Perfection vs. Imperfection
This week’s devotions are based on Week 6 of Cross Examined: Don’t you fear God? (LISTEN HERE)
Perfection vs. Imperfection
Various shows today highlight a competition where perfection in a certain area is desired and celebrated. My daughter used to love to watch “Cupcake Wars.” Presented with a challenge and theme, contestants were then under the clock to bake the perfect cupcake. It was often times brutal when the judges would critique the dryness of the cake or the lack of creamy texture of the frosting.
The winner had the perfect cupcake…texture, taste, and presentation.
If I were to try to compete with this with my 2 eggs and a box of Duncan Hines cake mix, I don’t think I would measure up in any way. My feeble attempt at cupcake perfection would fall way short of what the show was looking for.
Perhaps a silly example, but in various areas of life we can readily see “perfection” or a very high quality of good or service. We know when something is made well and something else breaks right away. We know when something tastes delicious and when something tastes 10 days old.
Why is it so hard to acknowledge this in our spiritual life?
Why do we like to dismiss our imperfection and readily point out others imperfection?
Why do we find it easy to lower God’s standard of perfection to meet our feeble attempt at perfection?
The second criminal on the cross recognized a large disparity between himself and the Man on the center cross. The first seemed to forget he was under a sentence of death for deeds he HAD committed. He seemed perfectly comfortable dismissing his sin to hurl insults at Jesus. He had no problem ignoring the reality that he was a sinner hanging next to an innocent man.
The second criminal didn’t.
Luke 23:40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
The second criminal recognized the perfection of Jesus. Somehow from what he heard from his jail cell and experienced on the journey to Golgotha or some other time in his life, he heard something about Jesus. Being a hardened criminal guilty of death was not what he experienced. Jesus was being crucified as a guilty sinner, but yet he was the perfect Son of God.
He had done nothing wrong.
Can we recognize this too?
Maybe it is easy for us in our minds to acknowledge that Jesus is perfect. What is harder is to acknowledge that we are NOT perfect. We naturally push against charges of being sinful by excusing or justifying what we did or comparing ourselves to others or just making up a belief that God won’t punish sin.
That’s not the case.
Romans 3:22-23 There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,…
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death,…
The second criminal sets a great example for us.
Acknowledge our sin. Understand the consequences of it.
But then turn in faith to the one who “has done nothing wrong.”
Because what was happening on the middle cross was not only for the second criminal, but for you and for me. The one who had done nothing wrong was going to die for all of us who have done lots of things wrong.
2 Corinthians 5:20-21 We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Apply: What makes it hard for you to acknowledge your sin and the consequences they deserve?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for taking my place as a sinner on the cross even though you were perfect, having done nothing wrong. AMEN.
Don’t you fear God?
This week’s devotions are based on Week 6 of Cross Examined: Don’t you fear God? (LISTEN HERE)
Luke 23: 39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
This interaction the Luke records for us of the two thieves hanging next to Jesus is short but profound. It would be easy to read over the interaction and focus just on Jesus’ words (which often times happens as they are included in the seven words spoken from the cross). However, the question that Thief One poses to Thief Two is a question worth pausing on, “Don’t you fear God?”
With their fate all but secured, the two criminals had no dog in this fight about Jesus. The religious leaders were mocking him. The soldiers were having fun at Jesus’ expense. Perhaps the benefit of Jesus receiving all the attention that day is that they were getting none of the ridicule that might have come their way without Jesus being crucified with them!
Yet the interaction of the criminals is worth pausing on as it reflects realities that can also be found in our hearts.
The first criminal chose to use two precious breaths to join the religious leaders and soldiers in “hurling insults” at Jesus. As if he were on the ground a free man ridiculing the one hanging on the cross the first criminal took a shot: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
Like many of those around the cross, there is no indication this thief had any level of confidence Jesus was actually the promised Messiah. The fact that Luke labels it an “insult” was like berating a place kicker who missed the winning field goal, “Aren’t you the best kicker in the league?” The insult comes from a place that has no belief that person is, but rather revels in the fact that they are not living up to the claim they made or others placed on them.
When an insult is “hurled,” the one throwing it assumes a superior position over the one they are insulting.
The thief also puts one test out for Jesus: “Save yourself and us.” Would this have convinced the thief if Jesus pulled the nails out of his hands and let them walk away free? Perhaps, but I sincerely doubt it.
It seems the first criminal is simply playing the same ploy as the Pharisees did earlier:
Matthew 12:38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.”
39 He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here.
The unbelief of the thief was the same as the Pharisees and teachers of the law who put Jesus on the cross. There was no heart to be convinced. The heart was hard. There was no respect to be proven. They had no respect for Jesus. There was no sign to be given because there was no faith that would believe it.
This is what happens when there is no fear of God.
God is dismissed. God is mocked. God is thought of as a genie in a bottle to give me whatever I want when I want it. God is set aside for my ego to be better and wiser than God. God is not recognized because I don’t think he has any value to me.
We may not be hanging on the cross, but the poignant question of Thief Two is for us to hear as well, “Don’t you fear God?”
Do you?
Apply: How can you find yourself acting in a similar way to the first criminal on the cross? How does a lack of reverence for God show up in your life?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for taking the mocking of those around your cross. Thank you for staying on the cross when you could have saved yourself. You stayed to ensure I would be saved. AMEN.
Who did it?
This week’s devotion is based on Cross Examined Week 5 – “Why Kill Him?” (CLICK HERE TO WATCH)
Whenever there is a murder, the question naturally arises, “Who did it?” Recently President Trump declassified the rest of the President Kennedy assassination files. For over 60 years various theories have been brought forward about Lee Harvy Oswald, the grassy knoll, communist conspiracies, mafia plans, and more. I was listening to a podcast and a segment was an interview with someone who had thoroughly read and investigated all the documentation and files pertaining to the assassination.
His conclusion? Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. Even though other groups had desires to see Kennedy dead, there is no evidence that connects Oswald clearly to others who were conspiring against Kennedy.
What was intriguing about this podcast was the detail to which the host explained the difference between an actual conspiracy and conspiracy theory. A key thing that turns a theory into an actual conspiracy is evidence. Not speculation. Not guesses. Not assumptions. Clear evidence.
So who killed Jesus?
The evidence of the Gospels gives the process by which Jesus ended up on the cross. The conspiracy started with the Jewish leaders, tapped Judas for the hand off, utilized the Roman courts for the legal standing to crucify and finally the soldiers overseeing the execution put the person of Jesus on the cross.
All of these things are historical facts.
So is the case closed and we can walk away blaming the Jewish leaders, Judas or the Roman soldiers?
Perhaps.
But then we hear this piece of evidence admitted:
Acts 2:22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
Wait. What?
Peter testifies to the crowd at Pentecost that God carried out a “deliberate plan” and had full “foreknowledge” of what was happening.
So was God behind the death of Jesus?
What does the evidence show?
As we look back at the record prior to Jesus being on the cross, we see ample evidence that God was working a plan that was the only way to win the victory over sin and redeem mankind.
From Genesis 3:15: And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
From Isaiah 53:
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
Jesus knew it:
Matthew 26:1-2 When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”
Certainly the sin of those immediately involved in Jesus’ death was real. However, the evidence shows the answer to the question, “Why kill him?” lies in God’s love for us that he deliberately planned to offer his Son as a sacrifice for our sin by nailing him to the cross.
He was killed by God’s plan for us.
Hebrews 7:26 Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.
Apply: What makes Jesus’ death personal for you?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for perfectly carrying out your plan to save me…even thought it meant sacrificing your Son for my sin. AMEN.
Was he forced?
This week’s devotion is based on Cross Examined Week 5 – “Why Kill Him?” (CLICK HERE TO WATCH)
Forced? Willing?
Consider this morning these two portions of Jesus’ passion history.
First in the Garden of Gethsemane:
John 18:4 Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?”
5 “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.
“I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) 6 When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.
Second the crucifixion on Golgotha:
John 19:16-18 So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 17 Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18 There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
What do you notice about these two encounters with the enemies of Jesus.
The first was comprised of the Jewish leaders, the second of the Roman soldiers. That is one difference, but not the primary one to notice.
Here’s what I notice.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, when Judas and the religious officials come for Jesus, as soon as Jesus identifies himself as Jesus, the whole group fell to the ground. Did they stumble? Nope. Were they all just clumsy? Nope. The power of God was shown and put them on their backside. Jesus and his disciples could have walked away.
On the mount of crucifixion, the soldiers remained upright. Jesus was hung on the cross. The legions of angels stood at the ready, but Jesus never issued the order for them to push the soldiers aside and allow Jesus to walk free.
Jesus could have. He was God. He had the angels ready at his command.
But he didn’t.
This is what stands out to me.
Jesus chose to be crucified.
CHOSE it!
John 10:17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
Jesus was not victim to the Judas’ betrayal. Jesus was not helpless against the false charges of the Sanhedrin. Jesus was not powerless against the Roman politician Pilate.
The power Jesus had was on full display.
John 19:10 “Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?”
11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”
Power is often exhibited by what it does. We see the results of dynamite. We see the results of a stronger athletic team.
But sometimes the greatest power is shown when one has it and chooses not to use it.
It would have been easier for Jesus to show his power and walk away. The Sanhedrin could do nothing about it. The Roman soldiers couldn’t stop him.
But he chose to show his power by not using it and allowing them to kill him.
Why?
Because he loves you.
Apply: What part of Jesus’ passion stand out to you as the greatest act of love for you?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for using your power to allow yourself to be killed on the cross for my sins and bring me certainty of forgiveness and salvation. AMEN.
I would never do THAT!
This week’s devotion is based on Cross Examined Week 5 – “Why Kill Him?” (CLICK HERE TO WATCH)
Would you?
If you were in the Sanhedrin’s shoes, would you?
If you were in the crowd’s shoes, would you?
If you were in Pilate’s shoes, would you?
The quick response is, “Of course I wouldn’t. Jesus didn’t deserve to die.”
Looking back on the trial of Jesus, it might be easy to think we would have stood loud and proud as a defender of Jesus. We would like to think that peer pressure would not have gotten the better of us. We would have certainty that life with Jesus around is better than life with him dead.
Or would we?
When I reflect on the charges that came against Jesus, do they in some way still resonate with me? Perhaps I would stop with the extreme of permanently eliminating Jesus from my life, but I might use a similar excuse or charge to push Jesus aside for a moment or a season.
For example the charge of the Sanhedrin was blasphemy.
Luke 22:67 “If you are the Christ,” they said, “tell us.” Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, 68 and if I asked you, you would not answer.
To acknowledge the truth about Jesus and his fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies would mean that the religious leaders would have to let go of their wrong beliefs about a political resurgence of Israel. It would mean they would have to reconsider their paradigms around control by using the law. They would have to change their beliefs.
That is hard. Acknowledging Jesus is the Messiah and the fulfillment of the Old Testament has ramifications for us. We have to let go of personal beliefs that contradict with the person and work of Jesus. It would mean acknowledging that Jesus is the only way to heaven and other beliefs head to hell. Maybe we like some things about Jesus, but other things we would rather dismiss…and so we might choose to push Jesus and the truth of who he is aside to keep our personal beliefs in tact.
The crowd charged him with stirring up people with his teaching.
Luke 23:5 But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”
The crowd wanted him dismissed because they didn’t want to acknowledge and follow his teaching. Influenced by their religious leaders, the crowd was more comfortable in the rabbi’s teaching than the One who taught with authority. There are teachings in the Bible that we would rather set aside and not have to follow. We want to ignore things that are called out as sin, or dismiss them as culturally irrelevant. We like the idea of picking the teachings we like, such as, “Love one another” but content to ignore Jesus’ teaching to “love our enemies.” Again we may not call for Jesus to be put on the cross, but like the crowd, we can find reasons to dismiss Jesus and not have to deal with his teachings.
Pilate finally gave in because he was afraid of a riot.
John 19:12 From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”
Standing with Jesus often means going against the crowd and taking the consequence. Perhaps this happens to us all to easily and all too often. When feeling pressured by our peers to put aside some aspect of our Christian faith, we can cave and push Jesus aside thinking to ourselves, “it’s just for a short time.”
How easy it is to have our own reasons to “kill him.” Standing with Jesus is hard. Standing with Jesus takes courage. Standing with Jesus takes humility.
By his grace he was willing to go to the cross for us, for our sins of acting in a way that wants Jesus dead. He died for you and me, even the times we wished he was dead.
Apply: What situations in your life lead you to ignore or push Jesus aside? Take time to repent and ask God’s Spirit to reorient your heart with a resolve to always follow and stand with Jesus.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive us for the times we not only think about but act on our desire to “kill you,” to push you aside and ignore your person, your teaching, or your presence. Restore us by your grace to follow you with strength, courage, and resolve. AMEN.