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>>Eric Flickinger:
Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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brought to you by It Is Written.
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We're glad that
you can join us today
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as we continue our journey
through the book of Mark.
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We are on
lesson number 12 of 13,
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"Tried and Crucified," getting
down to the very last few hours
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of Jesus' life and some of
the most significant things
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that we're going to be
covering in the book of Mark.
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Let's begin with prayer.
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Father, we thank
You for leading us
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on this journey thus far.
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And now, as we get to
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the very
culmination of Christ's life
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here on earth, we ask
that You will bless us
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and help us to
understand the significance
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of the price that He
paid. And we thank You,
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in Jesus' name, amen.
>>Dr. Thomas Shepherd: Amen.
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>>Eric: Well, we're happy
to have with us once again
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Dr. Tom Shepherd; he is
the senior research professor
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of New Testament at
the Theological Seminary,
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Andrews University.
Tom, welcome back once again.
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>>Tom: It's a joy to be here.
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>>Eric: So we have
covered a lot of ground,
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but we still have some
significant ground to cover.
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Right now, we are
in Mark, chapter 15.
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We've kind of moved sequentially
through the book of Mark.
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We're getting to the
very culmination of things.
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Mark, chapter 15, talks about
Pilate's encounter with Jesus.
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What can we learn from
this portion of the story?
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>>Tom: Okay, so, Jesus has
two trials that take place:
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one is before
the Jewish Sanhedrin;
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one is before Pilate.
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The Jewish trial
ended with a condemnation
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really based on the
charge of blasphemy,
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that Jesus claimed
to be the Son of God.
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Now, the leaders knew that
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that wouldn't fly with
the Roman governor, Pilate,
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so they bring another charge.
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And though we never
hear their words, if we read
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at the beginning
of Mark 15, we see,
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"And as soon as it was morning,
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"...chief priests
held a consultation
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"with the elders and
scribes and the whole council.
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"And they bound
Jesus and led Him away
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"and delivered
Him over to Pilate.
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And Pilate asked Him, 'Are
You the King of the Jews?'"
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Now, this is the first
time we hear this phrase
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in the book, actually:
"Are You the King of the Jews?"
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So, obviously, they had
brought a charge that was,
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"He claims to be a King."
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And Pilate, like a
good governor is gonna--
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a good judge is
gonna ask, is that true?
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"Are You the King of the Jews?"
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Now, Jesus' response
is sort of noncommittal:
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"You have said so."
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You know, you're
saying it, not me.
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"And the chief priests
accused Him of many things."
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Pilate asked again, verse 4:
"'Have You no answer to make?
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"See how many charges
they bring against You.'
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"But Jesus made
no further answer,
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so that Pilate was amazed."
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Right? And we might wonder,
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well, you know, why
didn't He say something?
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why didn't He respond, you know?
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Up to this point,
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up to much of this
point in the Gospel of Mark,
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Jesus has been, you
know, in charge. You know,
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He's just been the
master of the sea and the waves,
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He rebukes demons, He
heals people of disease,
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you know, He's
just really powerful,
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and all of a sudden, you
know, when He's arrested,
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He just seems like just weak and
just being tossed two and fro.
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Remember that, when we
started this journey in Mark,
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we said there were little
indications at the beginning
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that point us towards this
weak side of being Messiah.
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Now, so, what's
really going on here
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is that there are two plots of
this story that are intertwined:
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there is the plot of man,
and there is the plot of God,
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right? The plot of man is to
kill Jesus and be done with Him,
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but the plot of God
is to save the world
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through the
death of His Son, see?
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So, it's really powerful that
the two plots are intertwined,
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and they both
proceed at the same time.
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So, the people think
that they're defeating Jesus,
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and God's actual plan
is that through His death,
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that we will be
saved, that there's a way
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out of our dilemma of sin,
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and so that's this intertwining.
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And that's why
He doesn't respond,
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you know, He's accepted the cup,
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God didn't take it away,
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and so He's going
to drink that cup,
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and so He knows that His
life is in the hand of God,
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and so, He has
nothing to say, right?
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>>Eric: So, He
ultimately is condemned,
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and He's sent to the cross.
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>>Tom: Yeah, so--
>>Eric: What is the cross like?
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>>Tom: Yeah, so,
before we get to that point,
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I'd like to talk a
little bit more about Pilate
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and his experience
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and just read a
little bit more about this.
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So, it says in verse 6,
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"Now at the feast he
used to release for them
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one prisoner for
whom they asked."
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That wasn't anything legal,
it was sort of a, you know,
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they just did this as
part of the, for the feast.
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"And among the rebels in
prison, who had committed murder
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in the insurrection, there
was a man called Barabbas."
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Now, you know,
releasing a murderer is like--
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you know, that's something,
that's nothing you should do.
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"Crowd came up and
began to ask Pilate
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"to do as he
usually did for them.
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"And he answered
[and said to them],
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"'Do you want me to release
for you the King of the Jews?'
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"For he perceived
that it was out of envy
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"that the chief
priests had delivered Him up.
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"But the chief
priests stirred up the crowd
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to have him release
for them Barabbas instead."
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So, Pilate is a study in
perception and imperception.
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He perceives that they have
turned Him over to them in envy,
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and he thinks that he
can probably, you know,
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work things out so
Jesus doesn't get condemned.
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What he does
perceive is the hatred,
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the deep hatred that some
of these leaders had for Him,
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and the way that they
would manipulate the crowd
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to get Jesus put to death.
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So, the chief
priests stir up the crowd,
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and Pilate keeps
trying to get Jesus released.
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He said, "Well,
wouldn't you like me to release
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the King of the Jews to you?"
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And he's really
giving his authority,
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his decision-making,
from him over to the people
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and letting them, you
know, make the choice.
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Well, then he's going
to get what they want,
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and that was for
Jesus to be crucified.
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All right, so, now you can come
back to that other question.
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>>Eric: So, the
crucifixion, what was that like?
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He went to the cross. Why
did the Romans use crucifixion?
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What was--walk us through,
unpleasant though it may be--
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what is the crucifixion?
>>Tom: Yeah, so, fortunately,
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crucifixion is not used
much today--I say "not much";
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there have been modern examples
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where crucifixion has been used.
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Crucifixion may have
begun with the Persians,
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and it was a way to
torture a person to death.
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Not much blood-- when
they crucified a person,
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not much blood
was lost, actually;
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we tend to think that
they would bleed to death.
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No, when they
crucified somebody,
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sometimes they just
tied them to a cross.
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In the case of Jesus, we know
that He was nailed to the cross
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because in the Gospel of John,
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Thomas says he wants
to see the nail prints.
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Now, the place where
the nail would be placed
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is not in the palm of the hand.
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Your bones of your
fingers actually extend down
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into the palm, and
if they put a nail here,
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it would just tear out
because the body could--
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the hand could
not bear the weight.
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They actually put it-- if
you take and put your finger
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right at the base
of your palm here,
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there's a little indentation--
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that's where they
would put the nails.
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Now, the nail
would go through here;
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of course, that's
excruciating pain.
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There are three
nerves that serve the hand,
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the radial
nerve, the median nerve,
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and the ulnar nerve.
When you hit your funny bone,
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that's the ulnar
nerve that goes over here,
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but the median nerve
serves the middle of the hand.
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So, when they went through here,
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it didn't break any
blood vessels so much,
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but it did crush
the median nerve,
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which would cause
amazing pain, and usually,
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or sometimes, it
could make a claw-like fist
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when you were
nailed to the cross.
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Now, because of the
way they nailed people,
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the way they
put them on a cross,
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it was hard for them to breathe.
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And so, to get a good breath,
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they would have to kind of
extend their body up like this
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and move it around the nails.
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Well, that would send
these sharp pains up your arm,
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so it was terribly
painful; it was excruciating.
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In fact, we get the
word "excruciating"--
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it's actually from
the term "from the cross."
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So, it was a very
painful way to die,
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and usually people would
last on the cross for days.
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Jesus does not
for a very long time,
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but there was much
suffering that went with it.
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Usually, people were
crucified naked to shame them,
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it was the ultimate shame that
the Romans could come up with,
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and it was to intimidate
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the population so
they would never do
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whatever this person did
who was put on the cross.
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And of course, the
inscription above Jesus is
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"The King of the Jews."
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So, if you pretend to be,
you know, somebody, you know,
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if you're not going to
do what the Romans want,
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this is what's
going to happen to you.
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>>Eric: The
crucifixion, incredibly painful,
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excruciating, as
you used the word,
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but more than the physical pain,
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Jesus went through
some spiritual anguish,
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the feeling of
being forsaken by God,
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delve into that a little bit.
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>>Tom: All right, so, if
we come down to verse 33:
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"When the sixth hour had come,
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"there was darkness over the
whole land until the ninth hour.
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"And at the ninth hour Jesus
cried out with a loud voice,
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"'Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?'
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which means, 'My God, my
God, why have You forsaken me?'"
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Now, we'll probably
talk some more about that,
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maybe after the break,
but we have to understand here
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what was going on,
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that Jesus was forsaken
by God there on the cross.
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Now, that, we're like,
"Wait a minute, God is love.
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Why would God forsake
His Son on the cross?"
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He cries out, "Why
have You forsaken me?"
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And the answer to that is
really the cup of suffering
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that He has accepted,
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the suffering of
the sins of the world.
00:11:05.83\00:11:08.43
Sin is a blot, sin is
an offense against God,
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and rightly it
faces His holy wrath.
00:11:15.94\00:11:20.28
Now, God's wrath is not evil,
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it is not ugly,
it is actually pure,
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it is his hatred of sin,
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and so, Jesus
taking on that cup,
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deciding that He
would be our sin-bearer,
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He takes on what we would suffer
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if we did not have
someone to take our place.
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And so, Christ takes our place,
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and He takes on
that forsakenness
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that would be ours
if it were not for Him.
00:11:48.97\00:11:51.77
So, this is really a
striking kind of message to you
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and to me, saying,
"Look, it's my sin, it's yours,
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"that brought Jesus to the
cross, brought His suffering,
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that forsakenness by
God that He went through."
00:12:04.49\00:12:07.92
It's a sobering,
sobering message,
00:12:07.96\00:12:10.43
that He was forsaken there.
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He's not left forsaken,
00:12:13.16\00:12:15.93
God had actually
not forgotten His Son,
00:12:15.96\00:12:19.13
but He's shrouded in darkness.
00:12:19.17\00:12:21.70
It's not an eclipse;
eclipses don't last that long;
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it is the darkness,
00:12:25.81\00:12:27.41
almost like all of creation
is suffering with the Son of God
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as He suffers.
00:12:31.98\00:12:33.45
>>Eric: And we're the
ones who should have been doing
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the suffering, certainly
not Him; He didn't deserve it.
00:12:35.15\00:12:37.45
>>Tom: Yeah.
00:12:37.49\00:12:38.79
>>Eric: Tom, share with
us a little bit more about
00:12:38.82\00:12:40.12
that companion book that we have
00:12:40.16\00:12:42.29
to this quarter's
"Sabbath School" lesson.
00:12:42.32\00:12:44.43
>>Tom: All right, so this
is, we're getting to the end,
00:12:44.46\00:12:46.76
but this is "The Book of Mark,"
00:12:46.80\00:12:48.26
it's a companion book
00:12:48.30\00:12:49.60
that goes with the
"Sabbath School" quarterly,
00:12:49.63\00:12:51.73
and it gives you a
little extra information
00:12:51.77\00:12:53.47
about some of the
topics that we discussed,
00:12:53.50\00:12:55.87
goes beyond the quarterly
00:12:55.90\00:12:57.31
and helps you
to understand more.
00:12:57.34\00:12:59.94
So, you have more in-depth
information about the kinds
00:13:00.04\00:13:03.45
of things we're
discussing here about the cross
00:13:03.48\00:13:05.71
and about Jesus's death
and its meaning for us today.
00:13:05.75\00:13:09.15
>>Eric: Thank you, Tom.
00:13:09.18\00:13:10.62
We're going to be
back in just a moment
00:13:10.65\00:13:12.09
as we continue
lesson number 11 here,
00:13:12.12\00:13:15.42
our study in the book of Mark,
00:13:15.46\00:13:16.79
but if you're
interested in picking up
00:13:16.83\00:13:18.43
that companion book,
00:13:18.46\00:13:19.83
you can find it
at itiswritten.shop,
00:13:19.86\00:13:22.50
again, itiswritten.shop.
00:13:22.53\00:13:24.40
The author is Thomas Shepherd,
00:13:24.43\00:13:25.97
and it is called
"The Book of Mark,"
00:13:26.00\00:13:28.24
it's the companion
book, giving you more detail,
00:13:28.27\00:13:30.77
more depth into what
we're studying this quarter.
00:13:30.81\00:13:33.41
We're going to come
back in just a moment
00:13:33.44\00:13:35.08
as we continue
looking at lesson number 11,
00:13:35.11\00:13:37.75
"Tried and Crucified,"
here in the book of Mark.
00:13:37.78\00:13:40.95
We'll be right back.
00:13:40.98\00:13:42.45
¤¤¤
00:13:42.48\00:13:45.02
>>John
Bradshaw: It's everywhere,
00:13:46.49\00:13:48.46
adorning
churches, adorning people,
00:13:48.49\00:13:51.59
there's a season every
year commemorating the cross,
00:13:51.63\00:13:55.43
but beyond eggs and
rabbits, there's a power,
00:13:55.46\00:13:58.67
the power of a sacrifice,
the power of the love of God.
00:13:58.70\00:14:03.10
Be sure you see "At the Cross"
and learn about the single event
00:14:03.14\00:14:07.68
that changed the
course of history,
00:14:07.71\00:14:10.45
the event that can
change your life forever.
00:14:10.48\00:14:13.95
Predicted by prophets and
foretold by Jesus Himself,
00:14:13.98\00:14:17.49
what happened at the
cross was a demonstration
00:14:17.52\00:14:20.39
of God's love like no other.
00:14:20.42\00:14:23.06
Humanity's fall into
sin in the Garden of Eden
00:14:23.09\00:14:25.73
brought upon Adam and Eve
00:14:25.76\00:14:27.36
and their descendants
inescapable consequences,
00:14:27.40\00:14:30.63
but into that
turmoil stepped Jesus,
00:14:30.67\00:14:32.97
promising the
planet a way of escape.
00:14:33.00\00:14:36.10
Don't miss "At the Cross,"
00:14:36.14\00:14:38.91
brought to you
by It Is Written TV.
00:14:38.94\00:14:42.31
>>John Bradshaw: Thank you for
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00:14:46.82\00:14:48.92
exists because of the kindness
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Thank you for your prayers
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Our number
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00:15:12.81\00:15:16.31
¤¤¤
00:15:17.15\00:15:21.45
>>Eric: Welcome
back to "Sabbath School,"
00:15:21.48\00:15:23.35
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:15:23.39\00:15:25.12
We're taking a
look at Jesus' trial
00:15:25.15\00:15:27.36
and crucifixion
here in the book of Mark
00:15:27.39\00:15:30.46
as we're studying our "Sabbath
School" lesson together.
00:15:30.49\00:15:33.46
Tom, looking at this,
00:15:33.50\00:15:35.76
some of the most incredible
scenes in Christ's life,
00:15:35.80\00:15:39.43
Jesus doesn't speak
much while He's on the cross,
00:15:39.47\00:15:43.54
but what He does say
is likely going to have
00:15:43.57\00:15:46.27
some significance. Walk us
through His statement there.
00:15:46.31\00:15:49.28
>>Tom: Okay, we're
looking at Mark 15, verse 34.
00:15:49.31\00:15:53.01
"At the ninth hour Jesus
cried [out] with a loud voice,
00:15:53.05\00:15:55.82
"'Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?'
00:15:55.85\00:15:58.29
"which means, 'My God, my God,
00:15:58.32\00:16:00.06
why have You forsaken me?'"
00:16:00.09\00:16:02.12
We talked before the break
00:16:02.16\00:16:03.46
about the darkness
that this presents.
00:16:03.49\00:16:06.76
Actually, all four
of our gospels present
00:16:06.80\00:16:09.60
the cross in a
little bit different light
00:16:09.63\00:16:11.93
or a little bit different way.
00:16:11.97\00:16:14.10
Typically, the
great themes of the gospel
00:16:14.14\00:16:19.14
find their focus
here at the cross.
00:16:19.17\00:16:22.58
So, Matthew and Mark present us
the real dark side of the cross,
00:16:22.61\00:16:27.05
how it cost, the
cost of our salvation.
00:16:27.08\00:16:30.35
Luke and John present more
the light side of the cross,
00:16:30.39\00:16:34.42
the outcome for us in salvation.
00:16:34.46\00:16:37.19
Luke has the thief on the cross,
00:16:37.23\00:16:39.39
it's the wonderful
story of his salvation,
00:16:39.43\00:16:41.60
and in the Gospel of John,
as we will study next quarter,
00:16:41.63\00:16:45.77
the cross is
Jesus' hour of glory;
00:16:45.80\00:16:48.44
it's His
enthronement as the King.
00:16:48.47\00:16:50.61
So, Mark presents to us
this dark aspect of the cross.
00:16:50.64\00:16:55.58
And the statement Jesus has,
00:16:55.61\00:16:58.91
we notice these are
the only words of Jesus
00:16:58.95\00:17:01.22
on the cross in
the Gospel of Mark:
00:17:01.25\00:17:03.28
"My God, my God, why
have You forsaken me?"
00:17:03.32\00:17:05.62
It's so discouraging,
it's so dark-sounding,
00:17:05.65\00:17:09.39
but there's several
things to notice about it.
00:17:09.42\00:17:11.29
First of all, it's a prayer;
Jesus' only words on the cross
00:17:11.33\00:17:16.43
in Mark are a
prayer, a prayer to God.
00:17:16.46\00:17:19.60
He's saying, "My God, my
God, why have You forsaken me?"
00:17:19.63\00:17:22.44
Not only is it a prayer,
00:17:22.47\00:17:24.54
He's quoting from
the Old Testament,
00:17:24.57\00:17:27.58
and so, it's good to
read your Old Testament
00:17:27.61\00:17:31.61
because you'll say,
00:17:31.65\00:17:33.01
"Oh, I didn't
realize that that was there
00:17:33.05\00:17:35.62
and that it shows up
in the New Testament."
00:17:35.65\00:17:37.62
Turn over to Psalm 22.
00:17:37.65\00:17:41.49
Psalm 22 is a
very interesting psalm.
00:17:42.99\00:17:46.39
It's actually Messianic
in the way it describes--
00:17:46.43\00:17:49.23
there's numerous things that
are described here that happened
00:17:49.26\00:17:52.63
at Jesus's death, but we
want to read verses 1 through 5.
00:17:52.67\00:17:58.27
>>Eric: "My God, my God,
why have You forsaken me?
00:17:58.31\00:18:01.81
"Why are You so
far from helping me,
00:18:01.84\00:18:03.95
"and from the
words of my groaning?
00:18:03.98\00:18:06.05
"O my God, I cry in the
daytime, but You do not hear;
00:18:06.08\00:18:09.65
"and in the night
season, and am not silent.
00:18:09.68\00:18:12.55
"But You are holy, enthroned
in the praises of Israel.
00:18:12.59\00:18:16.06
"Our fathers trusted in You;
00:18:16.09\00:18:18.26
"they trusted, and
You delivered them.
00:18:18.29\00:18:20.23
"They cried to
You, and were delivered;
00:18:20.26\00:18:22.40
they trusted in You,
and were not ashamed."
00:18:22.43\00:18:25.27
>>Tom: All right, so this
is a very interesting psalm
00:18:25.30\00:18:27.94
because it goes back
and forth between terror,
00:18:27.97\00:18:34.01
desperation,
depression, and praise--
00:18:34.04\00:18:38.95
the two that you'd
say, "Wait a minute,
00:18:38.98\00:18:41.45
these don't fit
together," all right?
00:18:41.48\00:18:44.52
One of the things I
like about the Psalms
00:18:44.55\00:18:47.29
is that it goes
from all the way,
00:18:47.32\00:18:49.62
the highest joy down
to the deepest depression,
00:18:49.66\00:18:53.06
you know, it has everything,
but in every case, it's always,
00:18:53.09\00:18:58.40
it turns to God, you
know, it's turning to God.
00:18:58.43\00:19:00.74
So, he's praying here,
the psalmist is saying,
00:19:00.77\00:19:03.30
"My God, my God, why
have You forsaken me?
00:19:03.34\00:19:05.57
"Why are You so
far from saving me,
00:19:05.61\00:19:07.58
from the words of my groaning?"
00:19:07.61\00:19:09.44
Again, in verse 3:
00:19:09.48\00:19:10.95
"Yet You are holy, enthroned
on the praises of Israel.
00:19:10.98\00:19:14.02
"In You our fathers trusted;
00:19:14.05\00:19:15.68
they trusted, and
You delivered them."
00:19:15.72\00:19:17.02
So, he's
contrasting his own experience
00:19:17.05\00:19:19.72
with the mighty
deeds of God in the past,
00:19:19.75\00:19:22.92
and it goes back and
forth and back and forth.
00:19:22.96\00:19:25.16
in this whole psalm;
00:19:25.19\00:19:26.63
there's this kind of
interesting parallel discussion.
00:19:26.66\00:19:30.60
So, Jesus is referring to
this psalm in making His prayer,
00:19:30.63\00:19:36.07
and that should lead
us to read this psalm
00:19:36.10\00:19:40.61
because it tells us
00:19:40.64\00:19:41.94
some of the
context of the crucifixion.
00:19:41.98\00:19:47.62
And in fact,
other of our gospels
00:19:47.65\00:19:50.99
will quote or allude
to different passages,
00:19:51.02\00:19:54.19
different parts of this
very psalm and talk about it.
00:19:54.22\00:19:59.29
So, you come down to
something like verse 25,
00:19:59.33\00:20:06.27
"From You come my praise
in the great congregation;
00:20:06.30\00:20:08.94
"my vows I will perform
before those who fear Him.
00:20:08.97\00:20:11.77
"The afflicted shall
eat and be satisfied;
00:20:11.81\00:20:13.61
"those who seek Him
shall praise the Lord!
00:20:13.64\00:20:15.98
May your hearts live forever!"
00:20:16.01\00:20:18.48
There's kind of
this, almost this depiction
00:20:18.51\00:20:20.15
of His crucifixion,
and then His resurrection
00:20:20.18\00:20:22.58
and His ascension,
His affirmation by God.
00:20:22.62\00:20:26.89
So, this psalm is
kind of a backdrop
00:20:26.92\00:20:30.39
to what's going on at the cross.
00:20:30.43\00:20:31.96
Now, it's interesting
because our gospels will often,
00:20:31.99\00:20:36.43
at the scene of the
cross, they have the words
00:20:36.46\00:20:39.90
that actually are
in the Old Testament,
00:20:39.93\00:20:43.47
where the religious leaders
scorn Jesus and they say things,
00:20:43.51\00:20:46.98
and it's like they're
quoting from the Old Testament.
00:20:47.01\00:20:49.88
And you'd think, "Don't
you guys get it? (laughing)
00:20:49.91\00:20:53.55
"You're
fulfilling the prophecy here.
00:20:53.58\00:20:55.65
Can't you see what's happening?"
00:20:55.68\00:20:57.82
And He had warned
them-- we remember
00:20:57.85\00:20:59.82
we read about that
in Mark, chapter 12,
00:20:59.85\00:21:02.39
but they didn't
take the warning.
00:21:02.42\00:21:05.46
>>Eric: No,
unfortunately they didn't.
00:21:05.49\00:21:07.83
We take a look at
Jesus' crucifixion,
00:21:07.86\00:21:10.57
and there are some
parallels that we find
00:21:10.60\00:21:13.47
between Jesus'
crucifixion and His baptism.
00:21:13.50\00:21:18.37
Help us to find those parallels.
00:21:18.41\00:21:19.87
>>Tom: Okay, so
there are a total
00:21:19.91\00:21:22.54
of at least six parallels
00:21:22.58\00:21:24.55
between His baptism
and His crucifixion.
00:21:24.58\00:21:28.75
Remember, He said in
chapter 10 that He would--
00:21:28.78\00:21:32.02
He said to James and John,
"Are you able to drink my cup?
00:21:32.05\00:21:36.52
Are you able to be
baptized with my baptism?"
00:21:36.56\00:21:38.63
The cup, as we
saw, was in Gethsemane;
00:21:38.66\00:21:41.33
the baptism, Jesus' baptism in
blood is here as a cross, okay?
00:21:41.36\00:21:46.43
And there's numerous
ways, things that show us
00:21:46.47\00:21:49.40
the parallels between the two,
00:21:49.44\00:21:50.94
so let me just kind of run down
these a little bit, all right?
00:21:50.97\00:21:54.71
John baptizes
Jesus in chapter 1,
00:21:54.74\00:21:58.28
it's the commencement,
the beginning of His ministry,
00:21:58.31\00:22:02.38
and the cross is the
culmination of His ministry.
00:22:02.42\00:22:06.39
Remember, we said
that He's on a journey.
00:22:06.42\00:22:07.96
Where is He going?
He's going to the cross.
00:22:07.99\00:22:10.46
Now, He's not
going to stop there,
00:22:10.49\00:22:11.79
because He will
rise from the dead,
00:22:11.83\00:22:13.29
but the cross comes
as this important crux,
00:22:13.33\00:22:17.63
shall we say, of the story.
00:22:17.67\00:22:20.90
So, John baptizes Him;
here we are at Jesus' baptism.
00:22:20.94\00:22:24.51
John--we know from reading about
the story of transfiguration
00:22:24.54\00:22:30.31
and afterwards that John
is the Elijah-like figure,
00:22:30.35\00:22:34.38
he wears clothes, in
chapter 1, that are like Elijah.
00:22:34.42\00:22:36.95
Now, if you read verse
35 of Mark 15, it says,
00:22:36.99\00:22:41.82
"And some of the
bystanders hearing it said,
00:22:41.86\00:22:43.79
'Behold, He is
calling Elijah.'" (laughs)
00:22:43.83\00:22:47.83
Now, you wouldn't know
that if you didn't have
00:22:47.86\00:22:49.46
the Aramaic words,
00:22:49.50\00:22:51.30
"Eloi, Eloi," or,
"Eli, Eli," which would be
00:22:51.33\00:22:55.10
"my God, my God,"
but it sounds, you know,
00:22:55.14\00:22:57.57
it's like Elijah,
it sounds like Elijah,
00:22:57.61\00:23:00.11
and they misunderstand:
"'Behold, He is calling Elijah.'
00:23:00.14\00:23:03.61
"And someone ran and
filled a sponge with sour wine,
00:23:03.65\00:23:06.08
"put it on a reed and gave
it to Him to drink, saying,
00:23:06.11\00:23:08.12
'Wait, let us see whether Elijah
will come to take Him down.'"
00:23:08.15\00:23:13.12
So, John is the
Elijah figure in chapter 1,
00:23:13.15\00:23:16.29
and here people take Jesus'
words as if He's calling Elijah.
00:23:16.32\00:23:20.66
Now, when Jesus
dies-- we keep reading,
00:23:20.70\00:23:24.97
and it says in verse 37,
00:23:25.00\00:23:26.67
"And Jesus uttered a loud
cry and breathed His last."
00:23:26.70\00:23:30.27
We'll come back to that.
00:23:30.31\00:23:31.94
In verse 38, "And the curtain
of the temple was torn in two,
00:23:31.97\00:23:35.88
"from top to bottom.
00:23:35.91\00:23:37.28
"And when the
centurion, who stood facing Him,
00:23:37.31\00:23:39.45
"saw that in this
way He breathed His last,
00:23:39.48\00:23:42.18
he said, 'Truly this
man was the Son of God!'"
00:23:42.22\00:23:45.29
Okay, now, there are parallels
between all these statements
00:23:45.32\00:23:48.82
here and what went on
back at the baptism, okay?
00:23:48.86\00:23:52.03
At the baptism, we are told
that the heavens were split,
00:23:52.06\00:23:56.40
torn open, and
the Spirit comes down.
00:23:56.43\00:23:58.60
Now, the only other place in the
Gospel of Mark where this verb
00:23:58.63\00:24:03.00
"to split" is used is here,
00:24:03.04\00:24:05.67
that the curtain in the temple
is torn from top to bottom,
00:24:05.71\00:24:09.68
indicating it was God who
tore the veil in two, all right.
00:24:09.71\00:24:15.55
Jesus receives the
Spirit at His baptism,
00:24:15.58\00:24:19.62
and here it says when He dies,
00:24:19.65\00:24:21.56
the Greek verb is "ekpneó,"
it means "to breathe out,"
00:24:21.59\00:24:26.03
and it contains the same root.
00:24:26.06\00:24:28.26
The word for
"spirit" in Greek is "pneuma,"
00:24:28.30\00:24:31.33
and it contains the same root,
00:24:31.37\00:24:32.93
"pneó," of Him,
the spirit departing.
00:24:32.97\00:24:36.77
God spoke at His baptism,
"You are my beloved Son."
00:24:36.81\00:24:40.94
The centurion speaks
at the cross and says,
00:24:40.98\00:24:43.68
"Truly this man
was the Son of God!"
00:24:43.71\00:24:45.68
So, there's all these parallels
00:24:45.71\00:24:47.02
between the two
that indicate that,
00:24:47.05\00:24:49.52
wow, the cross is
really an important place.
00:24:49.55\00:24:53.09
It is the baptism of Jesus;
it is His baptism in blood,
00:24:53.12\00:24:56.62
that, as He said, Is
the "ransom for many,"
00:24:56.66\00:25:00.13
where He saves the world.
00:25:00.16\00:25:01.06
So, it's a powerful
kind of an expression
00:25:01.10\00:25:04.03
about the meaning
of the death of Jesus.
00:25:04.07\00:25:07.50
>>Eric: So, we've
come to His death now,
00:25:07.54\00:25:09.34
but the story isn't over here,
00:25:09.37\00:25:12.07
as you've mentioned,
it has a happier ending,
00:25:12.11\00:25:14.28
but we want to go through--
00:25:14.31\00:25:15.61
let's go through the
grave first, through His burial.
00:25:15.64\00:25:18.45
What's the
significance of Jesus' burial?
00:25:18.48\00:25:21.12
>>Tom: Well, you
know, I used to give
00:25:21.15\00:25:24.12
these passages to
students to analyze the story,
00:25:24.15\00:25:28.36
and this part of the
story, the burial of Jesus,
00:25:28.39\00:25:32.13
almost sounds kind
of a quiet denouement
00:25:32.16\00:25:36.43
that's, you know,
not that important,
00:25:36.46\00:25:38.77
but actually it's very
important. It's very important.
00:25:38.80\00:25:41.44
So, we should read
verses 42 through 47.
00:25:41.47\00:25:46.27
>>Eric: "Now
when evening had come,
00:25:46.31\00:25:47.44
"because it was
the Preparation Day,
00:25:47.48\00:25:49.11
"that is, the day
before the Sabbath,
00:25:49.14\00:25:51.21
"Joseph of Arimathea, a
prominent council member,
00:25:51.25\00:25:54.25
"who was himself
waiting for the kingdom of God,
00:25:54.28\00:25:56.72
"coming and taking courage,
00:25:56.75\00:25:58.39
"went in to Pilate and
asked for the body of Jesus.
00:25:58.42\00:26:01.19
"Pilate marveled
that He was already dead;
00:26:01.22\00:26:03.73
"and summoning the centurion,
00:26:03.76\00:26:05.06
"he asked him if He had
been dead for some time.
00:26:05.09\00:26:07.76
"So when he found
out from the centurion,
00:26:07.76\00:26:09.66
"he granted the body to Joseph.
00:26:09.70\00:26:11.60
"Then he bought fine
linen, took Him down,
00:26:11.63\00:26:14.30
"and wrapped Him in the linen.
00:26:14.34\00:26:15.67
"And he laid Him in a tomb which
had been hewn out of the rock,
00:26:15.70\00:26:18.97
"and rolled a stone
against the door of the tomb.
00:26:19.01\00:26:21.78
"And Mary Magdalene and
Mary the mother of Joses
00:26:21.81\00:26:24.11
observed where He was laid."
00:26:24.15\00:26:25.78
>>Tom: Okay, so
this is important
00:26:25.81\00:26:28.88
because it indicates to us that
Jesus really died, all right.
00:26:28.92\00:26:33.52
There are some who
would want to suggest
00:26:33.56\00:26:35.92
that He didn't
really die on the cross,
00:26:35.96\00:26:39.19
and so, He didn't
really rise from the dead
00:26:39.23\00:26:42.50
because He never
really died, all right?
00:26:42.53\00:26:44.83
Well, that's just not the case,
00:26:44.87\00:26:45.93
the Romans knew
how to kill people,
00:26:45.97\00:26:47.87
and when Joseph of Arimathea
00:26:47.90\00:26:51.87
comes to ask Pilate
for the body of Jesus,
00:26:51.91\00:26:55.88
Pilate is surprised
00:26:55.91\00:26:58.38
because usually people didn't
die that quickly on the cross,
00:26:58.41\00:27:01.78
and so he has to confirm it.
00:27:01.82\00:27:03.95
So, what does he do?
He calls the centurion:
00:27:03.99\00:27:06.79
"Has He actually died?"
00:27:06.82\00:27:08.96
And yes, the centurion
confirms that Jesus is dead.
00:27:08.99\00:27:13.93
So then, Pilate
releases the body.
00:27:13.96\00:27:16.26
Now, Joseph buys a linen shroud,
takes Him down from the cross,
00:27:16.30\00:27:20.47
wraps Him in the
shroud, lays Him in a tomb,
00:27:20.50\00:27:23.37
and puts a rock over
the front of the tomb,
00:27:23.41\00:27:26.04
and there are two women who
are watching what has happened,
00:27:26.07\00:27:29.78
Mary Magdalene and
Mary the mother of Joses.
00:27:29.81\00:27:32.38
These two women,
they're not the only ones,
00:27:32.41\00:27:34.95
but these two
women will show up again
00:27:34.98\00:27:38.29
over at the tomb
on Sunday morning.
00:27:38.32\00:27:41.46
Now, there are, we
should say, three days here;
00:27:41.49\00:27:45.29
there's the day Jesus
died, there's the Sabbath,
00:27:45.33\00:27:48.53
and then there's
the resurrection.
00:27:48.56\00:27:50.53
We'll see in our next
lesson about the resurrection,
00:27:50.57\00:27:52.57
but it's very clear
here that Jesus died.
00:27:52.60\00:27:55.64
>>Eric: So, He's dead. What now?
00:27:55.67\00:27:58.14
Well, next week we're going to
be looking at "The Risen Lord,"
00:27:58.17\00:28:02.01
the culmination of our
13-week study together,
00:28:02.04\00:28:04.68
and we're looking
forward to having you join us
00:28:04.71\00:28:07.22
for that final
episode, that final lesson.
00:28:07.25\00:28:10.09
We look forward to
seeing you next time
00:28:10.12\00:28:11.79
here on "Sabbath School,"
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:28:11.82\00:28:14.79
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