Humiliation That Saves – Matthew 27:27-44

I was reading an article in Psychology Today about humiliation. The author was noting that “humiliation is something that is brought upon us by others. Tommy confides to his teacher that he has not done his homework. He feels embarrassment. The teacher reveals this to the whole class. Now he feels even greater embarrassment. The teacher makes him sit facing into a corner, provoking the laughter of his classmates. This time, he feels humiliation.” Interestingly, he noted also, “Humiliation need not be accompanied by shame. For instance, Jesus may have been crucified and thereby humiliated, but he surely did not feel any shame. Highly secure or self-confident people who believe that they are in the right rarely feel shame at their humiliation. Just as Jesus’ crucifixion left stigmata, so humiliation is stigmatizing. People who have been humiliated carry the mark of their humiliation, and are thought of and remembered by their humiliation.”

Remarkably, Christianity celebrates our Savior’s humiliation and stigmatizing. We hate thinking of how Jesus endured this, but it is also our salvation.

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him.

As they went out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to carry his cross. And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way. (Matthew 27:27-44 ESV)

The despicable treatment of Jesus shows men who had been used to death and death-dealing and had now come to see it as sport.  The mocking worship of Jesus will one day be replaced with fearful worship as every knee bows to him and every tongue confesses that he is Lord.  Because Jesus was so weakened by the scourging he was unable to carry his cross-beam, so the soldiers compelled Simon of Cyrene to do it.  The only reason Matthew would state this man’s name is that he later became a follower of Jesus and readers would know him.  The one kindness the soldiers offer is wine and gall, somewhat of a pain reliever, though some argue it was another way to mock him, the herb gall being very bitter.

The soldiers put a sign upon Jesus’ cross written by Pilate, we find out in the other Gospels, saying “King of the Jews.”  Unwittingly Pilate speaks the truth in his passive/aggressive attempt to get back at the Jewish religious leaders.  The two robbers crucified on either side of him join in the derision, as does the crowd gathered to witness the executions.  They recognize his claim to be the Son of God and king of Israel.  The priests recognize that Jesus was seeking to save or rescue people and in fact did save them, though in their thinking it was not much of a rescue.  They became deeply offensive when they noted that Jesus trusted in God but that God must be against him or else God would deliver him.  They had no idea that this was God’s plan and that it included their wickedness.  God will not be mocked.  There will be retribution.

What if Jesus had come off that cross? Would his detractors have believed then? Seems unlikely. They had seen him do countless miracles of healing, had heard his incomparable teaching, witnessed his astounding compassion toward sinners. They had ample evidence to believe he was the Messiah. God will not force belief. But there is a day coming when no one will be able to deny the truth. It will be too late then.