"The Suffering of Jesus" Kathryn Kuhlman The Apostle's Creed Part 3

This is my third in a series of heart -to -heart talks on the Great Christian Pledge. Or perhaps you know it better as the Apostles' Creed. And the document consists of 110 words, that's all. Just 110 words, and it's divided into 12 sections, each dealing with a different segment. of New Testament truth. No Christian who sincerely seeks to gear his beliefs according to this pattern, according to the pattern that's laid down in the Apostles' Creed, will go astray. And it's just like that. As I begin, This my third heart -to -heart talk with you regarding this great Christian pledge. May I again refresh your memory. I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence. He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. As we read the precious word, we find these words. Now in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea. This brief historical reference ushers in to the New Testament narrative, a representative of the Roman government under whose rule a series of strange movements were destined to occur. His ten -year term as governor of Judea was fraught with momentous events that changed the course of human history. It was during this time that... Jesus walked through the country healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, even to the raising of the dead, teaching as never another man taught. And of course, during all of this time, he drew to himself the wrath of persecutors, evaded many schemes of entrapment, was falsely accused. He endured mock trials in both Jewish and in Roman courts. He was condemned on perjured testimony. A mob shouted lies with such force that he was finally forced to carry a cross up Golgotha's Hill and there be executed with hardened... criminals, he the very son of the living God. His body was placed in the tomb of a rich man, one Joseph of Arimathea. Failing to entrap our lord, the persecutors charged him with sedation. It was on these grounds that they were able to bring him before the Roman court. Succeeding in this, They relied upon other false charges and mob hysteria to complete the Satan -inspired scheme. Watch it. Thou ought not Caesar's friend if thou let this man go, was their cry before Pilate. Remember that some hours prior to the appearance in Pilate's court, The high priest put Christ under solemn oath to answer whether or not he was the Son of God. And Jesus said, I am. When asked that question directly, he never batted an eye. He never paused for one moment. He never hesitated a split second. I am, he replied. Then following his firm reply, the master condemned the accusers and announced his second advent in language which a commentary improvises as follows. I know the scorn with which you are ready to meet such an avowal. To your eyes, which are but eyes of flesh, there stands at this bar only a mortal like yourselves. And he at the mercy of the ecclesiastical and civil authorities. But nevertheless... A day is coming when ye shall see another sight. Those eyes which now gaze on me with proud disdain shall see this very prisoner at the right hand the majesty on high and coming in clouds of heaven. Then shall the judged one be revealed as the judge. and his judges in this chamber appear at his tribunal. Then shall the unrighteous judges be impartially judged, and while they are wishing that they had never seen him born, he whom they now watch as their victim shall be greeted with the hallelujahs of heaven. For this impudence, members of the tribunal ordered him insulted, slapped, beaten, dragged to Pilate's judgment hall. They could not carry out an execution without the approval of the governor. Pilate told them to state their charges. They did. The false accusation of sedition was repeated. And the word says, and they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ, a king. Pause a moment. Consider. Perverting the nation. Forbidding tribute. saying he is a king. More despicable falsehoods never fell from lips of human beings. Yet these untruths sank into the minds of a sufficient number of people to create hysteria against an innocent man. The creed rings true. Suffered under Pontius Pilate. The Roman questioner put the matter straight to the victim, and this is what he asked. What hast thou done? What had you really done? What had he done? He had healed the sick. He had set captive soldiers at liberty. He'd gone about doing good. But with it all, he incurred the displeasure of a group whose anger knew no bounds. Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is my kingdom not from fence. Then Pilate asked, Ought thou a king? There was no sarcasm. There was no disdain in this question, none whatsoever. Ought thou a king? He was trying in every conceivable way to find some grounds, hoping to satisfy the demands of those who demanded his execution. And finally... The Roman jurist cried, I find no fault in him. This was the official verdict of the Roman governor and should have been accepted as final. Far from yielding to the decision, the accuser shouted the louder. The rapist was next released as a gesture to quiet the mob. This availed nothing, absolutely nothing. They were not to be quieted. They refused to be stopped. A mock coronation was enacted. Behold, a crown of thorns were placed upon his head. In mockery of a regal crown, they stripped him of every garment. They wrapped his form in a purple robe. Thereby... imitating the imperial purple robe worn by monarchs. A reed was placed in his hand like an imitation scepter in contempt. The word says they bowed the knee before him. Hail, they shouted. using such homage to the man from heaven. Not satisfied with their indignities, they spat in his face, they smote him on the head with the reed, they removed the purple robe, they returned the original raiment. Thinking this would surely satisfy the accusers and quell their passions, Pilate stepped forward and said, Behold! The man. There is no reason to suppose that hatred for Christ dictated these words. There was clearly a struggle in the breast of the governor. I have always felt it was thus. Not only was he reluctant to surrender to mere clamor and innocent man, but a feeling of anxiety. about the mysterious claims that Christ made heavy demands upon his soul. Moreover, he could not forget the vision his wife had experienced and her admonition to be cautious in disposing of this case, whatever the motive. These three words had been appropriated by all Christendom. and permanently enshrined in the hearts of multitudes as a sublime expression of calm, rapt admiration for the suffering Christ. These three words, which shall never be forgot, behold the man. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. The sun set that night upon a sadder picture than any artist ever tried to paint. A heartbroken, forlorn band of humiliated, disappointed, Defeated followers gained permission from the ruler to lift the precious body from the cross and bear it away tenderly to a prepared resting place. But were they really defeated? Really? A United States Senator. Sent me something? Is author being unknown? Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked as a carpenter's shop until he was 30. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never owned a home. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put his feet inside a big city. He never traveled 200 miles from the place where he was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself. While still a young man, the tide A private opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. They gambled for the only piece of property he had on earth while he was dying, and that was his coach. And when he was dead, he was taken down. He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone and today he is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of the column of progress. I am far within the mark when I say that All the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that were ever built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned. All of them put together have not affected the life of man upon this earth, as has that one solitary life. years old yet he through his death gave life a velocity