The Crucified Messiah

Christ’s disciples are called to self-sacrificial service for others just as Jesus gave his life to ransom many from sin’s bondage  – Mark 10:35-45. After predicting his death, two disciples began jockeying for high positions in Christ’s Kingdom. Thinking according to the ways of this world, they did not comprehend just what kind of Messiah Jesus is and what it meant to follow him. Nevertheless, he would demonstrate in Jerusalem how his followers become his disciples and achieve “ greatness ” in the Kingdom of God.

On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus explained to his disciples what it meant to be the Messiah of Israel. In the city of David, he was about to face his final confrontation with the Temple authorities which would end in his violent and unjust death at the hands of the Romans. Was not Jerusalem the appointed place where the prophets sent to proclaim God’s word to Israel were slain, where the Messiah himself must suffer rejection and death, according to the Scriptures?

Jesus admonished his disciples - If anyone wishes to come after me, “ Let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me !” This was more than metaphorical and certainly not hyperbolic language. He declared this when he was on his final journey to Jerusalem where he would demonstrate just what it meant to “ take up the cross ,” and the historical context shows just how challenging his words were.

The theme of fulfillment is prominent in Matthew’s gospel. In Jesus of Nazareth, the promises of God found their fulfillment and intended applications. He was the Son of God sent to redeem Israel and rule the nations. Peter, for example, confirmed that he was the “ Messiah .” Nevertheless, he failed to understand that he would undertake that role as the suffering “ Servant of Yahweh ” who came to “ bear the sins of many .” His true identity was revealed in his sacrificial act.

Jesus started proclaiming the Kingdom of God after the arrest of John the Baptist, an incident that foreshadowed the opposition that would characterize his own ministry. Palestine consisted of three territories - Judea, Samaria, and Galilee, and the latter included a mixed population of Jews and Gentiles. His ministry commenced in the villages of Galilee. Unlike the prophets of Ancient Israel, his mission did NOT begin or center in Jerusalem, though it certainly ended there - (Matthew 4:13).

After his baptism, the Spirit “ drove Jesus into the wilderness… for forty days and nights .” Like Moses on Mount Sinai, the Messiah of Israel found himself alone in the Judean wilderness where he was confronted by the Devil. His only guide was the Word of God. Like Israel, he was “ tested .” Unlike that nation, he overcame every challenge and emerged victorious from the experience “ FULL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ,” and he then began to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom in the villages of Galilee.