Three Men Meet Jesus

Mark Finley: Simon was carrying that cross up Calvary's mountain, but Jesus was by his side the whole way. All the way up that hill, Jesus was there. Whatever you're going through, whatever burden you're carrying, Jesus is by your side. Three men meet Jesus.
Guest (Male): This is HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: Three Men Meet Jesus. Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with HopeLives365 and Pastor Mark by going to hopelives365.com. Stay with us for a free Bible study offer later in this program. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.
Mark Finley: Three men meet Jesus: Simon, an African farmer; a young thief; and a Roman centurion. They come from different backgrounds. One comes from Africa, one comes from the Middle East, and one comes from Europe. They have different cultures and different perspectives, but each of them meets Jesus. The lessons we learn as we study about these three men speak to our hearts today. The lessons are old, but they're ever new. These men lived in the first century, but the lessons they bring to us speak to us in the 21st century. Their lessons are relevant to our lives today. Let me give you a little bit of background to Mark chapter 15. Earlier in the chapter, we find that Christ has been arrested in Gethsemane. He then has gone through the farce of a trial. He is beaten, and his back is flagellated. He has gone from Pilate onto Herod and back to Pilate again. He has gone through the trials of the night. He's been mocked and ridiculed. A crown of thorns has been placed upon his head, and blood has run down his face. Now weakened, having not eaten, and weakened by loss of blood and the abuse that he has gone through, a heavy cross is laid upon his shoulders. As he trudges up Calvary's mountain, that cross rubs his shoulders bare. We look in on the scene. He comes to the point where he can no longer walk. He comes to the point where he can no longer climb Calvary's hill because he is too weak. He staggers and stumbles beneath the load. The heavy weight of the cross crushes him to the ground. There, lying in a pool of blood, he tries to get up but stumbles again. He just can't get up with the heavy weight of the cross. In Mark chapter 15, the Bible says in verse 21, "Now they compelled"—the "they" are the Roman soldiers—"they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear his cross." Notice this passage carefully. Simon did not take the cross by choice. He didn't take the cross voluntarily. The Bible says they compelled him. That is, they forced him. The word "compelled" there is a military term, which means they conscripted or drafted him into service. Imagine this scene. Five minutes earlier, Simon would have missed it. Five minutes later, he would have missed it. But in the divine drama of destiny, Simon rounds a corner. He sees the crowd and hears them yelling, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" Then he looks down and he sees the broken, battered, bloody body of Christ lying on the pavement with the cross over his body. There's a look of sympathy on Simon's face and a look of compassion in his eyes. The Roman soldiers say, "Hey, you there! If you're looking at him with such compassion, you take the cross." And they compel him to take the cross. There are times in life that we bear burdens that we don't choose to bear. There are times in life where those burdens, like that cross, are just thrust upon our shoulders. It may be a financial burden, it may be a health challenge, or it may be a family problem. There is something that you are facing today, some burden or heartache thrust upon your shoulders. Who was this Simon? Well, one thing we know: he was a Cyrenian from Northern Africa in the area of Libya. Here it says he's the father of Alexander and Rufus. He has two sons. It's like the Gospel of Mark is saying, "You all know Alexander and Rufus, but you don't know Simon." Alexander and Rufus were evidently followers of Jesus. One of the ways we can see that is from Romans chapter 16 and verse 13. In that verse, the Apostle Paul also mentions a Rufus. There are many scholars who believe that this is the exact same Rufus mentioned in Mark's Gospel. The Scripture says, "Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, his mother and mine." Here is the way I picture the scene. Rufus and Alexander were brought up by a godly mother. The father, Simon, didn't want anything to do with faith or religion. But that day, bearing the cross and climbing Calvary's hill, Simon comes to the point where he accepts Jesus. Simon was carrying the cross, but Jesus was bearing his burdens. In Psalm 55, verse 22, we read, "Cast your burden on the Lord, and he shall sustain you, and he shall never permit the righteous to be moved." Cast your burden upon the Lord. The word "cast" there means to throw it down; don't hold onto it. First Peter chapter 5 says, "Casting all your care upon him because he cares for you." We can come to Jesus with our burdens and the heavy load. We can give it to Jesus. It reminds me of a story I read once about an old African man walking down a rough, rutted dirt road. This man had a big load of firewood on his back. A guy came along in a wagon and said to him, "Look, you're staggering. Why don't you get in the wagon? I'll give you a ride." The man climbed into the wagon and sat in the back. As they rode along, the driver of that donkey-driven wagon looked back and saw that the traveler was still carrying the load on his back. He said, "Why don't you put your load down?" And the man reportedly said, "You were kind enough to give me a ride. The least I can do is carry my own load." Sometimes when we come to Jesus, we say, "Lord, I've come to you, but I can carry my own load." But that load, like that cross, weighs us down. Do you think Jesus thanked Simon for carrying his cross up the hill? Or do you think Simon thanked Jesus for the privilege of carrying it? Often it's through the burdens, the trials, the difficulties, and the challenges of life that we get our greatest blessings. When it rains, the flowers and vegetables grow. Have you ever seen a period of time when it hasn't rained for weeks and the flowers shrivel up? When we go through the rain and the days are dark, that may be God allowing the rain to fall on our lives to enable us to grow, just like those flowers grow during the rain. Somebody said the stars shine the brightest when the night is the darkest. When I was a boy, my grandfather raised canaries. I would love to go to Grandpa's house because he'd take me up in the attic and show me the birds. I remember going up there, and Grandpa would have a covering over the cage. He would begin to whistle at a canary, and pretty soon the canary would whistle back. He taught the canaries to sing by whistling to them when they were in the darkness. If you asked my grandpa why he put the covering over the cage, he would say it was because in the darkness, the only thing the canary can do is to concentrate on his voice. Sometimes God wants to teach us to sing. He wants to grow us through the rain of trials. He wants to teach us to sing in the darkness. When we carry the cross that we did not choose to bear, but we carry it in Jesus' name, Christ says to us, "I'm going to teach you to sing. I'm going to draw you closer to me." What trial are you going through? Some of you know that a number of months ago, I was walking at our retreat center and I slipped and broke my hip. I remember lying there in the mud in tremendous pain, followed by two weeks of rehabilitation at the hospital and the rehab center. Then came months of pain and walking. I said, "Jesus, this is a burden. I did not choose to carry this burden." When I got up that morning, I would have had no idea that my life would be impacted the way it was. But I said, "Jesus, teach me lessons through this." The Lord taught me a number of lessons. One was to be sensitive to other people who go through pain, not to just brush it off. He also taught me to depend on him, showing me that my life was not simply about what I do, but that God was trying to create within me a closer relationship of trust and dependence upon him. If you are going through some trial, it could be a financial trial, a trial in your marriage, or in the area of your health. Maybe it is the uncertainty of the future, or maybe you have some decision to make and it's a real struggle for you. In all of that, ask God to help you bear your cross with dignity. Carry it for him in Jesus' name, because through this cross, he is going to draw you closer to him.
Guest (Male): We'll be right back with Pastor Mark Finley. We thank you for listening and hope you're enjoying today's message. Our mission is to attractively present the Christ-centered biblical truths of Scripture in a practical, relevant way to people around the world so that they may experience the abundant life that Christ offers. If you want to learn more about the Bible, check out our free Bible series at globalbibleschool.org. Discover answers to your deepest questions straight from God's word. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.
Mark Finley: Simon was carrying that cross up Calvary's mountain, but Jesus was by his side the whole way. Jesus looked in his eyes and gave him hope and encouragement. Jesus didn't run ahead and he didn't stay behind; he walked by his side. Whatever you're going through, Jesus is by your side. Three men meet Jesus. One meets him walking up Calvary's hill under the load of a cross. But there's another one who meets him as well, and we find his story in the book of Luke chapter 23. This young man is a thief. He's been brought up in a religious home. He's probably a Jew. I say he's a Jew because Romans couldn't crucify Romans. Here you have this young man walking up Calvary's hill with Jesus, just like Simon did. But this young man carried his own cross. They come to the cross, and the thieves stretch out their hands and are fighting in the arms of the Romans. They are yelling and screaming, and then finally the nails are driven through their hands and their feet. The cross is placed in the hole with a thud. Jesus is there between the two thieves. One thief says, "If you're the Son of God, come down from the cross. Get us off too. Where's your power now?" The other thief speaks, and we listen to his words in Luke chapter 23, verse 39 and onward. One of the criminals who was hanged blasphemed him, saying, "If you are the Christ, save yourself and us." But the other answered and rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? We indeed justly, for we receive the good reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom." And Jesus said, "Assuredly I say to you, you will be with me in paradise." But notice there's one word I left out: today. Notice what he says and how he says it: "Assuredly I say to you today, you will be with me in paradise." In other words, "This day that I'm dying on the cross, I make this statement. I make this declaration today. I give you this promise today. This day that I'm dying on the cross, this day that it doesn't seem like I can save anybody, I say unto you today, you will be with me in paradise." As Jesus hung on that cross, he saw the fruits of his labors. He saw the results of his death. The Bible says in Second Corinthians chapter 5, "He who knew no sin became sin for us." In Galatians chapter 3, it says that cursed is everyone who hangs on the tree. Hebrews chapter 2 says that Christ would taste death for every man. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus bore the guilt, the shame, and the condemnation of your sin and mine. He died not simply the first death, which is the physical death, but he died the eternal death, which is the wages of sin. If Christ only died the first death, he would not have provided for us salvation from the second death. When did Jesus die that eternal death for us? It was during those three hours from 12:00 to 3:00 when he hung on the cross. It was darkness. Although he had said before that if they destroy this body, in three days he would raise it up again, hanging on the cross he could not see through the portals of the tomb. He couldn't see himself coming forth as conqueror. On that cross, he bore the guilt, the shame, and the condemnation of sin. As he hung there, he looked at a dying thief. Jesus was dying so that thief could live and have eternal life. Jesus was willing to go into the grave and never come out, if necessary, for that thief to be in heaven. Christ loves you so much that he was willing to go into the grave and never come out for you. His last words were, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." They were words of faith and words of confidence. On that Sunday morning, the angel descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and said, "Son, thy father calleth thee." Jesus comes out of the grave alive. His death provided salvation for the entire human family. What joy it is to know that Christ has died for you and for me. Just as that thief received eternal life that day, you can receive eternal life today. The Bible says if we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. When we come confessing, Jesus will do the forgiving. The only sin that Jesus will not forgive is the one that we refuse to confess. I don't know what your life is like. Maybe there's guilt, or maybe your conscience condemns you. Jesus reaches out to you today and says, "My child, I want to take away that guilt." Jesus takes the initiative in our salvation. His love reaches out to us wherever we are. He is that shepherd who goes after the lost sheep. He is that woman in the parable of Luke 15 who looks all through the house for that golden coin. You are that coin that is valuable. He is that father who opens his arms to receive the prodigal. Wherever you are today, open your heart to this Christ. Three men meet Jesus. The first meets him under the heavy load of a cross. Many of us bear burdens in life; you can meet Jesus too. The other meets him in his guilt and shame. He's a good boy who has gone bad. He made mistakes and got in with the wrong crowd. He was brought up by religious parents. He was a young Sabbath-keeping Jew who followed the principles of health. But he got in with the wrong crowd and he drifted further and further. You may be like this young man, but Jesus' arms are wide open to you today. Jesus wants to forgive you. There's one more man who meets him, and we find this in Luke chapter 23, verse 47. "Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying, 'Certainly this man was a righteous man.'" The centurion saw righteousness and goodness in Christ. Who was this Roman centurion? He commands at least a hundred men. He is one who is used to seeing blood. He has seen many a man speared through their heart. He's seen many a head cut off by the Roman sword. He's seen all that, and he's hard-hearted. Nothing moves him now. Yet, he looks into the eyes of Christ and sees mercy, grace, and forgiveness. There's something different about this man. He did not curse and swear like the others. There was a goodness and a righteousness about him. It was those eyes. As the eyes of Christ locked in on the eyes of the Roman centurion, he saw love, mercy, and compassion. The Roman centurion knelt there at the foot of the cross and said, "Truly, this man is a righteous man." He glorified God. He opened his heart that day to accept the grace and the mercy of Christ. These three men came from totally different backgrounds, but each had his life changed that day.
Guest (Male): You've been listening to Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you enjoyed today's message and that it increased your faith in God and his word. If you'd like to learn more about the Bible, Pastor Mark invites you to visit globalbibleschool.org for an inspiring, interactive Bible study experience. And now, a final thought from Pastor Mark Finley.
Mark Finley: Maybe your heart has grown cold. Maybe you actually have stopped going to church at all, but yet there's that nagging emptiness in the soul. You've tuned into this broadcast today, and Jesus is speaking to you. He says to you, "Come unto me, all you that are burdened and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Three men meet Jesus. They met him there, and you can meet him here. They met him then, and you can meet him now. They met him in the first century, and you can meet him in the 21st century. Let's pray together. Father in heaven, there's somebody who hasn't come to Jesus. I just pray that you'd touch their heart and move in their life. I pray that you would draw them close to you. Father, there are people listening to this broadcast who are carrying very heavy burdens: burdens in their health, financial burdens, or burdens in their family. Help them to give those burdens to Jesus just now. There are others today, Lord, who are filled with guilt and shame and condemnation. Deliver them, I pray thee, right now. And there are others who have hearts that have become hardened. Move upon their hearts and transform them like you did that Roman centurion. We thank you, Lord, that just now we can come to you in Christ's name. Amen.