By Waylon Bailey
Everyone who has been a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ for any length of time is well acquainted with the trial and crucifixion of our Lord.
Jesus gave Himself freely and voluntarily to atone for our sins. While we know this wonderful fact, there are other areas that are striking in their truthfulness and ironic in the way it was carried out.
What are these ironic situations?
First, notice the irony of Simon of Cyrene carrying the cross of Jesus when the other Simon (Peter) had proclaimed so loudly that he would never forsake Jesus.
Second, notice the irony of God using the words of skeptics and mockers for good. Pilate put a plack on the cross of Jesus saying, “This is the king of the Jews.” The leaders of the people mocked Jesus saying, “He saved others, let him come down from the cross and save himself.”
Could God have used these statements as a way to convict the criminal that Jesus was indeed the Messiah and that He could save him as He had saved others?
Third, notice how all creation mourned as the light of the world gave Himself for the sins of lost humanity. The three hours of darkness pointed to the darkness of the people of Jerusalem and the Roman soldiers who had God with them In the flesh and missed the greatest experience of all human history.
Finally, the most ironic truth is the fact that what so many meant as evil God used for good. The Jewish leaders and the complicit Romans both meant to use Jesus and His death for their own devices, but God used this for the ultimate—the redemption of human beings.
God continues to work in this same way, changing our sorrows for His joys.
Waylon Bailey is senior pastor of the First Baptist Church in Covington and president of the Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Board. This editorial first appeared on his blog.
