Easter Sermons - free sermons for Easter

Who Built This Cross
Roger Gean
Matthew 27:33-37                                                           

1. As Jesus approached the end of His life there were many occasions where He tried to make it understandable to His twelve apostles or to the hundreds of people who were already following Him, he tried to make them understand that He did not come to this world to make a kingdom here. 

2. He tried to make it known that the whole purpose of His coming was that His Father might be made known and that His Fathers purpose might be fulfilled. 

3. In John 17 we read of the real Lord’s prayer where He said the last night before the crucifixion, Jesus said, I glorified Thee on the earth, having accomplished the work which Thou hast given Me to do.  And now, glorify Thou Me together with Thyself, Father, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. (Vss 4-5)

4. As we read this we begin to realize that Jesus existed with God the Father and the Holy Spirit eternally in heaven as this plan for man’s redemption was being formed.

5. God began to plan on one day when a tree would be cut down and a man would fashion it into a cross.  The Bible doesn’t go into any detail about the man who built the cross.  And I guess if we had to put a title on the lesson today it would be “Who Built This Cross?”

6. I hope today as I build this cross that you will come to the realization that our Loving Heavenly Father built this cross.

I. This was God’s plan.
A. We are told in 1 Peter 1 that Jesus knew before the world was created that He was going to have to come and die for each of us.
 1. Lets read 1 Peter 1:20-21, For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you  who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
 2. Therefore, our hope and trust are in God.  Its not the cross itself which is important to us, its what Jesus did on the cross which is important to us.  He did this so our sins could be forgiven. 

B. Without the blood of Jesus we have no hope.
 1. 1 John 1:7 but if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

 2. Jesus came for this very hour.  Somebody had to build that cross.  You see, the cross was an absolute essential for you and me.  Romans 3:23 says, All have sinned and fallen short of God’s Glory, and yet God said He would punish sin. 

 3. Even in the garden of Eden God said He would punish disobedience.  In Genesis 2:16-17 He said you can eat from any tree in this garden, but the day you eat of the fruit of good and evil that day you will die. 

 4. Even in that garden at that time God knew that one day there was going to have to be a cross. 

 5. And in His eternal plan because of His love for you and me even in the garden God knew we were going to sin and when you sinned you were eternally separated from God and that is when you died. 

 6. That’s what He told to Adam and Eve.  And we know what Romans 6:23 says,   For the wages of sin is death,

C. Sin stands between us and God.
 1. God in heaven made plans for the cross.  He did this before He created the world.  It isn’t the wood of this cross that brings salvation to us.  It’s the blood that was shed on this cross, well not this one, but one like it. 

 2. SOMEBODY HAD TO CUT DOWN THE TREE AND FORM THIS WOOD INTO A CROSS. 
 [start sawing]

 3. In Colossians 1:20, it says “the blood of the cross” is where salvation is, it is where He made peace with His Father and reconciled us back to the Father.
 [saw again]
 4. Then in Colossians 2:9-12, He points out to us that when we are baptized into Christ that this is the place Our Father has chosen to remove our sins. This is our circumcision that is made without hands. [saw again]
 5. “For in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form,  and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;  and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;  having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”

II. You see, it’s the work that God did and His plan as to where He washes our sins away.
A. It’s not the work of any man who built this cross that washes our sins away.
 1. This is the work that God did and the plan that God had from before the foundation of the world that washes our sins away.

 2. God uses baptism as a way to wash our sins away. 
 3. Acts 22:16 Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.'

 4. This is a work of God, the one who baptizes is nothing when it comes to the blood of Jesus.  We are being obedient to Jesus’ command to be baptized. 
         [saw again]
 5. What takes place at baptism is coming into contact with the blood that Jesus shed at the cross. 
 6. John 19:32-33 So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.

 7. You see, it’s what Jesus did.  We simply submit to it.  And it was before the earth was created that God began working on a plan that included one family. 

B. With Abraham God began to reveal who that family would belong to.
 1. From Abraham a blessing would be given to all nations. Genesis 12:3 Jesus would be that blessing. 

 2. As time moved on God began to reveal where that blessing would be born.   It was the city of David He began to reveal. 

 3. Micah 5:2 About 700 years before the cross it was said it would be the city of Bethlehem. 

 4. Isaiah 7:14 says He would be born of a virgin and   Matthew 7:21 says Jesus would be His name.

 5. He lived a perfect life.  He was tempted in every way as we are.  But when John the Baptist saw Him coming he said in John 1:29  Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. 
      [finish sawing]
 6. For centuries men have been offering sacrifices so sins could be forgiven by the shedding of blood.  This was a picture of the coming of the Messiah.  A picture of the cross.

C. Abraham even pictured it to some extent when he offered up his son Isaac.
 1. Because of his faith in God in His promises he was willing to offer up his son upon an altar. 
 2. And while God had already fashioned and prepared that one day there would be a cross.  You see, there’s no way for us to have forgiveness of sins. 
 3. There’s nothing that we can do.  There’s no way that we can pay for our own sins.  There is not enough good we can do to be forgiven of our sins.
 4. There’s no way that the shedding of our own blood can save us. 
 5. Or even if we give our first born for our sins.  That’s not Gods plan.  There’s not any good works that we can do. 

 6. We just need to put our trust in God’s plan that the blood that Jesus shed for us on the cross will be all that we need to be saved.
 [start to nail the cross member together]

III. His will is that all should come to repentance and that everybody would hear of His great love and sacrifice upon the cross.

A. Isn’t it something that the two most significant events that occurred since creation itself.....
 1. ..... occurred just outside the city of Jerusalem and just three days apart?  Isn’t it something that the people that Jesus created insisted that he be taken and nailed to a tree? 

 2. Those people in that day made a crown of thorns and put it upon His head and mocked Him saying Hail Jesus, King of the Jews!   [Put on Cross now, hang on smaller nail.]

 3. They put a purple robe on Him and mocked Him some more and they gave Him a rod and called it His staff.  They mocked Him again - - Look!  They said, King of the Jews!  Hail King Jesus!!!! 

B. Then while the crown of thorns was on His head
 ...
 1. .....they took the rod and beat Him over the head with it.  This caused great pain and no doubt was just the beginning of Jesus shedding His blood. 
 2. This was done in a very heinous way mocking Jesus as the king of the Jews, but Jesus is crowned our King. 

 3. A mock trial took place and lasted all of the night.  When they arrested Him in the garden they took Him across the Kidron valley into the city of Jerusalem. 
 4. It was around this time that a rooster crowed and Peter wept sorrowfully. 

 5. First they took Him to Caiaphas the high priest.   There they mocked Him again and spat upon Him. 

 6. Then Caiaphas sent Him to Pilate the Roman Governor and he questioned Him and sent Him off to Herod, another Roman governor. 

 7. Herod was kinda of happy to see Jesus hoping He would do some great miracle, but He didn’t. 

 8. Herod sent Him back to Pilot and Pilot said I’m innocent of this man’s blood and literally took a wash basin and washed his hands.

C. All the while the Jewish leaders cried out for Jesus’ crucifixion. 
 1. They had a choice of who to release Jesus or a murderer.  The religious leaders had the crowd up in arms and the cry was to release Barabbas and crucify Jesus. 

 2. Finally they turned Jesus over to the solders to be crucified.  They scourged Him, beat Him, spit upon Him and hit Him with a rod while He was blind folded saying prophesy, who hit you. 
 3. Sometime the next morning they had Him take the cross and leave the praetorium where He had been mocked and scourged, beaten and spit upon.
 Conclusion
1. When they got to Golgotha they laid Him upon the cross.  And with 3 spiked nails . . . oh the nails. 
2. Have you ever wondered where they got those nails? 

This is a story of long ago of a man who owned a little store.
As he would tell it, "I was proud to have my name above the door."
This took place, oh, about two thousand years ago, as I recall,
I was located in Jerusalem, just across the street from Pilate's hall.

And I had everything anyone would ever need;
Why, folks would come from miles around, regardless of their creed.
But there was only one thing I had I thought would never sell,
So I placed it in a corner on a shelf ----three old rusty spike nails.

Then one day a Roman soldier came through the door,
And as he walked up to me, it seemed he shook the floor.
I said, "Can I help you, Sir?" in a voice I 'm sure seemed frail.
He looked at me with a sneering grin and said,
"I'd like to buy some nails - some big, big nails."

"Well, you see, Sir, three's all I have."
"Oh, That'll do. For the job I have, three's enough - - -Now how much do I owe you?"
He placed the money in my hand, and I was glad to make the sale.
Then I began to wonder, and I asked,
"Sir, what can you do with just three spike nails?"

"Did you ever hear of a man called Jesus the Nazarene?"
"You mean the one they call the Son of God?"
"Yes, that's the one. Today I intend to show the world who's boss,
For with these three nails I'm going to nail that man Jesus to a cross."

You'll never know how numb I felt - as on my knees I fell.
"Please sir, don't do that!" - but he just turned and walked away
I said, "Please, let me buy them back!"
But he just looked at me and grinned.

And in the distance, I could see the howling mob
Through the tears that filled my eyes.
"Away with him" "Crucify him!" I could hear their angry cries.
But over the top of all the noise and groans of agony,
I can still hear the sound of a hammer as that big Roman soldier---Nailed my Jesus to a tree."

With three rusty nails, they nailed Jesus to a tree; And His blood washed my sins away.   

3. A tree that He grew and a man that He created cut down that tree and fashioned it into a cross and then took a hammer and nails and because of my sins and your sins, they nailed Jesus to the cross. 
     [ Nail at this time 3 nails]
4. A man carrying a sign explaining why Jesus was being crucified read,  “This is Jesus, King of the Jews.”   They nailed this sign above Jesus’ head on the cross so everybody that walked by would know why Jesus died.
 [nail the sign to the cross now]

5. You see, we helped to build that cross because of my sins and your sins and I hope that we will never take the Lord’s supper again lightly. 

6. But remember that the blood that was shed at the cross is the only hope that we have for forgiveness of sins. 

7. Before Jesus ascended into heaven he gave instruction as to what we should preach. 

Mark 16:15

{You can end this sermon this way or to your choosing.}

8. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4
9. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9
10. Romans 6:1-7 & 17-18
11. John 19:32-34   
12. Acts 22:16