Let’s focus for a moment today on the floggings that Jesus received: “Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.” (Matt 27:26 NIV)
The Israelites had a law about flogging: “If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and have him flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime deserves, but he must not give him more than forty lashes.” (Deut 25:2-3 NIV) Tradition tells us that they usually stopped at 39, in case they miscounted, because more than 40 lashes could potentially bring about death!
The Romans had no such law, however. In fact, the only flogging law recorded in the Bible for the Romans is that it was unlawful to flog a Roman citizen! Therefore, since Jesus wasn’t a Roman citizen, and since He was flogged by Romans, there was no “40 lashes” limit!
History also records that the Roman instrument for flogging was a cat-of-nine-tails, a lash made up of several strips of leather, with pieces of bone or iron embedded in one end. As a result, Roman prisoners often died under the lash!
And Jesus was lashed. Repeatedly. Until His skin hung in ribbons from his body.
Oh, the blood!
Why am I spelling this out like this?
Because we are told that if we don’t study history, we will repeat it! I would like to submit to you today that Jesus’ flogging hasn’t stopped! We flog Him daily!
What?
Take a look for yourselves: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him …” (Isa 53:5 KJV)
What this means is that Jesus was flogged for each sin we have committed, continue to commit, and will ever commit! True, it happened in the past, but each time we continue to commit sin, it was an additional lash laid upon Him! And each time we continue to sin, it hurts our Lord and Saviour!
Let’s put this in language we can relate to: Anyone who has children knows what it is like to sacrifice. We go without so our kids can have food, clothing, so they can participate in sports or go to parties, and so that can have the best education. But how does it make us feel when we’ve taken a second job so that child can have a good education, and he or she cuts classes, let’s their grades drop, and has to repeat their year?
It hurts, doesn’t it?
Or maybe we denied ourselves a new pair of shoes because our child wanted a more stylish pair. We walk around with holes in our soles because we couldn’t afford a second pair. How does it make us feel when he or she leaves the shoes outside in the rain? Or forgets them at school and they are stolen?
It makes us mad, doesn’t it?
And then there’s the party. Our child begs us to take the car so he or she can go. That means we won’t have the car for grocery shopping. But we let them go, and instead we try to squeeze the grocery shopping into a different already crowded evening. How does it make us feel if our child gets drunk at that party? Or was slipped drugs and overdosed?
It makes us very, very sad, doesn’t it?
Friends, Jesus’ sacrifice was far bigger than anything we’ve ever experienced here on Earth. When we continue to repeat our sins, when we continue to fall into temptation, even when we know it’s wrong, it hurts Jesus! It makes Him very, very sad! After all He’s done for us, how can we throw dirt upon His ultimate sacrifice by continuing in our known sins and addictions?
I’ve heard it so many, many times: “I just can’t stop _____, but I know it doesn’t matter because Jesus forgives me!” And yes, He does continue to forgive. But this attitude hurts Jesus, friends! It is like we are behind that cat-of-nine-tails!
During this Lenten season, I would like to challenge each of you with a question: How much do you love Jesus? If you truly do, then examine your hearts. Ask Him to identify the ways you continue to sin, the ways you continue to hurt Him, and then ask Him to help you to not hurt Him in this way anymore!
If, after searching your heart however, you realize that maybe you don’t love Jesus enough to see the need to stop hurting Him, then please spend some time everyday meditating upon Jesus’ suffering. Meditate upon the fact that He did it for YOU!
Please join us next week for THE SUFFERINGS OF JESUS, Part 5: The Mock King.
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, www.scripturalnuggets.org, with Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org.
[1] http://www.apologeticspress.com/articles/2223
(To access the entire “The Sufferings of Jesus: A Lenten Series” mini-series, please click here.)