«For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him»
(2 Corinthians 5:21).
BARABBAS WAS A THIEF AND A MURDERER (see Mark 15:7; John 18:40), but when Pilate wanted to free Jesus, placing Him next to this vulgar criminal, the multitude preferred to free Barabbas, and to hand the Lord over to the soldiers to be whipped. What an exchange! What followed later cannot be described in words.
First, they mocked Him. «And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ » (Matthew 27:28, 29). Then they spat on His face and, with a reed, they struck Him on the head. Finally, after making fun of Him, He was taken away to be crucified (w. 30, 31). I wonder how the heavenly angels reacted as they contemplated the cruelty which their beloved General was subjected to and His submissive manner as He allowed such humiliation. But the worst was yet to happen.
According to Dr. Siegfried H. Horn, an authority on biblical archaeology, crucifixion was throughout the ancient world «the most heinous, horrible, and shameful mode of execution,» reserved only for foreign criminals, runaway slaves, pirates, and political rebels of conquered nations. The condemned was first flogged with a flogging consisting of four or five lead balls joined by chains. Iron stingers came out of each ball, embedding into the bare back during the flogging, tearing the tissues and muscles. After flogging, the condemned man was to walk through the main streets carrying his cross. The final humiliation was stripping him of his clothes and hanging him on a cross.
Why did Jesus Christ have to suffer «the most heinous, most horrible, and most shameful method of execution»? Is sin so horrible that, in order to redeem us, the noblest and purest Being who has walked this earth had to die like a vulgar criminal? Yes, that’s how awful it is. But if His death served to show the enormity of sin, it also served to demonstrate how great and profound God’s love is. A love so great that the Innocent would be condemned, and the guilty freed, as indicated by today’s text: «For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.»
«Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves. «—The Desire of Ages, ch. 1, p. 25.
Thank You, dear Jesus, for agreeing to go through all the agony You went through, in order to save me, even though You were the Innocent One and I am the guilty one.
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2022
“GREAT IS OUR GOD!”
From: FERNANDO ZABALA
Collaborators: Xiomara Perdomo & Angelica Cuate
