In Mark 15:1-20 we come to the final hours of our Lord Jesus as he stands at The Stone Pavement on trial before Pilate.

It is a part of Mark’s gospel familiar to Christians and non-Christians alike. And thus we must recognize that danger lurks in these pages. The danger is that such familiarity constrains our ability to be freshly affected. Spurgeon, when preaching on this text, said, “I hope that you will not be wearied with this subject. If so, it will be the fault of the preacher, for the subject is always full and fresh. Or if the preacher is not to blame, there will be something of censure due to his hearers. If we grow tired of the story of the Cross it will be a sad indication of secret soul-sickness.”¹

In God’s good kindness He calls us to look to His word so that our soul-sickness and soul-slumber might be exposed.

THE SOUL’S ALARM CLOCK

For have you ever considered how much the truth of God’s word is like a spiritual alarm clock for the soul? Through His work God speaks and summons us to life and joy because of Christ’s sacrifice. He calls us to wake up! And the sound of this alarm in Mark 15:1-20 has two primary beats on which I want to meditate as we close.

The Stone Pavement calls for reckoning with Christ. We see in Pilate the reality that fascination with Jesus doesn’t equal faith. He is amazed and interested at Jesus, but when the cries of the worldly crowd get loud he figures its time to be done with the supposed king. Some of you like Pilate and the crowd need to reckon with the truths of Christ. He is no mere man to be amazed at, He is the King who demands your faithful allegiance. Every day the enemy of mankind and Lord of mankind call you to a reckoning, whom will you follow? False saviors that make promises they never can fulfill or the Savior who Himself is the greatest promise? Let your reckoning with Christ then lead to the second sound.

The Stone Pavement calls for thanksgiving in Christ. I’ve always wondered what Barabbas did the rest of that Good Friday. Did he make the walk up to Calvary later that afternoon and watch as the Christ was crucified in his place between his friends? Or did he walk away only to give occasional thought to the man who was his substitute? Church, let us acknowledge that so often we do the latter. We walk away from the glorious substitution of Christ and only infrequently remember what He did. Oh, but the every time the gospel is announced it is like a Thanksgiving holiday for the soul! The church’s corporate gathering is a weekly summons to consistent thanksgiving, for it is here we sing and hear the good news. And is there any greater ground for gratitude than this gospel of substitution?

He took the accusation.

He took the condemnation.

He took the humiliation.

And gave you salvation.

Hear the King’s silence before Pilate, see the King’s substitution for Barabbas, feel the King’s shame at the battalion’s mockery, and come to a reckoning with Christ that leads you to thanksgiving in Christ. What joyful news we have and herald: The Son was shamed for sinners.

The post is adapted from my recent sermon, “The Savior’s Sentence.”

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