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Rev. Ronald C. Purkey claims no originality for this Bible study outline.
However,
every outline posted on this website has been taught by Rev. Purkey.
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WHAT HELD JESUS
TO THE CROSS?
SCRIPTURE: And they that passed by reviled him, wagging
their heads, And saying, Thou that destroyest the
temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself.
if thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. "Likewise also the
chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved
others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come
down from the cross, and we will believe him. "He trusted in God; let him
deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
"The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his
teeth. (Matthew 27:39-44)
KEY VERSE: If thou be the
Son of God, come down from the cross. (Matthew 27:40)
INTRODUCTION: The Bible
definitely tells us what held Jesus to the cross. It was not simply nails,
though He was nailed to the cross. The Son of God, with power to raise the
dead, heal the sick, make the blind to see, still the storm-tossed sea, surely
had power to step down from a cross, even though He was nailed to it.
A.
It was not human weakness which bound
Him to the cross, for He said regarding His life:
"No man taketh it from me, but I
lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down; I have power to take it
again. This commandment have I received of my Father" (John 10 :18).
B.
It was not because He was friendless
that He stayed on the cross. In the garden of Gethsemane, when Peter
drew his sword and began to battle in defense of the Master, Jesus said, "Thinkest thou not that I cannot now say to my Father, and He
shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels." The twelve
legions of angels were still available when Jesus was on the cross.
C.
What then is the answer to the question, “What held Jesus to the cross?” Here is the
answer.
I. JESUS’ LOVE
FOR US HELD JESUS TO THE CROSS. (Romans 5:8)
But God commendeth
his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
(Romans 5:8)
A.
Jesus said nothing and did nothing when the scoffers passed by reviling Him and
wagging their heads.
They called to mind a statement that He
had made regarding His death and resurrection. He had said that if they
destroyed the temple, He would raise it up in three days, He was speaking of
Himself, but they thought He spoke of the temple in Jerusalem; therefore, they
said, "Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest
it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the
cross."
B.
The chief priests, the scribes, and the elders also came by and said, "He saved
others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come
down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him
deliver him now, if he will have him."
C.
Surely these taunting statements were enough to try the soul, even of the Son
of God.
He did not come down from the cross, for His love for a lost mankind held Him
to the cross.
D.
Many verses declare this great truth unto us. Jesus said, "Greater love hath no man
than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." Paul tells
us in Galatians 2:20 that the Son of God
loved us, and gave Himself for us. John tells us in 1 John 3:16, "Hereby perceive we the love of God,
because he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for
the brethren."
·
There are three things I would like to say about the love of Christ.
First,
His love was unusual. It is an ordinary, everyday thing for us to love
those who love us, but Jesus loved those who hated Him. "But God commendeth His love toward us,
in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans
5:8)
Jesus loved His enemies, and even on the
cross, He said, "Father, forgive
them, for they know not what they do." The love of Christ was unusual,
and this is the love that Christ demands us to have for our fellowman.
INSIGHT: History tells us the story of Peter Miller, an old-fashioned Baptist
preacher of Ephrata, Pennsylvania, in the days of the Revolutionary War. Near
his church lived a man who abused the pastor to the last limit.
The
man became involved in treason, and was arrested and sentenced to be hanged.
The old preacher started out on foot, and walked the whole seventy miles to
Philadelphia, that he might plead for the man's life. George Washington heard
his plea, but he said, "No, your plea for your friend cannot be
granted."
"My
friend?" said the preacher, "He is the worst enemy I have!"
"What!" said Washington. "You have walked nearly seventy miles
to save the life of an enemy. That puts the matter in a different light. I will
grant the pardon." And Washington did!
That is what makes the love of Christ
unusual. Jesus loved His enemies, and
this love BOUND HIM TO THE CROSS.
Secondly,
His love was unending. "Now, before the
feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that he should
depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in
the world, he loved them unto the end." (John 13:1)
Sometimes even the love of a mother for
her child fails. Occasionally even a father may turn against his own son, but
the love of Jesus never fails. Jesus’ love continued to the cross, beyond the
cross, and overflows unto us today. His love bound Jesus to the cruel tree.
Thirdly,
His love was unselfish. Man had nothing to give to Jesus that He did not
have already. All things belong to Him. The silver and the gold, the cattle
upon a thousand hills, and yet, the Savior died in our behalf.
It always seems like a foolish thing to
beg people to receive Jesus, when the giving must be all on His side. All we
can do is surrender ourselves. There is nothing in a material way that we can
give to God that He does not already have.
All things are His by act of creation,
and yet, the Son of God humbled Himself to die for us, and His unselfish love
bound Him to the cross of Calvary. It is a rare and beautiful thing to see
people give and love when nothing can be given to them in return.
INSIGHT: God gave us His BEST
GIFT!
In our modern of society, where pampered affluence
is rampant, we are often at a loss to know what kind of gifts to buy our
friends and loved ones on special occasions. For some people (especially those
who "have everything") the standard gift won't cut it. Nothing in the
shopping mall catches our fancy.
I have a suggestion. It may not seem that expensive
or sound very novel, but believe me, it works every time. It's one of those
gifts that has great value but no price tag. It can't be lost, nor will it ever
be forgotten. No problem with size either. It fits all shapes, any age, and
every personality. This ideal gift is YOURSELF. In your quest for character,
don't forget the value of unselfishness.
Jesus gave us
Himself! He took our place and died for OUR sins. When Jesus died upon the cross, bound by the divine love for poor, lost, sinful
mankind, Jesus’ love was UNSELFISH.
II. JESUS’ SUBMISSION
TO GOD'S WILL HELD JESUS TO THE CROSS.
Jesus’
Prayer in the garden of Gethsemane:
“38 Then He said to
[His disciples], “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here
and watch with Me.” 39 He went a little farther and fell on His
face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass
from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew
26:38-39)
“42 Again,
a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O
My Father, if
this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.”(Matthew 26:42)
He “…prayed the third
time, saying the same words. 45 Then He came to His disciples
and said to them, “Are you still sleeping
and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being
betrayed into the hands of sinners.
46 Rise, let us be going. See, My
betrayer is at hand.” (Matthew 26:44b-46)
A.
The bitter, angry mob, especially the religious leaders told Him to come down
from the cross if He were the Son of God. One of the malefactors railed on
Him, saying, "If thou be the Christ, save thyself and us."
B.
In the common language of today, they were saying, "If you are not a liar and a hypocrite, come
down from the cross. If you are such a big person, if you are what you claim to
be, then show us by coming down from the cross." But Jesus could
not come down, because His submission to GOD’S WILL bound Him to the rugged
cross.
C.
Let me pause here to make this plea: May our lives be so submissive to the will
of God that we will be unable to do anything but say, "Thy will be
done."
May our submission to His holy will bind us to separated living, to
soul-winning, to consecrated service, to liberal giving, to earnest praying.
May our submission to the Father's will bind us to do His divine purpose and
plan for our lives.
D.
Jesus said, "Lo, I come to do thy will." It was the will of God that Jesus should die for sinful mankind. It was the will
of God that He should enter into the holy of holies, and there make one
sacrifice for sin forever. It was the Father's will that He should shed His
blood upon Calvary's hill. Jesus was submissive to the will of God.
III. YOUR SINS
AND MY SINS HELD JESUS TO THE CROSS.
9 What then? are
we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and
Gentiles, that they are all under sin; 10 As it is written,
There is none righteous, no, not one:… 23 For
all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:9-10, 23
A.
The trail of sin from the Garden of Eden to the present time is a bloody and
tragic one. Sin
separates men from God, just as it drove the first pair from the garden. Sin
brings shame. Adam and Eve sought to hide from God. Sinners are still ashamed,
and try to hide their sins -- therefore, men love darkness rather than light.
Sin brings sorrow. See it for yourself.
The life of sin will end in sorrow. The
home of sin will end in sorrow. Sin brings suffering. All of the world's
suffering came about because of sin. Mental anguish, physical suffering, all
come from sin. But the crowning act of sin's dastardly career came in the death
of Jesus Christ.
B.
But let’s not stand back and say, "Shame on you, sin, for crucifying the
Savior."
Let’s remember it was OUR SINS which nailed Him and held Him to the
cross."
"But he
was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the
chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are
healed."
"All we
like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way: and the
Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah 53:5-6)
1. Jesus bore our sins to satisfy the LAW OF GOD.
God's law says, "The soul that sinneth it shall
die." "The wages of sin is death." Because of our sins,
we deserve the penalty of death and Hell, but Jesus Christ came and died in our
place. He satisfied the law of God, and God accepted Christ’s death as payment
for our sins.
"Who
gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto
himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Who his own self bore our
sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sins, should live unto
righteousness, by whose stripes ye were healed" (1 Peter 2:24).
2. Jesus took our sins that He might bear them AWAY FROM US.
John the Baptist announced the ministry
of Jesus by saying, "Behold the
Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world."
Just as the Old Testament priest in
Leviticus could lay his hands upon the head of a live goat and confess over him
all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, and
send him away into the wilderness, so did Jesus bear our sins that He might
bear them away from us.
INSIGHT: The picture
is also given in the Old Testament Passover scene of the Lamb slain, and the
blood put upon the door posts. Jesus is our sacrificial Lamb. JESUS CHRIST’S
blood covers our sins, and releases us from the penalty of hell. John writes,
"And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sin, and in him is no
sin." (1 John 3:5)
3. Jesus bore our sins in His own body on the tree that He might bring us
unto God.
The redemptive work of Jesus is to take
out of this world a people for His name. The whole world will NOT be saved, but
SOME WILL be saved, and with them God is going to abide forever – YOU MAKE YOUR
OWN DECISION TO TRUST CHRIST.
Yes, your sins and my sins bound Jesus
to the cross. Christ was fully conscious that only His death could satisfy the
law of God, bear away our sins, and bring us unto the Heavenly Father.
Therefore, though men scoffed at Jesus and accused Him of lying and hypocrisy,
He stayed on the cross, bound by our sins, to the tree.
There is but one way open to the
fair-minded person who realizes that his sins nailed Jesus to the cross, and that is to receive
Jesus Christ as their Savior. He died that you might live. You cannot live
without Him.
WASHED BY THE
BLOOD
This is what the Bible says about Jesus’
death on the cross: “Unto him that loved us, and washed us
from our sins in his own blood” (Revelation 1:5).
·
Blood is mentioned 460 times in the Bible.
Fourteen times in the New Testament
Jesus spoke of His own blood. Why? Because by the shedding of His blood, He
accomplished the possibility of our salvation. Christ paid the penalty for our
sin and redeemed us. The penalty for our sin and rebellion is death; Jesus
stepped out and said, “I’ll take that death.” He voluntarily laid down His life
and took the penalty we deserve. That’s what the cross is all about.
·
The blood of Jesus Christ not only redeems us, it justifies
us.
Being justified means more than being
forgiven. I can say, “I forgive you,” but I can’t justify you. But God not only
forgives the past, He clothes you in righteousness as though you had never
committed a sin. Yet it cost the blood of His Son on the cross. – Adapted from
Billy Graham, a BGEA devotional, March 29, 2020
CONCLUSION: If you have
never trusted Jesus Christ for your salvation, come to Jesus today and live!
Let Him plunge all your sins in the
fountain filled with blood. Let Him write your name upon the Lamb's book of
life. Let Him keep you in the hollow of His hand. Receive Jesus Christ as your
Savior, and know the blessedness of salvation.
"I'll go to
Jesus, though my sin, like mountains round me close, I know His courts, I'll
enter in, whatever may oppose;
Prostrate I'll
lie before His throne, and there my guilt confess, I'll tell Him I'm a wretch
undone, without His sovereign grace.
I can but perish
if I go — I am resolved to try, For if I stay away, I know I must forever
die."
THOUGHT TO
REMEMBER: “Jesus died for
us that we might live for Him.”
* * *
REFERENCES: References used in these Bible studies are the King James Bible (KJV),
The Moody Bible Commentary, Dr. J.
Vernon McGee Thru the Bible Radio Network (www.ttb.org), the Scofield Study Bible,
the Believer’s Bible Commentary, Dr. Charles J. Woodbridge Bible Outlines, Dr.
Lee Roberson’s Sermons, Dr.
Charles Stanley: (http://www.intouch.org/), Don Robinson’s Bible Outlines, Women’s Study Bible, The Bible Reader’s
Companion Ed. 3, The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version, Tony Evans
Commentary, KJV Bible Commentary, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines of the New
Testament ed. 4, Dr. David
Jeremiah: (http://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/), Dr. Cliff Robinson’s Bible Outlines, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines of
the Old Testament, Dr. Alan Carr’s The Sermon
Notebook (www.sermonnotebook.org), With the Word Bible
Commentary, Wiersbe’s “Be” Series: Old & New Testaments, RBC Ministries (http://rbc.org/), selected
illustrations, and other references.
REV. RONALD C. PURKEY’S
OFFICE
E-Mail: Ronald Purkey
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