Closer To Heaven
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You can view an in-depth discussion of Christ in the Crucible in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view:
With thanks to
Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.
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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/13-christ-in-the-crucible-hopess-video-discussion/
Death by crucifixion was one of the harshest punishments the Romans meted out to anyone. It was considered the worst way to die. Thus, how horrific for anyone to be killed that way, in particular the Son of God! Jesus, we must always remember, came in human flesh like ours. Between the beatings, the scourgings, the nails hammered into His hands and feet, the harrowing weight of His own body tearing at the wounds, the physical pain must have been unbearable. This was harsh, even for the worst of criminals; how unfair, then, that Jesus, innocent of everything, should face such a fate.
Image © Rolf Jansson at Goodsalt.com
Yet, as we know, Christ’s physical sufferings were mild in contrast to what was really happening. This was more than just the killing of an innocent man.
What events surrounding the death of Jesus showed that more was going on than most people there understood at the time? What significance can we find in each of these events that can help reveal what happened there?
Clearly, something much more was happening here than just the death, however unfair, of an innocent man. According to Scripture, God’s wrath against sin, our sin, was poured out upon Jesus. Jesus on the cross suffered a righteous God’s righteous indignation against sin, the sins of the whole world. As such, Jesus suffered something deeper, darker, and more painful than any human being could ever know or experience.
| As you go through whatever struggles you are facing, what hope and comfort can you draw from the reality of Christ suffering for you on the cross? |
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Key Thought: The greatest point of Biblical truth is that our sin and suffering were taken upon Jesus. That Christianity is the religion of love and grace that gives us free will.
September 24, 2022
(Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.”Ministry of Healing, p. 148).
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Having scanned through the lesson quarterly, there are so many hymns from which to choose a theme. In effect, there is a commencing theme hymn that changes through the quarter to the finale theme hymn. To start with, we could use:
Hymn 552 – The Lord’s My Shepherd or 
Hymn 545 – Savior, Like a Shepherd.
Somewhere in the middle of the quarter one could change the theme and add in
Hymn 159 – The Old Rugged Cross which is where we complete our studies in Lesson 13.
Sabbath afternoon commences the week of study with thoughts of freedom. Our freedom was so sacred that
Wondrous Love – Hymn 162 was shown and given to the human race on a hill far away where stood
The Old Rugged Cross – Hymn 159. It was here that the
Sacred Head Was Wounded – Hymn 156. The story continues in
Hymn 161 – Throned Upon the Awful Tree.
We see Jesus on Sunday in
Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne – Hymn 140 as a child to live in poverty, and “to face those who wanted to kill Him”. It is with the wonder of the universe that we are to “Look upon Jesus, sinless is He…”:
Hymn 412 – Cover With His Life.
George F Handel wrote the beautiful tribute to Jesus in “He Was Despised” (No 23 in the Ebenezer Prout version), which would be a glorious tribute if you have a soloist. This will do wonders for the Monday study.
Tuesday finds Jesus in Gethsemane:
Hymn 157 – Go To Dark Gethsemane. “Jesus suffered something deeper, darker, and more painful than any human could ever know or experience”:
Hymn 158 – Were You There?
Thursday shows again The Suffering God we have Who awaits us in
The Homeland – Hymn 436 all because (Friday) “He (Jesus) will save man at any cost to Himself”:
Jesus Saves – Hymn 340.
It is time to sing
Hymn 432 – Shall We Gather at the River where we will see our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ
Face to Face – Hymn 206 to worship Him forever for all that He has done for us.
To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/
Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.
2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/13-christ-in-the-crucible-singing-with-inspiration/
Critics of Christianity will often argue that Jesus knew beforehand that, though He would die, He would be resurrected to life. Thus, they ask, “What was the big deal about His death when He knew it would be only temporary?” As we take a deeper look at the cross we see the agape of Christ in His crucible.
My mother knew that flying in an airplane is safer than traveling by car. She knew the sad statistics that people are killed every day on the highways, while a rare jet crash makes headlines around the world. Knowing all this, when my mother got on an airplane she sure did not feel that it was safer! There is a difference between knowing and feeling. Jesus died as a man, not as God.
As a man, this is what Jesus experienced;
“In that thick darkness God’s presence was hidden. He makes darkness His pavilion, and conceals His glory from human eyes. God and His holy angels were beside the cross. The Father was with His Son. Yet His presence was not revealed. Had His glory flashed forth from the cloud, every human beholder would have been destroyed. And in that dreadful hour Christ was not to be comforted with the Father’s presence. He trod the wine press alone, and of the people there was none with Him.”-Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 753, 754.
“The Saviour could not see through the portals of the tomb. Hope did not present to Him His coming forth from the grave a conqueror, or tell Him of the Father’s acceptance of the sacrifice. He feared that sin was so offensive to God that Their separation was to be eternal. Christ felt the anguish which the sinner will feel when mercy shall no longer plead for the guilty race. It was the sense of sin, bringing the Father’s wrath upon Him as man’s substitute, that made the cup He drank so bitter, and broke the heart of the Son of God.” –Ellen White, Desire of Ages, p. 753.
Foxe’s book of Martyrs tells us John Huss was singing songs of praise as he burned at the stake for his faith. We wonder if John Huss, a mere mortal man, could be singing songs of praise as He died at the stake, why couldn’t Jesus sing songs of praise instead of crying out “My God My God why have You forsaken me?”
It is because John Huss died a totally different death than Jesus died. John knew he would be resurrected. He knew he was at peace with the Father. But on the cross Jesus was being treated the way we deserve to be treated, so we can be treated the way He deserves to be treated. Think about this: Jesus called God His Father from all eternity.
“In my Father’s house are many mansions.”
“I always do those things that please my Father.”
“I and my Father are one.”
But when Jesus was on the cross being treated the way we deserve to be treated, He could not call God His Father! He did not feel that He would be resurrected. Instead He felt totally forsaken and cried out, “My God! Why have you forsaken me?” This fulfilled the prophecy of Psalms 22 of Jesus dying the second death – the death that we deserve.
Jesus was not crying out, “Why have you forsaken me till Sunday morning?” You don’t forsake someone when you leave them for the weekend. When I tell my church I will be preaching at another church next Sabbath, none of them ask me why I have forsaken them. They know I will be back the following week. When Jesus cried out, “Why have you forsaken me?” He felt abandoned forever. He felt what the wicked will feel.
Photograph by William Earnhardt
Obadiah 1:16 says the wicked will be as though they had never been. Jesus was not facing a mere six-hour pain endurance marathon. A lot of cancer patients would gladly trade their years of battling cancer for six hours on a cross. The physical pain is not what made it the supreme sacrifice. What Jesus was facing was going into total oblivion and being as though He had never existed! While Satan was willing to sacrifice anyone who got in his way of being number 1, Jesus was willing to go into total oblivion if He could just save even one of us.
Hebrews 2:9 tells us that Jesus tasted death for everyone. Jesus and Paul both refer to the first death as sleep. Jesus did not save us from that death, as we plainly experience that death ourselves. Paul did not say Jesus tasted sleep for every man. No, He tasted death, the death of the wicked. Yes, He prophesied of His own resurrection, but that was while He still felt the presence of His Father. When Jesus felt the Father turn His back on Him, He felt, as a man, that the promise of the resurrection had left with the Father. Jesus became the God-forsaken God.
Some say, how could Jesus have tasted the second death while He never lost faith in His Father? Remember Jesus had no sense of self-preservation. The sense of self-preservation belongs to Satan. Jesus had faith, but His faith was not that He would be saved but that you and I would be saved!
Some have a hard time wrapping their minds around this awesome love. Some refuse to believe that Jesus would be willing to die forever to save us. In that case they have made Moses more loving than Jesus. In Exodus 32:32 Moses is willing to be wiped out of eternity in order to save the children of Israel. Do you think Moses loved them more than Jesus loves sinners? Of course not! Only when Moses experienced the self-sacrificing love of God could he express such love. If you don’t believe that Jesus was willing to say good-bye to life forever in order to save us, then you believe that Moses demonstrated more love than Jesus.
Since the Jews were accusing Jesus of blasphemy, they could have just stoned Him to death. According to Leviticus 24:16, blasphemers were to be stoned and not crucified. Yet Jesus was crucified. Why? Because Deuteronomy 21:22-23 tells us those who are hung are cursed by God. Someone could plead for mercy and have the hope of salvation, just like John Huss had, even though they were stoned to death. However, being hung was a sign you were cursed by God. Joshua 10 tells the story of five kings who refused to accept Israel’s God and were hung from five trees, telling the world they had rejected God and so there was no salvation for them. It was good-bye to life forever.
Friend, does this help you understand how much Jesus loves you.
He could have come down from the cross and returned to heaven where He could wear His kingly Crown instead of the crown of thorns.
He could have left the road to Calvary and walked on streets of gold.
He could have left the mocking mob and returned to hear angels sing His praise.
He could have returned to His mansion.
Why didn’t He do just that? Because the thought of going back to heaven without you did not appeal to Jesus. Heaven would not be paradise without you, as far as Jesus is concerned.
There is nothing I would rather be preaching than this message here. It is the everlasting gospel in the three angels’ messages. This kind of love changes everything. It changes how we look at the cross and how we look at sin. Most of all, it changes our hearts. The disciples were just a bunch of self-ambitious men until they saw this love displayed on the cross. After they saw this love they were willing to give everything – even their own lives. Revelation 15 tells us there will be a multitude singing the song of Moses and the Lamb. They will be filled with this self-sacrificing love just like Moses and Jesus. They will hate sin more than they hate death, and they will love God more than they will love their own lives or self preservation.
In the the crucible of Christ we see true agape. Jesus’ love for you goes deeper than the nail scars. He loves you more than He loves life itself. He was willing to go into total oblivion and be as though He had never existed if that is what it took to save you!
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