Day 15 - His Death by Pastor Philip Olubakin: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

It Was Religious People Who Killed Jesus

Mark 15:1-2

In the early morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole council took Jesus, bound him, and delivered him to Pilate. This is critical: it was not the prostitutes, the armed robbers, the tax collectors, or the sinners that organized the death of Jesus. It was the church people.

And they still exist today — people who make following Jesus unnecessarily hard. Grace makes it simple: believe, receive, be saved. But religious people are uncomfortable with simplicity. They want steps, rituals, performance. They have a problem with how easy it is to come to Christ.

People don't think God's grace is real because it costs them nothing. But it cost Jesus everything.

The Priests Had to Hand Him Over

There is something theologically precise about who delivered Jesus to be killed. In Leviticus, it was the job of the priest to examine the sacrifice and hand it over. If the priests did not hand over the sacrifice, it could not be accepted. Jesus targeted the religious leaders deliberately — because for this sacrifice to be acceptable under the law, the priests had to be the ones to present it.

Everything about the cross was exact. Everything was appointed.

He Refused the Painkiller

Mark 15:23

Before they crucified him, the soldiers offered Jesus wine mingled with myrrh — a painkiller given to prisoners before execution, to numb them. Jesus refused it.

Jesus wanted to feel every ounce of pain. Every inch, every pinch. He did not want anyone to be able to say he did not truly bear our sicknesses in his body.

He refused the numbing so the price could be fully, unmistakably paid. The enemy had to know — and has to know forever — that the price was not reduced, not diluted, not softened. It was paid in full.

The Veil Was Torn

Mark 15:37-38

As Jesus cried out with a loud voice and gave up his spirit, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

For generations, God had been hidden behind that veil. One man — the high priest — went in once a year, uncertain whether he would come back out. They tied a rope to his feet in case he fell dead inside and had to be dragged out.

That is over. The veil is torn. We now have unrestricted, unrestrained, unregulated access to the Father.

Nobody has greater access to God than anyone else. A pastor does not have more access than a new believer. A bishop does not have a closer line to heaven than a factory worker. With an open face, the Bible says, all of us can look into the glory of God and be changed. Sons and daughters, servants and masters, old men and young men — everyone is now a carrier of the Holy Ghost.

Prosperity Preserved the Body of Christ

Mark 15:43-46

Joseph of Arimathea — a wealthy, honorable man who was waiting for the kingdom of God — went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. He bought fine linen, took the body, wrapped it, and placed it in a tomb.

Just as Joseph in the Old Testament used his position and prosperity to preserve the body of Israel — his brothers, the tribe of Jacob — from destruction, this Joseph used his prosperity to preserve the physical body of Christ.

The body of Christ today still needs to be preserved. It takes resources. It takes prosperity. Do not demonize money — there is a great need for it in the kingdom.

As you go out today, whatever you lay your hands on will prosper. You will not lack favor. You will not lack good things. Every door you have knocked, God will position someone on the inside to open it for you. Somebody will put in a good word. Somebody will refer you. Somehow, everyone in that room will decide you are the one for the job. Your going out is blessed. Your coming in is blessed. No domestic accidents, no road accidents, no fire explosions — your life is preserved. I pray unusual grace and favor over you this week, in Jesus' name. Amen.