On the Road to Jerusalem: Hidden No More

“And taking the twelve, He said to them, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For He will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging Him, they will kill Him, and on the third day He will rise.’ But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said."

—Luke 18:31-34

God’s plan has always been about bringing our redemption through suffering. It had been planned since the foundation of the world (1 Peter 1:20). Jesus had already foretold His death to His disciples two other times (Luke 9:21-22; 43-45). But His last prediction is the most revealing. He was going to Jerusalem, where all of the prophecies that had been written about Him would be fulfilled: He would be delivered to the Gentiles, mocked, treated shamefully, and be spit upon. He would be flogged and killed, but on the third day He would rise. And even though the meaning is clear to us today, to the disciples, “This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said." It was not until after the resurrection that they “remembered His words”—Luke 24:8.

The suffering of Christ was predicted in the Old Testament. Even while our first parents were in the Garden, God prophesied about a coming one who would defeat Satan while dying in the process (Genesis 3:15). Isaiah prophesied of God’s servant who would suffer so greatly that He would be “marred, beyond human semblance, and His form beyond the children of mankind” (Isaiah 52:14). He would be “despised” and “rejected” by men, a “man of sorrows” who was “acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3). He would bear our grief and carry our sorrows, yet He would be stricken, smitten by God (Isaiah 53:4). He would be “wounded for our transgressions,” “crushed for our iniquities,” and by His “stripes” we would be healed (Isaiah 53:5). He would be “oppressed,” “afflicted,” and would be silent before His oppressors (Isaiah 53:7). He would be “cut off from the land of the living” and “stricken for the transgression” of His people (Isaiah 53:8).

Peter wrote about the suffering of Christ:

“Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look”—1 Peter 1:10-12.

God sent His servant to suffer on our behalf so that we might have redemption. On Calvary’s tree the wrath of God was poured out on Him. Yet, He did so because it was the “will of the LORD to crush Him” (Isaiah 53:10). He did so that we might be healed, that our sins may be forgiven and that we might have life with Him. Thank God for His indescribable gift! May God be praised for giving us so great a salvation! Amen.