Reflections on the Scandal – Chapter 1: The Ironies of the Cross

Irony is what separates us from the animals (and the Americans). Okay, there may be a few other things too, but I love irony. It’s why I chuckled with glee when the unfortunately timed photo to the right was released following protests in London.

It’s also why I was eager to begin reading the first chapter of D.A. Carson’s ‘Scandalous – The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus’ today. The first chapter centres around Matthew 27:27-51a, and is entitled ‘The Ironies of the Cross’. In it, Carson picks out the irony of four separate statements made in the passage by those surrounding Jesus during His trial and execution.

The four ironies that Carson points to are:

• The man who is mocked as King is the King

• The man who is utterly powerless is powerful

• The Man Who can’t save himself saves others

• The man who cries out in despair trusts God.

I won’t rewrite the chapter here, partly because I am not a fan of being sued for copyright infringement, but also because I would probably do the book an injustice. However, as I read the account in Matthews gospel, followed by Carson’s masterful highlighting of unintentionally ironic Roman and Jewish declarations of Jesus’ kingship, power, salvific capability and deep trust in His Father, two things stood out to me.

The first was that God does not think like me. Never in a million years would I come up with the idea that salvation, strength, power, love, and all that is good could be so vividly and completely portrayed in so vile a moment as an execution. Yet in Jesus’ death we see all this and more.

In one terrible moment that seems to show weakness and failure, Jesus accomplishes all that is required for the forgiveness of sins, the solution to the human condition, the abolition of death, the securing of an eternal future for God’s people, His own glorification and more than I have space to write about here.

God’s ways are not my ways, and they are infinitely above my own (Isaiah 55:8).

The second thing that stood out to me was God’s complete control over all things, all history, and over every moment of Jesus’ crucifixion. It was always God’s plan to send Jesus to die for the forgiveness of sins – it wasn’t as if God was just trying to make the best out of a bad situation. In Matthews account, we see that those who think they are able to do away with Jesus are in fact taking part in the act that will see Him lifted up and glorified and His people saved, according to the eternal, unchanging plan of God.

Their very mouths speak words that they intend for derision, but that God intended, before the very foundation of the world, to speak the truth about His Son.

God’s ways are not my ways. He does things that I can never fathom. But he is in complete control, and all things will work out just as he planned, and all things will work out for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).

Phill.

This post is part of a series of posts that will take place this week, recording various Firwood members’ reflections upon each chapter of Carson’s book ‘Scandalous- The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus’. For more information, click here