that it could not
be meant for us as Christians, it could only be meant for people who wanted
Jesus dead who were not believers or for people who did not wish Jesus dead at
all.
Why?
Because as Christians Jesus had to die, without his death
and resurrection we have nothing to be hopeful or grateful for, because it is
by his death and resurrection that we can truly live and be forgiven for our
sins. Christ told his disciples that he must die for the sins of man (Matthew
16), it was even foretold in the Old Testament in Isaiah that a Savoir would
come as a sacrifice for our sins (Isaiah 53). Because of that Jesus had to die
otherwise we would have no hope of forgiveness. So if that is the case why
would Jesus forgive us for killing him? It is by killing him that we can even
be forgiven. Yes it is true that we really cannot kill Jesus without him
willingly giving up his life but it is the act of sacrifice on our part that
shows our faith.
In the Old Testament sacrifices God never delivered a dead
animal for sacrifice, it was up to the Jews to take a live animal and kill it,
it was by the act of killing they showed their faith in forgiveness. When Jesus
came and Pilot and the Romans (and Jewish leaders) did not kill him and he came
to each of use with a dagger would we pierce him as a sacrifice? The answer
should be yes, as Abraham was willing to kill Isaac with Faith that God would
prevail we should be willing to kill Jesus as a sacrifice with faith that
through his death he would rise again and rid us of death deserving of our
sins. You see Jesus only dies by giving up his life but he does not die without
our act of offering the sacrifice with faith in what he says will happen
through that sacrifice.
C.S. Lewis I believe is a modern day Paul, the things he
wrote while he walked the Earth were so inspired by God I am in awe every time
I read them. His fiction (non-fiction) fantasy and his non-fiction writing are
simply awe inspiring. He both walked in atheism better than most, as did Paul,
and walked in Christ better than most, as did Paul. C.S. Lewis said “Either
Jesus was and is the Son of God or else a madman or something worse” what he
means is Jesus has to be either the savior or a crazy man. I believe the ones
who killed Jesus (physically tortured and put him on a cross which lead to his
death) on that fateful day believed him to be a lunatic (madman) and not the
savior. For this Jesus was heartbroken and wanted forgiveness because they
killed him not knowing that he is the Savior, the Son of God.
If Jesus came today and we had to use the dagger ourselves
to offer him as a sacrifice for our sins it would be his hope that we do it
with faith that our actions would lead to his resurrection and the ultimate
forgiveness of our sins. Unfortunately that was not the reason that the Jews of
the day killed Jesus, they mockingly killed him as the king of the Jews a
raving lunatic.
So how do we do our part in the sacrifice, if we did not
have a chance to offer Jesus as a sacrifice for our sins believing he is the Son
of God Savior of mankind, because we were not there that Good Friday so many
years ago? It is through what Jesus said in Luke 9:23, we are to deny ourselves
and pick up our cross daily. To pick up our cross means, die. By dying to
ourselves we allow Jesus to take control, the Jesus who is the Son of God the
savior of mankind, not the raving lunatic. It is this act of death that shows
our faith that by death Jesus has the power to resurrect our lives in him. It
is sad that life had to come to death but that is the wages of sin and
humankind chose sin. But we have a God who does not let the story stop there,
he offers himself as a sacrifice for those sins. That sacrifice is not without
acting on our part, we have to be faithful and like Abraham and so many before
us we have to do the killing to acknowledge our part in our choice of sin.
