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Mark 15:36 “Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down.”

  Would we believe the gospel accounts more of they were identical? No. They would be less authentic. So, we see the order of things a bit different in the accounts only because each leaves different things out. Mark here leaves out the fact that Jesus had said ‘I thirst’ and that this is why the person took the sour wine to Him. This person then makes the statement recorded here in Mark.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for Your great loving kindness, and for Your truth. You have done wonderous works. I will proclaim Your great goodness for all of my days. You alone are worthy, and You have given me an eternal song to sing for You. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

I will be taking a vacation from posting this week. I hope to resume next Monday.

Mark 15:35 “Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, “Look, He is calling for Elijah!”

   They misunderstood what Jesus said. In His condition, that’s not very surprising. He would have been difficult to understand. They thought He was calling Elijah to help Him.
   We must keep in mind that the religious elite among the Jews thought Jesus was possessed by the devil. They likely thought He wanted to speak to Elijah in much the same way as Saul spoke to Samuel. And, they expected the message to be the same. Jesus had already met with Elijah, but through the power of God, and not the devil. And Elijah had discussed with Christ His plans concerning the crucifixion.

Heavenly Father, thank You for planning all of this and telling us about it. We are amazed as we think of Your role in history. You have loved us with an everlasting love. You are worthy of our praise for ever! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.

Mark 15:34 “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

   We generally do not hear any incredulity in connection with this statement. But, it is quite difficult to understand. God will not look upon sin. All of the sins of all of mankind were there on the cross. Jesus took them upon himself. This was all in the plan.
   Then why would Jesus ask a question? Didn’t He understand what was going to happen? His other words on the cross show us that He understood it all very well. But the question was asked rhetorically. He did not receive nor expect an answer. It serves to show the depth of our sin. It was a exclamation in the form of a question. How much would be necessary to cause the Father to ‘forsake’ the Son? We don’t even completely understand what this means. What we do know is that it was something awful, and Jesus endured it for us.

Heavenly Father, we will praise You forever for the Son! Jesus is our Hope, our Joy, the love of our souls. Thank You for the cross! It isn’t pretty, but it is beautiful to us who were lost forever without it. All praise be to You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:33 “Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.”

  This would be about three hours, from about noon to about three in the afternoon. We don’t know the exact extent of this darkness. It seems it covered at least the region of Judea. And, given the wording here, it was evidently not just due to a regular thunderstorm. There was something more ominous about it. It was clear to those in attendance that it was connected to the location of Christ on the cross.
   Many these days would, as the ancient Jews, see a sign. But, signs are not always what we might want. The Lord chooses what He will for signs. They are portents of His plan, not simply shows to impress. It is best to already believe in and know God before these signs come, so that we may know what they mean. Though we have the last book of the Bible, there will be many unprepared and surprised on that day. And, those many signs will not produce belief on the scale we might imagine.

Heavenly Father, You love us so much and have given us so much. May we never digress from Your Word! We will cherish the relationship we have with You. It is so good to have a God Who communicates to us not only through signs in the heavens. We praise You for Your plan is perfect! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:32 “Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.”

   And would they believe? They hadn’t believed up to this point, why would this change anything. These men had lived in hypocrisy so long, the truth was elusive to them. Though there were some who’s conscience pricked them more, their fear of man was greater.
   We know that one of the thieves was saved on this day. But, it seems that he at first mocked Christ with the rest of them. Likely, he was taken in by what the Jewish leaders were saying, thinking them genuine. Thus, he probably just repeated what he heard. Keep in mind too that early on he may have been under the influence of the wine and myrrh mixture that Jesus rejected.

Heavenly Father, may we be delivered from taking part in mocking. We would bring honor to You in all things. Your praise shall always be in our mouths. Give us opportunities for witnessing, and for praising. We will lift high the Name of Christ. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:31 “Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save.”

   These men comforted their conscience with these words. The guilty feel it and must justify themselves. Mocking only adds sin to sin, but it is one of the devil’s tricks and easy for men to fall into.
   It is funny that in their taunt they freely admit that he saved others. Indeed, one of Jesus’s most notable miracles, raising Lazarus, was something they found it impossible to deny. There were too many witnesses.

Heavenly Father, thank You for another day. You give us each day to use for Your glory. We think of it as ours. You know it is Yours. We will honor where honor is due. Serving You, though our duty, is our pleasure and privilege. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:30 “save Yourself, and come down from the cross!”

   And what an irony is this! They jeeringly tell Him to come down, and yet it was their salvation He was securing. Now, many would reprimand me and say He only died for those whom He would save. But say it this way, He only saves those for whom He died. That He died for the sins of the whole world the Scripture plainly teaches, but there is a sin which shall not be forgiven. To transgress the witness of the Holy Spirit that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and to continue in it, is what brings eternal fire to a person’s feet.
  Some of these very men would be forgiven and will later attend the marriage supper with the rest of us the saints. Yet, many are even now burning in their torments. And why, because Jesus died not for them? No, because they persisted in their belief that Jesus is not Who He has been clearly proven to be. The lake of fire boils not in waiting for sinners. It sears in living heat for all of eternity they who would pass into their death without the blood of Christ. For, they count it an unclean thing, devoid of any saving power. This is the blasphemy spoken of in this same passage.

Heavenly Father, I can never claim a boast in anything I have ever seen or done in this flesh. Indeed, my actions do nothing but condemn me as a sinner who has fallen far short. But, thanks be to You Father that I can boast in knowing You. I know the saving grace of the blood of Christ. It saves and thus sanctifies my sinful soul. There is now no more condemnation. And, in Christ I am not just to be made perfect, but given rights as a son, an adopted heir with my Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. This is what gives me access to heaven now, and admittance to it later. Thank You Father! I praise You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:29 “And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days,”

   They blasphemed Him. How often that happens! That is the great sin of this age. This is the day if His great mercy and grace. And yet the lost blaspheme by their unbelieving jeering. And the so-called saved blaspheme by their hypocrisy. How can we escape? How can we expect to have life and do spitefully to the Prince of Life?

Heavenly Father, may we, as the psalmist says, kiss the Son. He is our hope and life. Make us ambassadors for His kingdom. We praise You for the Son Father. He is the Rose of Sharon and the Bright and Morning Star. We will worship at His throne forever. All glory to You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 15:28 “And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors.”

   This is directly from Isaiah 53:12. Jesus was numbered with the transgressors. He became sin for us, Who knew no sin. This is the great message of the cross. Never miss it. Jesus Himself took upon Himself the sin of all men. He became the propitiation, the atonement, for those who would believe in Him. The work is done.
   This is why the Scriptures say it is not by works of righteousness that we have done, but that it is by His mercy that He has saved us. Though it is actually by His cross-work itself that we are saved, the Scripture says it is by His mercy because He had to submit to it. It was not against the will of God for this to take place. In this way, it was the choice of His own mercy that brought about the desired effect.
   Jesus was numbered among men who were condemned. And that is altogether appropriate to the task He was about to perform. He would take upon His own person the guilt of the sin of human history, nailing it to His cross because He was nailed to the cross. Being displayed there with the two thieves has to be the most poignant picture in all of human experience. It depicts in living flesh the plight, and salvation, of the human creation. In one brilliant stroke, God painted it all into a few moments of time so that all who look to it might understand the Truth as He is. As Adam has failed like the rest of us, we can be children of our New Father, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Father, how can we miss the significance of Calvary? You have not given us a bedtime story. You have put the Truth out there in clear detail, not holding back the bare facts. May we proclaim it loud and long for all to hear! That is all it takes to recognize the Truth of the cross of Christ. To hear. For once we have heard, the response of our hearts decides our fate for all of eternity. What this picture of Christ Jesus and the two thieves stirs within our soul determines forever which of those two we shall be more like. Will we shun Christ as the one, or realize the Truth as the other? We love You, Father, for making this Truth plain to us. We love You as a response to Your great love. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.