Mark 15:21-41
21 And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. 22 And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. 25 And it was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27 And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. 29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.
33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 35 And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.” 36 And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” 37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”
40 There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.
Reflection
When Jesus dies (Mark 15:37), the curtain in the temple is torn in two (v. 38). This means that the death of Jesus gives his followers direct access to the Most Holy Place —that is, we can now come into the very presence of God (Heb. 9:24). Because of Christ’s sacrifice, those who trust in Jesus have personal access to the God of the universe!
It is important for the followers of Christ to spend time considering the sacrificial death of Jesus as God’s judgment for our sin. This should deeply humble us. Our sin is so horrific that it requires the torture and murder of God’s own divine Son to save us. The death of Jesus exposes the seriousness of our spiritual sickness and the depth of our human rebellion against God. As we reflect on these things, God changes us from the inside out. As we consider the message of God’s grace we become the humanity that God intended us to be. Now we can live our lives in dependence on and devotion to him.
Galatians 4:8-11
8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? 10 You observe days and months and seasons and years! 11 I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.
Reflection
Prior to their initial conversion to Christianity, the Galatians had been enslaved to idols (Gal. 4:8–9). The reference to days, months, seasons, and years (v. 10) indicates their former lifestyle as worshipers of fertility gods. Paul is concerned that they are now returning to a new type of slavery, though it is strikingly similar to their old way of life. Because of the influence of the false teachers, the Galatians are now obligating themselves to keep the annual Jewish feasts in order to gain God’s full acceptance.
The sinful human heart has a stubborn tendency to make efforts to secure God’s favor by means of personal performance. The gospel calls us to reject all attempts to contribute to the accomplishment of our salvation. Christ has achieved everything for us already.
Psalm 25:8-9
8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. 9 He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.
As the torn curtain in the temple indicates (Mark 15:38), our access to God has been secured by the death of Christ. Pray for those in your life who are resistant to the gospel and ask God to open their eyes to see that Christ has made a way for us to come into the presence of God.