Powerful Words and Strange Deeds

            Heaven, hell, angels, demons - mankind had never heard such words of power.  Never had anyone dared to think that a rotting corpse could be called forth from the grave.  No one, but God, had the power to raise the dead!  The words, "Lazarus, come out!" not only began a change in the course of history, but they set the course that Jesus' enemies would take.  The Jewish leaders could not dismiss Jesus and hope that He would go back to building houses in Galilee.  Raising Lazarus from the dead put the opponents of Jesus on the spot.  They said, "Soon all men will believe in him."  Little did they know how right they were.  Ironically, the High Priest said concerning Jesus, "It is expedient that one man should die for the people!"

            Jesus' death was not a chance decision by a few Jews.  God had planned it from the beginning.  Jesus had predicted on numerous occasions that His path led through the cross.  Forget any opinion that Jesus was trapped by jealous Jews; abandon any notion that Jesus goofed.  The cross was not a surprise that Satan sprang on God.  Jesus died on purpose.  No hesitation.  No faltering.  Though the cross was no mystery to God, it has been so to mankind.  The plan of the cross was the mystery of the ages.  As God (through the O.T. prophecies) painted a portrait of the Messiah, no one ever guessed that God would put on flesh and submit to crucifixion.  This plan was so unusual that only the Master Creator could have thought it up!  Who would have ever believed that God Almighty would allow a minimum‑wage Roman soldier to nail Him to a cross? No one would buy the story that God would allow His Son to be used as a punching bag, spittoon, whipping post, and town clown.  The way of the cross, though a mystery to mankind, is certainly good news beyond imagination!

            I'd like to remind you of a minor character in Jesus' improbable last week: Barabbas.  Barabbas had been sentenced and was sitting on death row. However, in response to pressure, Pilate let Barabbas go and crucified Jesus instead.  Did Barabbas understand all that was happening?  Certainly not.  Whether Barabbas knew anything about Jesus is unclear.  What is clear is that Barabbas did not refuse this pardon from prison.  We need to remember that our predicament is not much different from Barabbas'.  Without Jesus, we too are prisoners with no hope of appeal or parole. As Jesus took Barabbas' place on Calvary, so Jesus also died on the cross for us.  The mystery of the ages is summed up in 2 Corinthians 5:21, "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

            Do you want to hear a mystery that I cannot fathom?  Why do people prefer to stay in prison when the cell door has been unlocked?  This is what happens when we do not follow Jesus.  Keep looking up!