Day 161: The Crucifixion of Christ (2024)

This episode delves deeply into the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, reflecting on the significance and emotional weight of these events as depicted in the Gospel of Mark.

1. The crucifixion is a pivotal event that demonstrates both the cost of human sin and the depth of God's love.
2. Jesus' sufferings were endured out of love, highlighting his sacrificial nature.
3. The resurrection signifies hope and renewal, affirming the victory over death and sin.
4. The episode emphasizes the importance of reflection on personal sinfulness and the redemption offered by Christ.
5. Psalm 22 is used to draw parallels between David's sufferings and Christ's, emphasizing prophecy and fulfillment.

1: Introduction and Setting

Fr. Mike introduces the episode, outlining the reading plan and the transition in the Bible timeline. He sets the stage for the final discussions on the Gospel of Mark. Fr. Mike Schmitz: "Today it is day 161...we conclude the Gospel of St. Mark."

2: The Crucifixion Narrated

Fr. Mike narrates the crucifixion, detailing the trial before Pilate, the mocking from the soldiers, and Jesus' death on the cross. Fr. Mike Schmitz: "And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them to decide what each should take."

3: Reflection on Suffering and Love

The host reflects on the theological implications of the crucifixion, emphasizing the dual themes of suffering caused by sin and the redemptive power of love. Fr. Mike Schmitz: "It is not the nails that kept Jesus on the cross. It's his love for you."

4: The Resurrection and Commission

The resurrection is discussed, along with the appearances of Jesus post-resurrection and his instructions to the disciples. Fr. Mike Schmitz: "He has risen from the dead for you and for me."

5: Closing Thoughts and Prayer

Fr. Mike concludes with a prayer and a call for listeners to internalize the episode's messages, transforming their understanding and relationship with God. Fr. Mike Schmitz: "So, Father, please, send your Holy Spirit upon us right now..."

1. Reflect daily on the personal implications of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.
2. Engage in regular scripture reading to better understand the depth of God’s love and sacrifice.
3. Incorporate prayer into daily life to foster a deeper connection with God.
4. Share the story of Jesus' love and sacrifice with others as a form of evangelism.
5. Meditate on the themes of redemption and transformation, applying them to personal challenges and adversities.

Fr. Mike finishes the gospel of Mark by reflecting on the death and resurrection of Christ. He also encourages us to reflect on the redemption of our own sins every time we see a crucifix and to return that same sacrificial love to God every day. Today's readings are Mark 15-16 and Psalm 22.

People

Jesus Christ, Mary Magdalene, Pilate, Simon of Cyrene, the centurion, Joseph of Arimathea

Content Warnings:

None

Fr. Mike Schmitz
Hi, my name is Fr. Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to the Bible in a year podcast where we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of scripture. The Bible in a year podcast is brought to you by ascension using the great adventure Bible timeline. We'll read all the way from Genesis to revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story. Today it is day 161.

Day 161. It is the final day of the Gospel of St. Mark, our second messianic checkpoint. So we are reading from the Gospel of Mark, chapter 15 and chapter 16. We're also continuing to pray with the psalms, and today we're going to pray.

It's our last day, in fact, of praying with the psalms for, I don't know, a little over a week. We're praying with psalm 22. As always. The Bible translation that I'm reading from is the revised standard Version, second catholic edition. I'm using the great Adventure Bible from Ascension.

If you want to download your own Bible in a year reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com bibleina year. If you did, you would know that starting tomorrow, not only are we going to the divided kingdom, a new time period in the great adventure Bible timeline, the time period of the divided kingdom, we're going to be reading one kings, twelve. We're also continuing with two chronicles, chapters ten and eleven. We're also praying song of Solomon, chapter one tomorrow. So a lot of chapters going on tomorrow, four chapters tomorrow, but today, just two chapters in Mark and one psalm today.

If you want to subscribe to your podcast, you can subscribe to this podcast by clicking on subscribe if that option is available to you. If it's not, well, let's just carry on and continue with day 161 as we pray conclude the Gospel of St. Mark and reading chapters 15 and 16. And we pray psalm 22, the Gospel of St. Mark, chapter 15.

Jesus before Pilate. And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests with the elders and scribes and the whole council held a consultation, and they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him to Pilate. And Pilate asked him, are you the king of the Jews? And he answered him, you have said so. And the chief priests accused him of many things.

And Pilate again asked him, have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you. But jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate wondered, Pilate delivers Jesus to be crucified now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked, and among the rebels in prison who had committed murder in the insurrection. There was a man called Barabbas. And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he always did for them.

And he answered them, do you want me to release for you the king of the Jews? For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead. And Pilate again said to them, then, what shall I do with the man whom you call the king of the Jews? And they cried out again, crucify him.

And Pilate said to them, why? What evil has he done? But they shouted all the more, crucify him. So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them barabbas. And having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

The soldiers mocked jesus. And the soldiers led him away inside the palace that is the praetorium. And they called together the whole battalion. And they clothed him in a purple cloak and plating a crown of thorns. They put it on him, and they began to salute him.

Hail, king of the Jews. And they struck his head with a reed and spat upon him. And they knelt down in homage to him. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him.

The crucifixion of Jesus. 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. And they brought him to the place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull. And they offered him wine, mingled with myrrh. But he did not take it.

And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them to decide what each should take. And it was the third hour when they crucified him. And the inscription of the charge against him read, the king of the Jews. And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. And those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, aha, you who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself and come down from the cross.

So also the chief priests mocked him to one another with the scribes, saying, he saved others. He cannot save himself. 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. The death of Jesus.

And when the 6th hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the 9th hour. And at the 9th hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, eloi, eloi, Lama Sabakthani. Which means, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? And some of the bystanders hearing it, said, behold, he is calling Elijah. And one ran and filling a sponge full of vinegar, 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.

And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion who stood facing him saw that he thus breathed his last, he said, truly this man was the son of God. There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James the younger, and of Joses and Salome, who, when he was in Galilee, followed him and ministered to him. And also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.

The burial of Jesus. And when evening had come, since it was the day of preparation, that is the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. And Pilate wondered if he were already dead. And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead. And when he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph.

And he bought a linen shroud. And taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of Joses, saw where he was laid. Chapter 16.

The last chapter. The resurrection of Jesus. And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they were saying to one another, who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?

And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back, for it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe. And they were amazed. And he said to them, do not be amazed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.

He has risen. He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him as he told you.

And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene now. When he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him as they mourned and wept.

But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it. Jesus appears to two disciples. After this, he appeared in another form to two of them as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. Jesus commissions the disciples.

Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they sat at table, and he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved, but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who in my name they will cast out demons, they will speak in new tongues, they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.

The ascension of Jesus. So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the message by the signs that attended it. Amen.

Psalm 22. Plea for deliverance from suffering and hostility to the choirmaster, according to the hynd of the dawn. A psalm of David. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me?

From the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night but find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted. They trusted, and you delivered them.

To you they cried and were saved. In you they trusted and were not disappointed. But I am a worm, and no man scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock at me, they make mouths at me, they wag their heads. He committed his cause to the Lord.

Let him deliver him, let him rescue him, for he delights in him yet you are he who took me from my mother's womb. You kept me safe upon my mother's breasts. Upon you I was cast from my birth. And since my mother bore me, you have been my God. Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is none to help.

Many bulls encompass me. Strong bulls of Bashan surround me. They open wide their mouths at me like a ravening and roaring lion. I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax.

It is melted within my chest. My strength is dried up like the potsherd, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws. You lay me in the dust of death. Yes. Dogs are round about me.

A company of evildoers encircle me. They have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.

But you, o lord, be not far off. O my help, hasten to my aid. Deliver my soul from the sword, my life from the power of the dog. Save me from the mouth of the lion, my afflicted soul from the horns of the wild oxen. I will tell of your name to my brethren in the midst of the congregation.

I will praise you, you who fear the Lord, praise him. All you sons of Jacob, glorify him and stand in awe of him, all you sons of Israel. For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted. And he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard when he cried to him, from you comes my praise. In the great congregation, my vows.

I will pay before those who fear him. The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied. Those who seek him shall praise the Lord. May your hearts live forever. All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord.

And all the families of the nations shall worship before him. For dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations. Yes, to him shall all the proud of the earth bow down. Before him shall bow all who go down to the dust. And he who cannot keep himself alive, posterity shall serve him.

Men shall tell of the Lord to the coming generation and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn that he has wrought it.

Father in heaven, we give you praise. We thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you for giving us your son. Thank you for giving us hope.

Because in the face of our own deaths, in the face of our own suffering and pain, in the face of our own sin, we have no hope if we are on our own. But, Lord God, you have sent your son to bear our sin. You sent your son to transform our suffering. And you have sent your son to redeem the power of death, to conquer the power of death, and to transform it, to redeem death, so that now death is no longer the enemy, but death is our mother, and she gives birth to us in your presence. She brings us from this world into the next.

She brings us from this life into eternal life with you. And that's only possible because of your love, Father, because of the love of your son, Jesus Christ, and what he did for us, what he has done for us, and how he continues to with you. Send the Holy Spirit to be with us this day and every day. So, Father, please, send your holy spirit upon us right now and transform in our hearts what needs to be transformed, to bring to life what is dead, heal what is broken, and forgive. Please, Lord God, forgive what is needing forgiveness.

In Jesus name we pray. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Ah, so here we are on the last day of Mark's Gospel.

And obviously it's a sobering gospel. It's obviously these last two chapters, chapters 15 and 16. Even in the resurrection, there's something about just like the gospel, Gospel of Mark here, as we know, it's the gospel of Peter as told to Mark as Mark has captured it and has given it to the church here. But there's this element here in chapters 15 and 16 that is sober. It's somber, and that's fitting, right?

The recognition that here is God himself, who undergoes our pain. He takes upon himself our sin and takes upon himself the death that belongs to us, and he allows it to overwhelm him intentionally because of love. We look up at the crucifix. You know, as Catholics, we have crucifixes, and that's different than a cross because there's a corpus on the crucifix, and we don't keep the corpus, you know, the body, the image of Jesus on the corpus, because we're keeping him on the cross. Not at all.

What that image is meant to do is meant to remind us of at least two things. First is it reminds us of the devastating effects of sin, right? The recognition that when we look upon Jesus on the cross, what we're looking at is. We're looking at. No, this is what sin costs.

Like, this is. This is what sin does to us. Sin cost the very life of God himself when God became incarnate when God became one of us for our sins, this is what that meant. That's what it cost. And so what it should do when we look at the crucifix, is, first of all, pierce our hearts and say, oh, my gosh, that's my sin up there.

Those are my sins on the cross. And that's why we have the corpus. There's. At the same time, it's not the depth to which Jesus suffered that redeems us. It's the depth to which he loved us.

So the second thing that the crucifix reminds us of is the very unstoppable and absolutely faithful love of God, the self giving love of God, the self sacrificing, sacrificial love of God. That man. Not only do we look at, yeah, that's what my sin costs. But we say, but that is the price. That God believes that I'm worth, which is ridiculous.

Which is ridiculous. That God believes that you are worth the death of his son, that the son of God believes that you are worth his own suffering and death. And it's not. It is not the nails that kept Jesus on the cross. It's his love for you.

And it's not even our sins that kept him on the cross. It is his love for you. And it's just. It blows my mind. It just.

It is overwhelming to be loved like that. Can you imagine? To be loved like that. That's how you are loved. And so Jesus says these words.

The one thing I just want to comment on is he says the words, eloi, eloi le ma sabakthani, which. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? And many people are like, wait, what? God experienced this? God experienced the abandonment of God.

And Jesus wasn't abandoned by God. He, yes, entered into the depths, entered into darkness, and maybe even had the experience of being abandoned by God, even though he knew he wasn't. God never abandons, but he was capturing that first line of psalm 22. And as we look at psalm 22, and we prayed it this morning or whenever. You're listening to this, not only are the words, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

But also we have. I cry by day, but you answer, and by night, by find no rest. You know, Jesus has been awake days and night this whole time. It talks about, he says, I'm scorned by men, despised by the people. That's what's happening right now.

All who see me mock at me, they make mouths at me. They wag their heads exactly what is happening here. As Jesus is on the cross saying, like, he committed his cause to the Lord, let him deliver him. That's what they say to him. Let him come down from the cross and we'll believe him.

Then he goes on to say that not only am I poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint. You know, it's likely if you've ever watched the passion, that. That they dislocated the joints, the shoulder joints, in order to fit them into this crucifixion shape there. Not only that, my tongue cleaves to my jaws. When was the last time Jesus had a drink of water?

At this point, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. Like, this is so ridiculously connected to a prediction, a prophecy of the crucifixion that is just overwhelming. And yet we know that Jesus saying, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? It's not just him capturing the first line.

He's capturing the entire psalm. Yes, with being rejected, yes, being surrounded by foes and yes, being unable to sleep and yes, being disjointed and yes, having holes in his hands and his feet, but also his people. Yes. But also saying that posterity shall serve him and men shall tell of the Lord to the coming generation and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn. And that's the end of the story, right?

Is the resurrection the end of the story is not the crucifixion. The end of the story is God does this out of love for us because our sins are. Are the price of this is the wages of sin, is death. And Jesus took that death upon himself. That was not the end.

The end of the psalm also just praises the Lord. And for generations to come, they will declare what God has done. And here we get chapter 16 in the resurrection of Jesus, and we get to declare what God has done for his people. He has not merely died for them, he has risen from the dead for them. He's not merely died for you and for me.

He has risen from the dead for you and for me. And so we give him praise on this last day of the second messianic checkpoint, this last day of the gospel of mark. We just give God thanks and praise, and we pray for each other that we can receive this love, that we can receive the grace and we can receive him. Now I'm praying for you. Please, please pray for me.

Pray for each other. My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.