THE KING OF THE JEWS

Inscribed on the cross: “The King of the Jews”. This was the accusation against Jesus; The reason for the crucifixion. The pain alone is too much to conceive but imagine the feeling of total rejection. They mocked Him while He suffered; Oblivious and relieved that they finally put a stop to that rebel.  Yet, prophecy was being fulfilled before their eyes. Isaiah wrote about that very moment 700 years before it happened.

He wrote: “He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” Isaiah 53:3-5 NLT.

What kind of King was He? Wasn’t that inscription on the cross just mockery? Or was it fulfillment? What they thought was stopping a rebellion, was establishing a King! The inscription was more of a declaration than an accusation, one that the Jews took offense to. Pilot, who made the judgment, gave the Jews what they wanted. He thought it was just to inscribe the accusation they were making against Jesus to mock them. However, it was more of a declaration. Pilot had no idea that he was partaking in the greatest event in history.

Jesus was further mocked by being crucified next to two thieves. One of the thieves even mustered up the strength to mock Jesus while being crucified himself. If you’re not familiar with how crucifixion kills you, it is a slow death. For starters, you are beaten and bruised. You’re pinned to a wooden cross and because of gravity, you begin to cave into yourself, making it extremely hard to breathe. The only way to properly breathe is by pushing yourself up with your feet and then breathing. This will eventually exhaust you to the point that you will not be able to push yourself up. At that point, you will begin to suffocate, which will lead to a horrific death. This thief took his precious breath to curse Jesus! Unbelievable! This is the level of mockery Jesus had to endure.

The other thief: a rebel and an accused convict. He saw something that no one else saw at that moment. Here is the passage of the interaction both thieves had with Jesus:

“One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other responded, and rebuking him, said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our crimes; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:39-43 NASB

One thief mocked, the other one saw a KING! There is not much written in the bible about this thief. We do not know how much knowledge he had of Jesus prior to this moment, so I will not speculate. I will say this, the thief in his suffering, during his last moments, saw Life! With a few words, Jesus welcomed him into His Kingdom. Everyone thought it was the end of a movement, but a no-good rebel saw a King! Not just any King, but the King of the universe. What the people who accused Jesus intended for evil, God in His infinite wisdom intended as a rite of passage. What was the rite of passage? Jesus doing the most selfless act in history. Taking the full punishment of all sin in one act of total surrender and sacrifice. His faithfulness cost Him everything yet, He was gaining everything. It was in His death, burial, and resurrection that He took power from death and the grave so that He could freely give life to anyone who would receive His Lordship.

Is He your King? Or is He just an opportunity for you? The unrepentant thief mocked Jesus by saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” Unbelieving but an opportunist, he mocked Jesus by not surrendering to Jesus but patronizing Him, demanding salvation. Unlike the other thief who, with little hesitation, stood up for Jesus and humbly asked to be received into His Kingdom. One acknowledging that Jesus is the Christ and the other surrendering to the reality that he is guilty of sin and needs to be saved.

Which one are you? Are you like the Jewish leaders that wrongly accused Jesus who decided that Jesus was the problem not their religion? Or are you like Pilot who appeased the crowd by rejecting Jesus and washing his hands of any wrongdoing, as if that would spare him? Or are you the mocking thief demanding salvation from Jesus but not humbling yourself to Him? Or are you the humble thief who recognized he was wrong, and that Jesus was truly a King and the savior of his soul?

Like the humble thief on the cross, you are guilty. However, your King was tested, tried, and faithful. He can be trusted, even if you don’t trust religion.  Like the humble thief, shut out the noise of others and see your King. Jesus is real and waiting for you. He desires you to enjoy the fullness of all that is in His Kingdom. Do not let today go by without asking Jesus for His salvation. He will grant you a place in His eternal Kingdom, “Paradise”, and give you peace on earth as you navigate the turbulent waters of this life.

“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end.” Isaiah 9:6-7 NLT

“He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.”

Isaiah 53:3-6 NLT

Tis the Season,

Elijah X

Prayer:

Lord, forgive me for using you as an opportunity for my own gain. I acknowledge that I thought that by doing so, I was accepting you as Lord but didn’t realize that it only opened an opportunity to mock and patronize you. I know your mercy is great and you are quick to forgive me. Please forgive me for my ignorance and lack of awareness. I ask you Lord please help all darkness be removed from my heart. Help me imitate you, Jesus, and carry my cross. I know that nothing I lose here on this earth compares to what I will gain in eternity. Please help me be the person you desire me to be. In Jesus name, Amen!