Jesus Behold

Introduction

I’m on two scales.

I don’t know how you want to do it.

Oh glory.

We have the fire.

Oh, hello, you’re there. Yeah, well.

The church is certainly bigger. Fad is bigger. And but one thing I do notice is that as much has changed, many have stayed the same. The same kind of warm welcome, the same friendly faces, the same heart of a people who love God and want to go to heaven after this life is over. And so it is our great pleasure to be with you this week and to share in those things with you. To see some people who weren’t here before, like my friends Tony and Sherry, and look forward to meeting so many who are new since the last time we were privileged to be in your company. But thank you again for the invitation to come. The next lesson, the first one being out of the way, all the remaining lessons will be upon this theme, building character from Bible characters.

Character is who you are on the inside. It’s as someone has once described who you are when no one is looking. It’s who you really are. It’s what counts in a person. And the way I want to talk about building the right kind of character, being the kind of person that God wants us to be, is by looking at people that he has revealed in his word. Have you ever thought about all the different ways that God could have written the Bible? All the ways he could have chosen to reveal his mind to man, to reveal his word to man. He could have done it any of what any different kind of way. But the way God did it was to tell stories about people. To reveal for our learning people from all different walks of life, from different time periods, different countries, men and women, young people alike, and to say, this is the kind of person that pleases me.

And whether you’re talking about Old Testament or New Testament, what God has wanted from people has never changed. He wants a people who love him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. He wants people who does what he says, who love him for the very simple reason that he first loved us. And so we’re going to be talking about different Bible characters this week and how we can learn what they did to please God, use those same qualities to build our own character, that we might be a people for his own possession, that we might be among those who are redeemed, with all of those of the ages who’ve gone before. Building character from Bible characters. And we’re going to start this morning with the greatest of all.

Jesus. Behold. In John chapter 19, we find these words starting at verse 25. Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother. And his mother’s sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus then saw his mother and the disciple whom he loves standing nearby, he said to his mother, Woman, behold your son. And he said to the disciples, Behold your mother. From that hour, the disciple took her into his own household. Do you want to know about the character of a man? You find out about some of the last things he says before he dies. And that’s going to reveal a lot about who he is on the inside. Did you know that it is reported that one of the last things Saddam Hussein said before his execution, as the soldiers were tightening the noose around his neck for him to be hanged, one of the last things he said to those men was, Allah condemn you.

One of the other things that Jesus said on the cross were for two very important people in his life who would remain after his death. He looked down as he was hanging from the cross, and he saw his mother. And standing nearby her, he saw John, that’s the disciple whom Jesus loved. And so he said to his mother, Woman, behold thy son. And I must confess to you, for a long time I thought he was talking about himself. Woman, look at what they’ve done to your son. Look at me as I’m hanging up here. But that’s not what he said, is it? He meant, woman, behold your son. That is, you look at John and you count him as your son. I, the firstborn, will not be here anymore to take care of you.

So you regard John as your son. To John, he said, Behold, your mother. You treat my mother like she’s your mother. You care for her. You tend to her. These were some of the last things that Jesus said. But the word that I want you to focus on this morning is what he says twice. Behold. That’s an attention getting word. It’s unfortunate that in some of the newer translations, the word look is put there. But we don’t think about look like we do the word behold, do we? I’ll be sitting in the recliner reading the paper or watching the ball game, and David will be on the ground putting Legos together, and he’ll say, Daddy, look. And I won’t even glance up. I’ll just say, Oh, that’s nice.

And he’ll say, Daddy, you didn’t even look. And that’s what we think of when we think of look. But behold, that’s different. As used in the scriptures, the word behold means to emphasize an idea or to call attention to a detail. That’s what Jesus was doing. John, you give her, my mother, special attention. You take care of her. You regard her and emphasize her in your life. As I will not be here to care for her. For the purposes of this sermon, I don’t want to look at the times that Jesus said the word behold, although that would be very profitable. Behold, the sower went out to sow. Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit. Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, but they are white for harvest.

But rather, I want us to look at three times in the book of John that the word behold is said about Jesus. Because there again is the attention getter. You look at Jesus perhaps in a way you’ve never looked at him before, and you see something about him that maybe you’ve glanced over before, and you take what you see and behold, and then you make that a part of your own character, and you be pleasing to God in this way. So if you look at me three times, that the word behold is said about Jesus. What is being emphasized? What should we see? And how will that help us build a character that’s pleasing to God? Well, the first one is in John chapter 1, and you’ll remember this one at the time when John the Baptist was speaking.

1. Behold the Lamb of God: What Sin Does

John was Jesus’ messenger, the one who was to announce the coming of the Messiah to prepare the way of the Lord. But notice what John said about him. Start at John chapter 1, and look at verse 29. The next day he that is John the Baptist saw Jesus coming to him and said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is he on behalf of whom I said, After me comes a man who is mightier than I, for he existed before me. I did not recognize him, but so that he might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water. John testified, saying, I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and he remained upon him.

I did not recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize in water said to me, He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remained upon him, this is the one who baptized in the Holy Spirit. I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God. Did you notice when John said in verse 29, behold, what did he say? To behold about Jesus. Behold, here’s the first one, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Out of all the animals that the Bible could have used to liken Jesus to, and we know that he is the lion of Judah. But the predominant figure of Jesus is of a lamb. You ever go to a petting zoo? You’re going to see lambs in the petting zoo.

Why? Because they’re docile, they’re gentle. In fact, you’ll probably see three or four kids climbing on the lamb, and they just lay there. They don’t do anything. And we think of lambs in that way, of being very gentle. And certainly that figure would fit Jesus. He describes himself as gentle and humble in heart, as a lamb before its cheers is silent. But to the first century mind, to the Jewish mind, a lamb would have been much more than that. The lamb was the animal of sacrifice. What question did Isaac ask his father Abraham as they climbed up the mountain? And he said, Father, here’s the wood for the altar and the fire. Where is the lamb? The night of the Passover in Egypt. The Israelite sacrifice, the Passover, the Paschal Lamb, and applied his blood to the doorpost and to the lentil, the lamb who is unblemished and unspotted.

As they made their way to the promised land through the tabernacle and later the temple, they were required to offer a lamb for the sins of the people. You think about all of the thousands and thousands of lambs who were slain, and the blood that was spilled and poured out for the sins of the people, and all the cries of those innocent lambs that were killed for the sins of what someone else did. And yet Hebrews tells us it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Hebrews 10 and verse 4. And so John says, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. What is being emphasized here? What is the attention getter? What should we see about Jesus when we behold him as the Lamb of God?

You behold what sin does. And it is not a pretty picture.

This time, it’s not the cries of innocent lambs and animals. This time it’s the cry of the Son of God who said, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? This time it was not blood that was spelled out in the altar of the tabernacle. This time it was the blood that fell as great drops or sweat that fell as great drops of blood from the Son of God in the garden as he prayed. Father, if thou are willing, remove this cup from me. Behold what sin does. It’s not a pretty picture. Why did he do this? Not for his own sin, as our brother said at the table this morning, but for my sin. Perhaps we would make better choices in our lives if we would think about what our sin has done.

Perhaps the next time we’re at some crossroads and we’re having to make a choice. Am I going to do what I want to do? What looks good and feels good to me, or am I going to do what God wants me to do? Perhaps we would make better choices if we would picture Jesus on the cross. If we would behold the Lamb of God who takes away my sin for something I did, he was sacrificed and slain. We sometimes nonchalantly define sin as missing the mark. Well, I got pretty close. I didn’t get a bullseye, but I just barely missed the mark. When what we ought to do is think about it, putting or crucifying afresh the Son of God and putting him to open sin.

2. Behold the Man: What Jesus Did for You

Behold the Lamb of God. Behold what sin does, what it has done. It’s not a pretty picture. The second time we see the word behold said about Jesus is all the way John chapter 18. And this time it’s not John the Baptist speaking, but of all people, Pontius Pilate. It’s when Jesus is on trial. Notice in John chapter 18, starting at verse 38, what is written. This is after Pilate asked the question, What is truth? When he said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, I find no guilt in him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover. Do you wish then that I released for you the king of the Jews? So they cried out again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas.

Now Barabbas was a robber. Pilate then took Jesus and scourged him. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and put a purple robe on him. And they began to come up to him and say, Hail, King of the Jews. And Gavin slaps in the face. Pilate again said to them, Behold, I am bringing him out to you that you may know I find no guilt in him. Jesus then came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, Behold the man. So when the chief priest and the officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify. Pilate said to them, Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.

The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he made himself out to be the Son of God. Verse 5. Behold the man. Now it is likely that Pilate said this to evoke some kind of sympathy from the crowd to Jesus. He’s interviewed him privately, and he makes made sure that everyone knew.

And so by bringing him out on the porch there and standing him next to Barabbas, he wanted them to find some sympathy for Jesus to behold the man. Pilate had a custom as the governor of Judea, every year about the Passover time, he would release one of their criminals back on the street. It’s kind of like a presidential pardon. And so he stood Jesus next to Barabbas. And John tells us that Barabbas was a robber. You read the other gospel accounts, and you find that he had also been guilty of insurrection and murder. And so maybe Pilate’s thinking, okay, you’ve got two choices. Which one do you want back on the street? Do you want the murdering criminal thief? Or do you want the one in whom I have found no guilt?

And without batting an eye, they said, release to us Barabbas. There were three crosses prepared on Golgotha’s hill that day. There were going to be three executions. Perhaps the third cross had been prepared for Barabbas. It makes sense. Three thieves, three executions. And so Jesus took the place of Barabbas. And in so doing took the place of every sinner. Ironically, the name Barabbas means son of the Father. You recall Barnabas, son of encouragement, Abba, Father, put those together, Barabbas, son of the Father. But in taking the place of this thief, Jesus makes it possible that all men could become sons of the Father. Behold the man. What is being emphasized? What attention to details should we give about Jesus? Behold what Jesus did for you. Behold what sin does with behold the Lamb of God.

But secondly, behold what Jesus did for you and behold the man. This is to help us make the connection of Jesus with humanity. Yes, he came as the Son of God, but he also came as the Son of Man. He felt the pains of being in the flesh. He felt the thorns on the crown that were pressed on his head. He felt the claps that were made across his face. He felt the scourges of what the Romans called the half death. And he did this not for his sins, but for the sins of the world. Even the thief on the cross recognized that about Jesus. The other thief was hailing abuses at him. And do you remember what the thief said? Don’t you fear God? He said, We’re getting what we deserve.

3. Behold Your King: What Jesus Requires of You

But this man has done nothing wrong. And then he said, remember me when you come in your kingdom. And Jesus said, Today you will be with me in paradise. Paul said he made him who knew no sin, 2 Corinthians 5 21, to be sin on our behalf, that we might achieve the righteousness of God. Behold what Jesus did for you. He took your place on the cross. The wages of sin is death. We all deserve to die. But our debt was paid by him who knew no sin. Shouldn’t that be something that gets our attention today? Behold the man. And then Pilate says one more. Still in John chapter 19. Verse 13. Therefore, when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and set him down in the judgment seat at a place called the pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.

Now it was the day of preparation for the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, Behold your king. So they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate said to them, Shall I crucify your king? The chief priest answered, We have no king but Caesar. So he then handed him over to be crucified. Now again, I don’t believe that Pilate said what he said with conviction when he said, Behold your king. There was obviously an element of sarcasm in what he was saying to the Jews. But what Pilate said in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. Jesus was the king. Jesus is spoken about in scriptures as a king. His king ship testified in many different ways.

What did he preach? He preached the gospel of the kingdom. He was prophesied that the Lord would give him what? The throne of his father David. That’s what a king has, isn’t it? A throne. He was promised to reign over the house of Jacob forever and ever in Luke chapter 1, verses 32 and 33. Jesus was the king. Behold, your king. What is it that a king needs? Oh, he needs his throne. Doesn’t he need a people to rule? I was talking to a friend of mine who was telling me about when he was growing up at home. He grew up in a home with three boys. He had two brothers. And he was the youngest. And he said, I can still remember we were in the living room, and Dad would come in and he would hold up a shiny quarter.

And he’d say, Okay, who wants this quarter? And of course, they would jump up and down and raise their hand. I want, I want it. And so he would throw it across the room and say, Go get it. And he said, we wouldn’t take three or four steps when all of a sudden dad would say, Stop. And we had to stop right there. We couldn’t take four or five more steps and lean and get the quarter. He wanted us to stop right there. And I said, Well, what was the point of all that? He said, He told us, he said, one day we’re going to be playing outside. And the ball’s going to bounce in the street. And when I say stop, I want you to stop right then.

I don’t want you to take four or five more steps. You stop right when I tell you. What was he teaching them? To listen to the voice of authority. That’s what God said. Listen to my beloved son. This is my son in whom I’m well pleased. You listen to him. He has all authority in heaven and on earth. They didn’t listen. This Jesus they crucified. And God raised him up again and made him both Lord and Christ. And this Peter preached on the day of Pentecost. And said, God has raised him both Lord. He now sits at God’s right hand. He sits at the place of rule. What shall we do? They ask.

What shall we do? Bow your knee. You submit to your king. You listen to him. You recognize that he has the right to tell you how to live your life. That he has the right to tell you what kind of character you ought to have. You bow down your knee. Behold your king. What should we do? Behold what Jesus requires of you. That’s what the attention is. Behold what he demands of you. If Jesus is the Lamb who laid down his life for his sheep. Who did so? He wasn’t forced into it. Nobody prodded in by his own initiative. He laid down his life. Do you think he wants a people that he’s got to drag behind him everywhere he goes and say, You follow me?

Went to a place for a meeting once, and we were had been picked up at the airport. We were going to where I was going to stay. And I was just asking the guy, never been there before. Tell me about the work here. What kind of things should I expect this week? He said, Well, I’ve got to warn you, the preacher said, a lot of people here suffer from a drug problem. And I thought, well, what in the world have I got myself into? And he said, Yeah, Sunday morning they look like they’ve been drugged to church. Sunday night, they look like they’ve been drugged to church. Same thing for Bible class. Look like they’ve been drugged everywhere. Do you think that’s what the Lord wants from his subjects?

Those who look like they’re forced into going, well, I have to go. Do you think your shepherds here want a flock that they have to chase all over creation to find out where they are and why they aren’t coming, why they’re not doing what the Lord wants them to do? Behold your king. Behold what he requires of you. He must reign in your life. He’s your king. He doesn’t want to be a king. He doesn’t even want to be the king. He wants to be your king. He wants you to enthrone him in your heart. He demands that you have no other king before him. Behold Jesus. When you do that, you might see things you didn’t want to see. You might call attention to things you’d rather not think about.

Conclusion

But that’s what they’re there for. Behold. And in so see, how will this help me have the kind of character that will be pleasing to my king? One of the last things Jesus said in the book of Revelation was another behold. Behold, I am coming quickly. Revelation 22. Behold.

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Now that doesn’t sound like someone who didn’t have his things together. That’s someone who’s ready, who’s ready to stand face to face before the Lord and hear him say, Well done, good and faithful servant. If you’re not prepared this morning, isn’t it time to behold Jesus in a way you’ve never done before?

Isn’t it time to see what your sins have done and caused a separation between you and God? Isn’t it time for you to see what God did to provide for your soul’s salvation and for you to bow before the King who said, He who believes and is baptized shall be saved. We can assist you this morning. Become a citizen of the kingdom of God. Make yourself to the front right now while we’re standing while we sing.

Into the glow just came of the thy call to thy power of the woman I thought it is to thy fall I let up his friend Jesus thy combo to thee thirteen thy comes a thar tallowing to the journey and thus Jesus I was to the for the very glory to be whole Jesus I call thee.