Latest / The Daily Word / October 10 – Jesus Took Your Place
Transcript
- Brandon: Well, good morning and I guess good afternoon or good evening, depending on when you're listening to this. But welcome once again to the Daily Word podcast. My name is Brandon and I'm one of the pastors here at our church. And so thrilled, thankful to have you as a part of the podcast today and to share with you from God's Word. we we do this every single day in case it's your first time listening, and essentially our goal is to encourage Strengthen your walk with God through a daily just encouragement, us taking the New Testament portion from the life journal reading plan. It's the reading plan we use as a church and using it to share what we journaled on, but also to remind you that God really does want to speak to you in an individual way. And the word of God is so powerful. The Holy Spirit takes it as we read and he speaks to us. And so we're hoping you are gonna jump in and start start spending time with God on your own. That being said, today is October the 10th, and our reading is from Luke chapter 23. And today I want to take you on a bit of a journey. I want to share a scripture with you and then kind of take you on a journey, paint a picture for you that my Bible college professor, Dr. Tatum, when we were studying the synoptic gospels, did. And this picture, it's never, it's so powerful, it's never left. So here's the here's the scripture, Luke 23, verse 19. Here's what it says. But they all cried out together, away with this man, and release to us Barabbas. That's it. Luke 23, 18. They all cried out together, Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas. Now, I want to go to another passage. We don't normally do this, but I want to go to another passage. Matthew chapter 27. And I want read a couple excerpts from Matthew 27 to paint a picture for you and take you on this journey today. Matthew 27, verse 15, here's what it says. Now at the feast, the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any prisoner whom they wanted. So there's this annual feast, and their custom was to release to the crowd a prisoner of their choosing. And they had a notorious prisoner named Barabbas. He's in prison because he deserves to be in prison. He's a criminal. He deserves to be there. And he has what's coming to him. The governing officials didn't want to crucify Jesus because Jesus was innocent. And they knew he was there because the envy and the jealousy of the religious leaders. He he committed no crime. we know this Jesus, he lived a perfect, sinless life. He was the spotless lamb that paid the price for our sins. he did not deserve what he would go through. And they knew this. So verse 17 in Matthew 27 says, So they had gathered Pilate said to him, so when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, Who do you want me to release for you, Barabbas or Jesus, who was called the Christ? For he knew that it was out of envy they had delivered him up. Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, saying, Have nothing to do with this righteous man for I've suffered much because of him today in a dream and so he he already had like he he's innocent but and his wife is like hey I've had dreams about this this guy's innocent don't don't do this but now the chief priest verse 20 and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. So verse 21 lit listen to this. This is the picture I want you to see the journey I'm taking you on. The governor again said to them, So which of the two of you Two, do you want me to release for you? So he he goes to the crowd, who do you want me to release to you? And the crowd cries out. Think about like a at a stadium, the crowd is all shouting something. They cry out, Barabbas, Barabbas, Barabbas. And Pilate said, Well, then what shall I do with Jesus? And the crowd shouts. Let him be crucified. Crucify him. Crucify him. And this is the picture that I want you to see. When I was in Bible college, Dr. Tatum took us on this journey, and I'll never forget it. He he said, I want for you to close your eyes. If you're driving, don't do this. But if you're not driving and you're in place you can't, I I would ask you close your eyes. He said, put yourself in the place of Barabbas. You're a criminal. You're a thief. Everything you Have done is deserving of imprisonment, but also crucifixion. You know you're guilty. You know what is coming to you, you deserve. And you're sitting there in that prison cell because the prison where Barabbas was would have been close. Historical evidence would show it would have been close to where this trial was happening. And you you can't hear the governing official. But you can hear the crowd. You can hear the crowd. And you're sitting there, and all of a sudden you hear this Barabbas, Barabas. And you start hearing your name being shouted by the masses. You're sitting there guilty in a prison cell, and you hear Barabbas, Barabas. It's all you can hear. Barabbas, your name. And then a few moments later you hear this. Because remember, you can't hear the official, you can only hear the crowd. And the crowd shouted Barabbas, and now you hear the crowd shouting this: crucify him! Crucify him. And you're sitting in your cell. You know you're guilty. You know you're deserving. And you hear the crowd. Barabbas. Crucify him. Barabbas crucify him. What are you thinking? I'll tell you what you're thinking. You're thinking today's my day. I did the crime. I'm not a good person. I'm getting what I deserve. And today, the crowd, the city, the people, they're calling for me to be crucified. You're sitting there in a cell, and everything in you is reckoning, today is my day. I'm gonna die today. I'm gonna die today. You heard the crowd shout your name, and you heard the crowd shout, crucify him. I'm gonna die today. You're sitting in your cell. Next thing you know, here come the guards, and they open the cell. What are you thinking? It's about to happen. It's about to happen. I'm about to be taken to my death. Barabbas would have known what crucifixion was. I'm about to be beaten. I'm about to be stripped. I'm about to be hung on a wooden instrument of torture. I'm gonna I'm gonna die today. Except for the guard goes, B Barabbas, you you you can go free. Wait, what? I I just heard the crowd shouting my name. I just heard the crowd say, Crucify him. I'm guilty. I'm deserving. What what do you mean I can go free? And the guard says, Well, there's a man. Named Jesus Christ of Nazareth. And today he will take your place. He is not guilty. He has done nothing deserving of punishment. But today, this man will take your place. Oof. What a picture. What an image for you and I of how we can be sitting, maybe not in a prison cell, but in our own heart and in our own minds. Hearing the voice of the enemy, shame, condemnation, guilt, shouting your name and shouting on the inside, crucify him. You deserve it. You're a bad person. Everything, you have it coming to you. I can't believe. And and then in walks the person of Jesus. Who, even though you were deserving and you are guilty, and you and and you have that Jesus, He took upon Himself all of your sin and my sin, and because He has taken upon Himself our sin and our shame, no longer do we receive the punishment that is due and deserving. We we now receive the gift of righteousness and freedom in Christ. Why? Because like Barabbas. Jesus took our place. My my my scripture, my observation, my application, my prayer, my everything in summation is this. Would you remember today that like Barabbas, you and I, we were guilty, deserving of eternal damnation and of the guilt and shame of our own sin. And yet, there's a man named Jesus who's taken our place. And today we are freely and fully forgiven. We are free from sin and shame, and we will spend eternity with him, being reconciled to God, because like Barabbas, Jesus took our place. Don't you let the voice of the enemy, Barabbas, Barabbas, crucify him, convince you today. No, no, no, no. There is a man named Jesus. He took the place of Barabbas, but he took your place as well. Lord, today will we receive fully and know the gift of salvation. Hope you've been blessed today by the podcast. And I hope you remember today who Jesus is and what Jesus has done for you. Love you so much. We'll see you tomorrow in another episode of the Daily Word Podcast.