Matthew 27:57-66

Matthew 27:57-66

The burial of Jesus is portrayed with two key elements in mind. First, that Jesus was in fact dead. Second, the tomb is certainly secured. Burial was not a customary Roman treatment for the crucified. Typically, the bodies were removed and thrown down. This was an affront to Jewish sensitivities and so they would provide burial in a pauper’s grave. The burial by Joseph was unusual and extravagant. This was a fulfillment of Isaiah 53:9. New tomb is a reference to a tomb that as yet was unused. Joseph’s going to Pilate and burying Jesus was a clear break from his peers in the Sanhedrin and a clear indication of his love and loyalty to the Lord. He would have become ritually unclean for the Passover. Joseph has rejected the position of power out of loyalty to Jesus. He has taken Jesus in as a family member and is careless about the social and career consequences.

In verse 62, Matthew describes the Sabbath morning without mentioning the Sabbath. Why this avoidance of saying “Sabbath”? Perhaps it is emphasis that the old way has now been updated and the new has been enacted on the cross. Whatever the reason, Matthew points out that the delegation that came to Pilate was made up of both the Chief Priests and the Pharisees. They remain united in opposing Jesus even after His death. How did they know that Jesus would have claimed to rise again? Matthew 12:40 is Jesus’s only public reference to the resurrection. Perhaps Judas or another informant told them. While they did not believe Him they admitted that He had made the claim. They thought He was a deceiver and this could be a postmortem deception. Providentially in their efforts to prevent false claims of a resurrection they, by securing the tomb, provide greater evidence for the resurrection when it did occur.

We see Pilate wanting to be done with the whole situation. His compliance seems to be that of someone who, rather than excited to join in, is willing to do whatever it takes to get this issue to go away.

The secret plans and schemes of man, all the plots and sub-plots, the wheels inside of wheels are nothing before the hand of God. Their careful schemes laid out to secure their agenda were actually going to work out the will of God-the absolute opposite of what they wanted and planned.

"Give me faith Lord, to trust in what You are doing even if all I see are the actions of the wicked. AMEN"

Matthew 27:52

Matthew 27:52

An extra devotional

Imagine if you will, that the ten, greatest philosophers of all time suddenly came back to life and descended on Ivy League schools. Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Socrates and others came back to life and went to major universities. Or perhaps the ten greatest musicians in all of history resurrected and went to Julliard. In walks Bach, Brahms, and Beethoven, among others, to instruct on how music should be written, conducted, or played. Again, what would happen if the ten most brilliant military commanders of all history appear at West Point to teach? Julius Caesar, Hannibal, Stonewall Jackson, Chief Joseph, Alexander of Macedonia are ready to inspire the next generation of officers. Finally, consider the result if the 10 most beautiful women or handsome men appear in Hollywood to begin shooting movies.

You get the picture. If such a thing were to happen, it would be the sole topic of conversation around the world. Every network would end regular programming so that they could dedicate 24/7 camera time to these living icons of past ages. The Internet would explode with coverage. Entire segments of our world would be dedicated to nothing other than following every move these people make. Books, magazines, e-books, photo journals would be printing to cover every nuance of the second lives of these people.

At least today that is what would happen.

But when it happened before it was almost unnoticed. In Matthew 27:52-53, we read: The tombs were also opened and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. And they came out of the tombs after His resurrection, entered the holy city, and appeared to many. (NASB) This is the only reference to this resurrection of a group of people. This event is treated as if it were really not a very big deal. Matthew gives it less than 35 words. It doesn’t even appear in Mark, Luke, or John. It is kind of incredulous that a mass resurrection would occur, but be treated as of little importance.

Until we see it is put in juxtaposition to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. In light of that grand event, nothing else in all of the universe is very significant. An eight-foot rowboat is inconsequential when set beside an aircraft carrier. When compared to a state funeral for a great President, wiping a crushed cockroach off the sole of your shoe is no big deal. There is no way to contrast the wedding of the Crown Prince of a great Empire with a 4th grade school dance. A flashlight is nothing compared to a star. And the resurrection of the saints of old is just barely a footnote when set beside the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah.

We, who have placed our hope in the One who was on the cross and who left the tomb empty, have a treasure beyond words. But, I fear our familiarity with the telling and retelling, hearing and rehearing, recalling and re-recalling of this event, may cause us to fail to notice its grandeur. Take a moment to consider how utterly huge, unparalleled, and beyond comparison is the reality of the cross and the empty tomb. Everything else in history is less than a period at the end of Gone With the Wind when compared with the greatest of all events.

"Awaken in me, Oh Lord, a renewed love for the grandeur of the Gospel. AMEN"

Matthew 27:45-56

Matthew 27:45-56

The death of Jesus has inspired more words than any other event in history. Literally, tens of millions of words have been used to describe and discuss this moment. For Matthew it is twelve, short verses. But even in these short verses Matthew fills them with Old Testament allusions.

The darkness was no natural event, but a sign of God’s emotional reaction to the events and perhaps a reference to the plague of darkness on Egypt. The Lord’s crying out is taken from Psalm 22 and this is the only occasion in the Gospels where Jesus does not call God His Father. As the sins of the world are placed on Jesus the Father turns away. What a profound description of the isolation Jesus experienced. His rejection is complete. Jesus was rejected by the disciples, Jewish leaders, His people, the Gentiles and now even His Father turns from Him.

The drink offered was likely wine vinegar mixed with water. Most likely, but not certainly, it would have been brought by the soldiers. Even in this moment we see Matthew’s recurring theme that Jesus is the source of division. There were those who offered an act of kindness and those who would in this moment mock Him.

In the moment of death in verse 50 we see Jesus cry out. This marks a strong voice of declaration not a fading whisper. Matthew doesn’t record what Jesus cries out. It may have been, “It is finished,” or it may have been the victory cry of a great warrior at the moment of death that knows He has defeated death. Jesus yields up His spirit. This was a deliberate act of His will. Death did not happen to Him. Death did not take him. Death did not win round one on Friday with Jesus winning a rematch on Sunday. Jesus, as an act of His will, gave up His life or spirit.

In addition to the darkness, three events in the natural world marked the death of Jesus. The temple curtain is torn from top to bottom indicating this was the hand of God. Access to the presence of God was now open as it had not been since the Garden of Eden. There is a rabbinic tradition that in the last 40 years before the destruction of the temple the doors of the temple would open by themselves. The second manifestation was an earthquake of such a violent nature the rocks split. This was no minor tremor. The third manifestation was the resurrection of the saints of old. The soldiers would have only seen the darkness and felt the earthquake but this was enough to produce faith. Interestingly, the dividing line Jesus spoke about is seen here again in those who will believe and those who persist in non-belief.

Matthew begins to sight the eyewitnesses to the crucifixion and death of Jesus. There can be no doubt that His death was as unique and significant as His life and teaching. The evidence is there, what we do with it God leaves up to us. Faith or unbelief is in our hands and hearts.

"Lord grant me a heart this will truly believe. AMEN"

Matthew 27:27-45

Matthew 27:27-45

Jesus condemned to die is handed over to the soldiers of the governor. These were not Roman Legionnaires, but rather auxiliary which would have been recruited from surrounding areas. They would have been the hostile neighbors of the Jews with strong animosity. This was the toxic mix of Roman authority and local hostility. The whole cohort, perhaps as many as 600 men, would have had the opportunity to vent their long-standing hatred for the Jews toward the person of their “King”. Their mocking was a paradox of royalty: a robe, a crown, a scepter, their kneeling and the greeting, “Hail, King of the Jews.” This was perhaps a parody of “Hail Caesar”. Typically, prisoners were paraded naked, but the Jewish sensitivities in this matter might have led to a riot, so Jesus was clothed. They did this not as an act of courtesy but for their own convenience.

Matthew introduces Simon of Cyrene here. He was compelled to carry the cross. In parallel passages there is the mention of not only his name but also family relations likely indicated he was or had become a disciple. Rome crucified violent criminals and rebels in a public place. The place of the skull was just such a public place. We are not sure what was the purpose of the gall mixed in the drink. It may have been an anesthetic to numb the pain. It also may have been intentionally an unpleasant drink that was a mockery not a mercy.

There have been a number of detailed studies on the physical and medical experiences of the act of crucifixion. Matthew spends little time writing about the crucifixion, but sums up the whole process with one phrase, “And when they had crucified him”. Matthew is interested in the meaning of the cross more than a description. It is fitting to read Psalm 22 along side this passage. We see the ironic use of the titles for Jesus. Terms or titles that are correct but appear to be completely misapplied; King of the Jews, Son of God, temple builder, king of Israel.

Even at this moment Jesus could have rescued Himself from the agony. Great is the irony that Jesus’s enduring the suffering was not an indication that He wasn’t the Son of God. Rather because he was the Son of God He chose to endure the suffering.

Jesus now abandoned by his disciples, condemned by the religious elite, rejected by the crowds, condemned by the Roman governor, and we know He was also mocked by the soldiers is now insulted by the criminal element. Matthew presents Christ completely rejected by the world He came to save. If there was ever a person who had the right and the authority to say, “To Hell with you," it was Jesus here tormented on the cross. But there He chooses to remain and to endure and accomplish the forgiveness of my sins.

"Lord Jesus, by your cross you have redeemed the world. Have mercy on me. AMEN"

Matthew 27:11-26

Matthew 27:11-26

Pilate would be unknown to history were it not for the trial. The trial seems to be a less formal judicial event and more of a bargaining session in the marketplace. The charge on Pilate’s lips “King of the Jews” was obviously supplied by the accusing delegation. It was worded in such a way as to imply a political agenda. Jesus answered very little. Had he answered in detail about the nature of His kingdom Pilate may have released Him. The objective is not a declaration of guilt or innocence. The objective is to secure the means of death/sacrifice. This was not an accidental event but the plan of God’s redemption being worked out. Pilate is little more than an extra in this drama, a bureaucrat, a rubber stamp for the paperwork. Jesus amused him in silence. Perhaps he was accustomed to extreme pleas and arguments. Roman law did not condemn a man until he had had three opportunities to defend himself. Jesus marches relentlessly toward the cross.

The release of a prisoner is not seen elsewhere in Roman rule and may have been a local attempting to create goodwill. Barabbas may have also had the same name; Jesus. "Who is to be released, Jesus called Barabbas or Jesus called Christ?" The word notorious could be either good or bad. Barabbas could have been a terrorist or he could have been a sort of Robin Hood type. He had not yet been condemned because only the emperor could grant clemency to a condemned man. Barabbas may have been the ringleader of those who would die with Christ.

The place of Pilot's wife in the story is to show that the priestly delegation is without excuse. If a pagan, and a woman no less (remember in this culture it was doubted that women could reason), could see that Jesus was innocent, how could the Jewish leaders be so obtuse? Matthew has been emphasizing the loss of privileged position of the Jewish people. The elite of the Jewish high priests are here cast in a negative comparison to a pagan woman.

The mob asked that Barabbas be released and that Jesus be condemned. The crowd was not left to chance; while it was no doubt mixed, the priest’s agents had packed the mob with their agitators. There was fear of a riot erupting. Was the riot going to be an attack on the Romans or a fight within the crowd? Pilate takes the easy way out; he condemns Christ and washes his hands. This was a pointless ritual that neither exonerated him nor obtained innocence, but rather testified to his awareness of his guilt. The statement of, “His blood be on us and our children,” (by the way there is no verb in the Greek text) was not a curse but rather a boast. They felt that they had defended the people, the temple, and the traditions. The blood on the hands of Judas Maccabeus was not guilty blood but rather heroic. These people thought they were being heroes.

"Lord, keep me from pursuing the easy way out. Grant me the courage to follow Your will no matter the cost. AMEN"

Matthew 27:1-10

Matthew 27:1-10

The chief priests must have had supreme confidence in their ability to destroy people. They decide they would destroy Jesus and they simply had to figure out how. The overnight trial had produced from them the grounds on which they wanted to kill Jesus. However, getting the Romans to cooperate would be another matter. Pilate was no friend of the Jews. So before taking Jesus to the Roman governor they took council to devise their strategy. What happened before Pilate was not an impromptu, grassroots movement, but the working out of a careful plan.

Matthew deals with Judas’s demise here before getting on to the trial by Pilate. Judas delivered Jesus to the Jews and once that is done his role is over and, while not chronological, this is the place to finish his story. Judas felt remorse. The word is not the typical word for repent which carries the implication of forgiveness. Judas admits that he has betrayed innocent blood. What he knew did not control what his bitterness and emotions dictated. Judas regrets the consequences of his actions, but not the motivational sin that drove them. Judas wanted to shift the guilt for what he had done from himself to someone else, but there was apparently no desire for any repentance and returning to Jesus. While Peter was guilty of a lapse in a moment Judas willfully turned away from Jesus. He was still angry and hostile toward Jesus, but he did regret the depth of the Jewish punishment. Had Jesus been broken, defamed, shamed, and ruined by the Jews Judas would likely have been quite content. He wanted to shed the guilt without restoration to Jesus, which never happens. Guilty is linked not just to behavior, but also to the broken relationship behind the behavior. Without the restoration of the relationship guilt can never be removed.

In all of human history we may see the purest form of hypocrisy in this passage. The priests for pious and religious reasons will not accept blood money into the temple treasury, but apparently, have no qualms about paying out blood money, perhaps from that same treasury. Here are two sides of the same coin. One they put into practice and the other they, for religious reasons, condemn. According to Jewish tradition the greatest evil is to do evil in the name of God. Judas takes the unclean money and throws it into the holy place. This raised a number of difficult questions. Since it was unclean, would the money make the holy place in the temple unclean? This money laying about would compel the priest to go and pick up and touch the unclean money. Would he in so doing become unclean? With blood on his hands he had to contemplate the effect of blood money.

In the simple love and devotion to Jesus there is an uncomplicated peace. It is in our sin and manipulation that life becomes difficult, convoluted and contrary.

"God please grant me simple holy love for Your Son Jesus. AMEN"