He bore our shame

He bore our shame

Scripture:

²⁷ Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. ²⁸ They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, ²⁹ and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. ³⁰ They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. ³¹ After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

Observation:

After Pilate sentences Jesus under pressure from the crowd, the soldiers bring him to the Praetorium where they cruelly mock and torture him in the midst of their whole company. They dress him up with a scarlet robe, and set a crown of thorns on his head, even putting a “ruler’s staff” in his hand. Laughing, they kneel in front of him and hail him as the King of the Jews. Then they spit on him and strike Jesus on the head again and again with the staff. Finally, they put back his own clothes on him and lead Jesus away to crucify him.

Application:

What provokes this kind of cruel and animalistic behavior in men? We love especially to see the great and mighty fall. We laugh sarcastically when we hear of the failures of great leaders. We joke and make fun. Superficially, in putting other people down, we are trying to feel better about ourselves, to forget for the moment our own weaknesses and shortcomings. In a way, to many, it is a form of revenge for the times when we ourselves have been ridiculed and made fun of. Ultimately though, even if we have a short moment of entertainment, the reality sets back in quickly, the emptiness and meaninglessness of life.

The Lord Jesus came to suffer not only for our sin, but also for our shame. In being mocked and ridiculed so severely, He was bearing silently the shame of the world. Who has been shamed? Jesus has been shamed too. We think God doesn’t understand? No!, He himself felt the sting of shame and ridicule. He bore it silently, and graciously, without a word of complaint. If they only knew who He was….. that it was the true Son of God they were trampling under their feet, who could end their lives in the blink of an eye, and condemn them at any moment to an eternity in flames.

Prayer:

We thank You and praise You Lord, that You not only suffered and died for us, but You also bore our shame. No matter what ridicule or insults we face, You faced far worse. Even where others persecute us, let us learn to respond as you did, with great patience and love, not dealing with them as their sins deserve. May Your name be praised forever O Lord. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.