Grace and peace and glory are yours through the cross of Christ. Amen.

John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. ²¹ They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. "Sir," they said, "we would like to see Jesus." ²² Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus. ²³ Jesus replied, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ²⁵ The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶ Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. ²⁷ "Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. ²⁸ Father, glorify your name!" Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again." ²⁹ The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him. ³⁰ Jesus said, "This voice was for your benefit, not mine. ³¹ Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. ³² But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." ³³ He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

In the cross of Christ I glory, Tow'ring o'er the wrecks of time. All the light of sacred story Gathers round its head sublime. When the woes of life o'ertake me, Hopes deceive and fears annoy, Never shall the cross forsake me; Lo, it glows with peace and joy. When the sun of bliss is beaming Light and love upon my way, From the cross the radiance streaming Adds more luster to the day. Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure By the cross are sanctified; Peace is there that knows no measure, Joys that through all time abide. Amen. "In the Cross of Christ I Glory" (CW #345)

In the early days of the Eskimo people, during the hard times in the darkness of the Alaskan winter many times food would become scarce. At such a time the people of the village would ask a young man to go out into the bitter cold of the Alaskan wilderness in search of food. The young man was known as "the good hunter". Armed with only a pointed stick and compassion for his starving village, he would wander into the wilderness, anticipating the attack of a polar bear. Since the polar bear has no natural fear of humans it will stalk and eat a man. When attacked, the Eskimo hunter would wave his hands and spear to anger the bear and make him rise up on his hind legs to over 10 feet in height; and then, with the spear braced against his foot, the hunter would aim for the heart as the full weight of the bear came down upon him and his spear.

With its heart pierced, the bear might live long enough to maim or kill the noble hunter, but ultimately the bear would die. Later, the people of the village would follow the tracks made in the snow by the hunter into the wilderness and find not only food for their survival, but also evidence of his profound courage. Early missionaries to the Eskimo people proclaimed to attentive ears that Jesus Christ is like the "Good Hunter" who willingly laid down his life to save the world.

Jesus truly is our "Good Hunter." Seeing his people in trouble, Jesus willingly left the kingdom of heaven and came into this world to save us. Armed only with a crude wooden cross and his compassion for his people he walked through life anticipating the attack of the predator call "Satan" who Scripture says, "prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8) Since Satan has no natural fear of humans he lives to stalk and kill people. Throughout his life Jesus was stalked by Satan. When he was ultimately attacked, Jesus braced himself against the wooden cross and as the full weight of sin and Satan came down upon him on the cross he pierced the evil heart of Satan and defeated him once and for all. With the triumphant cry, "It is finished" Scripture tells us that the Great Good Hunter, Jesus Christ, died for us when, "he bowed his head and gave up his spirit."

This morning we again search the Scriptures where we not only find the life-giving food for our soul’s survival, but also evidence of truly profound courage, grace, love, and mercy. Today we consider the glorious cross that our Great Good Hunter, Jesus Christ, used to save all mankind. The cross: it is man’s most inglorious instrument of death. The cross: it is God’s most glorious instrument of life.

An oxymoron is defined in the English language as "a foolish or self-contradictory statement" – two words that really don’t go together. Some examples might include: "government organization", "military intelligence", "rap music", or "Minnesota Viking football." In our text for this morning we find what the people of Jesus day would have called an "oxymoron." Jesus points to the cross and says, "the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified … when I am lifted up from the earth". Yes, Jesus would be "lifted up from the earth" on a cross and this is how he would be "glorified". "The Glorious Cross" would seem to be a self-contradictory statement – two words that really don’t go together. The Apostle Paul says, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1 Corinthians 1:18) To the world, the cross had absolutely no glory in it – in fact, it was a symbol of death and an instrument of torture and execution which by Roman law could only be used only upon slaves and criminals. But to the believer, the cross of Christ means everything.

History records for us many forms of execution which different societies and cultures have implemented. Many times in the Bible we read about how the condemned were stoned to death, impaled, or beheaded. Other history books tell us that over time people have been boiled in oil, skinned alive, burned at the stake, fed to lions, drawn and quartered, stretched apart on racks, beheaded by guillotines, and drown – just to name a few. And today in the U.S, execution is currently authorized in one of five ways: hanging, electrocution, the gas chamber, the firing squad, or lethal injection. But really, the Romans, probably better than anyone, had perfected capital punishment – it was called crucifixion.

Upon sentencing, the condemned man was flogged with a leather whip with bone or metal tips. He was flogged so cruelly that many times the victim died from the whipping. The flogging of Jesus in "The Passion of the Christ" brutally showed the reality of this torturous whipping. If the condemned survived, he was then made to wear a sign around his neck naming the crime he committed as he carried the crossbeam to the execution site. The cross was then placed on the ground where the beaten and exhausted man was thrown backward against the wood upon his lacerated back.

The soldiers then felt for the depressions at the front of the wrists and drove a heavy, square, wrought-iron nails through the wrists and deep into the wood – being careful not to pull the arms too tightly, but to allow for some flex and movement. The cross was then lifted into place. The left foot was then pressed against the right foot and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail was driven through the arch of each, leaving the knees flexed. The victim was now crucified – but this was only the beginning.

Imagine the searing agony he felt as his body weight slowly sagged down putting full pressure upon the nails in his wrists tearing and stretching the nerves. In order to avoid this pain the victim would attempt to push himself up, only to place his full body weight on the nail through his feet. Again he felt the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between the bones in his feet. Hours of this limitless pain, horrible joint rending cramps, difficulty breathing, and searing pain as his torn, lacerated back moved up and down against the rough cross. And then another agony began – a deep crushing pain in his chest as the area around the heart filled with fluid and as his heart struggled to pump blood his tortured lungs would work harder and harder to take in air.

It was a slow and excruciatingly painful death and many times victims of crucifixion did not die for two to three days. And all this the Bible records with the simple words, "And they crucified him". (Mark 15:24)

Because crucifixion was so horrible it is no wonder that Jesus as a true man says, "Now my heart is troubled". We would expect this from any man facing crucifixion. Yet Jesus also says something totally unexpected, something totally remarkable. Jesus spoke of his impending crucifixion saying "the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified." While the cross was man’s most inglorious instrument of death it would become God’s most glorious instrument of life.

Wouldn't it be something to be able to go behind the scenes in heaven and hear the conversation that the Son had with the Father before He came to earth at Christmas? Well maybe we can … "Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; ⁶ with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. ⁷ Then I said, 'Here I am-- it is written about me in the scroll-- I have come to do your will, O God.'" (Hebrews 10:5-7)

The Son turns to the Father as he is getting ready to leaves and says, "I understand what the mission is. Sacrifices were never able to cleanse someone from their sin. They pointed to a perfect sacrifice. They pointed to me. You have prepared a body for me so that I could be that perfect sacrifice. I have come to do your will." With that Jesus came to earth with the knowledge that He was coming to suffer and die.

There is no salvation story if Jesus had not died as he did. There is no salvation just in his birth. There is no salvation in his life of showing God’s love or teaching God’s truth or bringing comfort to the suffering. None of those things were sufficient to bring us salvation. Jesus could have done all of these things without ever coming to earth. He could have sent an angel. He could have appeared in his power and glory. But he took on that prepared body for one purpose – to give his life in exchange for ours.

John MacArthur writes in his book God With Us, "Here's a side to the Christmas story that isn't often told: those soft little hands, fashioned by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb, were made so that nails might be driven through them. Those baby feet, pink and unable to walk, would one day walk up a dusty hill to be nailed to a cross. That sweet infant's head with sparking eyes and eager mouth was formed so that someday men might force a crown of thorns onto it. That tender body, warm and soft, wrapped in swaddling clothes, would one day be ripped open by a spear." (p. 116)

Jesus was born to suffer and die. This morning we heard God speak through Jeremiah’s prophecy, "The time is coming when I will make a new covenant … and I will forgive their wickedness". (Jeremiah 3:33,34) Jesus tells us that time had come. Jesus says, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified … it was for this very reason I came to this hour." Jesus knew that he was born to die on the cross. Jesus knew that he had come into this world to be mocked, ridiculed, spat upon, beaten, and crucified in our place. Jesus knew that he had come into this world to be preyed upon by the great predator Satan in our place. But Jesus, our Great Good Hunter, also knew that by his suffering and death the ultimate victory would be won for all people. Yes he would die, but through his death all people would be saved because through his death on the cross God would "forgive our wickedness and remember our sins no more."

Jesus, our Great Good Hunter, also knew that even though he died, death could not hold him. Because he had lived a perfect, sinless life "the wages of sin which is death" had no power over him. Jesus knew that on Easter morning he would rise again in greater glory and defeat the Unholy Trinity of sin, death, and the Devil once and for all. The Apostle Paul says, "When you were dead in your sins … God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins … he took it away, nailing it to the cross … triumphing over them by the cross" (Colossians 2:13-15) In victory, Jesus would rise again from the dead, just like a seed which is buried rises from the ground and produces many more seeds. Jesus said, "Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies it produces many seeds."

Through the cross, Jesus would carry out and complete God’s wondrous plan of salvation. Through the cross, Jesus would gain victory for us over sin, death, and the devil. Through the cross, Jesus endured the most inglorious death imaginable so that we could enjoy an unimaginable glorious life. Because of the cross, Satan is now powerless as God judges the world and declares all men righteous, innocent, and forgiven through Jesus. Jesus says, "Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out." Through Jesus the cross has been transformed from man’s ultimate instrument of death into God ultimate instrument of life. Amen.

"Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ … Because we are convinced that one died for all … and that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." (2 Corinthians 5:14-15) Amen.