Friday gets a lot of attention and it should. And of course Sunday is Resurrection Day and the whole world stops and gazes, either in amazement, wonder, or even consternation. But what about Saturday? Maybe that was the day that the Jews approached Pilate to secure the tomb. They might not have had enough time on Friday, as it became the Sabbath immediately after Jesus died. If they waited until sundown on Saturday, they could approach the Governor without violating the Sabbath.
Regardless of what they did, it might give us a chance to reflect a little. As I perused the narrative again, I was struck with the catcalls and even cursing that came from the crowd. A (not too good, in my opinion) movie several years ago billed itself as chronicling the "Last Temptation of Christ."
It purported to offer a glimpse into Jesus' mind as He hung on the cross. Supposedly He was tempted to come off of the cross, marry Mary Magdalene, and live happily ever after, until they both died. I did not ever, nor will I ever see it, but I do have a little commentary. For those who argue that you cannot evaluate something without experiencing it, I would posit one argument. I grew up on a farm. I have never partaken of any animal manure. But I can confidently affirm that it is not good. Don't eat it! Nuff said.
The metaphor was deliberately chosen. The movie went into places, probably worse than the gutter in the farm yard. And the proposition is so ludicrous, both logically and theologically, that it is hard to measure its level of preposterousness. First, the belief that Jesus, being supernatural, could have come off the cross had He wished to do so, is the only accurate component of the argument.
That He would do so to marry a mortal strains credibility. What would He do as she grew older? Would He continually "renew" her life span so that she would not die? Recall, she was a sinner, so an "eternal" life in her body would be exactly the disaster that God prevented when He blocked the entrance to the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:22, 23) To be trapped in this sinful body forever would be a form of hell itself.
No, Jesus would not come off the cross to marry a woman. But He could have come off the cross. He could have called 10,000 angels. (Matthew 26:51-53) I believe that this is where the real "last temptation" was embodied. Recall the crowd was taunting Him...(Luke 23:37-39)
"and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!" 38 Now there was also an inscription above Him, "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."
Matthew 27:42 also records that some called for Him to come down, and they "would believe on Him." That was Satan, attempting to complete the temptation of Matthew 4:9 where he promised Jesus that He could be ruler of the world if only He would worship Satan. The temptation was not to be "King" but to short circuit the excruciating* process of the cross. Satan was saying, in effect, "There is no need for you to go through all this messy stuff. I can bring the Kingdom (Millennium) to You now. No muss, no fuss, no nasty dying."
Here, the voice of the Tempter rings out again. "We'll worship and believe if You prove that You are supernatural." Recall, as I am sure Jesus did, that this crowd has eaten food He provided out of essentially nothing. They have seen sick healed, lame restored, blind made to see, deaf and dumb restored, demons exorcized, and finally, the dead raised to life. They may have heard stories of walking on water, changing water into wine, and other "private miracles" and their response, as of "last night" before Pilate was "crucify Him!"
No, from a practical standpoint, Jesus knew that if they "believed" it would be for a short time only. History all the way back to Genesis confirms that. They did not need to see one more miracle. They needed a transformation that only the shed blood of The Lamb of God could effect.
The thief tuned into this cry and added his own: Luke 23
39 One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!"
Either this thief was offering to join in the "belief" or something else. Personally, I would favor the latter. He presumed that since they were both condemned criminals, they were essentially soul mates. If Christ got free, He would take his co-criminals with Him. We have all seen enough shoot'em up criminal shows to know that the comradery among thieves and their ilk is non-existent. If someone escapes from prison and takes other prisoners, it is to use them as decoys to increase the likelihood of escape for the prime mover.
Just as a passing thought, Mr. Thief may have intended to split with Jesus ASAP, figuring that the authorities would concentrate on recapturing Jesus and thus increasing his odds of escape. His level of presumptuous anticipation is countered by the response of the other criminal. He recognized that he was receiving his due penalty and did not attempt to circumvent justice.
"Remember me...." What a cry of repentance and acceptance. Just as Peter once cried out, "Lord save me!" so this dying man repeated the cry. (Matthew 14) Is there a cry that the Lord prizes more than that?
The ability to save us is grounded in the fact that He stayed on the cross. He died for me. He rose to prove that His death was enough to pay for my sins. (Romans 4:25) He went to prepare a place for me. And He is coming again for me. (John 14) If only the thief had understood.
And our job is to tell this story to others. "He is risen. He is risen indeed."
This might help to tell. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew9-FJjEzpU
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*The extreme pain and agony of crucifixion was beyond any vocabulary, so the Romans invented a new word. "Out of the cross." Excruciating is the word invented to describe the torture.
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