Matthew 26:1-27:66
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
The seven sayings of Jesus on the cross are the most important words spoken in all history. We have considered them in the past, and we will hear them again on Friday. But Jesus isn’t the only member of the Trinity speaking during the crucifixion. God the Father speaks too, but not audibly. Instead, the Father speaks through the miracles that take place while Jesus is on the cross, and we are going to give our attention to those today.
The first miracle is the darkness. In the Gospel of Mark, we are told that Jesus was crucified, nailed to the cross, at the third hour (Mk. 15:25), which would be about 9 AM. Then, the Gospels tell us that there was darkness from sixth hour until the ninth hour. In other words, that darkness lasted from noon until 3 PM when Jesus died.
Now, Matthew says this darkness was over “all the land” (Mt. 27:45). The interesting thing there is that the word ‘land’ can mean portions of a country. But most of the time, the word there means the entire earth. Matthew uses it in both senses throughout his Gospel. It could be that this darkness was localized to the region surrounding Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified, but it could have been much more than just that – even the entire earth.
This darkness was not a solar eclipse. Jesus was crucified at the time of the Passover which means there would have been a full moon, and a solar eclipse can only happen at a new moon. Plus an eclipse only lasts minutes, not hours. We also know that this darkness wasn’t the result a bunch of thick, dark clouds gathering. A Greek historian named Phlegon of Tralles, who was born shortly after Jesus’ death, records what he calls an eclipse. He wrote that it became night at noon so that the stars even appeared in the heavens. Now, Phlegon wasn’t a Christian. He might not have even been aware of the Gospels recording this same event. But the dating of his account matches up precisely with the timing of the crucifixion. Today, secular scholars have tried to come up with an explanation for this darkness Phlegon mentions, but they can’t. No astronomical or meteorological explanation can be made, but the historical accounts aren’t denied either.
This darkness happened because of God. God has the authority to turn off the sun if He wants to. Over and over in Scriptures, darkness is a sign connected with God’s judgment and anger over sin. Remember the ninth plague of darkness over the land of Egypt (Ex. 10:21-22). For three hours during the crucifixion, this darkness covered the land.
So, what was going on here; what was God the Father saying with this darkness? Well, Jesus had taken upon Himself the sins of all humanity, and God’s judgment was laid upon Christ (Is. 53:6). Think of all the sins you just heard about: treachery of Judas, the cowardice of Pilate, the blasphemy of the chief priests, the malice of the crowds. All those heinous sins were all placed upon Jesus.
But it was more than that too. The murder committed by Cain, the hard-heartedness of Pharaoh, the continual unbelief of the Israelites, the pagan practices of the inhabitants of Canaan, the adultery of David, every bit of sin in the world up to that point was all placed on Jesus. All the sins that have happened since: the sins of Nero, Hitler, Stalin, bin Ladin, and every other wicked, evil person were laid upon Jesus. Your sins were there too: your anger, lust, pride, gossip, lies, and covetousness. And all the sins that are still to happen in the future. All of it was there in that moment on Christ as He hung on the cross.
All of those sins angered God. He noticed them and was angry because of them. But know this. God only let the darkness of judgment fall when those sins were laid upon Christ and were no longer yours. So, between noon and three on that Good Friday, Jesus took all of those sins. Christ Himself bore your sins in His body on the cross, and by His wounds you are healed (1 Pet. 2:24). That’s why Jesus says from the cross, “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30). His redemption for every sin of every person who has ever lived and will ever live was paid in full. Jesus suffered the punishment of God for it all.
The second miracle was the tearing of the curtain in the Temple. The curtain was thick and heavy, so it was no coincidence that it tore from top to bottom. For hundreds of years, that curtain stood as a barrier between God and all of humanity. Only the priest could go behind that curtain into God’s presence on the Day of Atonement. Remember that both the Tabernacle and the Temple served as copies of heaven (Heb. 8:5; 9:23; Ex. 25:9). So, for generations, that curtain preached a sermon to God’s people that said, “Heaven is off limits to you.” But when the high priest would go in behind the curtain on the Day of Atonement, that yearly event preached another sermon. A very different sermon. That sermon preached that access to heaven would come, but only through a substitute.
So, when that Temple curtain tore from top to bottom, what was God saying? God was saying that you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph. 2:13). God is pleased with you now. He loves you, and heaven is open to you because of Jesus’ death.
The third miracle was the earthquake. The same historian I mentioned earlier, Phlegon, he wrote about this earthquake too. And he wrote about it in Nicaea which is almost 700 miles away from Jerusalem. It’s hard to say for certain what this earthquake means – especially because there is another earthquake Easter morning (Mt. 28:2). But remember how the Pharisees wanted Jesus to rebuke the people who were crying out, “Hosanna,” as He rode into Jerusalem? Jesus answers them, “If these were silent, the very stones would cry out” (Lk. 19:36-40) It could be related to that. It could be a sign that God had redeemed all creation by the death of Jesus (Ro. 8:21-23). We can’t say for sure why the earthquake happened. But creation noticed and responded to both the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Finally, the fourth miracle is that many of the saints were raised. We heard how Matthew mentions that these risen saints walked around after Jesus’ resurrection and appeared to many (Mt. 27:52-53). What this shows us is that death is no longer the enemy it was before the death of Jesus. God can raise the dead in an instant. Jesus has paid the price. Disease, death, violence, virus, plague, and pandemic are no longer your enemy. They are all defeated by Christ.
Dear saints, these miracles prove that you have nothing to fear. Christ has paid the price for your sins. God is on your side. He is risen, and so will you. Your King has come with righteousness and salvation (Zech. 9:9). He has spoken peace to you (Zech. 9:10). Return, you prisoners of hope; return to God, your stronghold (Zech. 9:12).
Christ has humbled Himself for you to death – even death on a cross (Php. 2:8). At the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord.
So, yes, “Hosanna! Hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna in the highest!” Ride on Jesus. Ride on and save us. Welcome to Holy Week. Amen.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.