Series: The Cross of Jesus – City Church of Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN
Matthew 27:29, The made a crown of long, sharp thorns and put it on his head, and they place a stick in his right hand as a scepter. The crown of thorns is one of the most recalled events in the crucifixion of Jesus. It stands in stark comparison with who Jesus is. He is the King of Heaven. Yet, on earth he is given a crown of thorns!
In today’s message, we will contemplate the crown of thorns as a picture of the life of Jesus on the earth. What did Jesus surrender in order to become a man?
THE PERIMETER OF THE BRANCHES
The eternal entered time,
Exodus 3:14, I AM! Time is bound by the ticking of the clock the turning of the page of the calendar. In eternity there is no ticking clock. There is no calendar. He, who knew no boundaries, was put in the corral of time. Jesus exchanged his crown of timelessness for the crown of thorns.
THE PLAITING OF THE CROWN
The boundless was bound.
Psalm 139:7, I can never escape from your spirit! I can never get away from your presence. He was imprisoned in flesh. His limitless reach limited to the stretch of an arm. His speed checked to the pace of human feet. He exchanged his crown of boundlessness for the crown of thorns.
THE POINT OF THE THORNS
The sinless became sin.
2 Corinthians 5:21, God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
In Scripture, thorns are symbols of the consequences of sin and rebellion. The thorns in Christ’s crown can be traced back to the sin of Adam. (Genesis 3:17-18)
Jesus had never felt the awful consequences of sin. He exchanged the crown of sinlessness for the crown of thorns.
THE PROMISE OF THE CROWN
The unrighteous become right. He was crowned with our thorns so that we might me crowned with his goodness. Paul dreamed of this crown.
2 Timothy 4:8, Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. Jesus no longer wears the thorns!
Hebrews 2:9, We see Jesus…now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.