19 So the Pharisees said to one another, "See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!"
It never ceases to amaze me the lengths flesh will go to rid itself of Jesus. The Pharisees’ ploy to slyly arrest and kill our Lord appeared for a time not plausible due to His present popularity - leaving these Pharisees a bit perplexed and perhaps discouraged. They appear baffled and angry and at their wits end to see their plans so stymied. Their fear of an uprising of the crowds prevented them from seizing Him openly. Any attempt to use violence against our Lord would have certainly caused tumult and probably would have endangered their own lives as well - they surely did not want to go there! God caused them to wait for His “fullness of time” before their evil deed was accomplished. We find the following in Mark:
1 Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus and kill him. 2 "But not during the Feast," they said, "or the people may riot." Mark 14:1-2 (NIV)
The Pharisees order to denounce Jesus and have Him apprehended - for the time being - proved useless and unprofitable. God is certainly able to foil the plans of man is He not? It was God’s desire to draw the attention of the crowds towards Jesus in order to make His approaching sacrifice on the cross as public an event as possible. Unfortunately for these religious leaders, this was only a slight pause - a mere comma - in their depraved actions ultimately culminating in the crucifixion. Ironically, these leaders were crucifying the very One who was dying to save them.
On mission from heaven, sent to deal with humanities gravest problem – sin – Christ became the perfect sacrifice to take away the sins of the world. At the very core of all of humanities problems we will discover this one issue – sin – and only the cross of Christ can effectively deal with this grave problem. Sin is the impetus behind every action of death. When sin entered the world through the choice of our first mother and father – death entered the world. God tells Adam:
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." Gen 2:15-17 (NIV)
“Sin is the dare of God’s justice, the rape of His mercy, the jeer of His patience, the slight of His power, and the contempt of His love.” John Bunyan
People throughout history have offered a myriad of ideas for cures of humanities problems all grossly falling short of the mark. Humans constantly seek to handle the problem their way in lieu of God’s Way.
“Politicians, diplomats, scientists, and educators talk about the symptoms but they do everything possible to avoid dealing with the core of the problem – sinful humanity. The Bible makes it very clear. Sin stains our thinking. Sin colors our decision making. Sin impacts our words, our actions, and our emotions, and it affects our will. Sin cannot be eradicated by diplomacy, politics, education, or science – great as they may be. Only the Cross of Jesus Christ can truly deal with the core of humanity’s problem. The Cross of Jesus Christ is the true answer to humanity’s desperate need. The Cross gives hope to the hopeless. The Cross eradicates darkness. The Cross strengthens the weak. Only the Cross of Jesus Christ offers relief from the pain of sin and cleanses a guilty conscience. The Cross brings joy to the desperate. The Cross overcomes evil with good. The Cross alone leads us from death to life.” Michael Youssef
It is no wonder this was why the apostle Paul constantly preached the power of the cross. We find in 1 Corinthians:
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate." 20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. 1 Cor 1:17-25 (NIV)
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23 (NIV)