IT IS FINISHED! (Mark 15:33-41)
INTRODUCTION:
We began last week to look at the crucifixion of the Son of God. We focused most on the verbal and physical abuse He endured from the time He was arrested and until He was dead. As I look down through history I cannot think of a more blasphemous act of evil ever committed, as wicked, hateful men subjected Jesus Christ, God the Son to humiliation, torture, and death. That God did not instantly destroy them for their crimes is incredible. In their ignorance of the Scriptures, they did not know that the murder of Jesus was necessary in God’s eternal plan of redemption. The Father in His sovereignty used the evil deeds of these wicked and sinful men to accomplish His plan of salvation.
This morning as we come into our passage God is at Golgotha, but not to protect His Son from evil men, but to punish His Son on their behalf. Isaiah the prophet stated it this way in Isaiah 53:10-11, “But the Lord was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:10–11, NASB95)[1] The Righteous Son of God was put to death as a substitute for the unrighteous. Jesus Christ became a curse for sinners so that He might redeem them from the penalty for sin which is death. As we look at the final three hours that Jesus spent on the cross, it will be evident the Jesus Christ drank the full cup of God’s wrath against sin. Let’s pray and then get into this morning’s passage.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE
Turn in your Bibles this morning to Mark 15:33-41. If you are able, please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word and follow along as I read.
Mark 15:33-41,
“When the sixth hour came, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour. At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which is translated, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’ When some of the bystanders heard it, they began saying, ‘Behold, He is calling for Elijah.’ Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink, saying, ‘Let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.’ And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last. And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He breathed His last, he said, ‘Truly this man was the Son of God!’ There were also some women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and Joses, and Salome. When He was in Galilee, they used to follow Him and minister to Him; and there were many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.” (Mark 15:33–41, NASB95)[2]
THE CUP OF GOD’S WRATH (Mark 15:33-38)
As we come into this passage we enter the high point of salvation history, the substitutionary atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was God’s plan made in eternity past, and now the long-awaited and sinless Lamb of God would die to satisfy the righteous justice of God by paying sin’s penalty if full for all who would believe in Him.
Mark informs us that it is now the sixth hour. It had been the third hour when they crucified Jesus, which is 9:00 in the morning. Now it is the sixth hour, which means it is noon. Jesus has already been on the cross for three hours. The Gospels record for us three statements that Jesus made during that three-hour period. The first statement Jesus made displayed His compassion and mercy for mankind, as He prayed for His persecutors. Luke 23:34 records His words, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34b, NASB95)[3] As I mentioned last Sunday, one of the criminals that was crucified with Jesus, suddenly stopped mocking Jesus, maybe it was Jesus’ words asking the Father to forgive that stopped him and made him realize that this was not just another criminal, but that He actually was who He said He was. This man sought the forgiveness that Jesus had offered. The Son of God responded to this sinful man’s faith with the promise of eternal life. Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:43, NASB95)[4] The third statement that Jesus made again shows His compassion as He took that moment to care for His mother, Mary. John records this statement for us in John 19:26-27, “When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother!’ From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.” (John 19:26–27, NASB95)[5]
At noon as the sun reached its zenith, Mark tells us that darkness fell over the whole land. We do not know the extent of this darkness, was it just the area around Jerusalem? Was it all Israel? Did it extend beyond the borders of Israel. The word that Mark uses that is translated “land” can be used to refer to the entire earth. Mark said this darkness lasted for three hours, from the sixth hour until the ninth hour. This was a supernatural darkness that engulfed the cross at midday. This darkness was not a solar eclipse or a sandstorm; God the Father Himself caused this darkness. In this supernatural darkness there was silence all around. The Gospels record no words from Jesus or the two other men being crucified, or from those who had just been mocking and insulting the Son of God. Thirty-three years earlier that dark night sky had been lit up like noonday as a company of angels joyfully announced the birth of the Messiah, the Savior of the world. Now there is darkness and silence at noon as that Savior dies.
Why the darkness? To begin with it is a sign of mourning. The prophet Amos prophesied that there would be darkness at the time of the Day of the Lord. Amos wrote, “’It will come about in that day,’ declares the Lord God, ‘That I will make the sun go down at noon And make the earth dark in broad daylight…And I will make it like a time of mourning for an only son...” (Amos 8:9a–10b, NASB95)[6] The cross was draped in the mourning sackcloth of darkness.
Not only does darkness signify mourning, but it also signified the curse of God and the judgment of God. At the exodus from Egypt, a plague of darkness covered the land before the first Passover lambs were slain. Now before the death of the final Passover Lamb, there again was darkness. God’s judgment was being poured out in a midday night.
The darkness at the cross did not represent the absence of God but His holy, terrifying presence. The Father descended in judgment on Golgotha in the thick gloom as the divine judge to unleash His fury not against sinners but against the sin-bearer. The full weight of God’s wrath was poured out on the Son of God as He bore the sins of the world as He was sacrificed for sin so that sinners might be justified through Him. Years later Peter makes what happened very clear, “…and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” (1 Peter 2:24, NASB95)[7] Paul explained it this way, “He [God] made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NASB95)[8]
During those three hours of darkness all the sin of the world was poured out on the Lord Jesus, the sinless Son of God, and He bore it all for us. How His soul must have recoiled and convulsed as all the sin of mankind was poured out on Him. Finally, He became a curse. Paul says in Galatians 3:13, “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’—” (Galatians 3:13, NASB95)[9] Jesus bore it all in silence. Not a word came from His lips as He suffered the greatest agony of all time, there is nothing that compares to it.
Could it be any worse? We have only witnessed a dim shadow of the agony that Christ suffered. Because He became sin for us, He had to undergo the cosmic trauma of separation from God who “is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5, NASB95)[10] In the dark of the cross’s night, Jesus was alone. His separation was not just felt, it was real. This experience was something that Jesus Christ had never known before, the abandonment of His Father. That separation was not one of nature or essence,; the Lord Jesus never ceased to be the second member of the Trinity. Rather it was a separation of the loving communion He had eternally known with the Father and the Spirit. This separation was possible because of the truth and authenticity of the Incarnation. God’s holy nature demanded separation as the Son became sin for us. Not even the most evil man has ever known in this life the horror of being completely cut off from God. But the Lord Jesus Christ knew it. When He had prayed in the garden He knew the physical agony was nothing in comparison to becoming sin for us and suffering God wrath and separation. He who had never known a millisecond of separation from the Father and the Holy Spirit was alone. At the ninth hour, after three hours of agony, Jesus pushed Himself up on the cross and the silence was shattered, “Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which is translated, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’ ” (Mark 15:34, NASB95)[11] Jesus shattered His silence with a great shout from Psalm 22:1. This may have shocked those who were still there, after three hours of silence. John Calvin explains, “Jesus expressed this horror of great darkness, this God-forsakenness, by quoting the only verse in Scripture which actually described it, and which He had perfectly fulfilled.”[12] I believe that with Jesus’ ringing declaration of abandonment, the darkness began to lift, for He had emptied the cup of wrath to the dregs. This is the only place in the gospel record where Jesus referred to God by any other title than “Father.” The repeated name “My God, My God” expressed the Son’s love and longing for the Father, mingled with the agony and pain of His separation from Him. The Father had been at Golgotha in massive judgment, but He had been absent in comfort. Unlike when Jesus had endured the temptations in the wilderness and in the garden of Gethsemane, after which the Father had sent angels to minister to His Son, no relief was given to Jesus on the cross. Such is a picture of hell, in which the full fury of God’s wrath is ever present, but the comfort of His love and compassion is utterly absent. On the cross the Lord Jesus Christ endured the full reality of hell’s torments, including being forsaken by His Father.
The pain and agony of the Father’s absence was made more severe by the hostile presence of the religious leaders and the crowd who continued to harass and mock Jesus until He died. Mark writes, “When some of the bystanders heard it, they began saying, ‘Behold, He is calling for Elijah.’ ” (Mark 15:35, NASB95)[13] We must understand that they had not misunderstood what Jesus had said, especially since Psalm 22 was a well-known portion of Scripture. Instead, they were responding to His anguished cry with more mockery. In Malachi 4:5-6, the last book of the Old Testament, the prophet predicts that Elijah or a prophet like him, would come as the forerunner of the Messiah. By accusing Jesus of calling for Elijah, these irreverent bystanders were scornfully taunting Jesus, asserting that if He really were the Messiah, perhaps Elijah would come and rescue Him.
John records for us that next Jesus cried out, “I am thirsty” (John 19:28b, NASB95).[14] Mark writes, “Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink, saying, ‘Let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.’ ” (Mark 15:36, NASB95)[15] What might first seem to be an act of mercy was actually motivated by ridicule and scorn. The one who lifted the sponge of cheap wine to His lips at the same time said mockingly, “Let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.” (Mark 15:36b, NASB95)[16] The ungrateful irreverent blasphemy and mocking of those sinners formed the ugly setting for the sin-bearing work of the Savior. But even this was prophesied in Isaiah 53.
Jesus had endured 6 hours of physical torture on the cross, added to this was the infinite torments of divine judgment, even though He had endured both, Jesus demonstrated to the end that He was still mentally alert and strong enough to raise Himself up again and utter a loud cry. His life did not gradually slip away to exhaustion and suffocation, instead as He had earlier predicted He willingly laid it down. In John 10:17-18 Jesus said, “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.” (John 10:17–18, NASB95)[17] John also reports that after Jesus had been offered the cheap wine, the Lord Jesus shouted, “It is finished!” The work of redemption had been accomplished, and His suffering was complete. Then Luke tells us that Jesus uttered a final prayer, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” (Luke 23:46, NASB95)[18] “and [He] breathed His last.” (Mark 15:37b, NASB95)[19]
Jesus in dying for us as the perfect sacrifice for sin brought to an end the Old Testament sacrificial system, and all that went along with it. God displayed the end of it with a dramatic sign: “And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” (Mark 15:38, NASB95)[20] The massive woven curtain that permanently separated the most holy place or the holy of holies from the outer sanctuary called the holy place. The most holy place housed the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat which was the ark’s cover. The holy place was where the lampstand, table of showbread and the altar of incense were housed. The curtain between the two was miraculously torn open from top to bottom. For almost fifteen hundred years, only the High Priest was allowed to enter the most holy place and then only once a year on the Day of Atonement. He would enter that day to sprinkle the blood of the atonement sacrifice on the mercy seat and in front of it, this was to signify that the required sacrifice had to be made to atone for the sins of the nation. This huge woven curtain was a continual reminder of the sinners’ separation from God’s holy presence. No animal sacrifice had ever caused that veil to be torn open. But on that Friday afternoon, at the very time the priests in the temple were sacrificing the lambs for Passover, God demonstrated dramatically that the work of atonement that was symbolized by the animal sacrifices had been finished by the sacrifice of the Lamb of God. The barrier to God had been permanently removed, access to God’s presence was now open through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. At that moment, the old covenant became obsolete, and the new covenant was ratified. Our Scripture reading this morning spoke of this new way into the presence of God. Hebrews 10:19-22 says, “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:19–22, NASB95)[21]
THE CENTURION’S CONFESSION (Mark 15:39)
Mark next mentions a Roman officer who was at Golgotha. This officer was a Centurion, an officer in the Roman military; he had under his command one hundred men. The centurion mentioned in Mark’s gospel was the officer in charge of the execution of Jesus and the two criminals on either side of Him. For six hours so far the execution squad consisting of at least four soldiers and the centurion had kept watch over Jesus and the two others being crucified. Mark tells us that the Centurion was standing right in front of Jesus as He hung on the cross, so he would have heard the words spoken by the Lord Jesus each time He pushed Himself up on the cross. He watched Jesus as He responded to the scorn and mocking of the crowd and the religious leaders, he heard Him asking the Father to forgive them. The centurion listened as Jesus gave the hope of heaven to the repentant criminal who had previously mocked Him. From noon to 3:00 pm the centurion stood guard in the midst of the inexplicable and heavy darkness. When the darkness finally lifted, he heard Jesus’ triumphant shout, “It is finished!” and saw the way He breathed His last. Though he had likely participated in countless executions, he had never seen anyone like this victim—this man suffered with such dignity and died with triumphant authority. As he looked at Jesus lifeless body as it hung there on the cross in front of him, he could not contain his astonishment any longer. He spoke and said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:38b, NASB95)[22] It is worth noting, that this is the first time in Mark’s gospel that a human being made this confession about Jesus, other than Mark in his introduction. The Father said this at Jesus’ baptism and transfiguration. The demons acknowledged it on several occasions in Mark. But Mark does not record that confession on the lips of a human being until here near the end of his gospel. Because Mark’s readers were mostly Roman, he purposefully emphasized the salvation of Gentiles, including the climatic acknowledgement of Jesus’ deity from the lips of a pagan Roman soldier. The parallel account in Luke adds in chapter 23, verse 47, “Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent.’ ” (Luke 23:47, NASB95)[23] His worshipful confession was both an affirmation of the sinlessness of Jesus and a declaration of the divine righteousness of our Lord.
At the cross beginning with the crucified criminal then this pagan commander, we are witnesses to trophies of God’s grace who were displayed even in the midst of Jesus suffering and death. Both were sinners, yet God in His infinite mercy reached down and rescued them eternally, granting them salvation through the very One whose crucifixion they had witnessed and participated in. There immediate conversions demonstrate that even the worst of sinners and blasphemers are not beyond the reach of God’s sovereign love and unmerited grace.
THE CONFUSED WOMEN (Mark 15:40-41)
The centurion had moved from confusion to belief by what he witnessed at the cross, in contrast Mark mentions some women who had followed Jesus who had their hope turn to sorrow and confusion. John’s gospel indicates that some women, along with John, at first gathered at the foot of the cross. By the time of His death, they were looking on from a distance. They loved Jesus deeply and truly believed in Him, yet as they watched Him die they were baffled, discouraged, and devastated.
Mark identifies three of the women who were there. First he mentions Mary Magdalene, Jesus had cast seven demons out of her. She was from the village of Magdala as indicated by her name. Magdala was near Capernaum along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. A second women named Mary is mentioned she was distinguished as the mother of James the Less and Joses. James the Less was one of the twelve and is also called James, the son of Alphaeus. The third mentioned is Salome, she was the wife of Zebedee and the mother of James and John, both of whom were disciples. Only the women and John are mentioned as being present at the crucifixion. The other ten of the eleven disciples scattered and hid at the arrest of Jesus and remained in hiding, while these women came boldly to display their courageous and sympathetic loyalty to the Lord Jesus. Mark informs us that they had followed Jesus when He was in Galilee and they ministered to Him. They went with Him and sought to learn more about Him while they served and supported Him. Mark then mentions that these women were joined by many other women who came up with Jesus to Jerusalem. Now as they gazed on the dead body of Jesus on the cross, they found themselves in shock, heartbreak, and bewilderment. This was not the ending they had anticipated.
With the One dead whom the crowd was mocking, they began to return to Jerusalem. Luke tells us they were beating their breast, this was a sign of grief, but in this case it must have been mock grief over the death of King of the Jews.
CONCLUSION:
As we consider what we have witnessed over the last two weeks we must understand that God only sees two types of people in the world. Those who are His children because of their repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, believing that His death paid the penalty for their sin. The second group are those who are not His children but still belong to Satan. We have seen both at the cross, and we have seen at least two that crossed from Satan’s family to God’s family.
We also witnessed some who were part of God’s family but confused by the death of Jesus. These were the women and though they were never empowered to do miracles or preach like the apostles, these women were representatives of the precious faithful who did not forsake the Lord even in His death. There loyalty would be rewarded three days later. On Sunday morning, they would be the first to learn of His glorious resurrection.
As we move from the message to the Lord’s Supper this morning look at your own life and see where you are. Have you repented of your sin and believed that Jesus Christ died to pay the penalty for your sin, if you have you like the criminal, and the centurion have had your sins forgiven and you can enter into the presence of God by a new and living way which Jesus Christ made possible through His atoning death on the cross. If you have never done this, you can this morning by acknowledging that you are a sinner helpless to save yourself and be believing that Jesus died for your sin and when you believe this you are forgiven and given the promise of eternal life. If you have already done this never forget what Jesus Christ did for you, what He endured so that you would not have to face God’s wrath against sin. We have a salvation for which we should be eternally grateful.
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[9]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[10]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[11]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[12]Calvin, John, A Harmony of the Gospels Matthew, Mark and Luke and the Epistles of James and Jude, vol. 3, trans. A.W. Morrison. Grand Rapids, MI : Eerdmans, 1975, p. 81.
[13]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[14]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[15]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[16]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[17]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[18]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[19]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[20]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[21]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[22]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[23]New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. 1995. La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.