“THE CRUCIFIXION”
LUKE 23:33-49

I. Introduction
There is before us this morning a great dichotomy. On the one extreme we will be witnesses to the most despicable crime in human history, the premeditated murder of God’s only Son. On the other extreme we will witness an act of grace that will forever be unsurpassed, the voluntary and sacrificial death of God’s only Son.

Not only is the cross of Christ the center of human history, it is also the place where, at one predetermined moment in time, hatred and love clashed in the epic battle of the ages – the battle between all that is good and all that is evil.

In the dark hours immediately following the crucifixion, it seemed that all that is evil had defeated all that is good, that darkness had defeated light. It seemed that evil and darkness had won the day. But nothing could have been further from the truth. The reality was that evil and darkness had been defeated. In fact, evil and darkness had been dealt the deathblow that was prophesied all the way back in Genesis 3 when God cursed Satan and spoke of his impending doom.
*Genesis 3:14-15
14 And the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly shall you go, and dust shall you eat all the days of your life;
15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.”

“…your seed” in v. 15 represents all of Satan’s spiritual descendants, all unbelievers from every age. In John 8:44 Jesus says they are children of the devil. “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father…” Conversely, “…her seed” is the Lord Jesus Christ and His spiritual descendants, all true believers from every age.

“Bruising” the devil on the head is a metaphor for a fatal blow. Bruising Jesus on the heel is a metaphor for a non-fatal blow that could only cause anguish, pain, and suffering. Both of those blows were administered at the cross of Christ where Jesus most certainly suffered, but Satan was defeated. Thus it is that God will not, indeed cannot be defeated; neither in this age nor in the age to come. Good, or should I say God, will always be triumphant.

When I was a young man – an unbelieving and unsaved young man – I was enamored with the rock opera “Jesus Christ – Superstar.” It told the story of Jesus from the perspective of Judas. It made poor Judas out to be the real victim of the gospel and ended not with Jesus’ resurrection, but with His burial.
In fact, the script doesn’t conclude with the words you would expect – “The End.” Rather, it concludes with “John 19:41-42.”
John 19:41-42
41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden; and in the gar-den a new tomb, in which no one had yet been laid.
42 Therefore on account of the Jewish day of preparation, because the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

According to “Jesus Christ – Superstar” that’s the end of the story; that’s all there is. But, of course, that isn’t the end of the story at all. There is yet to be told the truth of Jesus’ resurrection, His ascension to heaven, and His return in power and glory. And there is yet to be told the reality of eternity future in God’s presence.
*Revelation 21:3-5
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His peo-ple, and God Himself shall be among them.
4 And He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
5 And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.”
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II. Text
But before we can go there, we have to go here. Before we can embrace that, we have to embrace this. We will need to take a walk back in time nearly two thousand years to the city of Jerusalem and to a hill called Calvary, also known as Golgotha, or “The Skull.”
*Luke 23:33-49 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
33 And when they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and other on the left.
34 But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
35 And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”
36 And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine,
37 and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!”
38 Now there was also an inscription above Him, “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
39 And one of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!”
40 But the other answered and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
41 “And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.”
42 And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your king-dom!”
43 And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Para-dise.”
44 And it was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour,
45 the sun being obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” And having said this, He breathed His last (breath).
47 Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”
48 And all the multitudes who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts.
49 And all His acquaintances and the women who accompanied Him from Gali-lee, were standing at a distance, seeing these things.

Let me say right here that I am not capable of doing justice to this passage of Scripture. And do not think that by my saying that I believe that I am, on my own, capable of doing justice to any passage of Scripture, because, on my own, I am not. Whatever power, whatever truth, whatever insight, and whatever application you derive from this sermon, or any other ser-mon, is solely and completely because the Holy Spirit of God is your teacher, not me.

So today it is my prayer that God will use His Word and the time we have together to do a work in our hearts. May we be confronted with the truth that God’s hatred for and judgment of sin – your sin and mine – put His beloved Son on the cross. And may we be humbled by once again being reminded of God’s matchless grace, His love for us, His children, and our Lord Jesus’ willingness to suffer, to die, and to taste hell for those He came to save.

As we read this passage we tend to emphasize the physical pain and suffering; and that can-not be minimized. Sinful man has perfected the art of inflicting physical pain and suffering on other men. But crucifixion, as it was practiced by the Romans in the first century, has seldom been exceeded as a means of meting out a horrific, slow and agonizing death.

We can all relate to physical pain – some of us more than others. But in Jesus’ case the real agony was beyond the physical, even infinitely beyond the physical. He suffered an agony that none of us, His children, will ever suffer. He suffered the punishment of hell for us.

G. Campbell Morgan (1863-1945) was a theologian, Bible teacher, preacher of the gospel.
In his commentary on Luke’s gospel he said this…
“I am not denying the tragedy of the physical, but I often feel that in connection with our children, we are in danger if we talk too much with them of the nails and the thorns and the spear. These are merely the incidentals, all of them necessary, I grant you, to work out into visibility before these poor human eyes of ours, some-thing of the unfathomable sorrows of God in Christ of the cross. Yet there is always a danger lest for very pity of heart, we become more occupied with the physical suf-fering, than with the spiritual agony.”

With that in mind let’s go back to the text.
*Luke 23:33
33 And when they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and other on the left.

The very idea of a crucified Messiah was ludicrous to the Jews. They expected a conquering hero, a king who would establish the kingdom and restore Israel’s former glory.
• They expected a king who would be surrounded by honorable people, not criminals.
• They expected a king who would wear a crown made of gold, not one made of thorns.
• They expected a king who would wear priceless robes and carry a royal scepter as an emblem of his high office, not an old discarded robe and a wild reed.
• They expected a king who would be offered the finest wines, not spoiled vinegar.
• They expected a king who would be praised and worshipped, not mocked and spat upon.

They were expecting a coronation, not a crucifixion. So in their minds, this Jesus of Naza-reth could not possibly have been their Messiah. Their Messiah on a cross? Ridiculous! Ludicrous! So to the Jews’ way of thinking the cross was proof that Jesus was not their pro-mised Messiah. But in fact the cross was proof that Jesus was their promised Messiah.

That’s why I asked Brett to read from Psalm 22 to open the service. If the Jews had only known their Scriptures! If they had only paid attention to what God had already told them, they would have recognized Jesus for who He was. This is particularly true of passages like Isaiah 53, Psalm 69, and Zechariah 10 that speak of His death. In Psalm 22 alone there are major details about Jesus’ crucifixion itself. It was written hundreds of years before cruci-fixion was even known, so the things described in Psalm 22 are that much more amazing. Brett read about some of them, but listen to just one of the verses he did not read.
Psalm 22:1a (the prophecy)
1a My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?

Matthew 27:46 (the fulfillment)
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

When you consider the fact that the OT has no less than thirty very specific prophecies relating to the Messiah’s crucifixion, not to mention well over three hundred others that speak of Him, you have to wonder how so many of the Jews failed to recognize Jesus Christ.

Let me suggest two reasons. One was willful spiritual blindness. Another was their ignor-ance of their own Scriptures. Can you see how important it is for us, the church, to know and understand our Bibles – especially in these last days? Listen, as the day of Jesus’ return for His church draws nearer, the lies and deceptions of this world will cause more and more people to turn away from the truth. Speaking of the last days, Paul warned Timothy…
*2 Timothy 3:13-16
13 But evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.
14 You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them;
15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 All Scripture is inspire by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, (and) for training in righteousness;
17 (so) that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

The Jews missed their Messiah. Rather than receiving Him, they rejected Him and had Him crucified. Why? They didn’t recognize Him. They missed God’s blessing largely because they didn’t know their own Scriptures. May that never be said of us! (back to Luke 23:33)

Jesus was crucified at a place called The Skull. (Golgotha in Aramaic; Calvaria in Latin) None of the four gospels identify its exact location or go into much detail about crucifixion. This is most likely because no such explanation would have been needed by those who lived in the Roman Empire. They all knew what crucifixion was and how it was done. But this much we do know. The victim would first be beaten and scourged. Then the crosspiece (the patibulum) would be tied to his back and he would be forced to carry it to the place of cruci-fixion. Since Jesus had been so badly beaten and scourged the soldiers found Simon of Cyrene to carry the crossbeam to the place of The Skull. (read MacArthur, pp. 379-380)

Wouldn’t you expect God’s immediate judgment to come upon those who are doing this? But God, in His mercy, would wait nearly forty years before His judgment would fall on Jerusalem in 70 A.D. In the days of Noah, God mercifully held back His judgment for one hundred twenty years before the flood. But judgment came, didn’t it?

How long will God’s show His mercy and restrain His judgment on America, while we con-tinue to reject His Son, curse His name, wallow in national sin, murder the innocent, and now appear to be turning our back on Israel? How long? Even the patience of God has its limits.
*Luke 23:34-37
34 But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
35 And the people stood by, looking on. And even rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”
36 And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine,
37 and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!”

Look at what they are doing to Him! But then look at God’s matchless grace – “Father, for-give them; for they do not know what they are doing.” In the weeks to come we will look at this plea by Jesus in greater detail. In fact, we will take the time to study all seven of the things He said while He was on the cross. But for now, just consider two things about this statement. First, even these wicked and corrupt sinners who are doing this to our Lord do not comprehend the depth of their evil. Paul says as much.
1 Corinthians 2:8b
8b …if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory…

But the second thing that should just leap off the page is this: Jesus isn’t seeking vengeance. He knows that God will take care of all of this. Peter says as much.
1 Peter 2:23
23 …and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.

In this Jesus is fulfilling another OT prophecy. Jesus is dying for those who are killing Him.
Isaiah 53:12b
12b …He poured out Himself to death, and was numbered with the transgres-sors; yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.

Listen carefully, please. There is no sin against Christ that is so horrible that it cannot be forgiven. If Jesus’ forgiveness is available to the ones who mocked and murdered Him, you can be sure it is available to you as well. (back to Luke 23:35)

In Luke 23:35-37 multiple OT prophecies are fulfilled. Psalm 22:7 says, “All who see me sneer at me…they wag the head.” Psalm 22:8 says, “Let (God) deliver him.” Psalm 22:18 says “…for my clothing they cast lots.” Luke doesn’t give us that detail, but Matthew, Mark, and John all do.
*Luke 23:38
38 Now there was also an inscription above Him, “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

Pilate hates the Jews and this inscription is meant to mock them. They had embarrassed him in front of his soldiers and his wife by insisting that he kill a man he had declared innocent. Furthermore, John tells us that the Jewish leaders were adamant that Pilate not refer to Jesus as their king. So this inscription is a final “shot” at the Jews that Pilate just can’t resist.
John 19:21-22
21 And 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.”

*Luke 23:39-43
39 And one of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!”
40 But the other answered and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
41 “And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.”
42 And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your king-dom!”
43 And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Para-dise.”

One of the greatest truths of biblical Christianity is that we are born in sin and unless God saves us, we are and will remain eternally spiritually dead. Here at the cross the One who gives spiritual life to God’s elect is dying so that those who are spiritually dead might live. Two of those spiritually dead men are now hanging on their own crosses. And even in these last dreadful moments of life, God reaches down and opens the heart of one of the criminals.

In v. 40 one of them acknowledges his fear of God and judgment to come. In v. 41 he con-fesses his guilt and recognizes Jesus for who He is, Israel’s Messiah who will one day estab-lish His kingdom. In v. 42 he believes, he trusts, he gives his heart to Christ; and in v. 43 he is instantly forgiven, and he receives the gift of salvation and eternal life. It’s all there! Even now, amidst all of this tragedy, all of this evil, all of this horror, God’s grace is poured out on a lost sinner.

In the weeks to come we will be returning to v. 43 and look much deeper into Jesus’ words. But for now take this with you. There is no purgatory and there is no such thing as a works-righteousness. This sinner will carry no so-called “good works” with him to help him open the gates of heaven, but he will go straight into God’s presence – Jesus will open the gates.
*Luke 23:44-46
44 And it was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour,
45 the sun being obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” And having said this, He breathed His last (breath).
Some have tried to argue that the sun being obscured was just a solar eclipse. But that is not astronomically possible. There is always a full moon at Passover, and there cannot be an eclipse of the sun when there is a full moon. This darkness is a revelation of God’s wrath.

The “sixth hour” is noon, when the sun is at its brightest, directly overhead. It is here and now, during this darkness, when God pours out His wrath for our sins on His sinless Son. This is what Jesus had so dreaded in the Garden of Gethsemane that he literally sweat blood.
It is here and now that Jesus is crushed under the overwhelming weight of your sin and of mine. God’s fury is unleashed on Jesus and there is no comfort for Him. This goes on until the ninth hour (three o’clock) when God’s wrath is finally satisfied; when the price for the sin of everyone who will ever be saved is once and for all paid in full.
Isaiah 53:5
5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourg-ing we are healed.

2 Corinthians 5:21
21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Galatians 3:13
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us – for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.”

1 Peter 2:24
24 …and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness…

Finally, as His overwhelming agony draws to a close, Matthew and Mark both tell us that Jesus cries out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” With these words Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Psalm 22:1. He is experiencing what no Christian will ever experi-ence, the utter despair and hopelessness of being abandoned by God. This is the despair and hopelessness of hell itself.

In Luke 23:45, with the tearing of the veil that symbolized the wall between God and man, the atoning work of Christ is complete and direct access to God is granted. In this one mo-ment temple worship is rendered invalid and obsolete and the priesthood is over. God’s people no longer need a priest to intercede for them. Christ is our great high priest. He has torn down the barrier that separates sinful man from a holy God. By Christ and Christ alone we can enter into God’s presence.

Finally, in v. 46, Jesus, knowing His work of redemption is complete, can say both, “It is finished,” and He can cry out in victory, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” And Luke tells us that, “Having said this, He breathed His last (breath).”
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III. Conclusion
There are three more verses in today’s text, but I want to deal with them as sort of an epi-logue. They speak not of Jesus, but of those who witnessed what happened at Golgotha.
*Luke 23:47-49
47 Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”
48 And all the multitudes who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts.
49 And all His acquaintances and the women who accompanied Him from Gali-lee, were standing at a distance, seeing these things.

In v. 47 this Roman centurion was an eyewitness to what Jesus said and how He conducted Himself as he died. Now, like Pilate, and even like Herod, this Roman, this Gentile, knows Jesus was innocent, and he says so. Matthew 27:54 and Mark 15:39 tell us that he said even more than that. He said, “Truly, this man was the Son of God!”

In v. 48 the same multitudes that had been drunk with a bloodlust for Jesus’ death have been “sobered up” by what they had seen. Having witnessed God’s wrath they were filled with guilt and fear. Beating their breasts is an indication that they knew what they done.

In v. 49 Jesus’ friends viewed His suffering and death from a distance. It was just too hard to see it all close-up. John tells us that “His friends” included Mary, Jesus’ mother, her sis-ter Salome, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. And, of course, John, the only one of the twelve who had not fled in fear, was also with them.

Well, you and I have “seen these things” too. How should we respond to them? What can we say about what we know? Let David tell us.
*Psalm 31:1-5
1 In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be ashamed; in Your right-eousness deliver me.
2 Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly; be to me a rock of strength, a stronghold to save me.
3 For You are my rock and my fortress; for Your name’s sake You will lead me and guide me.
4 You will pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me; for You
are my strength.
5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth.

~ Pray ~