He Suffered - Peace Cottonwood



He Suffered

Nicene Creed Sermon Series #6

November 12, 2006

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate. He suffered death and was buried. (Nicene Creed)

This morning we continue our Nicene Creed Sermon Series. We remain in the Second Article–the article describing who Jesus was and what he did. This morning we consider the words “He was crucified under Pontius Pilate. As I read those words I think not just of Jesus’ crucifixion, but I think of all that happened to Jesus “under Pontius Pilate”–that is, I think of, as the Apostles’ Creed puts it, how Jesus “suffered under Pontius Pilate.”

But before we get to a discussion of what we normally think of when we think of Jesus’ suffering, let’s back up for a moment and consider the words “under Pontius Pilate.” There’s some suffering contained in those three words–apart from any physical suffering. For Jesus, the Son of God, to be placed on trial under Pontius Pilate was also a matter of suffering–suffering an indignity beyond what we can imagine–the creator put on trial by and subject to one of his creatures–and not one of his nobler creatures, either. Being put on trial before and suffering and being crucified under a mere human being–and a spineless, godless one at that–Perhaps that suffering seems to pale in comparison with the physical suffering, but that’s only because the physical suffering is so visual, so (comparatively) easy to portray on the silver screen. But anyone who’s ever been through severe emotional suffering knows that it can bring about pain sharper, deeper, more agonizing, pain that cuts to the core of your very being than any physical pain. Yes, a large part of Jesus’ suffering under Pontius Pilate was not the crucifixion itself, but the mere fact that he, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, was under Pontius Pilate, a sinful mortal, and being treated as a common criminal!

But let’s talk about that physical pain now. For many of us, when we consider that portion of Jesus’ suffering, we can’t help but think of the movie “The Passion of the Christ.” Previous to that movie, I’d sort of been limited to imagining the suffering that Jesus endured under Pontius Pilate (and, for that matter, the suffering that he had endured at the hands of the Jewish leaders–the beating, the pulling out of his beard, the spitting). And while hearing of that suffering each Lenten season made an impression on me, seeing a representation of it on a big screen left a whole ‘nother level of impression on me. It forced me to not merely know that Jesus was a human being enduring and feeling this suffering just as you and I would have, but it forced me to see, to feel that Jesus was a human being enduring and feeling this suffering just as you and I would have. And it forced me to realize the extent of that suffering.

For example, each Lenten season during the midweek services we hear the words “He [Pilate] had Jesus flogged” (Matthew 27:26). But in the movie we saw–and if you saw the movie, you can hardly have forgotten this horrifying scene–in the movie we saw and felt each lash from the Roman soldiers, we felt the skin split open, we saw the blood spatter. We realized that the nails didn’t go through Jesus as smoothly and as painfully as a hot knife through soft butter, but like–well, like nails going through a body. It reminded us that, as we talked about in the previous sermon in this series, Jesus was fully human. The beatings, the thorns, the nails, the crucifixion–it all was every bit as painful for Jesus as it would have been for us.

Some have suggested that the movie was too graphic, and in the end I guess it’s a matter of opinion rather than a matter of right and wrong. But I do wonder if some of the complaints come from those who would prefer for their Jesus’ suffering to be the stoic, nearly painless, nearly bloodless, and very quick suffering depicted elsewhere. I wonder if some of the complaints along those lines simply stem from the fact that watching such suffering makes me uncomfortable. I do wonder what the reason for this discomfort might be, and I wonder what those reasons might have to say about us.

Is it possible that one of the main reasons we dislike seeing such suffering on Jesus’ part is because we dislike considering the fact that our sins have caused this? Is it possible that we dislike seeing such suffering on Jesus’ part because we are aware that we ourselves deserved to suffer like this? When we confess “for our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate” we’re confessing more than that he was crucified for my benefit. We’re also saying that he was crucified in my place. In fact, God himself said it in Romans through Paul: “He was delivered over to death for our sins” (Romans 4:25). To have another human being’s crucifixion on my conscience is a lot to bear. To see a graphic portrayal of the crucifixion that I caused is painful, and to realize that that crucifixion, that suffering, that death was brought about by my acts of selfishness, egocentricity, hatred, and pride is oh so humbling and humiliating. It’s almost more than I can bear, leading me to look away and to wish that someone would turn it off.

And yet looking away doesn’t change things, does it? The graphic facts remain just as graphic as they were when Isaiah prophesied them. He was pierced for our transgressions and he was crushed for our iniquities. The Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:5-6)

But the punishment is so graphic, so violent because the transgressions have been so graphic, so violent. Let’s forget for a moment about “The Passion of the Christ” and imagine a movie called “The Sins of the (your name here).” What sort of a rating would that movie get? I’ll bet it wouldn’t get a G rating because your life has been one of rescuing puppy dogs and picking daffodils. I doubt it would get a PG rating either–not if all of our sins were laid bare and projected on a 60-foot wide screen for all the world to see. When we think of it that way, I think most of us are willing to admit that such a movie would get an R rating. And yet even then I think we’re being too easy on ourselves. Because while Hollywood is able to imply sin without actually showing it, or able to show just enough of the sin without showing enough to get an NC-17 rating, a movie called “The Sins of the (your name here)” wouldn’t hold anything back, wouldn’t sanitize things a bit, wouldn’t legitimize any of your sins by having a soothing soundtrack playing in the background. And just in case you think that you honestly haven’t done anything that would cause an NC-17 rating to be slapped on it, consider that this movie will not just show your actions but also your thoughts. Perhaps still more chilling, it would show the attitude of your heart as you committed those sins–an attitude of open rebellion and hatred towards God, a hatred so vile that it’s obscene in every sense of the word. Now there’s a movie I really don’t want to have to watch!

Sin that graphic, that violent deserves a punishment that is graphic, a punishment that is violent. Yes, our sins made us deserving of all that Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate.

But there is where “The Passion of the Christ” falls short–in showing us what Jesus suffered, in showing us what we deserved to suffer. In fact, I would argue that for the most part the movie “The Passion of the Christ” barely scratched the surface of Jesus’ suffering under Pontius Pilate. I even wonder if the movie’s unrelenting emphasis on and vivid portrayal of the spitting, the hitting, the beating, the blood, the nails–in summary, the gore–didn’t end up distracting from what it means when we say that Jesus suffered, when we say that Jesus was crucified under Pontius Pilate and suffered death.

You see, if we look at the physical suffering of Jesus and conclude that this is what we deserved for our sins, we are greatly underestimating the severity of our sins and the severity of the guilt and punishment we deserve for them.

No, the wages of sin is nothing so mild as a brutal beating from a Roman soldier or nails through your body. The wages of sin is, as the Bible says, death. And not just the kind of death that led to Jesus being buried. No, the kind of death that he endured on the cross. The kind of death that no movie could possibly show, the sort of death that no human being could possibly come close to understanding. The kind of death that comes from having God turn his back on you and having God turn his wrath upon you.

Yes, Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate. Yes, he was crucified under Pontius Pilate. Yes, he suffered physical death and was buried. But those are all things that have been suffered by other human beings–sometimes even more painfully than Jesus did. But the worst thing that he suffered–the thing that no one on earth has ever suffered–was hell. Only Jesus could truly claim to have been forsaken by God, crying out in soul-rending agony so great that to even feel it for a moment would flatten us, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)

And why did he suffer all this? It wasn’t some publicity stunt. He wasn’t–as some suggest–a victim of circumstances. No, Christ’s suffering was part of God’s plan to save the world. Jesus Himself said: "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28). Lest there be any doubt about what Jesus meant by “many”, John wrote by the inspiration of the Spirit: "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:2). Paul says it even simpler: "He died for all" (2 Cor. 5:15).

But as we remember that Christ suffered and died for all, let us not forget that Christ suffered and died for me. Oddly, it’s sometimes easier to believe that Christ died for all than that Christ died for me. After all, who are we? Just one person. Not even a very important one at that. Our names won’t be in history books someday, and people won’t remember us years from now as being a paragon of virtue. Yes, Christ had the world in mind as he suffered and died for it, but it’s a little more difficult to believe that Christ had me in mind.

And yet he did. I think it’s more than appropriate that Martin Luther chose the wording he did in his explanation of the Second Article of the Apostles’ Creed. He said of Jesus, “He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, purchased and won me...” Hold onto that and treasure that. We confess in the Nicene Creed that it was “for our sake” that Jesus was “crucified under Pontius Pilate, suffered death, and was buried.” But perhaps we ought also to confess or at least think that he did this “for (your name here)’s sake.”

Therefore it’s important for us to look at Jesus’ suffering under Pontius Pilate. Therefore there may be some benefit in seeing the amount of that suffering, for it shows how greatly he has loved us. And there most certainly is some benefit in recognizing that Jesus’ suffered not only under the hand of Pontius Pilate, but also under the hand of God. For it shows that payment truly has been made for my sins.

Therefore I can be certain that, as Martin Luther explains the second article of the Apostles’ Creed, “he has redeemed me...from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil.” He has redeemed me from all sins. That alienation from God that sin creates, that guilty conscience, that nagging feeling that things are not well, that doubt, that outright fear that our sins are going to come back to haunt us? Gone. You are redeemed from sin and all its consequences for "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus," (Romans 8: 1). You can now enjoy God's presence, sing His praises, walk tall before him by day or by night because you have been born again -- redeemed from your sins and connected to Christ.

He has redeemed you from death. It’s not that you’re never going to die physically. You probably will. But you’re not going to die the spiritual death in hell, for Jesus died that for you. And therefore even physical death is not such a big deal anymore, for it’s the gateway to eternal life. It’s no wonder that Jesus said, “Whoever lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11:26)

And he has redeemed you from the power of the devil. Make no mistake -- the devil is still alive. But Christ humbled himself so that through death he might conquer him who had the power of death, which is the devil (Hebrews 2:14-15). When Christ died he crushed the devil's power forever.

Luther once told his people: “When the devil says to me: ‘Luther, you are a great sinner,’ I have to answer him: ‘You are right.’ But when he adds: ‘Because of your sins you are going to hell,’ I just laugh at him and say: ‘You just go back to hell. Christ has redeemed me.’”

Yes, he has redeemed me and you from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Therefore it is with joy that we confess that Jesus was crucified under Pontius Pilate, suffered death, and was buried.

And I don’t want to give anything away, but if you think that’s good and meaningful stuff, wait till the next sermon in this series when you hear what happened 3 days later! Amen.

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