Matthew chapter 27, if you would. And well, we're coming to the end of the gospel of Matthew, been in it for several years now. Of course, we're at the second to the last chapter right in the crucifixion story. And we began this last week. And the way that I am taking it is I'm taking the crucifixion just as one story and basically a long sermon for your mercy broken up into several parts, what I'm doing and just kind of feeling our way through it. And so really, really this morning, I'm just going to pick it up where I left off last week and see how far that we can go with this. And in Matthew chapter 27, oh, by the way, Miss Jennifer, you have your new baby with you. So Jennifer has a new baby. Can you hold the baby up? Hold the baby up. We know the baby is beautiful, but hold the baby up so everybody can see. Beautiful baby. Lookie here. Newest edition. Do you have your baby? Do we have a baby? We have another baby over here. Look here. Beautiful baby. Look here. We have babies everywhere. Oh my goodness. Isn't this something? Oh yeah. Don't wake him up. Don't wake him up. We love this, don't we? So we got a baby a week is what we got. So boy, what a blessing. Good to see you, Sister Donna. I know that she had A couple of rough weeks, but good to see her in church, and praise the Lord for that, amen? Praise the Lord. Matthew chapter 27, so here's where we're at, where we're telling the story of the crucifixion. And because I don't know when it'll be the next time that we preach through this, I just wanted to take my time and just take three or four weeks, however long that it takes us, and just to make our way through, and we'll bring in some harmony from the other gospels. And so last week, we talked about the cruelty of the cross. And I dealt with the soldiers and some of the things that they did, the cruelty of the scourge and the spit and the scorn and all of those things and talked about just the inhumanity, the inhumanity of the treatment that they put the Lord Jesus through. And then we dealt with Simon of Cyrene, the support from a stranger. And how just at random, a soldier compels Simon, who's just walking in, they compel Simon to come in to bear the cross of the Lord Jesus and to help finish the walk up to Golgotha. And Mark's little side note that he was the father of Rufus and Alexander, we went to Romans 16 and we looked at all of that, very interesting. And so this morning, I'm just gonna keep going, no introduction. I'm just going to keep moving. Cruelty to the cross, cruelty to the cross, support from a stranger. This morning, and I'll only get one point, but this morning I want to talk to you about a sermon in the symbols. The sermon in the symbols. So what are you talking about? When you read through the story of the cross, you need to know that every single detail is important. There's nothing insignificant. There is nothing minor. There is nothing there just by hampers. There's nothing there just to embellish the story. No, no, no. The gospel's not just telling a story. The gospel is teaching a doctrine. And behind every character, every conversation, every detail, there is a message that is being preached if you and I can just see it. As I read through the story, one of the things that sticks out to me are the instruments that are used in the crucifixion of Christ. For example, in verse number 29, why did the soldiers make a crown of thorns? Why is that a part of the story? Down in verse number 35, why did the soldiers, in gambling for his garments, leave one robe intact? John will call it a seamless robe. Why did they do that? Why did Pilate have an inscription, all four gospel writers mention it? Why did he have a plaque, an inscription that was nailed to the head of the cross that said, this is Jesus, King of the Jews? Why did the Roman soldiers take a spear after he was dead? and drive that spear up into his side. And so we read those things, we know they're a part of the story, but why are they a part of the story? Back in 2013, I preached a series of messages here on Reflections on the Cross, and I preached about five or six sermons on those different instruments. And I don't know when I will get to do this again. So this morning, I want to talk to you about four of those instruments and why they are a part of the story. There is a truth, I believe, in every one of them. And I hope that it opens up the beauty of the cross to you in a fresh way. The sermon in the symbols. So first of all, I want you to see the message in the thorns. Look at verse number 29. When they had planted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand, and they bowed the knee before him and mocked him, saying, King of the Jews. Now last week we talked about the soldiers making sport of Jesus, mocking him for his claims to be the King of the Jews. It was not enough to scourge him, it was not enough to crucify him, but they're going to make him the object of their rude ridicule. And so what they've done, they've dressed him in a scarlet robe, and they've put a mock reed, some kind of stick in his hand, and they're mockingly, they're bowing the knee before him, and somebody, to complete the ensemble, somebody takes a thorny branch, a thistle or something, and he makes a rude, crude crown of thorns, and that is driven into his brow. And that crown of thorns has been part of the story ever since then. If you watch around Easter, Easter, all the decorations will have a crown of thorns somewhere in it. Can I tell you that that crown of thorns did not have to be? Here's what I mean. Nearly every detail in the story is in fulfillment of Scripture. When you see the soldiers gambling at the foot of the cross for the garments of Christ, we remember that Psalms 22 prophesied that they would. The soldiers probably never read Psalm 22. They have no idea what they're doing. But when they didn't tear that seamless robe, when they gambled for his garments, they had no idea. But they're fulfilling a prophecy from Psalm 22. when the soldier comes to thrust the spear into his side. The reason why they did that was to hasten death. They had to get him off of the cross, and that was to hasten death, but the Lord Jesus had already died, and he didn't understand why he came. The Bible says that he came and he break the legs of the first, and he break the legs of the next, but when he came to the Lord Jesus, he didn't break his legs, and he didn't know this, that the scripture might be fulfilled, no bone of his body should be broken. He never read that. So nearly every detail is in fulfillment of scripture. There is one detail. There is one detail in the story that is not necessary from a prophetic standpoint, and it is the crown of thorns. There is no prophecy of the crown of thorns. There is no scripture that says that this is going to happen. There is no scripture that is fulfilled when they put that crown of thorns. And I say this, it is not necessary for redemption. If everything that happened had happened except the crown of thorns, he could still cry, it is finished. You understand, he didn't have to wear the crown of thorns in order to purchase our redemption. He didn't have to wear the crown of thorns in order to pay our sin debt. You understand, he had to bleed, he had to die, but that's not part of redemption. That's not a requirement. It's not a fulfillment of prophecy. Why the crown of thorns? Give you four things quickly about it. First of all, it is a symbol of shame. It's forced upon him in this mock coronation. It is tended to humiliate him. The soldier that came up with the idea, he just thought that we're going to get a good laugh from the other soldiers. This is just going to be good sport. It's going to be good comedy. And it's like making someone wear something or do something to make a fool out of themselves. It is meant to be demeaning. It is meant to be belittling. And it reminds us that the cross is a shameful thing. We despise the cross enduring the shame. It's a symbol of shame. It's a symbol of suffering. It is meant not just to embarrass, it is meant to injure. Let's see what we can add to his suffering. The scourging that he's just gone through, that's not enough. And these soldiers have no compassion, they have no sympathy, they barely have any humanity left. Let's treat this person as cruelly as we possibly can. And then we'll nail him to a cross. It's a symbol of shame. It's a symbol of suffering. I'm going to park right here. It's a symbol of substitution. Do you know where thorns came from? Did you know that thorns were not created in Genesis chapter 1? When man was placed in the Garden of Eden, there were no weeds. Can you imagine a garden without a weed? A rose bush without a thorn? Can you imagine that? I tell you, God's original creation, it would have stayed that way had it not been for the curse on creation. And when Adam sinned, God cursed the entire earth and things would never be the same sin spoiled the garden. And in Genesis 3 in verse 17, unto Adam he said, because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree which I commanded thee, saying, thou shalt not eat of it, curse it as the ground for thy sake, and sorrow, shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee. You see that? The thorn is a result, catch this, of the curse of sin. The thorn is a picture of what sin did to our universe. In fact, in Hebrews 6 and verse 8, there's an interesting verse, but that which beareth thorns and briars is rejected and is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned. Every time that you feel the prick of a thorn, it reminds you that we live in a cursed world and every finger that touches the thorn feels the pain. In fact, some of you are feeling the pain of the thorns of your sin right now. And it started out so attractive and it started out so pretty. But those ugly thorns of sin will prick at you and you feel the pain and the disappointment and the poison and the heartache of sin. And every time that you see a thorn, it reminds you and I that we are sinners and we need a savior and we live in a cursed world. And the soldier. The soldier takes the very symbol of man's sin and he weaves it into a crown. We are going to crown someone with the symbol of sin. And who will we crown as the chief of sinners? Who will we crown as the one who will stand in the ultimate place of God's curse? And they crowned the Lord Jesus with the symbol of sin. It is a picture of Jesus bearing the curse of the world. That crown should have been mine, but it weren't for me in my state. Genesis 22, beautiful picture. Abraham about to offer his only son Isaac up to the Lord. And he has stopped. Here's what he has shown. He has shown a ram caught in a thicket. And you know that that lamb becomes the substitute for Isaac. And so many times Isaac is made to be a type of Jesus Christ. And he is in so many ways, but not there. He's a type of me. The ram is the Christ, huh? He's the one that became the substitute. That ram called, look in Pilate's hall and you see the lamb caught in a thicket. He became my substitute. He went to the cross and my place, he wore my crown of thorns. It's a symbol of substitution. I tell you something else about this crown of thorns. It is a symbol of sovereignty. because the soldiers intend for it to be a mockery. We're going to make this a thing of misery, but when he wears it, it becomes a crown of majesty. That was a triumphal crown. because Jesus had fought sin from the day that he stood toe-to-toe with it in the wilderness, to the day that he entered in Pilate's hall, to the day that he conquered it on the cross, and as a sign that he had gained victory over sin, behold, sin's symbol was made to crown the victor. Thorns sprang from the curse, and the curse sprang from sin, and now Jesus has taken sin's crown and has put it on his head. It's a symbol of sovereignty. And by the way, as you gaze upon the thorn-crowned Savior, may I remind you it is not the last crown that He will wear. For that same Jesus will come again. And this time He comes again not wearing just one crown. but wearing many crowns. This is what Revelation said on his head were many crowns. They crowned him with thorns. One day he would be crowned with many crowns. They bowed the knee in mockery. One day every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. They dressed him in a faded scarlet robe. He'll come forth wearing the vestures of holiness. They placed a weak reed in his hand. But the next time he comes, he comes with a rod of iron as a symbol of his sovereignty. I tell you, there is a message in the thorns. Secondly, not only is there a message in the thorn, there is a message in the robe. Look at verse number 35. And they crucified him and parted his garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet. They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. No prophecy to fulfill with the crown of thorns, But there was a prophecy to fulfill with a seamless road. Psalm 22 and verse number 18, they part my garments among them and cast lots upon my vesture. God said that when my son is crucified that they would gamble for the garments of the Lord. Somebody went through one time and counted 33 specific prophecies that were fulfilled when Jesus hung on that cross. 33 prophecies, 33 witnesses that Calvary was ordained by a divine council. And the scene is four soldiers at the foot of the cross. They're gambling for who gets the garments as Christ is dying for our sins. It seems like that if there are four soldiers, there would be four articles of clothing. Perhaps a tunic, perhaps sandals, perhaps an inner robe, perhaps a belt, a sash. But there are five pieces of garments. And the fifth garment is a robe. It's an outer robe, like an outer cloak, like you'd see men wear in the Middle East even to this day. And I want you to look at John chapter 19. Hold your finger, go to John chapter 19. There's a very important detail. John 19 and verse 23. Then the soldiers, when they crucified Jesus, took his garments and made four parts, to every soldier a part and also his coat. Now the coat was without seam woven from the top throughout. Then said they, therefore, among themselves, let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be. that the scripture might be fulfilled, which says, they parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things, therefore, the soldiers did. They got this garment. They got this garment, it's a seamless row woven from top to bottom. And they said, let's not tear it, let's not tear it, it's too beautiful. Let's cast lots, let's gamble to see who gets that. And they don't know that they are fulfilling a prophecy in Psalm 22. Now, the Bible makes a big deal, it is a seamless robe. By the way, if there's a preacher here that wants an idea for a sermon, then a great sermon is on the clothes that Jesus wore. Did you know clothes say a lot about you? Yeah. Anytime you put something on, you are making not just a fascist statement, you're making a statement about yourself, right? I mean, when a girl walks down the aisle in a white, white wedding gown, she's saying something, right? She's saying that she's kept herself pure. Somebody help me out a little bit, all right? She's saying something, all right? When a teenage boy walks down the street with, you know, his baggy breeches down to his knees and underwear, he's making a statement. I'm just telling you, close, say something, close, make a statement. Did you know that the Bible tells you what Jesus was closed in when He came? He was wrapped in swaddling clothes. It's a statement. Swaddling clothes is what you bury people in. It is saying that He was born to die. By the way, did you know that the Bible would tell you what Jesus will be clothed in when He comes again? He'll be clothed with a vesture dipped in blood. It is a statement that He is the conquering King of kings and Lord of lords. I don't have time to preach it. There is a message in the clothes that Jesus wore. And the Bible talks about this seamless robe, this seamless robe that Scripture says is not going to be torn. Not going to be torn. What's that robe say about Jesus? First of all, it tells you something about the perfection of Jesus. When two pieces of cloth are put together to make a garment, that seam where it is sewed together is the weakest part of the garment. If it's going to tear, it is most likely to tear at the seam. Does that make sense to you? But this garment had no seam. There was no place to come apart. There was no place for it to tear. There was no place where it was weaker than any other place. It was a seamless garment. It is a picture of the character of Jesus. No place to come apart. No place to tear. No place in his character, in his life, that is weaker than any other. That's why we call him the perfect, sinless son of God. That's why Hebrews talks about holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners. You know that verse, huh? That's why the Bible says that he was a friend of sinners, yet he was separate from sinners. Tempted, like on all points as we are, yet without sin. Experienced all the difficulties, all the trials, all the temptations, all the agonies of this world, and not one time did he ever sin. It's a picture of his character. You realize Jesus never lost sleep over a guilty conscience. He never blushed over a shameful statement. He never regretted any sinful conduct. He never had an evil thought flash through his mind just for a moment. There was no unkind word that crossed his lips. No unrighteous deed ever came from his hand. By the way, the first time that clothing is ever mentioned in the Bible, it's in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were in a perfect environment, no shame because of no sin, and they were naked and not ashamed. They were clothed in glory and innocence, and they had no need of clothing, but sin came, and sin stripped them of their innocence, and now they are aware of their nakedness, and now they're aware of their shame, and they try to sew fig leaves together to try to cover their shame and their sin. And by the way, people are still trying to cover their sin and their shame with fig leaves and trying to sew something together, trying to put some religion or some good work, something together. It is nothing but fig leaves is all it is. Can't ever cover it up. Do you know how the Bible describes all of your good works? All of our righteousnesses are, that's the good part, all of our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. You can't go to heaven because you can't enter heaven with those rags. You stand in the robes of sin, rags that will keep you out. But Jesus was robed in righteousness, robed in righteousness. And that's why it's necessary for Him to be sinless, is because you aren't. And symbolically, when you get saved, you take off of those rags of unrighteousness and you are clothed with the robes of His righteousness. He was sinless, so He became my substitute. And just as an animal was killed in the garden to provide Adam and Eve a suitable clothing, so Jesus died to provide you and I that were naked in sin and shame and provide us with a suitable garment of righteousness. Oh, I tell you that I stand, I tell you that I stand this morning before my Lord, not in rags, not in rags, but in the robes of Christ's righteousness. That seamless robe is a picture of the perfection of Jesus. It is, I've got to hurry, it is, oh my goodness, it is a picture of the position of Jesus. Now watch this. The Bible makes a big deal out of the garment not being torn. What makes that so interesting is that in the chapter before there is a garment that is torn. And the Bible makes a big deal out of that too. Come back, Matthew 26. Look at verse 62, we covered this a couple of weeks ago. And the high priest, now you need to know there can only be one high priest at a time. Don't get ahead of me. And the high priest arose and said unto him, I answer you, I'm nothing, speaking to Jesus. What is it which these witness against thee? But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I journey by the living God, thou tellest whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God? Jesus said unto him, thou hast said, nevertheless I say unto you, hereafter shall you see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, coming in the clouds of heaven. Watch verse 65, then the high priest rent his clothes. First trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin, Caiaphas the high priest. Everything about the trial is illegal by their own laws. And when Jesus looks at Caiaphas and says that I am Messiah, The high priest responds by tearing his garments. Now it sounds like he's angry. Personally, I think he's acting. And I'll tell you why. They've been trying all night to find something to hang on Jesus and they can't find anything. But when they finally get him to say that he is the Messiah, that's blasphemy. In their eyes. In their eyes. Finally, he has something that we can work with. So I think that he's in mock despair, to be honest with you. But he's got a problem. Hold your finger right there. Go to Leviticus chapter 21. Go to Leviticus chapter 21. This high priest knows the law better than you and I. And in Leviticus 21 and verse number 10, he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that is consecrated to put on the garment, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes. Now, it doesn't seem like a big deal, but there is a message there. In the Bible, carrying your clothes is a sign of grief. mourning, despair, hopelessness. But the high priest represents God to the nation of Israel. He is the only one that is allowed to enter into the very presence of God in the Holy of Holies. And can I tell you that nothing is ever hopeless with God? There is no reason for despair when you have access to God. So what message would it send for the high priest who has access to God to be in despair and grief and hopelessness? Nobody could have hope if he didn't have hope. So if he tears his clothes, not accidentally, but if he rends his clothes, he's disqualified. The high priest cannot rend his clothes. When Caiaphas tears his garments, he violates that law and he disqualifies himself from the priesthood. He will still function as the high priest, but in heaven's opinion, he's no longer worthy of the position. Well, buddy, there can only be one high priest. At this point, there is no one qualified. Huh? Oh, I wish you wanted to hear this. How beautiful for the Bible to tell you. Right after he tore his, to tell you But they didn't tear Jesus. Huh? Just going to make a point right here? that they tore his, he disqualified himself, but here is one with a seamless robe, and when he went to that cross, he went as our mediator, when he shed his blood, he was able to walk into the most holy place in heaven, and to present his blood as the sacrifice for our sins, he is going in as our intercessor, he is going in as our high priest, and the Bible wants you to know, he is the only one qualified to be your high priest. If the soldiers had torn his garments, it would not have disqualified Jesus. But the Bible says, hey, look at this high priest over here disqualified himself. Look at Jesus who is qualified. In Hebrews 4 and verse 4, you find a phrase that is found nowhere else in your Bible. Great High Priest. It's the only time that term is used in your Bible. It is used only of Jesus Christ. No priest in the Old Testament, nope, not Aaron, nope, not Melchizedek, nope, not Eleazar, no priest in the Old Testament qualifies to be called the Great High Priest because the Levitical priesthood started out with a priesthood of holy men, but the time that Hebrews is being written, the high priest has become more political than it has religious, it is notoriously corrupt, and against the failure of the priesthood is introduced the great high priest who is so much better. In fact, in fact, he's so much better that he rendered the earthly priesthood obsolete. I have a mediator in heaven, therefore I do not need one on earth. I do not go to a confessional booth to see a priest, rather, I go to my secret place and I pray to the one mediator. And God bless Mary, she's not the mediator. If you'd have lived in Israel 2,000 years ago and if you were to worship God, your worship would have been a whole lot different than it is now. Instead of coming to church, you would have come to a temple. And there would be some places in that temple you would not be allowed to go. Today, you can go to any of the buildings, go to any of the rooms. But if you had come to the temple, you would only be allowed into the outside court because you're a Gentile. You can't go any further than that. And you would have to have a priest. If I had not showed up today, you could have church without me just fine. But in the Old Testament, you couldn't. You had to have a priest. And when you came to church, you will need to bring an offering, not tithes and offerings, but something to butcher on the outside. And even then, you really wouldn't experience the presence of God. Because the presence of God showed up in the Holy of Holies, which is behind a thick veil. And the high priest is the only one allowed to go behind that thick veil. And even then, he could only go in once a year. When Jesus died, Matthew 27 says that something happened to that veil. Catch this, it was torn from top to bottom. I wish I had time to preach. Torn from top to bottom, top to bottom, top to bottom. If you had torn it, you would have torn it from bottom to top, but it was God that tore it from top to bottom. God reached down and He tore that veil and God was saved that the presence to God is no longer restricted to just a living high priest on earth. No, I am opening up a new and a living way to my presence and through the blood of my Son I have opened up the way so that all people can come into the presence of God Almighty. It speaks to the provision of Jesus. the perfection of Jesus, the position of Jesus, the provision of Jesus. I said that seamless robe speaks of the perfection of Christ, but he has laid it aside. And now he hangs on that cross stripped and naked. And it speaks of how that he laid his righteousness aside and took upon him the shame of our sin. And Paul is very careful in 2 Corinthians how he writes it. For it made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. It doesn't say that Jesus became a sinner on the cross. It doesn't say that. It says He became sin. Think for just a moment. I want you to think about all of the sin that has ever been committed in the history of the world. It's too big. Can't think of that. So narrow it down. Think for a moment of all the sin that you have committed in your lifetime. Just you. Would you just think for just a moment of all the sin, all the secret sins, little sins, big sins, sins nobody ever found out. Think of all the sins that you have committed in your lifetime, and add to that all the sins that I've committed. Me and you. And then add yours. To the pile, add yours. And add yours to the pile. And here's what the Bible says. That he had laid on him the iniquity of us all. Every evil deed, every ugly word, every depraved thought, that whole bundle of sin was placed on Jesus that day on the cross. He laid aside his own robe of righteousness and he took upon him my sin. And the provision that he provided on that cross is righteousness for men and women who have none. When I get to heaven, I am going there as perfect. Now, if you followed me around for a few days, you would probably dispute that. You would say that I'm not perfect at all. And I'm not saying that I've never sinned and that I won't ever sin again. But I'm saying that when God sees me, He doesn't see my sin. He sees me clothed in the robes of righteousness of Jesus Christ. Anna, come, here's what a believer does. The devil gets on your shoulder and begins to remind you of how unworthy you are. And here's what you say, God, I don't deserve to go to heaven because of all the sins I've committed. And here's what God says. What sins are you talking about? All I see is the righteousness of my son. The songwriter said, when he shall come with trumpet sound, oh, may I then in him be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. If you allow the devil, he'll beat you down with shame and guilt. And you say, I know that I'm saved, but I am so unworthy. And the devil climbs on your back and he tells you that certainly somebody like you doesn't deserve to be saved. He has a threshold into your soul. It's enough to keep you defeated. Forgiven, clean, clothed in righteousness, welcomed into the presence of God. You say, yeah, but I feel guilty of my past sins. That may be true, but you can never be guilty of your past sins. You keep asking forgiveness of old sins that are under the blood. Clothed in the robes of righteousness. It could be this morning, heads bowed, eyes closed. It could be this morning there's somebody in this room. Boy, you have woven together so many elaborate fig leaves. It is religion. It is good works. It is my church membership. It is my parents and just weaving, weaving, weaving. But it can't cover the shame. It's nothing but fig leaves. But oh, what a glorious day for you one day, when you come to that cross and you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior. Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling. You allow God to clothe you in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.