Amelia Church of Christ - Christian Church in Amelia, OH near Cincinnati in Clermont County

If you have your Bibles with you, you can open them to John 19. This is message #3 in our series called Dying to Live. In this series, we’re listening to the seven statements that Jesus made while he was on the cross. More and more, we are finding that Jesus’ last words before his death are actually all about calling us into a more significant, God-honoring life. Jesus was dying for us to live.

This morning as we hear Jesus’ third statement from the cross, we’ll see a very compassionate side of Jesus. But this morning we’re going to focus more on the setting of this statement than on the words themselves. As Jesus was speaking, what was happening around him? We’ll see that, in the midst of Jesus’ compassion, nearly everyone sold him out. Almost everyone that was close to Jesus left him when he needed them the most.

Let’s pick up the story in John 19:25. “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.” (John 19:25-27)

We have learned earlier in this series that there was quite a crowd present at Jesus’ crucifixion. In this brutal culture, crucifixions were a big event. People would come out in droves to watch crucifixions. They would pack picnic lunches and bring their families to spend the day watching as the victims were beaten and tortured, and then to watch as they died this very slow, agonizing death. It was a brutal culture to live in. We know that there were a lot of people at the crucifixion of Jesus. Most were there to insult and make fun of him. This is why people came to crucifixions. This was the sport of it. This is what made it fun. Insulting and making fun of the victims. Jesus’ crucifixion was no different. The huge crowd was there to mock. Only five were there to mourn. This group of mourners consisted of 1. Mary, the mother of Jesus, 2. Jesus’ aunt (we’re not told her name), 3. Mary, the wife of Clopas, 4. Mary Magdalene, 5. and the disciple whom Jesus loved (most likely John, who wrote this account that we’re talking about today).

When Jesus said, “Here is your son,” and “Here is your mother,” it was an incredible demonstration of love and compassion. But let’s go a little deeper. This is more than a heart wrenching scene between a mother and her dying son. As you look at the setting of this particular scene from the crucifixion, you figure out that it is a scene that begs a question. Why were there only five compassionate mourners present? Why were there only five people who loved Jesus present at his death? Why only five? Jesus touched hundreds, if not thousands, of lives. Where were they? Jesus had 12 disciples. Why was only one present at the cross?

There’s a tragic verse that gives us a lot of insight into this in Matthew 26. Jesus had just been arrested by a mob, armed with swords and clubs. As they were leading Jesus away to this kangaroo court where he would stand trial, Jesus turned around to look for his disciples, the ones who had sworn never to leave his side. And Matthew 26:56 tells us, “…all the disciples deserted him and fled.” (NIV)

Out of the 12 disciples, and out of the multitude of people that Jesus touched, taught, and healed, a grand total of five were at the cross. Why? To answer that question, we have to look at the cross through new eyes. We have to step back in time and look at the offensive cross. When we think of something that is offensive, we think of Howard Stern. That, to us, is offensive. But the cross isn’t. The cross does not offend us. After all, it’s the central symbol of our faith. But it wasn’t always that way. The cross was not the central symbol of the church in its earliest years, because it was too offensive. It wasn’t until the 4th century, after the Roman government had made crucifixion illegal, that the church began to mark itself with the cross. What makes the cross so offensive? Why was the cross so offensive that so many people in Jesus’ life didn’t even want to be near it? I think there are at least three reasons.

First of all, the cross was a disappointment. One of my favorite TV shows is Everybody Loves Raymond. If you’re familiar with the show, you know the two brothers, Robert and Raymond. Raymond is the golden boy for his parents, and Robert consistently gets the shaft. There’s a great scene in one episode where Robert is recalling one Christmas when they were kids. Robert only wanted one thing: a hotwheels racetrack. He didn’t care if he got anything else, as long as he got this hotwheels racetrack. Christmas morning came and Robert watched as his brother Ray opened up a hotwheels racetrack. When Robert opened his gift, he found that Santa had left him a pair of orthopedic corrective shoes. This was the kind of disappointment that plagued Robert his entire life.

We’ve all experienced disappointments like that, but when we’re talking about how people felt about Jesus’ crucifixion, we’re talking disappointment on a mammoth scale. It was huge.

During Jesus’ lifetime, the Jewish people lived under the rule of the Roman Empire. The Romans ruled over the Jews with an iron fist. They taxed them, they beat them, they put them into slavery. So as the Jews are living under this oppression from the Romans, Jesus comes on the scene. And Jesus was preaching and teaching about the kingdom of God. But a lot of people never heard the words “of God.” They just heard Jesus talking about a new kingdom. In other words, they believed that Jesus was talking about a political kingdom. They thought that Jesus was going to overthrow the Romans. And instead, he was executed by the Romans.

Why was the cross so offensive? Why did so many of Jesus’ followers bail out on him? Because the cross was an incredible disappointment. Jesus didn’t live up to their expectations, so they abandoned him.

What do we do when Jesus disappoints us? Some of you are probably even uncomfortable with the question. It sounds sinful, even sacrilegious, to suggest that Jesus can disappoint us. But if you follow Jesus long enough, I guarantee you that he’ll disappoint you.

I have a love/hate relationship with computers. I love what I can do with them. I hate that I am so dependent on them. I remember one particular incident in my youth ministry days. I was really plugging away at my message for my students. I had almost finished the whole thing, but I neglected to remember computer 101. Save your work. As I was putting the finishing touches on my message, the power in my office went out. People all throughout the building heard me as I screamed, “No!” When the power came back on, I tried frantically to recover my work, but it was gone. Never to be seen again. I was angry, and frustrated, and very disappointed.

A lot of us tend to equate God with some kind of computer. You push the right buttons and God does exactly what you want him to do. But we all know that there are times when a computer doesn’t work that way. And we’re surprised, frustrated, angry and disappointed when we figure out that God doesn’t work that way, either.

How do you react in those times when God doesn’t live up to your expectations? The doctor tells you that the cancer has returned. The big investment you were so sure of crashes down around you. You learn the devastating news that your husband or wife is having an affair. You pray and pray for someone you love to be healed, but they still die. You said and did all the right things. You pushed all the right buttons, but God seems to have failed you.

A couple of weeks ago, I was talking with Brian, our youth/worship minister. We were talking about a Christian artist named Jeremy Camp. Jeremy is actually from the Indiana area where Nicki and I used to live, so I know his story well. Jeremy’s music is great, but his story is unbelievable. Jeremy Camp is a young guy and he had just married this beautiful, young woman. And then, his newlywed wife died of cancer. And Jeremy says in his testimony that, the moment his wife died, God commanded him to worship. Brian and I both said that we’re not sure we could have done that. Could we have actually worshiped God in the midst of this kind of heartbreak? Could we have stuck with God in the middle of this incredible disappointment?

Almost all of Jesus’ friends and followers abandoned him because they were disappointed in him. He let them down. He let them down because they misunderstood why he came. He didn’t come to overthrow the Romans, and He didn’t come to promise that our lives would be walk in the park. I saw a local church sign a few weeks ago that said, “Being a Christian makes life easier.” I know what they’re trying to say, but there are times when that is just not true! There are times when life stinks. Jesus came to give us life, but not an easy life. But if the people would have stuck by Jesus’ side even though they were disappointed, they would have found that, in fact, Jesus was offering them something better than a new government. He was offering them life forever in the presence of God. If they could endure the disappointment, there was a bigger and better prize waiting for them. And nothing has changed. If we can trust Jesus in the hard times, if we can endure the disappointments, the promise is that there is something better ahead.

There is a second reason that a lot of people left Jesus when he was about to be crucified. The cross was a sign of defeat. Crucifixion was a means of execution that Romans used often, but did you know that it was illegal for Romans to crucify their own citizens unless they betrayed the Roman government? Crucifixion was reserved for foreigners that the Romans didn’t even believe were fully human…like the Jews…and like Jesus.

We talked about how brutal the Romans were to the Jewish people. Well, it’s not surprising that every once in a while, a group of Jews would get together and say, “Hey, we don’t like living like this. Let’s do something about it. Let’s rebel!” So they would organize a rebel movement, they would have their guerilla fighters, and they would begin their revolution. And every time this type of rebellion would begin, the Roman government would unleash the full force of its military and the revolt would be crushed. And for the rebels who were captured, there was a special punishment reserved for them…crucifixion. We know of times where the Romans crucified as many as 2,000 rebels at one time, all up and down the roads of Palestine. Do you see why a lot of people would run the other way when Jesus was arrested? They didn’t want to be associated with the revolution that Jesus has started because crucifixion was a sign that the movement had been defeated.

Now, with this in mind, let’s think about one of Jesus’ most frequently quoted sayings. In Matthew 10:38, Jesus said, “…anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (NIV) In 21st century America, we hear these words very differently than a 1st century Jew would have heard them. We wear the cross as jewelry. We put it on t-shirts. Some of you are wearing crosses right now. We use it as decorations in our churches. Years ago, knights would put a cross on their shields as they went to battle. We see the cross as a beautiful symbol of victory. But to the people of Jesus’ day, it was exactly the opposite. One preacher said that the cross wasn’t about victors going out to battle. It was about losers who got caught.

When Jesus tells us to pick up our cross and follow him, understand what he was saying. Mark Moore is a professor at Ozark Christian College, and he describes it this way. When Jesus said pick up your cross and follow me, he was saying, “If you want to follow me, get in line and join the revolution that has already failed.”

The cross was a sign of defeat. That’s why people left Jesus at his crucifixion and that’s why people still leave him today. To follow Jesus, you’ve got to become a loser. Think about the message of the gospel. To live for God, we have to die to ourselves. To become the greatest, you must become a servant. We are called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Our priorities are backwards from those of our culture. We live in a culture that worships winners.

All of you will recognize this as the Swoosh logo. It’s the logo for the Nike Company. In ancient Greek mythology, Nike was the goddess of victory. The word Nike was always synonymous with victory and winning. They chose this as the name of the company because they know that we worship winners and we want to be winners.

But to follow Jesus, you are called to be a loser in every way that our world evaluates winners and losers. But the mystery of God is that his kingdom is an upside-down, topsy-turvy kingdom. By losing, we win. By dying, we live. Ted Turner has said that Christianity is a religion for losers. Actually, he’s right. By his standards, but our entire culture’s standards, following Jesus makes you a loser. Serve instead of take? Forgive instead of get even? That’s what it means to be a backwards, upside-down follower of Jesus. The question is, are you willing to be a failure, to be a loser, in the eyes of your friends and your culture? Because that’s what it means to take up your cross and follow Jesus.

There is a third reason that Jesus was abandoned by nearly everyone who had followed him at one time. The cross demands a decision. We can be pretty indecisive at times. My wife, Nicki, and I don’t fight very often. But I’ll tell you when we do fight: when we’re going out to dinner. We fight because neither one of us wants to pick the place. We might as well stay home and eat. But that wouldn’t work either because neither of us would want to decide what to cook!

A lot of us are like that in our lives. We’re indecisive. We think that something better may come along, so we don’t like to make commitments. We want to keep our options open. But the cross doesn’t allow for that. The cross demands a decision.

Did you ever wonder why God didn’t just create us like robots? Why didn’t he design us so that we could only do whatever he wanted us to do? The reason he didn’t create us like that is because real love involves choice. Real love is a decision. God wants us to love him by choosing him. That’s why he chose us.

Last week, we talked about the fact that Jesus didn’t have to die. He could have stopped it. At any point, Jesus could have said, “That’s enough. I’m done.” But instead, He decided to suffer and he decided to die. He made a conscious, intentional decision to give his life for you and for me. And this decision of Jesus demands a decision from us.

Sure, it demands a first-time commitment to Christ. But after that, it still demands a decision. The cross demands that we make a decision everyday of our lives. Everyday we have to decide if we will stick with God, even if he disappoints us. Everyday we have to decide if we’re willing to be a loser in the eyes of our culture and our friends.

Why did so many people walk away from the cross? For the very same reason that many still do today. The cross demands a decision to trust God when it doesn’t make sense, to live by his standards instead of my own, to serve when I would rather be served, to give when I would rather take, to forgive when I would rather get revenge, to live for his glory instead of my own, and to be a loser instead of a winner. This is why the cross is so offensive to so many people. It demands decisions from us that we don’t want to make.

And yet, it is these very decisions that hold the key for a life that is more significant, more meaningful, and more hopeful. These decisions that are demanded of us call us into a life that is lived with an eternal perspective instead of a here-and-now perspective. So the only question that remains for us is what will we decide?

Think about the words you’re about to sing. I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back. I have made a conscious, intentional decision to follow Jesus and I’m not turning back. The world is behind me and the cross is before me. My friends and my culture may think I’m a loser, but I’m not turning back. The cross demands a decision from each one of us. What will you decide?

Mike Edmisten