CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST

“Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death” (Acts 2:23 NKJV).

The background for our verse is the apostle Peter’s sermon on the Day of Pentecost. While the sermon is filled with instructions, our focus in the verse is about the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus. It speaks of the character of the crucified, the control of the crucifixion, and the corruption of the crucifiers.

Character of the crucified - “Him” After speaking about the faultless character of the Lord Jesus, the apostle Peter then said that it was “Him” who was crucified. The faultless character of the Lord Jesus qualified Him to be our Savior and to die in our place. It also shows that having a faultless character does not exempt one from shameful treatment in this world. No one lived a better life than the Lord Jesus, yet He was shamefully and horribly treated by mankind and crucified.

Control of the crucifixion - “delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.” God and not man was controlling the events at the crucifixion. It was God who was controlling all the events, and the Lord Jesus would not die until it was time for Him to die. Man may be terribly vile and appear to gain the upper hand over God but never believe it. God so controls things that He will use the evil of man to bring about His purposes. It was so with the crucifixion; and it is so in the events of our lives, too. As the Psalmist says, “Surely the wrath of man shall praise You; with the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself” (Psalm 76:10).

Corruption of the crucifiers - “taken by lawless hands, have crucified.” While God is sovereign and is in control of all things, it will not excuse evil. The apostle Peter did not hesitate to indict the people involved in the crucifixion by calling them “lawless (wicked).” It took boldness to stand before this crowd and call those who crucified Jesus “lawless (wicked).” This boldness of the apostle Peter brings shame to preachers who are afraid to call sin by its right name. We do not help anyone when we whitewash sin and use words that are “politically correct.”

(Adapted from Butler’s Daily Bible Reading 2)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Come and see the victories of the cross. Christ’s wounds are thy healings, His agonies thy repose, His conflicts thy conquests, His groans thy songs, His pains thine ease, His shame thy glory, His death thy life, His sufferings thy salvation!”

Matthew Henry (1662 – 1714)

Welsh Nonconformist Minister and Author

Word Study

Father

In Matt. 6:9 we read, “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name” (NKJV).

“Father” is the Greek word patḗr (πατήρ = pat-ayr'). It is from a root signifying a nourisher, protector, upholder. Simply stated, it speaks of a man who has begotten a child. The word is also used of the progenitor, the ancestor in the direct line, a forefather. Thus, Adam was the “Progenitor” of the human race. Patḗr is also used of God in relation to those who have been born again (cf. John 1:12-13). He imparts life, from physical birth to the gift of eternal life through the second birth (regeneration, being born again). Yet it is important to understand that this “Fatherhood” of God is not universal; it only relates to those who are His children by faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. Gal. 3:26). And so, in context, the Lord Jesus is drawing attention to God as our Father, and the importance for us to recognize the God-centeredness of prayer.

Did You Know…

When Saul was presented to the people as God’s chosen king, all the people shouted and said, “Long live the king!” which is equivalent to “God save the king” (1 Sam. 10:24).

Bible Quiz

What was the inscription that was written above the cross?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz

According to the Book of Galatians, who did the apostle Paul consider to be the “pillars” of faith? James, Peter, and John (Gal. 2:9).

Prophecies Fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ

The Great “I AM” (Ex. 3:13-15; John 4:26; 8:58)

"And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you” (Ex. 3:14 NJKV).

In context, when Moses asked God His name so that he could tell the Israelites who had sent him to them, God responded, “I AM WHO I AM.” He basically said, this is what you are to say to the Israelites: “I AM has sent me to you” (cf. Ex. 3:14). The name is “I AM.” Now, fast forward to the New Testament, and John 8:58. Here the Lord Jesus identified Himself as the God who had spoken to Moses at the burning bush. Although an astounding assertion, it simply confirms what the apostle John had already said: “The Word was with God, and the Word was God” (cf. John 1:1). And so, the Lord Jesus is affirming His superiority over the prophets and Abraham. Abraham came into being but when He was born, the Lord Jesus was already existing. “I Am” is a title of Deity (cf. Ex. 3:14; Isa. 41:4; 43:11-13; John 8:28). Further, the response of the Jews in v. 59 showed that they understood the claim that the Lord Jesus was making. He was claiming equality with God (5:18; 20:28; Phil. 2:6; Col. 2:9), and that He existed from all eternity (John 1:1). He is the great “I AM.”

Did You Know – Christian History

Alexander Whyte was born January 13, 1836, in Kirriemuir, Forfarshire, Scotland. He was a Scottish divine, and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in 1898.

Whyte’s faith began when he was young. On Sunday mornings, his hardworking mother would take him to the Free Church. In the afternoon, he attended the Relief Church with his grandmother. He capped off Sunday by attending the Old Light Church by himself in the evening. He dreamed of becoming a minister. And although his mother could not afford to pay for his education, Whyte was determined to learn. He subscribed to a magazine on self-education and paid a younger boy to hold up borrowed books for him so that he could read while he made shoes as an apprentice. With this learning under his belt, Whyte became a teacher. To keep ahead of the more advanced pupils, he studied late at night after class was done. The following year, a sympathetic minister taught him Latin and Greek so that he could go to university. With no way to pay for college, Whyte swallowed his pride and wrote to his father, who had abandoned him and his mother. His father, a successful businessman in New York, sent Alexander the money. With teaching factory workers to cover his living expenses, Whyte threw himself into his studies. He graduated second in his class. Because of his own experiences, he never forgot the poor.

Whyte eventually headed the largest Scottish church and was a college president. A powerful speaker, in his very first sermon he emphasized the need to focus one’s attention on the Lord Jesus Christ. Throughout his life, he always stressed the importance of a personal religious experience. Christianity was not just a matter of keeping commandments. Many of his sermons, with vivid illustrations, found their way into print. Yet Whyte himself did not published any of them, although his series of Character Studies from the Bible and Bunyan’s Pilgrim Progress were widely known. After his death two volumes of the morning sermons were issued: Lord, Teach Us to Pray, and With Mercy and With Judgment. Whyte was a prolific writer and was widely regarded as the greatest Scottish preacher of his day. Alexander Whyte died quietly in his sleep on January 6, 1921. The eighty-five-year-old Scotsman had risen from poverty and illegitimacy to become one of the most prominent pastors in Scotland. disappointments.rs.

A Little Humor

An atheist complained to a Christian friend, “You Christians have your special holidays, such as Christmas and Easter. Jews celebrate their national holidays, such as Passover and Yom Kippur. But we atheists have no recognized national holidays. It’s unfair discrimination.” His friend replied, “Why don’t you celebrate April first?”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“The cross is the bridge to eternal life!”