At Gabbatha, the Jews finally got what they wanted
from Pilate. He told them to take Jesus and complete what they wanted to do
with Him, i.e. to crucify Him. From right there Jesus’ journey to Galgotha
began. We must approach the scene of the crucifixion of Jesus with great
reverence. Why? It’s because we have heard the crucifixion of Jesus being narrated
countless times. And being familiar with the account we may take it for
granted. We must approach our reflection with reverence and awe, or our sense
may be numbed and would cause us to miss the very message God intents for us to
receive.
The place where Jesus went, bearing the cross to be crucified, was
rightly named “The place of the skull.” In Hebrew this place was known as
Galgotha. It was a little hill, a distance away from the Damascus gate of
Jerusalem. The structure of the place made it look like a human skull, a symbol
of death. Hence it speaks so powerfully of God’s intention to deal with the
problem of death at the place that symbolizes death. What’s fascinating is also
that this was the very spot that Abraham brought Isaac to be sacrificed to God.
It was here that Abraham told Isaac that God Himself will provide the lamb for
the sacrifice. How appropriate! Jesus is the Lamb that God Himself had provided,
to deal with the problem of sin and death.
Verse 18 tells us that two others were crucified with Jesus here. Jesus
was hanged on the cross at the center franked by the two of them. While they
deserved what they were getting, Jesus did not. He was cruelly put there in our
place. This very scene fulfills what Isaiah the prophet predicted saying, "He
was numbered with the transgressors…" (Isaiah 53:12). The sinless Lord was
put in the place of us, sinful people. And here He stood condemned in our place.
John also tells us that Pilate had an inscription written and placed
over the cross of Jesus. It was written in Hebrew, Latin and Greek. It said, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” Bear in
mind that the cross stood at a crossroad, so what was written would be read by
all who passed by that way. This also tells us that at the crossroad of our
life, there also stands that cross. It is the solution to the ultimate cause of
all our problems. The place where the cross stood, and the inscription written in
three languages, tell us God’s clear intention to make known to the world that
Jesus was truly the King of the Jews.
In John 19:21-22, we are also told that the chief priests and the Jews
tried to have Pilate changed the words that were written. The wanted it to be
written as “He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” Pilate’s response to them was "What I
have written I have written." This phrase is telling. It has a double
meaning. Literally, it meant that Pilate flatly turned down their request. But
for us, a deeper reflection of this phrase will tell us that our past can never
be changed. The regretful things we have said or done in the past cannot be
changed. Simply put: what we have done we have done. But all praise be to God,
while we can never change our past, Christ came to cleanse our past through His
completed works at Calvary. In Christ, we are forgiven and redeemed.
John here also alluded to Psalm 22 which foretold the cruel death of the
Messiah. The Psalmist described the Messiah’s body being pierced and His garments
being divided by the murderers. What the soldiers did fulfill the prediction of
the Psalmist. However, what John did not say was that the Savior was hanged up
there between heaven and earth naked. This was suggested by the fact that the
soldiers removed His garment and divided it among themselves.
Today, we see crosses hanged around
necks of people as a piece of jewelry. We also see huge metal crosses on top of
buildings telling us that these are churches. And not forgetting wooden crosses
on doors of houses to indicate that these are Christian homes. But behind the
symbol of the cross we have a real history. Don’t ever forget that that the
cross was real. What Jesus went through was real. The nails that pinned Him to
the cross were real. Most of all His love for us is real. Thus we must respond as the last two lines of
a hymn that so rightly say:
Love so amazing so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all
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