Mark 15:1-14

On this day we remember a gruesome event in the history of mankind. It was a sad call for the execution of someone who had done nothing but good and showed nothing but love. It was the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

But why did this happen?

The Jewish religious authorities saw him as a threat, a threat to their own power and prestige. And as Tim Keller wrote, you don’t crucify nice guys, you crucify threats.

To them,

He was a threat to hypocrisy and vanity.
He was a threat to false worship.
He was a threat to oppression.
He was a threat to legalism.

Jesus was a threat to all that was (and still is) wrong with the world. His coming upset our lives and cultures. He forces us to take God into account and reckon properly with him. He compels us to question the very principles by which we live.

The irony of that day was that by killing Christ, they actually set him free to live in the hearts of people. All they feared he was doing as a single person he now does through the multitudes who have believed on him. His influence has grown beyond Palestine; it now shapes the farthest continent. Through him, not only have lives been changed, but the very meaning and purpose of life has been renewed.

And for that we can celebrate!