From this text this morning, I do want you to appreciate and apprehend the death of Christ. And as a result of this text this morning, I do think that God wants you to adore Christ all the more, to love Christ more, for your hearts to be drawn to Christ and to heaven where Christ is seated at the Father's right hand all the more. And in doing that, away from your present circumstances. As we consider these verses this morning, and in particular from what we read, verses 16 through 32, as we consider these verses this morning, as we do remember and reflect upon Jesus' crucifixion, you should also remember that Jesus' crucifixion is for you who believe. you should remember that it is for his church that he died. Remember that Jesus' crucifixion and death on the cross has meaning and purpose. It is not just an event that happened a long time ago. Jesus' death and crucifixion on the cross has meaning and purpose. For Mark, that significance is seen through his suffering. It is seen through his weakness. It is seen through his being accursed and that even in the midst of this, as one author put it, Jesus has been proclaimed king and men salute him as such in his crucifixion. We understand that Jesus' work did not begin here on the cross, but was, in fact, a work which began from the moment he humbled himself in becoming a man. Our shorter Catechism question in Answer 27 says, Christ's humiliation consisted in his being born. and that in a low condition, made under the law, undergoing the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross, in being buried and continuing under the power of death for a time. And all through the earthly ministry of our Lord, there was an inevitable goal. There was an inevitable goal to his life. He knew the direction he was going. Do you remember how Luke put it when he said he set his face to go to Jerusalem? If we were to consider the crucifixion just in terms of the act, of the form, of the execution, we would be sickened, I trust, by the sight of it all. It was a humiliating, cruel, and brutal way to die. And now even as horrible, As this form of execution was, we can consider the crucifixion in positive terms. Consider, for example, when we sing those famed words, when I survey the wondrous cross, it's terrible, it is horrible, it is cruel, and it is brutal. But it's because of what the cross means. It is because of what the cross means that we are able to sing in this way. It is wonderful because it is full of his love. So amazing, so divine. Because the crucifixion of Jesus is not just any execution. God has given it meaning and purpose. This death has redemptive meaning. That the cross speaks of substitution. That the cross speaks of satisfaction for sin. It speaks of a Savior who has given his life as a ransom for many. That you and I might know the hope of glory. and that you and I might know the adoption of sons and daughters, the adoption of sons and daughters to a father who loved us so much that he gave his only begotten son over to this death that we are considering this morning. Now, in many ways, the cross interprets everything for us, everything about Our Christian life is interpreted for us by the significance of what Jesus is doing here upon the cross. Doesn't Jesus even define our Christian walk by the cross, our discipleship in terms of the cross? You may remember from earlier portions of Mark's gospel, if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospels will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can man give in return for his soul?" What does the symbol of a cross mean to you? As I walked in this building this morning, I looked up and saw the cross on top of the steeple. As I would in normal Sundays walk to our church building, I would look up and see a cross on top of the steeple. Today, crosses are sold just about in any kind of shop. They're just about everywhere. They're commonplace. Most likely, if you ask, you'll find that many don't know where the symbol comes from. Some may be Christian relic or what it really meant or means to the Christian. It has become ironically, as one author put, a dead metaphor. Someone else once remarked that if you want to wear a cross as an earring, It might be a good idea to wear an electric chair as its pair to remind yourself what the cross was and did and meant. And yet our Christian walk, our discipleship in Christ is put in terms of the cross, in terms of suffering, in terms of the suffering that is found in Christ on that cross. And so as we look at Mark's account of the crucifixion of Jesus, keep these things in mind as we consider that crucifixion under three headings. Suffering, and how Mark describes the crucifixion. Cursed, in how Mark describes and tells us that Jesus was lifted up on a tree between two thieves and crowned, and how Mark draws our attention to Jesus being proclaimed as the King of the Jews. So first of all, see how Mark brings our attention to the suffering of Jesus leading up to verse 20. and they led him out to crucify him. There was just plain cruel humiliation here. And Jesus was cruelly flogged in preparation for the cross. But then the Roman soldiers with charge over Jesus gathered together for a grotesque hour of entertainment with him. Sinclair Ferguson describes the scene this way. Utterly alone, humiliated, and virtually naked, Jesus was sat in front of them in mock regal dress, a crown of thorns, and a purple robe. They called him the King of the Jews while spitting on him and striking him on the head. The irony is that even in his deepest humiliation, He was a reigning king. After the mockery and the insults from the Roman soldiers, after they had dressed him in purple and had beaten his head and spat upon him, now he is led along the streets of Jerusalem toward that place where they will crucify him called Golgotha. He carried the crossbeam on which his hands would be nailed. It was a wooden beam that they may have weighed anywhere between 50 and 100 pounds, we're told. And Mark reminds us again of the physically weakened condition of our Lord at this point, having been scourged by Pilate's men, his back bleeding and lacerated and torn to shreds, carrying now his wooden beam. And along the way, Jesus collapses somewhere along the road, and a man named Simon Cyrene is compelled to bear the wooden beam on Jesus' behalf. And now as we follow Jesus and Simon, as they walk, make their way to the place of execution, they arrive at Golgotha at the place of the skull, and they offer Jesus wine mixed with myrrh, a mixture with a dulling effect upon the senses, and Jesus refuses. Now we're not told by Mark why Jesus refuses this mixture exactly, but we can surmise, I think, from Jesus' refusal here because he had been made a vow to drink, not to drink rather, from the fruit of the vine until he would drink it anew in the kingdom of God. He is meant to drink the cup of God, not the cup of men. And as a substitute bearer, sin bearer, he reminds, he wants us to remain fully conscious to the bitter, he wants to remain fully conscious to the bitter end. No dulling of his senses as he accepts his suffering. Jesus is not going to sleep on the cross as the disciples slept in Gethsemane. He must bear in his own body the full wrath of his father. And as such, he must remain in control of his own faculties. And they crucified him, verse 25. And Mark's account is so concise, Mark's account is so compact, he mentions only the barest of details here. And in this, Mark wants us to understand that Jesus' suffering is full and complete. Here, you see a true man dying a horrible death. And this true man is, at the same time, truly the Son of God. God's Son incarnate, dying on the cross with meaning and purpose for you and for me. There is another aspect to Jesus' suffering to which Mark draws our attention here. Mark reminds us how the passers-by mock Jesus, wagging their heads and saying, You would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days. Save yourself and come down from the cross." Verse 29 there, reminding him of his own words about destroying the temple and three days rebuilding it again. And then there are the chief priests and scribes calling upon Him to come down. He saved others. He cannot save Himself. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe. And we're told here that even the two thieves on the cross joined in the mockery. Those who were crucified with Him also reviled Him. and he died. And you see it, dear saints of God, in Mark's Gospel. In Mark's account here, Jesus dies devoid of any human comfort or contact, scourged, mocked, reviled, crucified, and killed. There is no one to help him. We know the importance of that comfort, don't we? Of brothers and sisters, of fathers and mothers coming alongside each of us in moments of great distress, moments of the greatest distress. We all know the benefit and the blessing of the comfort that comes from others, especially in times of need. We know the need of touch and togetherness. Human beings are made for it. We are made for it as the body of Christ. But Jesus is alone. His disciples have fled in fear. There is no one. Perhaps the words of Psalm 22, which Jesus will cry out in a loud voice, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Perhaps the words of Psalm 22 are on Jesus' mind. All who see me mock me. They hurl insults, shaking their heads. He trusts in the Lord. Let the Lord deliver him, since he delights Dear Saints of God, behold your King suffering for you. In addition to the suffering Mark describes, we see how Jesus bears a curse on the cross. As he is lifted up on a cross between two thieves, one on the left, and one on the right, verse 27. Now, as you are, I'm sure aware, other gospel writers, Luke especially, draw attention to the fact that one of these thieves will actually come to repentance. Have mercy on me when you come into your kingdom. And those beautiful words today, you will be with me in paradise, as Jesus says. But Mark does not include those words, because I think Mark wants us to see that Jesus is not only nailed to a Roman cross, but he is hanging between two sinners. He's between two condemned criminals, and he was numbered with transgressors. Just as Isaiah 53, that servant song had prophesied, he is numbered with transgressors. That is, he is counted as one of them. He is being accounted as a sinner, the son of God. He is being counted as a transgressor, as he is numbered with the transgressors. And Mark wants us to see that prophecy being fulfilled here, because those words in Isaiah 53, 12, he was numbered with the transgressors, goes on to say, yet he bore the sin of many and makes intercession for the transgressor. You see, Mark wants us as disciples of Jesus to be able to answer the question, why is Jesus dying on this cross? And the answer is, as someone else wrote, this truly innocent man is dying on a cross, considered to be a transgressor, in order to save true transgressors so that they would be considered innocent. The meaning and purpose of the cross answers the vital questions of the Christian faith. How can you and me as sinners be saved? It's very simple. How can our sins be forgiven? How can sinners be reconciled to a holy God? You've heard those questions before. And the answer to that question will not change from the scriptures. These questions, these answers come by way of covenant from before the foundation of the world. The son of God himself would become a man and he would live a perfect, holy and righteous life in obedience to the law and that his righteous life would be counted to sinners and the sin of God's people counted as his. For our sake, he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. And he would die to bear the covenant curse of God in our place, so that as Paul will explain to the Galatians, Christ became a curse for us. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree. And that's what's taking place here. that you might know the promises of God, and the peace that comes with reconciliation with God, and the peace of the forgiveness of God, that you would know the love of God, that Jesus becomes a curse for us, hanging between two thieves, reckoned as a transgressor for our transgressions, that we would be forgiven, that a way would be opened up for us, through his body, that curtain torn in two, a way open for us to come into communion with our Father in heaven. So while he is undergoing the curse for us, he is actually undoing the curse for you and me. You see, by bearing that curse in his own body upon the tree, he sets you free from the curse of sin and death itself. Behold, dear saints, your King cursed for you. Now, although it's in his suffering and in his mockery and in his weakness, there is also a crowning going on here. And we see it throughout chapter 15. Mark tells us about the inscription of the charge against him. It's the stated reason for the person's execution, the inscription of the charge against Jesus. Verse 26, the King of the Jews. But Jesus is proclaimed King throughout the whole of chapter 15. Just look at it quickly there with me. In verse 2, verse 9, verse 12, 18, 26, and 32, like a ringing bell, Mark repeats these words, the King of the Jews. Jesus is meant to be seen and understood as the suffering King. And that meaning and purpose of the cross become clearer as you recall Jesus' words from chapter 10, for even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. Mark speaks of the twisted crown of thorns put upon his head in this twisted coronation. They dress him in purple robes and mockingly salute him, echoing the salutation given to the emperor, Hail Caesar, when they say, Hail King of the Jews. And what Mark wants us to see, despite the mocking from every corner, the salutation, the coronation, the crowning as the King of the Jews, that He truly is the King of the Jews. That He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This poor cursed man hanging upon the cross, his life giving way to death. With one last gasp for breath. He utters a loud cry and he dies. And Mark is saying he's king. He is saying to God's people that he is your king. It's hard to see that oftentimes, isn't it? that in the weak and humble things of this world, God works in his most powerful and in his most glorious of ways. And we see that here though, don't we? We see that weakness and we see that humility turn into the glory, turn into the power and the majesty when we see Jesus rise from the dead. And we want to ask, don't we, what should we do with all of this? How should we understand the crucifixion? How should we respond to the crucifixion of Jesus? You could do one of two things, dear saints, as you listen to me now. You could receive Him, you could worship Him, you could love Him, and you could adore Him as King Jesus, or you could reject Him, mock Him, hate Him, or despise Him. Those are your options. We have seen the rejection of Jesus by the guards, the religious leaders, and many others throughout the Gospels, but how shall we respond? How will you respond? Parents, how will you teach your children to respond? Children with understanding, how will you respond? Will you receive? Will you worship? Will you love? Will you adore? Will you bend the knee? and worship and bow down before your King, would you be humbled? This is what it cost to bear your sin. This is what it cost. The Son of God to bring you into communion with your Father in heaven such that you would be able to pray our Father in heaven. Hallowed be your name. Or even cry out, Abba Father, hear my prayer. Bow down. and worship your King. We've already lifted our voices this morning in praise and adoration. We've sung words like man of sorrows. What a name for the Son of God who came. Ruined sinners to reclaim. Hallelujah. What a Savior. What a Savior. In a very real way, he made the cross his first throne and throned a suffering and a cursed king of the Jews. But in no way was that his final throne. And so we not only sing of His humiliation, and we not only sing of His cross, a wondrous cross it is, because we do not worship a dead God. No. Our God is alive. Our King, Jesus, is enthroned on high. Peter preaches in Acts chapter 2, this Jesus God raised up. And of that we are all witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. And so we will sing. Look, ye Saints, the sight is glorious. See the man of sorrows now? See him now. From the fight return victorious. Every knee to him shall bow. Crown him. Crown him. Crown has become the victor's brow. Dear Saints of God, behold your King crowned for you. Let's pray. Oh, glorious God in heaven, gracious King, we come before you revived in our souls by the power of your Spirit at work in us as your people. Our God, as we are gathered in various and many places, our God, we desire that communion with one another, that communion we have with Christ and His body. Some of us, O Lord, feel that loneliness all the more. Some of us, oh God, need that special sense of your presence. Lord, we know we have this because you have gone before us. Having been forsaken, that we would not be forsaken. having bared the cross and the curse of that cross so that for us a cross means life. Our God, turn our hearts and our affections all the more unto Jesus. that our eyes and faith would be fixed upon him, seeing the heavenly realities that you have lifted us up into. By faith, we have been saved. And that by grace, nothing in our hands we bring unto you, our God. Lord, bless your people and fix our eyes upon Christ, as we ask in Jesus' name.