The Unwanted Messiah

Jesus is revealed as the Savior of Mankind in his sufferings and self-sacrificial death for others, including his enemies.

The inability of men to recognize Jesus as the Son of God until after his crucifixion is a key theme of the Gospel of Mark. Ironically, the first man who did so was the Roman centurion on duty at Christ’s execution. The self-identification of Jesus as the suffering “Son of Man” made him unrecognizable to unregenerate men. He was the Savior no one expected or, frankly, wanted.

The identity and mission of Jesus Christ can only be understood in the light of the Cross of Calvary. As Paul wrote, the proclamation of a crucified Messiah, the “Word of the Cross,” is “God’s power and wisdom” – (1 Corinthians 1:24).

[Cross - Photo by Cdoncel (Madrid) on Unsplash]

By stressing the necessity of his death, the Gospel of Mark establishes Christ’s identity as “the Son of God,” and it demonstrates what it means to be the Messiah of Israel and the Savior of the World. Demons recognized Jesus and declared who he was, but men remained confused and hostile.

At the Jordan River, the Scriptures, John the Baptist, the Voice from Heaven, and supernatural signs all attested that Jesus was “the Son of God,” and the heavens were “rent asunder.” This English rendering translates the Greek verb ‘schizō’, meaning, “to rend asunder, cleave in two, split open.” The term occurs once more in Mark when the veil of the Temple was “rent in two” when Jesus breathed his last - (Mark 1:11, 15:37).

The “rending of the heavens” was predicted by the prophet Isaiah when he longed for God to “rend the heavens” and make His name known “to your enemies, that the nations may tremble at your presence” - (Isaiah 64:1-2).

The declaration by the heavenly voice that sounded above the Jordan River echoed the Second Psalm and another passage from the Book of Isaiah. The man from Nazareth is the promised Messiah, and both passages describe him bringing justice to the nations of the Earth:

• “Yahweh said to me, You are my son! This day, I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will give the nations for your inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession” - (Psalm 2:7-8).

• “Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights. I have put my Spirit upon him. He will bring justice to the nations” - (Isaiah 42:1).

• “And immediately coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens rent asunder, and the Spirit as a dove descending upon him. And a voice came out of the heavens, You are my beloved Son, in you I am well pleased” - (Mark 1:9-11).

One of the first acts of Jesus in Galilee was to cast out an “unclean spirit.” The demon knew he was the “Holy One of God” and declared it, but Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to remain silent. The men present that day asked one another, “Who is this?” Despite his impressive deed, they could not understand who he was, although the demons certainly did know (“Are you come to destroy us?”) - (Mark 1:23-27).

This pattern is repeated in his ministry in Galilee. Although demonic spirits recognize “the Son of God,” men and women do not, including members of his family. Proximity to Jesus does not guarantee a correct understanding of who he is or how he ministers and reigns - (Mark 3:11-12, 3:21, 5:1-7).

The Scribes could not deny his ability to exorcise demons. However, rather than acknowledge that he did so by the authority of God, they charged him with casting out demons by “Beelzebub, the prince of demons.” Again, demons recognized him, but the religious leaders of Israel were incapable of doing so, or simply unwilling to acknowledge this particular man as their Messiah - (Mark 3:22-30).

By his word alone, Jesus calmed a raging storm on the Sea of Galilee that threatened the disciples. In great fear, they asked, “Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” Even this display of power was insufficient to prove he was the prophesied “Son of Man” and the Messiah of Israel - (Mark 4:36-41, Daniel 7:13-14).

Jesus healed the dying daughter of a local synagogue leader, leaving the crowd dumbfounded and still unenlightened. Even his ability to raise the dead did not convince anyone that he was the Messiah and the Savior of Mankind - (Mark 5:21-43).

When Christ visited his hometown, he began teaching in the synagogue. Many who heard him began to ask, “Whence has this man these things? <…> Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?”

Rather than rejoice that the Messiah was present among them, and in their own village, “they were offended by him” - (Mark 6:1-6).

REJECTED AND SLAIN

On the way to Jerusalem, Peter was about to recognize Christ’s identity. When Jesus asked, “Who do men say that I am?” Peter declared, “You are the Christ!” Then Jesus explained what it meant to be the Messiah:

• “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the Chief Priests and the Scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again” - (Mark 8:31).

Peter objected vehemently. The notion of the Messiah being subjected to humiliation, suffering, and death was unacceptable. Whatever insight Peter had gained momentarily was lost when he was confronted with the reality of Israel’s Messiah being executed by the nation’s enemies.

However, that is exactly what the ministry of Jesus required: suffering, rejection, and death rather than displays of supernatural power, or military and political might.

Likewise, as recorded in Mark 9:31-32, Jesus declared that he must be “betrayed into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he shall rise again.” Once more, the disciples did not understand his words. They remained incapable of comprehending who and what he was, and how he would bring salvation to Israel and the nations.

While “on the way up to Jerusalem,” Jesus explained again how he must be “delivered to the Chief Priests and the Scribes, and they will condemn him to death.” James and John responded by requesting that they sit at his side when he came into his glory. However, the Nazarene responded:

• “You know not what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? <…> You know that they who presume to rule over the nations dominate them, and their great ones tyrannize them. But it is not so among you. Whoever would become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever would be first among you shall be the slave of all, for the Son of Man also came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” - (Mark 10:32-45).

The path to God’s Kingdom requires self-sacrificial service for others, not dominion over them or outward glory. Christ demonstrated this by giving his life to liberate many others from bondage to sin and Satan, including his enemies.

When the High Priest examined Jesus, he asked, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” He responded by identifying himself as the Son of Man figure seen by the prophet Daniel:

• “I am he. And you will see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven” - (Mark 14:62).

• “I saw in the night-visions, and behold, there came with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of Man, and he came even to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him” - (Daniel 7:13).

Before the highest religious authority of Israel, Jesus identified himself as the Messiah and the Son of Man. There could be no more doubt. However, rather than acknowledge him, the High Priest accused Jesus of blasphemy, and the “Chief Priests and the whole council” condemned him to death - (Mark 14:60-64).

The Roman governor unwittingly confirmed Christ’s Messianic status when he had ‘King of the Jews’ inscribed on a board and mounted on his cross. As he was dying, Jewish spectators mocked him, declaring, “You who were pulling down the Temple and building one in three days, save yourself and come down from the cross.” The Chief Priests and the Scribes likewise ridiculed him despite the confirmation of his identity by the voice of God, Scripture, his miracles, and the testimony he gave before the High Priest - (Mark 15:26).

The demons knew who Jesus was before he did anything, yet the Temple authorities remained clueless despite the evidence of their eyes and ears. Instead, they challenged him, “Let him come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Even the two brigands who were crucified alongside him ridiculed Jesus.

Finally, Jesus was declared the “Son of God” by a human voice. As death overwhelmed him, he uttered a loud cry. At that moment, the “veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom,” and the Roman centurion declared:

• “Truly, this man was the Son of God!” - (Mark 15:37-39).

[Photo by Raphael Andres (Switzerland) on Unsplash]

Just as the “rending of the heavens” at his baptism produced a declaration regarding his status, the “rending of the Temple veil” put the same confession on the lips of the centurion. Just as the prophet Isaiah hoped, the nations did indeed “tremble at his presence,” only in repentance and submission. The Roman officer was the first of many Gentiles to submit to Jesus of Nazareth, who is now the Lord of all.

Only as he was crucified did a human being understand who Jesus was, and paradoxically, not a devout Jew, the High Priest, or even one of his closest disciples, but a Gentile who was probably the officer in charge of the execution squad.

Thus, Christ’s sufferings and his sacrificial death defined his Messiahship, but he was the kind of Messiah that no one in Israel wanted. Only in his suffering and death can we begin to understand the identity of the Man from Nazareth, the nature of his mission, the heart of his message, and what it means to be his disciple.

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SEE ALSO:

• Rend the Heavens Asunder! - (The Spirit of God and the voice from heaven confirmed the calling and identity of Jesus – Son, Messiah, and Servant of the LORD)

• The Suffering Servant - (Disciples are summoned to adopt the same mind that Jesus had when he poured out his life unto death for the sake of others – Philippians 2:5-11)

• The Son of Man - (The one like a Son of Man in Daniel is the source of Christ’s self-designation as the Son of Man and his authority to reign)

• Authority over Sea and Storm - (Despite his miracle of calming a storm on the Sea of Galilee, Christ’s disciples still could not recognize who he was – Mark 4:35-41)