by Tommy Peeler<\/p>\n
In the first century, thousands were crucified. “During the last siege of Jerusalem, hundreds of crosses daily arose, till there seemed not sufficient room nor wood for them” (Alfred Edersheim). Of those thousands crucified, how many of the victims could you name? If crucifixion was such a common but horrible death, what makes the cross of Jesus’ death stand out?<\/p>\n
Who was He? He was God come in the flesh (John 1:1-3). He was the Maker of the world (John 1:10). He was the Word become flesh (John 1:14), and He came to reveal the Father (John 1:18).<\/p>\n
This is not to say that this never happened. No doubt, there were some people crucified who did not deserve it. However, even though they did not deserve death for the charges against them, they had committed sins and wrongdoings.<\/p>\n
It is striking how many connected with the cross declare Jesus’ innocence. Pilate (Luke 23:4, 14-15; 22; John 18:38; 19:4, 6), Herod (Luke 23:14-15), Pilate’s wife (Matt. 27:19), Judas (Matthew 27:4), the thief beside Him (Luke 23:41), and the centurion (Luke 23:47).<\/p>\n
New Testament writers often affirm Jesus’ innocence of any sin (II Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; I Peter 2:22; I John 3:5).<\/p>\n
No doubt many went to the cross fighting and kicking, but He went of His own free will (John 10:17-18; Matthew 26:39). He could have called a legion of angels to defend Him (Matthew 26:52-54). He went of His own free will. There was no other way they could have taken Him.<\/p>\n
He did not die for His own sin, but for ours (Matthew 20:28; 26:28; Romans 5:6-8; I Corinthians 15:3-4).<\/p>\n
Isaiah 53:4-7 dramatically presents this.<\/p>\n
How many of those crucified were raised from the dead? He was (John 2:19-22; Matthew 17:22-23; 20:17-19; 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-35; John 20-21), and He gives hope to those who trust and build their lives on Him (John 11:25-26; I Corinthians 15).<\/p>\n
This is an outstanding sermon I heard from Bill Crews in 1984. May it be a blessing to you.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Tommy Peeler In the first century, thousands were crucified. “During the last siege of Jerusalem, hundreds of crosses daily arose, till there seemed not sufficient room nor wood for them” (Alfred Edersheim). Of those thousands crucified, how many of the victims could you name? If crucifixion was such a common but horrible death, what…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[228,73],"class_list":["post-86693","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-crucifixion","tag-jesus"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":55732,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-crucifixion-of-christ-incorrectly-portrayed\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":0},"title":"The Crucifixion of Christ Incorrectly Portrayed?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 12, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Larry Ray Hafley PARIS (AFP) - The image of the crucifixion, one of the most powerful emblems of Christianity, may be quite erroneous, according to a study which says there is no evidence to prove Jesus was crucified in this manner. Around the world, in churches, on the walls\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/scan0011-11-210x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":35713,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/there-they-crucified-him\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":1},"title":"There They Crucified Him","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Wayne Greeson Mere days before the crowds had thronged into the narrow streets of Jerusalem to catch a glimpse of Him and shout his praises. But almost overnight the joyful cries of \"Blessed is the King\" had turned into screams of \"Crucify Him.\" He was arrested, abandoned by his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92147,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-crucified-king\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":2},"title":"The Crucified King","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 15, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton The King let Himself be crucified, but that did not lessen His rule or disqualify Him from being King (Psalm 2). Instead, His crucifixion became the very means of winning the hearts of those who would enter His kingdom. He is the King who rules hearts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7976,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-the-sign-of-the-water-and-blood-mean-in-john-1934\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":3},"title":"What does the sign of the water and blood mean in John 19:34?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 11, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In John 19:34, what does the sign of water and blood mean? Answer: \"But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out\" (John 19:34). This is not a sign in the sense that the water and blood represented something greater,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20754,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-did-jesus-die-as-he-did-is-there-significance-to-the-separation-of-the-body-and-the-blood\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":4},"title":"Why did Jesus die as he did? Is there significance to the separation of the body and the blood?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 7, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Why did Jesus choose to be beaten in a Roman palace, to carry the cross all the way through Jerusalem and be crucified in Golgotha? Why, through this act, did Jesus emptied all his blood from his body and poured it all over the way to the cross? Why\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13323,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-did-jesus-mean-by-eat-my-flesh-and-drink-my-blood\/","url_meta":{"origin":86693,"position":5},"title":"What did Jesus mean by “eat my flesh and drink my blood?”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 26, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I would like to know in John 6:53-56 what does Jesus mean by \"eat my flesh and drink my blood\"? What do flesh and blood represent here? Answer: The statement is found in a discourse recorded in John 6. 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