WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:08.560 I'm going to share with you today a message of the crucifixion, the resurrection through the lens of the gospel writer Mark. 00:00:08.880 --> 00:00:13.119 Some of the stuff I'm going to share with you today, it just really inspired me about six months ago. 00:00:13.279 --> 00:00:19.039 I was doing some study on the individual gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. 00:00:19.440 --> 00:00:21.600 I wanted to kind of understand them a little bit better. 00:00:21.679 --> 00:00:24.239 I wanted to understand what was their motive. 00:00:24.399 --> 00:00:26.079 So we know they had a collective motive. 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:29.039 They wanted to present Jesus Christ as the Messiah. 00:00:29.519 --> 00:00:37.359 But they had individual motives that were a little bit different in that they were highly motivated by their audience, the people that they were trying to reach. 00:00:37.600 --> 00:00:43.119 And so you're going to see, just like you and I might tailor our communication a little bit, depending on who we're talking to. 00:00:43.200 --> 00:00:52.880 You might have a friend or family members that are kind of different, and so you might choose different words, you might say things differently, knowing that it'll land one way or the other based on who you're talking to. 00:00:52.960 --> 00:01:00.719 And so it's not like the gospel writers are distorting the story or changing it, but what they're doing is tailoring it to aim at their audience. 00:01:00.799 --> 00:01:05.920 And so when you look at Mark, Mark's audience that he's aiming at were Romans. 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:14.799 And these are Roman Christians, these are both Jew and Gentiles, but these are people who are steeped in, who are deeply ingrained in them, the idea of Hellenism. 00:01:15.280 --> 00:01:18.400 In the Greco-Roman world, first century, Hellenism ruled. 00:01:18.560 --> 00:01:23.760 And Hellenism had four core values, or what we might call pillars of Hellenism. 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:36.000 And once you understand that, you'll start to see things in the book of Mark where Mark is doing what people do in with good etiquette, good uh people skills, is you start with what you have in common. 00:01:36.239 --> 00:01:39.760 If you sit down across somebody, you don't start with what we don't agree on. 00:01:39.920 --> 00:01:42.400 Hey, I'd like to talk about what we don't have in common, right? 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:44.159 You start with what you do have in common. 00:01:44.319 --> 00:01:46.400 That common ground starts a connection. 00:01:46.640 --> 00:01:52.239 At some point you may veer away and talk about things where uh you think differently, but he starts with the common ground. 00:01:52.480 --> 00:01:55.359 So the four pillars of Hellenism, the first one was health care. 00:01:55.840 --> 00:01:59.519 And so they understood more about the human body than anybody ever had. 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:10.080 They uh were focused on hospitals and not only um how to how to treat the human body, how to treat illnesses, so it extended lives and it made for better quality of life. 00:02:10.240 --> 00:02:11.599 That was a big part of what they did. 00:02:11.759 --> 00:02:16.400 The second um uh part of their culture was uh education. 00:02:16.560 --> 00:02:20.960 Uh they had great universities, they improved the educational system tremendously. 00:02:21.120 --> 00:02:22.719 The third was entertainment. 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:29.840 And when you think about entertainment, okay, our in our world, whether it's TV shows or movies or that sort of content, it does shape culture. 00:02:29.919 --> 00:02:34.960 And so the theater was used to shape uh the culture of the empire. 00:02:35.199 --> 00:02:45.039 And then the fourth was competition and athletics, things like the arena, the Coliseum, the Circus Maximus was were designed to create a tribal mentality, and it actually works. 00:02:45.120 --> 00:02:47.759 I mean, that's something you think about in our world. 00:02:47.919 --> 00:02:54.879 We value sports highly, and uh it's quite a thing, you know, to have that embedded in your psyche from a young age. 00:02:55.039 --> 00:03:09.120 Uh when I was a little kid, I mean, that some of my first memories were watching sports, and I remember uh playing T-ball as a kid, and uh when I was a kid, the T-ball league I was in, they named your team after whatever organization sponsored you. 00:03:09.280 --> 00:03:14.560 All right, so so we weren't the the the Reds or the Red Sox or anything, we were Sarah's Kitchen. 00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:16.240 That's real. 00:03:16.319 --> 00:03:17.360 You can ask my mom. 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:20.879 We were Sarah's kitchen, and I was Sarah's kitchen till I die. 00:03:21.039 --> 00:03:21.439 All right. 00:03:21.520 --> 00:03:22.879 I mean, I was loyal, man. 00:03:22.960 --> 00:03:25.840 And if you weren't with Sarah's Kitchen, you were against Sarah's Kitchen. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:32.000 I never met Sarah, I've never been to her kitchen, but I'll tell you, she was on my jersey, and so I was ready to fight to the death. 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:38.800 And and honestly, growing up as a kid, man, not only did I I'm from Northeast Ohio, so I kind of support all the Cleveland teams. 00:03:38.960 --> 00:03:43.199 It was it was not only loving my team, but it was hating the other team. 00:03:43.360 --> 00:03:44.960 I hated the Steelers. 00:03:45.520 --> 00:03:46.960 I hated the Steelers. 00:03:47.039 --> 00:03:51.360 Uh, I'm a Buckeye fan, and I and I just I don't even say Isigan. 00:03:51.439 --> 00:03:52.400 I don't even say it. 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:54.159 It's just that state up north. 00:03:54.240 --> 00:04:00.240 And and it I'm just here to tell you, you know, I'd like to think, you know, that the Lord's done a work in my life, but I still feel it. 00:04:00.319 --> 00:04:07.360 You know, when I'm at the gym and I see somebody pull up next to me in maison blue, I want to drop a dumbbell on their foot. 00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:10.960 You know, but I'm a man of God, so I can't really do that. 00:04:11.680 --> 00:04:20.399 So I just have to imagine it, you know, and in my imagination, I drop a dumbbell on their foot, and then instead of saying I'm sorry, I just say oh and walk away. 00:04:24.879 --> 00:04:26.480 But you think about that, right? 00:04:26.560 --> 00:04:32.959 If from a childhood you learn to compete, you learn to fight, you learn us and them, and if you're not us, you're them. 00:04:33.040 --> 00:04:37.920 And that's that's pretty beneficial to an empire that's trying to expand their borders. 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:51.360 That if I can get you to fight your neighbor, or we can have a crosstown rival where we fight in the parking lot after the game, or whatever it is, if I can get you thinking like that, then how much more can I get you to expand our borders and to do whatever I'm asking you to do? 00:04:51.519 --> 00:04:54.240 And so you got to kind of be aware of that, you gotta be conscious of that. 00:04:54.319 --> 00:04:57.680 And of course, that's the world that Mark is writing to. 00:04:57.920 --> 00:05:02.319 And so you'll see, like when he's presenting Jesus, he does, he meets them at their value. 00:05:02.399 --> 00:05:05.279 So he presents Jesus as a healer, healthcare. 00:05:05.439 --> 00:05:08.800 He he presents Jesus as a great teacher, education. 00:05:08.959 --> 00:05:14.079 He talks about Jesus' miracles, he gathered huge crowds and they were amazed, it says. 00:05:14.319 --> 00:05:19.680 Okay, for people that have been to the theater and had a huge crowd, and everybody walked away like in awe. 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:22.879 And then he presents Jesus as this great champion. 00:05:23.040 --> 00:05:29.519 Now, this is where he goes from meeting them at their core value to now starting to shape their theology. 00:05:29.759 --> 00:05:39.199 Because sometimes the things that are deeply ingrained in us, they may feel right to us, they certainly feel real to us, but it may not be exactly what God intended. 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:45.360 So now you have Mark starting to show them their passions and then to present them with options. 00:05:45.600 --> 00:05:48.480 Today, what I want to do is I want to I want to wrestle through three things. 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:52.160 The first one is something we all should know. 00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:55.360 The second is something we all should question. 00:05:55.839 --> 00:05:58.720 And the third is something we all should feel. 00:05:59.360 --> 00:06:04.879 Something we all should know, something we all should question, and then something we all should feel. 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:17.920 Uh, I came across a great piece of research from a guy by the name of Thomas Schmidt, and what he did was he went in and um he he pulled actually the itinerary of the coronation of Caesar. 00:06:18.000 --> 00:06:19.759 Um this has been preserved in history. 00:06:19.920 --> 00:06:26.800 In fact, the one he used was the coronation of Nero, which would have been about 21 years after the crucifixion of Jesus. 00:06:26.959 --> 00:06:31.360 But but they didn't do unique, it wasn't like we're gonna do a different coronation. 00:06:31.519 --> 00:06:33.040 It would be like our inauguration. 00:06:33.120 --> 00:06:38.319 There's depending whoever the president is, there they have step one, step two, step three, they all do the same thing. 00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:40.639 And so they would do the same thing at the coronation. 00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:50.160 And so what he did was he was able to take and put side by side to show how Mark puts the crucifixion of Jesus next to the coronation of Caesar. 00:06:50.319 --> 00:06:59.199 Um what I want to do is I'm gonna walk you through, and it'll be on the center screen here, but we're gonna walk through the real quick the nine steps of coronating a Caesar. 00:06:59.360 --> 00:07:02.000 The first was the Praetorian Guard gathers. 00:07:02.160 --> 00:07:08.480 All right, the praetorium was where the governor lived, and it was the headquarters for the Praetorian Guard. 00:07:08.639 --> 00:07:12.399 And so the full Praetorian Guard would have been six hundred soldiers. 00:07:12.560 --> 00:07:16.959 So on the day of Caesar's coronation, six hundred soldiers gather. 00:07:17.199 --> 00:07:25.759 Um second step, the emperor dressed in royal robes, they put a wreath, uh, crown wreath on his head and give him a scepter. 00:07:26.000 --> 00:07:29.920 Uh, three, the the third step, the new Caesar is led through a processional. 00:07:30.000 --> 00:07:36.399 So think of a regal parade with people lining the streets and celebrating this new leader. 00:07:36.560 --> 00:07:41.199 Uh number four, Caesar carries an instrument of death followed by a sacrifice. 00:07:41.360 --> 00:07:45.600 So in Nero's case, he carried a sword and behind him was a bull. 00:07:45.680 --> 00:07:50.720 They marched a bull behind him because we're going to make a sacrifice to the gods uh later on. 00:07:50.959 --> 00:07:54.480 Number five, they arrive at Capitoline Hill. 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:57.600 So Rome is the city of seven hills. 00:07:57.759 --> 00:08:01.519 And the biggest hill, the highest hill, is Capitoline Hill. 00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:10.639 It's also known as Head Hill, because when Rome was uh developed and discovered, there was a skull on that hill, so they call it Head Hill or Capitoline Hill. 00:08:10.720 --> 00:08:16.079 And on the highest hill, they built a temple to Zeus. 00:08:16.399 --> 00:08:32.639 So when they arrived at Capitoline Hill, okay, they offer Caesar wine mixed with myrrh, which was the most expensive wine, and it was the kingly wine, and instead of taking it, he refuses it as a statement of I'm Caesar, doggone it. 00:08:32.720 --> 00:08:34.559 I don't need anything, I don't need your wine. 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:36.399 Alright, I'm in need of nothing. 00:08:36.639 --> 00:08:41.919 And then uh number seven or six, sorry, then this sacrifice is killed. 00:08:42.000 --> 00:08:49.200 So they slaughter the bull or they kill the sacrifice, and then they have this moment where they parade out a group of prisoners. 00:08:49.440 --> 00:08:54.720 And the prisoners stand before Caesar, and Caesar goes down the line of prisoners in front of all these people. 00:08:54.879 --> 00:08:56.960 You've got all this pomp and circumstance. 00:08:57.039 --> 00:09:03.519 He goes down the line to the prisoners, and one by one he either pardons them or he condemns them. 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:07.120 Thumbs up, thumbs down, goes down the line at his will. 00:09:07.200 --> 00:09:11.039 It might be on a whim, it might be arbitrary, or he may have some information. 00:09:11.279 --> 00:09:16.559 Bottom line is the power of life and death is in the hand of Caesar. 00:09:17.120 --> 00:09:21.919 What we have to understand about the mindset of an empire, we've talked about this a lot. 00:09:22.159 --> 00:09:30.080 It's driven by the power of fear, which then triggers the thirst for power or the love for power, right? 00:09:30.559 --> 00:09:31.919 Why do people want power? 00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:38.559 Well, it could be that you just are power hungry, or it could be that you don't want your fears to come true. 00:09:38.799 --> 00:09:46.639 If I'm big and powerful, and if I'm wealthy, and if I've got huge connections and I'm in a high place, that means that you can't hurt me. 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:47.600 I'm independent. 00:09:48.240 --> 00:09:50.080 I have a sense of security and safety. 00:09:50.159 --> 00:09:53.519 If my security's threatened, I'll reach for my power. 00:09:53.759 --> 00:09:55.759 I'll use my power however I need to. 00:09:55.919 --> 00:10:02.879 And so what you have is an empire where they are coronating a Caesar and they're trying to show him as the ultimate powerful being. 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:06.799 Thumbs up, thumbs down, the power of life and death in the hands of Caesar. 00:10:06.960 --> 00:10:14.879 Uh number seven, he ascends the steps of the temple with the high priest on his right and the uh commander of the military on his left. 00:10:14.960 --> 00:10:21.120 So I say high priest, the Roman Empire had 24 sanctioned religions that were legal. 00:10:21.279 --> 00:10:22.559 Everything else was illegal. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:26.720 So of those 24 sanctioned religions, you had a leader, but then you had a high priest. 00:10:26.879 --> 00:10:30.799 So he's standing there, one that's over all 24 sanctioned religions. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:40.960 So I have the gods and the religion on my right hand, and on my left hand, I have the commander of my military and all the war daddies that are behind him. 00:10:41.200 --> 00:10:49.279 So imagine this: you're at the top of Zeus's temple, you're in the highest hill, you're standing up there with the gods in this hand and the military in this hand. 00:10:49.440 --> 00:10:51.919 This is like the most majestic thing they could come up with. 00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:53.200 I mean, this is powerful. 00:10:53.440 --> 00:11:00.480 And so he's he's standing up there, and then eight, these Caesar is declared Lord and God, as everyone sings his praises. 00:11:00.879 --> 00:11:04.559 Hail Caesar, Lord and God, hail Caesar, Lord and God. 00:11:04.799 --> 00:11:09.519 And then step nine, the final step is everyone waits for a sign from the heavens. 00:11:09.840 --> 00:11:19.360 History records that Nero, when he was coronated, uh there was an eclipse on that same day, which was probably uh intentional on their part. 00:11:19.440 --> 00:11:28.720 As astronomers probably communicated that with them, hey, we can do this, and this will be the climactic moment where everybody goes, Look, man, Zeus has stamped this guy. 00:11:28.799 --> 00:11:33.200 All right, Zeus did this as a statement from the heavens that this is our guy. 00:11:33.440 --> 00:11:36.080 So that's the process of coronating a Caesar. 00:11:36.240 --> 00:11:41.279 Um, Thomas Schmidt uh, when I read this from him, it just blew my mind. 00:11:41.360 --> 00:11:42.799 Uh, okay, look at this now. 00:11:43.039 --> 00:11:44.639 We're gonna go Mark chapter 15. 00:11:44.720 --> 00:11:47.039 If you don't have your Bible, it'll be on the side screens. 00:11:47.200 --> 00:11:50.799 Mark 15, we're gonna go chapter verse 16 through 33 straight through. 00:11:50.960 --> 00:11:52.960 We're not look, we're not gonna get cute with the text. 00:11:53.039 --> 00:11:57.919 We're just going to read what Mark wrote, and we're going to read it and just run right down this list. 00:11:58.080 --> 00:11:58.480 All right. 00:11:58.559 --> 00:12:00.799 Uh step one, the Praetorian guard gathers. 00:12:00.960 --> 00:12:02.159 Mark 15, 16. 00:12:02.240 --> 00:12:09.840 The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace, that is, the Praetorium, and called together the whole company of soldiers. 00:12:10.080 --> 00:12:15.200 Step two, the emperor is dressed in royal robes, a wreath as a crown, and a scepter. 00:12:15.600 --> 00:12:16.879 Mark 15, 17. 00:12:16.960 --> 00:12:25.120 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him, and they began to call out to him, Hail, King of the Jews. 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:29.200 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. 00:12:29.440 --> 00:12:32.320 Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. 00:12:32.559 --> 00:12:37.759 So very clearly, what's going on here is they're doing a mock coronation. 00:12:38.080 --> 00:12:39.919 What is Jesus guilty of? 00:12:40.159 --> 00:12:41.279 What is he being accused of? 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:42.559 What are the charges? 00:12:42.720 --> 00:12:48.480 Well, to the Sanhedrin or the Jewish religious leaders, he was charged with uh blasphemy. 00:12:48.639 --> 00:12:50.799 That he's claiming to be the Son of God. 00:12:51.039 --> 00:12:52.960 But they knew that Rome didn't care about that. 00:12:53.120 --> 00:12:56.080 What's going to get Rome uh fired up is sedition. 00:12:56.559 --> 00:12:59.360 So he's claimed to be the king of the Jews. 00:12:59.679 --> 00:13:09.279 And so that claim, uh the idea of sedition or that you're you're organizing a rebellion or a riot was ultimately the charges that they brought against him. 00:13:09.360 --> 00:13:13.360 And so they're going, okay, you're king of the Jews, we're going to coronate you. 00:13:13.519 --> 00:13:19.360 And we're so what we're going to do is torture you on every level. 00:13:19.679 --> 00:13:21.519 We're going to mock you publicly. 00:13:21.600 --> 00:13:28.960 It's one of our greatest fears is that we would be shamed or mocked or be embarrassed in front of the whole world. 00:13:29.120 --> 00:13:35.200 So we're going to do that, and then we're going to physically torture you, and we're going to create a spectacle. 00:13:35.279 --> 00:13:42.480 So, with all your following, if anybody decides to pick up your baton and run with it, they're going to have to know that this will also happen to them. 00:13:42.639 --> 00:13:46.159 So the whole thing is designed as a mock coronation. 00:13:46.320 --> 00:13:51.120 Uh, step three, they the the new Caesar is led through a processional. 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:55.279 Okay, what for Caesar was a grand parade, for Jesus was a death march. 00:13:55.519 --> 00:14:02.080 It says in verse 20, when they uh when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put on clothes on him. 00:14:02.240 --> 00:14:05.440 Uh then they led him out to crucify him. 00:14:05.840 --> 00:14:09.679 Step four, Caesar carries an instrument of death followed by a sacrifice. 00:14:09.840 --> 00:14:10.720 This is this is powerful. 00:14:10.799 --> 00:14:20.720 Verse 21 a certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:30.080 So uh like Caesar carries a sword and has a sacrifice behind him, Jesus is carrying the instrument of death, which is the cross, and he himself is a sacrifice. 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:39.360 And so you see that now because his body is giving out, Simon now is carrying the instrument of death, and Jesus is following behind like a lamb to the slaughter. 00:14:39.440 --> 00:14:43.440 He's like like he is the sacrifice following the instrument of death. 00:14:43.679 --> 00:14:47.120 Um Step five, they arrive at Capitoline Hill. 00:14:47.360 --> 00:14:58.320 Mark 15, 22 says they brought Jesus to the place called Galgatha, which means the place of the skull or head hill, and they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:02.480 Step six, the sacrifice is killed. 00:15:02.799 --> 00:15:04.320 Verse 24, they crucified him. 00:15:04.480 --> 00:15:08.240 Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get. 00:15:08.399 --> 00:15:10.480 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. 00:15:10.639 --> 00:15:14.399 The written notice of the charge against him read, The King of the Jews. 00:15:14.720 --> 00:15:21.519 Step seven, he ascends the steps of the temple of the high priest on his right, and the military commander on his left. 00:15:21.759 --> 00:15:27.840 Mark 15, 27, they crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. 00:15:28.080 --> 00:15:32.720 And then step eight, Caesar is acclaimed Lord and God as everyone sings his praises. 00:15:33.200 --> 00:15:34.960 Look what happens to Jesus, verse 29. 00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:42.159 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, So, you're going to destroy the temple and build it in three days. 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:45.120 Hmm, come down from the cross and save yourself. 00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:49.360 In the same way, the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. 00:15:49.519 --> 00:15:52.240 He saved others, they said, but he can't save himself. 00:15:52.799 --> 00:15:59.519 Let this Messiah, the king of Israel, come down from the cross that we may see and believe. 00:16:00.480 --> 00:16:03.279 Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him. 00:16:03.600 --> 00:16:08.000 And then the last step, step nine, everyone waits for a sign from heaven. 00:16:08.240 --> 00:16:14.799 And Mark 15, 33 says, at noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 00:16:16.480 --> 00:16:21.360 There's so much going on beneath the surface. 00:16:22.240 --> 00:16:27.440 If you and I had been there, and I don't know, there's something about what we just did, I kind of feel it. 00:16:27.600 --> 00:16:29.840 I feel like I can see it. 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:46.639 Imagine being there, and everything to the naked eye is just open and shut proof that the kingdom of God is weak, that Jesus has been defeated, that he's been mocked, it's it would discourage you to follow. 00:16:46.799 --> 00:16:51.679 It would ultimately say, hey, it was a good run, but I guess it ends here. 00:16:52.000 --> 00:17:04.160 We know everybody was believing that because they all went in, even his own loyal, most loyal followers went into hiding because they said sometimes you just got to admit defeat. 00:17:04.640 --> 00:17:10.559 The reality is, if you look beneath the surface, what you see are a few things. 00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:15.359 The first is you see the power of fear in action. 00:17:16.079 --> 00:17:29.359 What looked like this violent act, what looked like this flex of power by the Romans was really, if you could see beneath the surface, was just a bunch of scared leaders. 00:17:31.119 --> 00:17:37.440 I mean, you've lived enough life at this point to know that not everybody who's puffing up is actually confident. 00:17:39.599 --> 00:17:52.160 I think we've learned enough in this life to know that not everybody who flexes and everybody who talks about how much money they have, and not everybody who name drops, and not not everybody who's violent, and not everybody who powers up is as confident as they seem. 00:17:52.240 --> 00:17:57.680 In fact, what often looks like great power on the surface, if you could see underneath it, you would just see fear. 00:17:57.920 --> 00:17:58.319 That's right. 00:17:58.559 --> 00:17:59.359 There's fear. 00:17:59.519 --> 00:18:04.880 And that fear provokes a need for power, a grasping for power, a need for control. 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:07.359 And so that that's what's going on. 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:20.240 In both the coronation of Caesar, this need to show power on this level, the power of life and death, a Caesar that's in need of nothing, that's declared to be deity, a imperial cult. 00:18:20.880 --> 00:18:28.799 Okay, all of that was masking a fear that some other nation, some other group's gonna come in and take what we have and we're gonna lose it. 00:18:28.880 --> 00:18:31.519 And so they they had to try to show off. 00:18:32.400 --> 00:18:42.880 And what you'd also see, if you could see beneath the surface, is that the person who looked the weakest, the most defeated, was actually the one who possessed the most power. 00:18:43.839 --> 00:18:45.839 Jesus could have flattened that place. 00:18:46.079 --> 00:18:57.119 He could have called down angels from heaven, he could have, he could have called on his own people to fight, but he went in the ultimate act of submission to God's will, he went as a lamb to the slaughter. 00:18:58.480 --> 00:19:00.000 So, what do we need to know? 00:19:00.319 --> 00:19:03.279 There's something we need to know, there's something we need to question, there's something we need to feel. 00:19:03.359 --> 00:19:04.079 What do we need to know? 00:19:04.240 --> 00:19:18.559 Well, what we need to know is that the mock coronation that was designed to shame Jesus actually instead revealed his true character as a sacrificial king. 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:25.680 The newsflash, Easter newsflash, the mock coronation failed miserably. 00:19:26.319 --> 00:19:26.640 Okay? 00:19:27.119 --> 00:19:32.000 They intended to do this to prove that Jesus was weak. 00:19:32.240 --> 00:19:44.559 They intended to do this to shame him, but what it actually did was it revealed his true nature and his character as sacrificial love and sacrificial king. 00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:46.960 And Jesus did that really in two ways. 00:19:47.119 --> 00:19:52.240 The first way is that uh at the cross, Jesus exposes the power of fear. 00:19:52.880 --> 00:19:54.240 He exposes it. 00:19:54.559 --> 00:20:05.599 It says in uh Colossians 2.15, having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:12.559 Okay, so how does Jesus expose uh the the power of fear and the love of power? 00:20:12.799 --> 00:20:18.319 He does it on the cross by the fact that when you look at that picture, you should see this. 00:20:18.640 --> 00:20:21.440 The most innocent person to ever live. 00:20:22.319 --> 00:20:23.759 The only sinless one. 00:20:24.400 --> 00:20:30.400 No one that's ever, no one else that I to my knowledge, nobody that's ever lived, uh has lived without sin. 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:32.160 I mean, I know you had a good month. 00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:38.880 But none of us would claim to be sinless, right? 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:41.519 But but you look at Jesus, the ultimate sinless. 00:20:41.599 --> 00:20:43.440 He didn't do any of the stuff they said that he did. 00:20:43.599 --> 00:20:48.400 What did he do in his life but show up uh and seek and save that which was lost? 00:20:48.720 --> 00:20:54.559 To show up to heal people on every level, to help people understand who God really is. 00:20:54.799 --> 00:21:13.440 And so you have in this picture, it's as vivid as it can be, the most innocent, innocent, sinless person being tortured, shamed, ridiculed, and executed in that way, in the worst possible way. 00:21:13.759 --> 00:21:17.519 The best possible person being treated in the worst possible way. 00:21:17.759 --> 00:21:25.200 And in so doing, he exposes by letting it happen to him, he's exposing the power of fear. 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:41.920 That if you're driven by the power of fear that turns into a lust for power, you are capable of doing tremendous injustice to an innocent person who simply arouses your fear or threatens your power. 00:21:43.279 --> 00:21:58.880 If my life is motivated and driven by the power of fear, my fear is driving me, and it's causing me to reach for control and to thirst for power, then it will anybody that threatens that, and anybody that arouses that is dead meat. 00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:02.079 And so he shows it publicly. 00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:08.640 The second thing he does after exposing the power of fear is he establishes the power of love. 00:22:09.279 --> 00:22:13.599 That the whole act of the cross was a demonstration of his love. 00:22:13.759 --> 00:22:16.880 That he came to earth in human form. 00:22:17.279 --> 00:22:18.640 He died for us. 00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:21.279 He died as us on the cross. 00:22:21.920 --> 00:22:24.240 Okay, so he exposes fear. 00:22:24.319 --> 00:22:25.039 We got to know this. 00:22:25.119 --> 00:22:27.920 We have to know that the mock coronation failed miserably. 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:30.079 It didn't shame Jesus at all. 00:22:30.160 --> 00:22:31.279 It revealed his character. 00:22:31.519 --> 00:22:35.200 And it exposed the power of fear and it established the power of love. 00:22:35.599 --> 00:22:37.200 Okay, so what do we need to question? 00:22:38.160 --> 00:22:39.200 We know what we need to know. 00:22:39.279 --> 00:22:40.240 What do we need to question? 00:22:40.400 --> 00:22:44.160 What we need to question is what I think Mark is trying to get us to question. 00:22:44.240 --> 00:22:45.680 And it's who is your king? 00:22:46.880 --> 00:22:48.319 That's what he's doing. 00:22:48.640 --> 00:23:00.559 Through connecting the crucifixion to the coronation, and the way that he draws it out, he's putting two kings in front of you and asking you to really search, to really dig deep. 00:23:00.640 --> 00:23:04.400 Now, here's what's kind of a little historical nuance. 00:23:04.559 --> 00:23:06.480 So you have Jesus crucified in A.D. 00:23:06.640 --> 00:23:07.200 33. 00:23:07.359 --> 00:23:12.000 You have Nero, okay, uh coronated in A.D. 00:23:12.160 --> 00:23:12.960 54. 00:23:13.440 --> 00:23:14.079 Right? 00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:21.359 So Mark writes the book of Mark either during the reign of Nero or shortly after. 00:23:21.440 --> 00:23:27.839 So the dating of the book is somewhere in the 50s to late 60s, is maybe as late, some have it as late as 70. 00:23:28.160 --> 00:23:32.640 So Nero ruled from 54 to 68. 00:23:33.039 --> 00:23:43.039 So when you, if we're really wanting to get in the head in the seat of the audience that Mark is writing to, these Roman Christians, he's writing and he's putting up, he's putting up two leaders. 00:23:43.119 --> 00:23:46.160 He's putting up Nero in a sense, and he's putting up Jesus. 00:23:46.240 --> 00:23:50.240 But Nero is more than just Nero, it's it's it's it's a mindset. 00:23:50.960 --> 00:23:53.920 It's a type, it's it's it's a type of thinking. 00:23:54.160 --> 00:24:00.400 And he puts these two kings in front of you, and of course, in their world, the most powerful person was Nero. 00:24:00.640 --> 00:24:02.079 That's the one you're afraid of. 00:24:02.240 --> 00:24:05.279 He he rules with fear and he provokes fear. 00:24:05.759 --> 00:24:07.279 He has the power of life and death. 00:24:07.359 --> 00:24:11.359 And so what he's doing, Mark is putting these two leaders and he's saying, Who is your king? 00:24:11.599 --> 00:24:16.880 And the reason this is important is more than just do you have the right theological answer? 00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:22.720 Because it's not about getting the right answer, it's about what's the real answer. 00:24:23.039 --> 00:24:31.279 Like, like if I gave you a Christian Jesus test, true and false or multiple choice, you'd probably ace it because you'd be like Jesus, right? 00:24:31.359 --> 00:24:33.359 And the answer is Jesus, and you get a hundred. 00:24:33.599 --> 00:24:34.000 All right. 00:24:34.400 --> 00:24:37.200 The question isn't, can you answer the question correctly? 00:24:37.279 --> 00:24:38.960 The answer is what's the real answer? 00:24:39.759 --> 00:24:45.279 Because who your king is will not will determine how you show up and how you behave. 00:24:45.519 --> 00:24:52.960 In in the Roman uh empire, they called Caesar the poter familias, the father of the family. 00:24:53.279 --> 00:25:02.079 And so the way that Caesar showed up as a leader is how they showed up as parents, is how they showed up in their businesses, it's how they showed up as citizens. 00:25:02.319 --> 00:25:04.799 And so this is an important question. 00:25:04.880 --> 00:25:12.960 Uh in the book of Philippians, chapter 2, uh, the apostle Paul is is giving us application of the cross, application of the gospel. 00:25:13.039 --> 00:25:16.319 He says, in your relationships with one another, notice this. 00:25:16.640 --> 00:25:25.759 He's saying, here's how what Jesus did on the cross by exposing the power of fear and establishing the power of love, he said, here's how this should play out in your life. 00:25:25.920 --> 00:25:36.480 He says, in your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus, who being in the very nature of God did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage. 00:25:36.640 --> 00:25:44.559 Rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness, and being found in the appearance as a man. 00:25:44.720 --> 00:26:07.279 Now, to them, this would have been, it would have been emotionally evocative because they would have been reading this, comparing Jesus, who is the ultimate authority, the ultimate empowered king, who came down to the level of a servant, compared to their model of Caesar as emperor, who would never do anything that would appear to be a servant, would never do anything that would bring himself down. 00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:10.079 And so he's going, he's he's going, Who is your king? 00:26:10.240 --> 00:26:15.440 He said, Being founded, he humbled himself, uh becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. 00:26:15.599 --> 00:26:20.640 Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that's above every name. 00:26:21.839 --> 00:26:35.920 Alright, so we know what we need to know, which is that the mock coronation backfired, it failed tremendously, it glorified Jesus, and he exposed the power of fear, and he established the power of love. 00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:41.599 We know we need a question, we need to be honest and go, who is my king? 00:26:41.839 --> 00:26:51.920 Probably the best diagnostic for that is to be honest enough to pray and to trust God and ask him to reveal to you are you being driven in this life by your fear or by your love? 00:26:52.799 --> 00:26:54.400 Are you being driven by your fear? 00:26:54.559 --> 00:27:10.319 If you're being motivated, driven by the power of fear that's causing you to become a more of a control freak than you've ever been, grabbing for more control because I wake up afraid and I'm and I'm driven by my fear, then you are falling into Caesar's mentality. 00:27:10.640 --> 00:27:15.359 But when I'm ultimately Jesus is my king, I operate by agape love. 00:27:15.440 --> 00:27:17.599 I operate with the power of love. 00:27:18.319 --> 00:27:20.079 So that's the question we're supposed to wrestle with. 00:27:20.160 --> 00:27:22.240 The third is what are we supposed to feel? 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:29.119 Um I heard a story recently by a theologian by the name of Greg Boyd, and it was just an incredible story. 00:27:29.519 --> 00:27:31.279 I'll never forget it. 00:27:31.440 --> 00:27:36.720 Uh he was talking about some friends of his who they run a foster home. 00:27:37.119 --> 00:27:46.000 And the way that they approach every kid is they believe that every kid that shows up, they they believe these are good, good kids who have been through some bad things. 00:27:46.160 --> 00:28:00.960 And because they've been through some bad things, they probably they picked up some bad habits and they have some dysfunctional behaviors, but they believe that the kids are good, they've just been they've been through some bad, but they also believe that the love of Jesus, the power of the love of Jesus, can heal anything. 00:28:01.440 --> 00:28:06.799 And it's our job to demonstrate that and to give them that. 00:28:07.119 --> 00:28:11.440 And so they have this little girl who shows up in their foster home, she's 10 years old. 00:28:11.599 --> 00:28:17.680 Um, they go to wake her up for school their first day, and when they walk into the room, the the smell is overwhelming. 00:28:17.759 --> 00:28:23.920 She said the worst terrible smell, and they realize that she has smeared feces on the wall. 00:28:24.240 --> 00:28:27.920 And so they wake her up and they're like, hey, what's going on? 00:28:28.000 --> 00:28:29.759 You know, what what why did you do that? 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:31.359 And she shuts down. 00:28:31.519 --> 00:28:32.960 She won't tell them. 00:28:33.440 --> 00:28:44.079 And so they say, Well, listen, um we we think you're actually a great girl, and we love you, and then we know you just got here and you don't believe that yet, but that's okay. 00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:49.519 And we realize you don't want to tell us, but we believe that there's got to be a good reason that you did this. 00:28:49.920 --> 00:28:54.720 And um, whenever you're ready to tell us, we'd love to talk to you about it. 00:28:54.880 --> 00:28:57.599 But until then, we're gonna clean this up, all right? 00:28:57.680 --> 00:29:03.119 And and because we can't have this bacteria affecting you, you can get sick from this, so we're gonna clean it up. 00:29:03.279 --> 00:29:06.160 So they come the next day and she'd done the same thing. 00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:10.799 And so they said, Okay, uh, we see this is now a habit that you have. 00:29:11.039 --> 00:29:17.519 And so they said, Tell you what, um, if you're you're still not ready to talk about it, uh, we're gonna be cleaning this up every day. 00:29:17.599 --> 00:29:18.640 So it would be nice. 00:29:18.799 --> 00:29:20.559 Would you just smear it right here? 00:29:20.720 --> 00:29:26.640 Like in this spot, okay, just contain it like to this spot because we are gonna clean it every single day. 00:29:26.799 --> 00:29:29.359 We will not let this get on you. 00:29:29.920 --> 00:29:33.359 And so they do this over and over and over again. 00:29:33.440 --> 00:29:36.960 And over time, they earned her trust. 00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:41.279 Over time, she believed that they loved her. 00:29:41.519 --> 00:29:44.319 And so she said, You know, I'm ready to tell you what why I do this. 00:29:44.480 --> 00:29:45.440 I said, What's up? 00:29:45.599 --> 00:29:50.079 She said, Well, when I was eight, my father was molesting me. 00:29:50.319 --> 00:29:57.279 And when he did that, I was overwhelmed, and I just, you know, emptied my bowels, I defecated. 00:29:57.599 --> 00:30:01.759 And when I did that, he freaked out, he got angry and he ran out of the room. 00:30:01.839 --> 00:30:03.200 He was disgusted. 00:30:03.759 --> 00:30:08.079 And she thought, okay, next time he did that, she did the same thing, and he did the same thing. 00:30:08.160 --> 00:30:13.119 And so then she thought, you know what, maybe if I just start smearing on the wall, as soon as he said, he won't even come in. 00:30:13.200 --> 00:30:16.000 And it was her way of keeping him off of her. 00:30:16.480 --> 00:30:30.160 So, what to you and I, and to these people running this home, is the most disgusting, detestable smell to this young girl was the smell of safety, the smell of security. 00:30:30.960 --> 00:30:37.519 And so when she told them that, they said, That is so smart. 00:30:38.400 --> 00:30:39.599 That is so smart. 00:30:39.759 --> 00:30:42.240 We knew you were smart, we didn't know you were this smart. 00:30:42.400 --> 00:30:43.759 You proved us right. 00:30:44.000 --> 00:30:46.319 We knew you were good, we knew it made sense. 00:30:46.559 --> 00:30:54.319 And so, now listen, we're gonna keep cleaning this up, but you gotta understand, nobody's gonna do that to you here. 00:30:54.559 --> 00:30:56.160 You're safe here, you're loved here. 00:30:56.240 --> 00:30:57.839 We're not we're not doing that here. 00:30:58.160 --> 00:31:02.160 So, whenever you're ready to stop doing that, you can. 00:31:02.400 --> 00:31:06.000 And she didn't stop right away, she kept doing it for a little while. 00:31:07.039 --> 00:31:16.319 But there came a day where they cleaned up that particular mess on that particular wall for the last time. 00:31:19.519 --> 00:31:30.640 When I heard that story, I thought that might be one of the greatest demonstrations of the power of love overcoming the power of fear. 00:31:32.799 --> 00:31:37.759 1 John 4.18, perfect love casts out fear. 00:31:38.079 --> 00:31:41.759 1 John 4.19, he loved us first. 00:31:43.359 --> 00:31:46.799 When I heard that story, number one, I felt two things. 00:31:46.880 --> 00:31:50.160 I thought about putting myself the best I could in that girl's shoes. 00:31:50.240 --> 00:31:53.839 I thought, man, imagine being 10 and it's you against the world. 00:31:54.079 --> 00:31:55.440 It's you against the world. 00:31:55.599 --> 00:31:57.039 Nobody's safe. 00:31:57.599 --> 00:31:58.720 No place is safe. 00:31:58.880 --> 00:32:08.240 You test every environment, you'll do anything, even if it's to isolate yourself, but in that isolation, that fear, you're totally lonely. 00:32:08.400 --> 00:32:09.279 Some of you know that. 00:32:09.359 --> 00:32:15.599 Some of you have walked through maybe what we just talked about, or maybe a different version, but you know loneliness. 00:32:15.759 --> 00:32:18.240 You know me against the world, you know that. 00:32:18.559 --> 00:32:19.759 You've been there. 00:32:20.880 --> 00:32:27.759 And for this girl to come to a place where she for the first time felt the love that she's supposed to feel. 00:32:28.079 --> 00:32:29.680 So I felt great about that. 00:32:29.839 --> 00:32:34.799 But then I felt personally convicted because I thought, what would I have done? 00:32:34.960 --> 00:32:36.720 Would I have been that patient? 00:32:37.839 --> 00:32:39.599 Because you can think of a different approach. 00:32:39.759 --> 00:32:45.039 A different approach would be to go in to smell that thing, to see that thing, and to look at that girl and say, that's disgusting. 00:32:45.200 --> 00:32:46.400 It'll never happen again. 00:32:46.559 --> 00:32:48.000 It stops today. 00:32:48.799 --> 00:32:54.000 And frankly, it's probably the fastest way to get a behavioral change. 00:32:54.960 --> 00:33:01.680 You see, both the power of fear and the power of love, both of them can change behavior. 00:33:02.720 --> 00:33:05.119 But only one of them can heal a broken heart. 00:33:05.920 --> 00:33:17.599 One of them tends to be faster than the other, but the other will change and transform your whole life around love. 00:33:18.480 --> 00:33:26.799 Greater love has no one than this that he laid down his life for his friend, but it's even better than that. 00:33:27.279 --> 00:33:40.640 Romans 5 8, God demonstrated his love toward us in that while we were sinners, while we were smearing, while we were broken, Christ died for us. 00:33:42.240 --> 00:33:44.160 So, what do we need to know? 00:33:45.039 --> 00:33:53.599 We need to know that what was intended to shame Jesus actually revealed the best part of who he is, this true character in his nature, he's a sacrificial, loving king. 00:33:54.400 --> 00:33:56.160 What do we need to question? 00:33:56.400 --> 00:33:58.720 We need to question who our king is. 00:33:59.119 --> 00:34:02.880 Are we driven by fear or are we driven by the power of love? 00:34:03.599 --> 00:34:13.199 And what we need to feel today, when we look at the cross, is to feel the most vivid, powerful demonstration of love. 00:34:13.360 --> 00:34:14.880 You should feel love today. 00:34:15.280 --> 00:34:17.199 That's what you should see when you see the cross. 00:34:18.000 --> 00:34:24.559 For that girl, it took continuous acts of goodness to her to prove love. 00:34:24.960 --> 00:34:40.559 And for us today, as we sing about the cross, when we think about the cross, when we imagine the cross, we think about what Jesus did not only in AD 33, but what he's still doing today. 00:34:40.960 --> 00:34:44.480