“He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.” – Matthew 27:42
What a perfect illustration of how little the chief priests and scribes understood about Jesus and His purpose. In their mockery, they imagined that the ultimate demonstration that Jesus was the Christ would be for Him to simply hop off the cross and save His own life. That was never going to happen, because Jesus still had work to do and the cross was where that work had to be done!
On that cross, Jesus was bearing all the sins of the world, including yours. He was canceling our record of sin debt by paying for it Himself. Jesus was receiving all of God’s righteous wrath for our sins. He was writing a new covenant of grace and sealing it with His innocent blood. He was satisfying the demands of justice on that cross. Jesus couldn’t complete His ultimate purpose if He merely acted to save His own earthly life. Those religious leaders could think of no higher purpose in life than self-preservation. They couldn’t understand the sacrifice and love that held God’s Son on that cross more tightly than nails ever could!
Thankfully, Jesus understood perfectly. There was no real temptation here for Him that day. He’d already battled this particular temptation in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before. In this moment, He knew His mission and nothing could distract Him from it. He was there for love. He was there for grace. He was there for reconciliation. Thank you, Jesus for staying on that cross for us! #FollowJesus