The Signs at the cross Matthew 27
The Lord's final road to the Cross bis described in Mark 15:21-22
21,
"And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by,
coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus,
to bear his cross, And they bring him unto the place Golgotha,
which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull."
Mark's Gospel like the other Gospels tells us very little
about this because everyone in the Roman Empire knew the familiar
details all too well. Such marches were as common as to-day's
funeral processions. The ancient history of the time fills in
all the details. Jesus would have been placed in the centre of
a quarternion, a company of four Roman soldiers. The "patibulum",
the cross beam of the cross, weighing perhaps as much as one hundred
pounds, was placed on his torn shoulders.
Jesus would have been led along the longest route possible to
the cross so that fear would be instilled in as many as possible.
Eventually He, through loss of blood could not go on and an innocent
by-stander, a Jew from Cyrene in Libya, north Africa by the name
of Simon was compelled to carry the patibulum. This was no doubt
not his choice of a way to celebrate Passover, though there is
some evidence that this experience opened the way for grace into
His family His boys Alexander and Rufus are mentioned in the gospels
The place of execution is given as "Golgotha" by Matthew,
Mark and John. The meaning of the name is "the place of a
skull" There may be two reasons for this name (1) It was
a place where many executions took place and therefore abounded
in skulls (2) The hill may have had a skull like shape. There
are two places in Jerusalem which make claims to be Golgotha.
The first is the traditional site where the Church of the Holy
Sepulchre now stands. The other is known as Gordon's Calvary where
there is a hill in the shape of a skull and under which has been
found a tomb which was never occupied (or only for a short time).
Mark 15: 23 tells us that at the place of execution "they
offered him wine mingled with myrrh: but he received them not."
Matthew speaks of vinegar and gall and he no doubt has the prophecy
of Psalm 69:21 in view "They gave me gall for my meat;
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink" This
is a fulfilment of that prophecy. This mixture was given as a
pain reducing drink before execution but Christ refused it because
vital Scriptures had to be fulfilled. Had the Lord been drugged
or in some sort of Coma, He would not have been able to fulfil
what had been predicted or say the things that needed to be said.
When they came to the place of execution Jesus would have been
thrown on the ground and spikes driven through His hands. The
patibulum was raised by the four soldiers with Jesus dangling
from it and fastened to a standing post, the crux simplex. Then
His feet would have been nailed, probably with a single spike
to the post. He then would have begun repeated genuflection as
he struggles upward for breath and folded downward again in exhaustion.
The cross was the lowest form of degradation. The shame of such
a death was often equal to the torture. The Lord's Jewish antagonists
well-remembered Deuteronomy 21:23 "for he that is hanged
is accursed of God." and gleefully misapplied it to Jesus.
Jesus underwent limitless pain. The March 21, 1986 issue of the
Journal of the American Medical Association carried the
most complete review of Christ's crucifixion ever published in
a medical journal. In it the authors detailed the pain endured
by the weight of the body hanging from the nails which damage
the medial nerves and tear at the tarsals, the respiratory torture,
the cramping, and the pleural effusions concluding that "
Death by crucifixion was in every sense of the word excruciating
, literally 'out of the cross. Their assessment remarkably justifies
C.S. Lewis' description and deduction made in 1960,
He creates the universe, already foreseeing-or should we say "seeing"?
There are no tenses with God- the buzzing cloud of flies about
the cross, the flayed back pressed against the uneven stake, the
nails driven through the medial nerves, the repeated incipient
suffocation as the body drops, the repeated torture of the back
and arms as it time after time for breaths sake hitched up. If
I may dare the biological image, God is a "host" who
deliberately creates His own parasites; causes us to be that we
may exploit and take advantage of Him. Herein is love! This is
the diagram of Love Himself, the inventor of all loves
The cross brings us face to face with the love of God. And the
dramatic and indispensable nature of the cross is underlined for
us in so many ways. We might think of the Lord's sayings on the
cross. We might think of the people at the cross and how even
his enemies were forced to give testimony to his purity and power
but I wonder have you ever thought of the signs at that cross.
The darkness, the earthquake, the raising of the dead and the
rending of the veil. Those things of course did not happen by
accident. They mean something and I want us to take a few minutes
this evening to think of the signs at the cross
A. The Thick Darkness: (Matthew 27:45)
Matthew tells us that at the sixth hour there came a thick darkness.Now
from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto
the ninth hour..
The sixth hour would be from our twelve o'clock. The Jews divided
their day into twelve hours beginning at Sunrise. So this was
from Noon to three O'clock in the afternoon. This could not have
been an eclipse of the sun, for the Passover was celebrated at
the time of the full moon, when the moon is opposite to the Sun.
An eclipse takes place when the moon and the sun are in the same
place in the sky and the moon covers the Sun. This could not happen
at Passover so it could not have been an eclipse and then there
is the fact that this darkness lasted about twelve times the langth
of an ordinary eclipse. This was certainly no eclipse. This was
something supernatural. This was something unusual. We are told
that the scope of the darkness was "over all the land".
Why this darkness?
(i). It was a sign of mourning: Amos prophesied in Amos 8:9-10
that there would be darkness at the time of the Day of the Lord
And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD,
that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken
the earth in the clear day:
And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs
into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins,
and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning
of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
Look at those words where he says of the darkness "I
will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof
as a bitter day." The cross was thus draped in mourning
sackcloth. The Father was mourning for his only Son because as
He bore our sins he was taking our death upon Him. He was dying
in the room and stead of sinners. Indeed child of God, if you
are saved you died in Him there on that cross. What a bitter scene
this was that made the Father veil it in the blackness of mourning
(ii) It was a sign of God hiding his face: It was as if God did
not want anyone to see as his Son went through the agony of bearing
the sins of His people. There are things that are to precious
to be displayed and surely this was the most precious thing in
all the universe. Remember that it was just at the end of this
period of darkness at the ninth hour, at the time of the evening
sacrifice and at the time when the flame of the evening sacrifice
woul have reached it's height that the Lord cries those words
Eli Eli Lama Sabacthani which is interpreted My God My
God why hast thou forsaken me Somehow the Father forsook Him.
Somehow the Saviour missed the smile of the Father's face and
He cries out from the depths of His heart. That must have been
the worst thing of all for the dearly beloved Son of God. The
darkness was a sign of being forsaken. Of course it was because
he was taking the sinners place. Where is the sinner. He is in
darkness and He is forsaken. God is the source of hope. Paul described
the ungodly as being without God and without hope in the world
Are you still in the darkness of sin? You are there because you
are forsaken of God
(iii). It was a sign of the wrath of God: At the Exodus a plague
of darkness spread over the land before the first Passover Lamb
was slain. That darkness was a plague from God and it was a sign
of the wrath of God Now before the death of the ultimate Passover
Lamb there again was darkness. It is a wrath because of the sin
borne. God did not spare his son any wrath. The bible tells us
that there is no respect of persons with God. He did not spare
even His own Son. And if God did not even spare his own Son how
much will he not spare you. You know Hell is described in the
Bible as a place of outer darkness. It is a place that is forsaken
by God who is the light. That is the place the ungodly are heading
to. That is the prospect that lies before you if you continue
on the way you are going. You are in darkness and you are heading
for greater darkness but the one who was shrouded by darkness
there on the cross was there to bring light. It was said of the
Lord Jesus in the gospels The people which sat in darkness
saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow
of death light is sprung up. Now you may be sitting in the
darkness of sin at this moment but there is light. Christ can
bring you light. He is the Light of the world
B. The Veil of the Temple was Rent (Matthew 27:51).
And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from
the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks
rent;
The veil of the temple was the thick and gorgeously made curtain
that hung between the holy place and the holy of holies in the
temple. In the Holy of Holies was the Ark of the Covenant and
the mercy seat. It was here between the cherubim on the mercy
seat that the Shekinah glory of God was manifested. No person
was allowed to go behind this veil into the Holy of Holies except
the High Priest and that only once a year on the Day of Atonement
and even then he could not go without the shed blood which he
sprinkled on the mercy seat seven times So the veil of the temple
in many ways said, "keep out, you do not have free access
into the presence of God." But I want you to see what we
are told here. We are told that this veil that was keeping men
out of the presence of God has been rent from the top to the bottom.
When did that happen? It happened when Christ had shed His Blood
now and had cried it is finished It happened when the Lord
Jesus had finished what he come to accomplish. He had paid the
price of redemption and He had died on behalf of sinners and made
a way by which they might be free from death and from the consequences
of sin and it is now that that veil that in effect shut man out
from the presence of God was rent. But there are a number of things
that I want you to notice about that veil bacause in many ways
the rending of the veil is a picture of what had happened to Christ
(i) It was divinely rent: The text says "From the top
to the bottom" The top was too high for a man to reach
and we should also bear in mind that there is a tradition that
the veil was so thick that a team of oxen could not tear it apart.
It was God who rent the veil. Hebrews 10:19-20 says, Having
therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the
blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated
for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;
The veil therefore is a picture to us of the body of Christ
broken on Calvary. But notice how the body broken and the Blood
shed gives brethren access to God, with boldness. Only the High
priest could come within the veil in the OT economy but now all
God's people have been made kings and priests unto God. In our
sins we had no right of access to God. Isaiah said your sins
have separated between you and your God We had no right to
come to God. Sin barred us from God's presence for all eternity
but now those who are saved can enter . How? By the blood of
Jesus There is no other way. There is no other path by which
you can enter into the presence of God. But the Father rent the
Son to make that way. That is the message of the veil. His body
was rent for us
(b) The veil was demonstrably rent: It was rent "in the midst".
It was not done in a corner. The Saviour too was demonstrably
rent. He was lifted up that all men might be drawn unto Him. You
know that veil in the temple was a very glorious thing and a very
prominent thing, When the priest entered into the Holy place in
the temple the very first thing that probably would have taken
his view in the midst of all the gold and colour that was there
was the veil. It was made in blue and purple and scarlet and fine
twined lined and there were Cherubims woven into it in golden
thread. What a beautiful thing that curtain was and what a symbol
it was to the Jew. What drama every year as they waited for the
High priest to come out from behind that veil to see if their
sacrifices were accepopted on the day of Atonement. But now it
was very prominently rent. This is something that would have been
a talking point around the streets of Jerusalem and far beyond.
The Jews would have talked about the veil that was rent and it
would have been an amazing thing to them. It was certainly a talking
point. This was certainly not something that was not done in a
corner. And certainly the Lord wanted this to be known. The fact
that so many dramatic things happened at the time of the crucifixion
was in order to increase the wonder of it and make men talk about
it. And it has continued to be the desire of the Lord that the
gospel should be made known. He wants you to know about the cross.
He wants you to understand that at that place redemption ahas
been accomplished. He wants you to be under no illusion but that
it is here that you find salvation and blessing for your soul.
You can't ignore the cross. Whether you embrace it or reject it
you certainly cannot turn away from it and God wants you to know
the way of salvation and has sent preachers to make it known to
you and it is the job of the preacher to lift up and exalt Christ.
The Bible says of Christ And I if I be lifted up will draw
all men unto me You can be drawn to Christ. The veil has been
rent and the way of access is opened. The cross has liberated
and provided a way to the throne of God. Happy and wise are they
who use it. Will you use it. We see the second great sign. We
see the rent veil.
C. The Earthquake: (Matthew 27:52)
And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from
the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks
rent;
This is the physical creation proclaiming the rending of it's
maker. Barnes says, "It was not confined to Judea but was
felt in other countries. It is mentioned by Roman writers and
the people of the time. Extraordinary rents and fissures can still
be seen in the area. If you go and examine the rock structure
around these places they show the evidence of mighty upheaval.
And what does the earthquake mean? Well you remember that at the
fall the ground was cursed because of sin but now what has been
cursed is shaken by the death of the Saviour. When Jesus was on
the cross He was forever shaking that which had been cursed. And
he was shaking the curse that was upon man because he was providing
a way by which that curse might be overcome.
And do you know what else he was doing? He was providing a way
by which hard hearts might be broken. It is interesting that the
Bible likens the hardness of men against the gospel to having
stony hearts. Ezekiel prophesied of a day when I will take
the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart
of flesh I want you to see that God can rend the rocky condition
of your heart. He can melt the hardness of sinners against him.
There are many who have sat unmoved ayt the gospel but suddenly
that hard heart has turned into a heart of flesh and the arrows
of conviction have lodged. The cross brings a melting and a rending
of stony hearts. It is my job to preach the cross and point you
to the cross but you will never come to that cross until your
stony heart has been melted and broken. DAvid said A broken
and a contrite heart O Lord thou wilt not despise. There needs
to be a breaking of your heart because until you are broken and
leave behind your pride and your self sufficiency you are never
going to be saved
D. The Resurrection of the dead. (Matthew 27: 52-53)
Look at verses 52 and 53 And the graves were opened; and many
bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves
after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared
unto many. Graves or sepulchres were most commonly in solid
rock or caves. The rending of rocks would therefore lay them open.
According to the usual punctuation of the verse it seems that
the dead were quickened to life at Our Lord's death and then remained
in the tombs till the resurrection but it is probably more natural
that at the earthquake the graves were opened in preparation for
the Spirit of life which came into them when the Lord was risen.
The actual meaning of the words in Matthew can mean either thing.
But the symbolism is plain that at the death of Christ there was
victory over death and the grave. He liberated from death. The
whole meaning of the cross is victory over death and the whole
significance of the resureection. You know in many ways this miracle
ilustrates the condition of man. You think of the bodies of men
in thiose tombs . They are dead. Oh yes they may be in beautiful
tombs carved out of the rocks but they are dead. How like many
people that is. They are dead in trespasses and sin. They may
have surrounded themselves with the trappings of a beautiful sepulchre,
They may be a Church goer or a very moral person. They may have
guilded up the tomb a bit but they are still dead. But then there
comes the cross and at the cross the tomb is opened and what is
exposed- death. The cross shows men what they are. But what happens
next? Life is imparted. They who had been dead lived. That is
the power of the cross . It certainly brings life to the dead.
And what happened then. Those who had life came out of the tombs
and where did they go to? They went into the Holy City. Where
are those who are saved going? They are going to the heavenly
city. They arte going to a city which eye hath eye hath never
seen. And how do they get there. By the cross. Tell me have you
been brought out of the grave of death by the cross? Are you on
the road to the heavenly Jerusalem? Get on that road today by
putting your trust in the Saviour.