During his dishonorable and shameful arrest and crucifixion, Jesus retained a sense of dignity. When the soldiers approached Jesus in the Garden to arrest him, knowing all that was going to happen to him, Jesus stepped forward. “When Jesus said, ‘I am he,’ they drew back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them,…

Jesus died a shameful death. Why? Why does the Scripture emphasize the shamefulness of his death? Because the cross is where Jesus Christ bore the sin and the shame of the world. Paul wrote, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness…

This week I went to the viewing of a racquetball friend who died with COVID-19. His family and friends gathered at a funeral home to remember him. Some of us racquetball guys arranged to attend the viewing together. Death is never pleasant. We hate death. A few did gather in grief while Jesus was dying…

We experience both honor and shame in public, and nothing was secret or hidden about a crucifixion. Not only was death by crucifixion cruelly painful. It was the ultimate shame. When Jesus stood before Pilate, the crowd cried out, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” (John 19:6). Jesus was rejected and condemned in public (Matthew 27:24). He…

In the events leading up to Christ’s crucifixion, remember again the shame he suffered for us. Jesus endured the shame of betrayal. Imagine the laughter among the soldiers as his own three-year-long disciple, Judas Iscariot, kissed him (Matthew 26:48). Along with this came the vulnerability and disrespect of being arrested like a common criminal. It’s…

Throughout his life Jesus lived above shame, an example for us to follow. When crucified, he willingly submitted to his death, while scorning its shame (Hebrews 12:2). The Psalms prophesied it: “To you they cried out and were saved; in you they trusted and were not put to shame. But I am a worm and…

The New Testament story of the woman suffering from a bleeding gives us a vivid picture of Jesus’ healing power and how he overturns shame. Recall the story of how she reached out to Jesus. “When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought,…

Throughout his life, Jesus consistently disregarded shame. One example is especially striking – when Jesus was disrespected and insulted by Simon the Pharisee intentionally. Simon the Pharisee invited Jesus to a meal, but when Jesus knocked on the gate, Simon didn’t give him the customary greeting. When Jesus was seated at the meal, Simon didn’t…

Jesus was born and raised in unlikely places. When wise men came from the east, they expected the king of the Jews to be born in the capital city of Jerusalem (Luke 2:1-2). When Philip invited Nathanael to meet Christ, Nathanael responded, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” (John 1:46). In those days great…

Jesus faced the shame of unfounded rumors about his birth. Joseph and Mary were not yet married when Jesus was conceived. The supernatural, virgin birth of Christ by the Holy Spirit was misinterpreted at first by Joseph. “Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to…