"..he will be raised up alive" - Matthew 20:17-19 (MSG)

What I find striking about this passage of scripture is how ‘matter of fact’ Jesus is about what is going to happen, everything is scripted out in detail, and He is determined to play His part.  

The destiny of all mankind is hanging in the balance as Jesus is telling His followers (His students) as they are traveling to Jerusalem the details of His plan.

The whole purpose of Jesus coming to earth was hidden (or misdirected) on purpose, so the established principalities and powers that existed on earth would not see or understand the meaning for His arrival and attempt to make Him a physical King.  

Jesus appearing on earth as an embodied human was not unprecedented, but to go through the birth process and development as a child to become an adult even though He was eternal (a celestial), it was unusual in the extreme.  

Why would God stoop so low as to become like one of His creations?

“For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life. Here’s the point. God didn’t send His Son into the world to judge it; instead, He is here to rescue a world headed toward certain destruction. “ 
John 3:16-17 (VOICE)

The principalities and powers that existed during Jesus' ministry were in the heavenlies long before humankind was ever created.  These celestials who had previously existed with God in heaven served Him faithfully, were appointed as the guardians over humanity after Adam fell, but over time they became corrupt and rebelled against God and against humanity they were appointed to protect.                                                                                     

God created humanity to be imagers of Himself and spread the message of God's love throughout the world before Adam fell.  Now there was a plan afoot spearheaded by Satan to decimate humanity and keep God’s vision for humankind from ever becoming what they were intended to become. 

Jesus knew of the ancient law of sacrificial pardon which would have to be enacted; it was essential to distract the divisive demonic powers just enough to get the job done without them knowing that He had bested them.
 

Satan (Lucifer) knew of the old ways; he was (and is) very smart and crafty.  He just assumed that Jesus was temporarily visiting the earth to see His creation firsthand.  Satan thought it was a perfect opportunity to destroy Jesus and put an end to the God charade (as he saw it) and kill the heir apparent to the throne.

Even though the Old Testament spoke about Jesus and what was to happen to Him in detail, it was hidden (or veiled) from direct view.  With Jesus now on the scene, it was a matter of keeping everyone’s eyes focused on Him so that the people would respond to Him and not see how He was fulfilling prophecy.  

Jesus’ entire ministry was about misdirection; it was purposeful so as not to draw the attention of the principalities and powers and keep Him from being killed.

 “We speak of God’s hidden and mysterious wisdom that God decided to use for our glory long before the world began. The rulers of this world didn’t know anything about this wisdom. If they had known about it, they would not have nailed the glorious Lord to a cross.” 
1 Corinthians 2:7-8 (CEV)

Jesus truly wanted to incite people to kill him, so He spoke in terms which challenged established reasoning. He had become a spiritual insurgent.  

Jesus’ students didn’t fully understand what was happening with Him, but somehow they knew that He had the words of truth and life.

It's an exciting and yet a tragic story to see Jesus seemingly die a paupers’ death on a Romans cross, but in reality, even though He was God, He needed to die as a man to pay the penalty of sin for all men. His death visits that law of sacrificial pardon, but in this case, once for all humanity.  

Jesus knew that the only way to redeem all of humankind was to stand-in for all humanity and sacrifice Himself by leading a sinless life.  That was the price!  

Hebrews 12:2 makes it clear that Jesus had this agenda that was planned even before the world began, He would physically become our salvation.

“Now stay focused on Jesus, who designed and perfected our faith. He endured the cross and ignored the shame of that death because He focused on the joy that was set before Him; and now He is seated beside God on the throne, a place of honor.” 
Hebrews 12:2 (VOICE)

 Another fantastic part of faith is realizing that Jesus is the one who designed (authored or created) our faith.  Initially, our faith is described as a grain of mustard seed like the picture on the left; our faith has potential but is not alive until it is planted in the ground and dies and is eventually reborn.  It is Jesus who then imputes His faith within us that expands, grows, and matures this faith within us that we may trust him to accomplish everything He has started in us and see it through unto its inevitable completion.

“And I live, now not I; but Christ liveth in me. And that I live now in the flesh: I live in the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered himself for me.” 
Galatians 2:20 (DRA)

This now becomes the tragic horror and the immeasurable beauty of the cross of Jesus.  He now becomes everything to us because He planned this from the beginning of time. He becomes our all-encompassing salvation in everything.

“Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.” 
Colossians 3:11 (MSG)

Jesus died for everyone, not just Jewish people or Christian people, He did for all people that we may live!

Be Blessed;

Stephen Barnett