Suffering Saviour

“Father, forgive them for they know not what they do”.

Let me set the scene for you.

There is a young man who has been bound up by soldiers, brought to the High Priest Caiaphas in Jerusalem, and he’s now standing among a baying crowd. They want blood. They want a reason to find him guilty. They've called for any witnesses who could declare a fault, or wrong that he had done; But they found none.

Surely they’ll let him go as he’s obviously an innocent man? Perhaps it was all a case of mistaken identity? They had seen him heal a man’s withered hand in their synagogue. They had heard the stories of how he calmed a storm in the middle of the sea with a few spoken words. They had seen Lazarus, a man who had been dead 4 days, alive again because of him. They ask him a few questions, and he doesn't give them the answer they’re happy with. That was the final straw; one of the men actually struck his face, some slapped him, and others came and spat in his face. This man had once spat himself, but his was on the ground. His was used to heal a blind man. Everything he had done was right, and good, and just. Yet they spat in his face.

The defendant was brought to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, and he cross examined him. Pilate said “I find no fault in this man”. Pilate chose to send him to Herod the (puppet) king, but he refused to speak to Herod. He remained absolutely silent. Herod, along with the soldiers mocked him, and dressed him in a fine robe, and sent him back to Pilate.

Pilate, realising there was no case to argue for this man offered to release him instead of a murderer named Barabbas, thinking that the people would favour this miracle performing, truth telling, innocent man. Surprisingly the crowd, having been wound up by the leaders of Israel, cried out for Barabbas to be released, and for the man to be crucified. Surely they didn’t want an innocent man tortured and killed? Pilate again speaking to the crowd, declares “I find no fault in this man”, “I have found no reason for him to die. I’ll punish him and release him”.

 For the second time that night, men spat in his face.

First, the roman soldiers scourged him, whipping his back with a whip of leather, bone and stone, ripping the very flesh off his back. Then, they mocked him; stripping him of his own clothes and dressing him in a purple robe. They forced a crown of long length thorns onto, and into his brow. They pulled the facial hairs out of his beard. Bowing down in fake worship of this “King”, they struck him on his already bleeding head with a thick reed. Finally, to completely humiliate and dishonour him; they spat in his face. For the second time in one night, men spat in his face. Was it the whole band of soldiers, or just a few? It honestly matters not, they had spat in his face.

Now the crowd must be satisfied, content that he had learnt his lesson? This however wasn't sufficient for the mob; they wanted him dead. They cried out “Away with this man, we don’t want him to reign over us”. Pilate gave in to the crowd and ordered the man’s crucifixion. The soldiers lead him outside of the city of Jerusalem, carrying his own cross on his back. Carrying it, that is, as far as his slowly decreasing strength allowed. He was losing blood, his steps getting smaller and taking longer, and so the soldiers compelled a stranger of the city, Simon of Cyrene, to help him. Once they had reached their location, the soldiers nailed him through his hands and feet, and lifted him up for all to see. There, hanging on the central cross of three, was a man who was “without fault”.

You could allow him to be angry; to curse, swear, shout, scream, kick and bite. Yet he had given them no problems. He hadn't even opened his mouth. How the soldiers must have marveled  They must have been amazed at him. They certainly were when he finally spoke, and said “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do”. Everything he had already endured and he didn't ask for revenge? Didn't want compensated? Didn't want them held accountable? He wanted them forgiven!



Here is the amazing part. Before his initial arrest, the soldiers fell down at just the declaration of his name. He said “I AM”, a title used exclusively by God. He also said that at any time there were 12 legions of angels ready to come to his rescue; yet he chose not to use them. He chose the very moment when his life ended, something that no other crucified person could do. But before that happened, He endured something far worse than the physical sufferings handed out to him that night. This completely innocent man was made sin. That’s right; “He who had done no sin, was made sin for us”. Sin is all of the things we do that is against God’s commands. Whether that’s lying, stealing, killing, hating, lusting, committing adultery, blaspheming etc. All of these are a breaking of the 10 commandments God gave to humanity in order for them to live at peace with God. They actually show that left to our own devices, we all fail. We all sin. God decided to punish this man for all of mankind’s sins. Not just yours, or mine, which are thousands of sinful acts alone, but ALL of humanities. In 3 hours of darkness, this Sinless man, was made sin, and then punished for sin, all so that God could forgive the guilty people who had committed those sins. That makes the man a substitute. Someone who takes the place of someone else. All that God asks is that we trust in this man’s death and willing sacrifice.

Here is the grand finale. No human being has ever been perfect, sinless or completely innocent. So this was surely no ordinary human being, this was the very Son of God. God, in human form, born 33 years earlier through a virgin girl, having lived a perfect life, died on a cross outside of Jerusalem. 3 days his body lay in a tomb, 3 days the Romans, and the Jewish leaders thought they had got rid of him; but on the 3rd day, he rose from the dead. God himself raised him up, because he had finished the work he’d been given to do; he had made it possible for guilty, sinful, unjust people to be right with a holy God. All we have to do, is to confess the fact we are sinners to God, and to trust in this man’s sacrifice.



Who is the man? 

“You shall call his name Jesus, for He shall save his people from their sins”

Please share this post with your Christian friends to encourage them, and your non-Christian friends to challenge them.

Yours in Him,

Dan