Thinking on Scripture with Dr. Steven R. Cook

What Jesus Suffered by Men

     Jesus loved the Father (John 14:31) and submitted Himself to do the Father’s will (Matt 26:39-44; cf. Rom 5:19; Phil 2:5-8), which included enduring the illegal trials of His accusers, as well as the eventual mockings, beatings, and crucifixion. All that Jesus suffered was prophesied in Scripture (Gen 3:15; Psa 22:16-18; Isa 50:4-7; 52:14; 53:3-12; Mark 10:32-34). God the Father was in complete control of the circumstances surrounding the trials and crucifixion of Jesus (Acts 2:23; 4:27-28). Though unjustly attacked, Jesus knew He was doing the Father’s will (John 6:38; 10:14-18; 12:27; 18:11) and did not retaliate against His attackers (1 Pet 2:21-23). The four Gospels record the arrest, trials, mocking, crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Matthew, Mark and Luke refer to events taking place according to Jewish time in which the day ends at sunset; whereas John relies on Gentile time in which the day ends at midnight. A brief chronology of Jesus’ trials, mockings, beatings, crucifixion and burial is as follows:

1. Jesus was arrested during the night—perhaps around midnight—and faced six illegal trials, three religious and three civil.[1] The trials must have happened relatively early, as they concluded “about six in the morning” (John 19:14 CSB).[2]

     The Jewish trials declared Jesus guilty, whereas the Gentile trials found Him innocent. Jesus was crucified by Gentiles because of the pressure of the Jewish leadership. The crucifixion of Jesus was physically horrendous and involved not only great physical pain, but also psychological anguish and social humiliation. According to William Hendriksen, crucifixion included “severe inflammation, the swelling of the wounds in the region of the nails, unbearable pain from torn tendons, fearful discomfort from the strained position of the body, throbbing headache, and burning thirst (John 19:28).”[4]

What Jesus Suffered by the Father

     As previously mentioned, Jesus was not a helpless victim, but willingly laid down His life for us. Jesus said, “I lay down My life for the sheep” (John 10:15), and “No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative” (John 10:18). Scripture reveals that God the Father sent His Son “as an offering for sin” (Rom 8:3), and once Jesus was on the cross, made Him “to be sin on our behalf” (2 Cor 5:21a), and was “smitten of God, and afflicted” (Isa 53:4), as “the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him” (Isa 53:6), and “the LORD was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering” (Isa 53:10). Thieme states:

• "At the third hour of crucifixion, noontime, ordinarily the brightest period of the day, an impenetrable “darkness fell upon all the land” (Matt 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44). For the following three hours, so intense was the suffering of Jesus Christ that the Father hid the Son’s face from view. Jesus had borne in silence the scourging, the ridicule, and the agony of crucifixion (Isa 53:7; Acts 8:32–35), but the anguish of bearing the sins of the world caused Him to scream out again and again, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt 27:46; Mark 15:34; cf. Psa 22:1). The Father had to turn His back on the Son in order to judge Him on our behalf (2 Cor 5:21)."[5]

Geisler adds:

• "At the center of Christianity is the Cross; it is the very purpose for which Christ came into the world. Without Him salvation is not possible, and only through His finished work can we be delivered from our sins (Rom 3:21–26). Jesus suffered unimaginable agony and even separation from His beloved Father (Heb 2:10–17; 5:7–9); anticipating the Cross, His “sweat became as it were great drops of blood” (Luke 22:44). Why the Cross and all this suffering unless there is a hell? If there is no hell to shun, then the Cross was in vain. Christ’s death is robbed of its eternal significance unless there is a hellish eternal destiny from which sinful souls need to be delivered."[6]

Jesus Died Twice on the Cross

     There are different kinds of death mentioned in Scripture. Biblically, death means separation. Three major kinds of death are mentioned in Scripture, and these include: 1) spiritual death, which is separation from God in time (Gen 2:16-17; 3:1-7; Rom 5:12; 1 Cor 15:22; Eph 2:1-2; Col 2:13-14), 2) physical death, which is the separation of the human spirit from the body (Gen 35:18; Eccl 12:7; 2 Cor 5:8; Phil 1:23-24; 2 Tim 4:6; Jam 2:26), and 3) the second death (aka eternal death), which is the perpetuation of physical and spiritual separation from God for all eternity (Rev 20:11-15). Spiritual and physical death were introduced into God’s creation when the first human, Adam, sinned against God. God told Adam, “from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (Gen 2:17). Adam’s sin instantly brought spiritual death (Gen 2:15-17; 3:1-7), but not immediate physical death, as he tried to hide physically from God (Gen 3:8-10). Later, Adam died physically at the age of nine hundred and thirty (Gen 5:5). Though Adam was made spiritually alive again (Gen 3:21), his single sin introduced death, in every form, into the world (Rom 5:12-14; 1 Cor 15:21-22). Except for Christ, all are born in Adam (1 Cor 15:21-22), inherit his original sin (Rom 5:12), and are spiritually dead and separated from God in time (Eph 2:1-2). Those who reject Jesus as Savior will experience the second death in the lake of fire.

     Because all humanity experiences spiritual and physical death as consequences of sin, it seems that if Jesus is to be our Savior, then He must experience the same kind of death that that we experience. Both physical and spiritual death relate to Jesus’ humanity and not His deity. In His humanity, Jesus’ fellowship with the Father was temporarily broken during the three hours He was being judged for our sin. This was while God the Father poured out His wrath upon His Son who paid the penalty for our sins. Jesus’ spiritual death should not be understood to mean that there was a break in the essence of the Trinity, for that is not possible. In the hypostatic union, Jesus is undiminished deity and perfect humanity, and it was only His humanity that bore our sin, not His deity, for sin cannot be imputed to deity, for that would contaminate and corrupt God Himself. The writer to the Hebrews cites the words of God the Son as He was about to enter the world, saying, “Therefore, when He comes into the world [in hypostatic union], He says, ‘Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, but a body You have prepared for Me’” (Heb 10:5). Because animal sacrifices under the OT law code could never take away sin, a perfect and sinless body was prepared for Jesus, so that by His personal sacrifice, our sins could be atoned for. Peter tells us that Jesus “Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross” (1 Pet 2:24). Jesus’ spiritual death meant His humanity was—for three hours—disconnected from the Father while He was on the cross bearing our sins. Geisler states, “Death is separation, and spiritual death is spiritual separation from God.”[7] W.E. Vine adds, “while the physical death of the Lord Jesus was of the essence of His sacrifice, it was not the whole. The darkness symbolized, and His cry expressed, the fact that He was left alone in the Universe, He was ‘forsaken.’”[8] According to Thieme, “Separated from God the Father, the humanity of Christ died spiritually, and this was the price paid to redeem fallen mankind from the penalty of sin (Rom 6:23a).”[9] Arnold Fruchtenbaum states, “The Righteous One suffered and died in place of unrighteous ones, in order to bring them to God. The Messiah died a violent physical death, and He also died a spiritual death.”[10] J. Dwight Pentecost states:

• "The penalty for disobedience to God was death (Gen 2:17). This death was the separation of the sinner from God—that is, spiritual death—and physical death was the result of prior spiritual death. Therefore if Jesus Christ was to satisfy the demands of God’s holiness, righteousness, and justice to provide salvation for people who are dead, He would have to experience the same death that separated them from God. He must enter into spiritual death, as anticipated in the prophetic 22nd Psalm where the sufferer cried, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Psa 22:1)…Since only that kind of separation or spiritual death could satisfy the demands of a holy, just God, Christ could not have been praying that He would be spared that which was essential."[11]

Paul Karleen adds:

• "Jesus actually died twice. He was first forsaken by the Father during His time on the cross. This is described in Psa 22:1–21, especially v. 1, the cry of dereliction He quoted on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt 27:46). This separation from the Father was spiritual death, experienced for others as He was “made” sin (2 Cor 5:21)…The father/son relation had been broken for a few hours as sin was being dealt with…That period of forsaking, involving spiritual death, was what actually paid for sins."[12]

     Jesus’ physical death occurred afterwards, when “He said, ‘It is finished!’ And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit” (John 19:30). When Jesus died physically, there was a separation of His human spirit from His body. To prove He was physically dead, Scripture records that a Roman soldier “pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out” (John 19:34). William Hendricksen notes:

• "In order to insure that not the slightest possibility would exist that any life had remained in the body of Jesus, one of the soldiers with his lance or spear pierces the side of Jesus. If the spear was held in the right hand, as is probable, it was in all likelihood the left side of Jesus that was pierced. Immediately there came out blood and water. John enlarges upon this fact, devoting no less than four verses to it. He must have had a purpose in doing so. It is altogether probable that he was trying to tell his readers that Christ, the Son of God, actually died (according to his human nature). The death of Jesus was not a mere semblance; it was real. The apostle had been there himself, and had seen the blood and the water flowing from the side of the Lord."[13]

     There is great complexity and mystery in the suffering of Jesus on the cross. The complexity of the issue is that Jesus is fully God and man. Sin cannot be imputed to deity, as that would corrupt His divine nature. Yet, without corrupting His divine nature, Jesus somehow “bore our sins in His body on the cross” (1 Pet 2:24) and died in our place, “the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God” (1 Pet 3:18). Jesus died physically when “He bowed His head and gave up His spirit” (John 19:30). Our ability to reason these things takes us only so far, as our minds are woefully inadequate to grasp the infinitude of the matter. Here, faith must rest in what God has revealed through His written Word.

Dr. Steven R. Cook

[1] Jesus’ religious trials: 1) Annas (John 18:12-24), 2) Caiaphas (Matt 26:57-66), and 3) the Sanhedrin (Matt 27:1-2). Jesus’ civil trials: 1) Pilate (John 18:28-40), 2) Herod Antipas (Luke 23:6-12), and 3) Pilate (Luke 23:11; John 19:1-16).

[2] This CSB assumes John calculates events using Roman time (where the day begins after midnight) rather than Jewish time (where the day starts at sunrise). The ESV and NAU translate the Greek literally, “about the sixth hour,” whereas the NET and NIV translate it, “about noon.” If the sixth hour is calculated by Roman time, then it would be about 6:00 AM, and if calculated by Jewish time, it would be about 12:00 PM. This author favors the CSB translation.

[3] After His death, Jesus was resurrected on the third day and appeared to numerous persons over a period of forty days (Matt 28:1-10; John 20:10-29; 1 Cor 15:5-7). Afterwards, Jesus ascended bodily into heaven (Acts 1:9-12). It is recorded that God the Father “raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places” (Eph 1:20).

[4] William Hendriksen and Simon J. Kistemaker, Exposition of the Gospel According to John, vol. 2, New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953–2001), 427.

[5] Robert B. Thieme, Jr. “Cross and Crucifixion”,  Thieme’s Bible Doctrine Dictionary, (Houston, TX., R. B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries, 2022), 50.

[6] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Volume Four: Church, Last Things (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2005), 336–337.

[7] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Volume Three: Sin, Salvation (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2004), 126.

[8] W. E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, and William White Jr., Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 1996), 149.

[9] Robert B. Thieme, Jr. “Cross and Crucifixion”,  Thieme’s Bible Doctrine Dictionary, (Houston, TX., R. B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries, 2022), 50.

[10] Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, Israelology: The Missing Link in Systematic Theology, Rev. ed. (Tustin, CA: Ariel Ministries, 1994), 999.

[11] J. Dwight Pentecost and Ken Durham, Faith That Endures: A Practical Commentary on the Book of Hebrews, Rev. ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2000), 96.

[12] Paul S. Karleen, The Handbook to Bible Study: With a Guide to the Scofield Study System (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987), 264–265.

[13] William Hendriksen and Simon J. Kistemaker, Exposition of the Gospel According to John, vol. 2, New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953–2001), 437.

     Just prior to crucifixion, a person was scourged with a whip which had thongs that were braided with sharp objects such as nails. As an act of public humiliation, criminals carried their own cross to the place of execution, and once there, were stripped naked before being fastened to the cross, either with rope or nails. Being tied to a cross with ropes was less painful in the beginning, but would leave the victim to hang for a longer period of time, even days, which would make the experience more painful in the end. Some who were tied to the cross are recorded to have lasted for nine days. Nailing a person to a cross was more painful from the beginning and would have led to a quicker death. The body would hang between three to four feet from the ground. Sometimes a soporific was given to the victim to help numb the senses. In Jesus case, it was “wine mixed with myrrh” (Mark 15:23), which our Lord rejected because it would have clouded His thinking (Matt 27:34). In some situations the Romans would break the victim’s legs which would hasten death, but according to Scripture, Jesus was already dead by the time the soldiers considered doing this (John 19:32-34). Unger notes, “In most cases the body was allowed to rot on the cross by the action of the sun and rain or to be devoured by birds and beasts.”[1] We know that Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus, came to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body, that he might bury it, and Pilate granted his request (Matt 27:57-60). It’s most likely that Jesus was crucified in April, AD 33.[2]

     The cross of Christ became central to the message of the gospel. The apostle Paul was sent by the Lord Jesus “to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void” (1 Cor 1:17). Paul was not concerned with human sophistry, winning arguments, or impressing his audience by means of rhetorical prowess, but merely with presenting the simple message of the cross of Christ, which brings eternal salvation to those who trust in Jesus as their Savior. Paul continued his line of reasoning, saying, “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God...[and] we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor 1:18; 23-24). Paul summarized his message when he said, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2). The image of a crucified Savior seems entirely foolish to a world that creates its saviors out of strong heroes; strong in the human sense of one who can save himself and others. Jesus is certainly strong; after all, He’s God! And He does save forever those who come to Him in faith. However, the humility of the cross, with all its offense and shame, leaves no place for human wisdom or pride; for one must admit it was his sin that placed Messiah on the cross to be judged and die. To come to Jesus as a crucified Messiah requires humility, for one must honestly look at oneself from the divine perspective and admit he is a lost sinner in need of a Savior. A Savior who was willing to lay down His life and bear the punishment of the guilty. This requires truth, to see oneself from the divine perspective as utterly sinful and lost. And it requires humility, to admit one it powerless and cannot save himself from a damnable future to which he is certainly headed. It is the work of Messiah that saves. Nothing more is required. Jesus paid it all. W. E. Vine notes, ‘“The Cross of Christ’ does far more than express the fact of the infinite love of God to man in the death of His Son; it exposes the enmity of the human heart against God, reveals the true nature of sin as in the sight of God, and makes known the impossibility of bridging, by any human effort, the chasm that separates unregenerate man from God.”[3]Wendell Johnston adds:

• "The cross stands at the center of Paul’s theology (1 Cor 1:23). He saw this humiliating and cruel instrument in a new light—as the extraordinary opportunity to boast in his Savior (Gal 6:14). The shameful cross stood for everything the world despised and thus His allegiance to Christ separated him from the world. Jesus’ death was like a magnet drawing the outcasts of the world to Christ (John 12:32). It makes human wisdom foolish (1 Cor 1:27) and weak people strong (1 Cor 1:25), and it breaks the spirit of the proud and lifts up the meek and humble (1 Cor 1:28). Because of His death Jesus breaks the shackles of those in bondage who believe in Him. The Cross brings peace to those in fear (Heb 2:14–15), and it unites Jews and Gentiles into one body (Eph 2:16). The Cross brought complete fulfillment to the system of the Mosaic Law and did away with all the regulations standing against humanity (Col 2:14–18). Because of the Cross, God gives eternal life to those who believe (Rom 5:18). The Cross, which to the world seemed proof of defeat, became the means of triumph (Col 2:15)."[4]

     The cross represents the love of the Father, as “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). And it represents the love of Jesus for us, as Paul wrote of “the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Gal 2:20b).

     Paul saw himself as crucified with Jesus, as he wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ” (Gal 2:20a). The words “crucified with” translates the Greek verb sustauroō (συσταυρόω), which means one is crucified with another. This is used in a literal sense of persons crucified in physical proximity to each other, such as “The robbers who had been crucified with Him”, that is, Jesus (Matt 27:44; cf., Mark 15:32; John 19:32). But Paul uses the word in Galatians 2:20 in a spiritual sense, in which he is identified with Christ on the cross. This same spiritual identification truth is for all who have trusted in Christ as our Savior, for to be “crucified with Christ” means that we are identified with our Lord in His death, burial, and resurrection. God sees us there are the cross, with Christ, dying with Him. Paul states, “our old self was crucified with Him” (Rom 6:6), and “we have died with Christ” (Rom 6:8). Furthermore, we partook of His burial, resurrection, and ascension, for “we have been buried with Him” (Rom 6:4), and “raised up with Christ” (Col 3:1; cf., Eph 2:6a), and even now are seen to be seated “with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2:6b). Concerning Galatians 2:20, William MacDonald states:

• "The believer is identified with Christ in His death. Not only was He crucified on Calvary, I was crucified there as well—in Him. This means the end of me as a sinner in God’s sight. It means the end of me as a person seeking to merit or earn salvation by my own efforts. It means the end of me as a child of Adam, as a man under the condemnation of the law, as my old, unregenerate self. The old, evil “I” has been crucified; it has no more claims on my daily life."[5]

Who Crucified Jesus?

     The question is sometimes raised as to who crucified Jesus? According to Chafer, “Closely related to the contrast between the divine and human sides of Christ’s death, is the question: Who put Christ to death? As already indicated, the Scriptures assign both a human and a divine responsibility for Christ’s death.”[6] According to the testimony of Scripture, Jesus’ death on the cross was the result of: 1) God the Father who sent Him, 2) Jesus who willingly went to the cross, 3), Satan who worked through others to help crucify Him, 4) unbelieving Jews, and 5) unbelieving Gentiles. The Bible verses that address the various persons involved in the crucifixion of Jesus are intermixed. That is, a passage might address God the Father and Jesus, or Jews and Gentiles, or Satan and Jews, etc. It is from these Scripture passages that the following categories as recognized.

God the Father Sent Christ to Die

     Who crucified Jesus? The ultimate answer is God the Father. The Father was motivated by His love for us to save us; therefore, His plan of salvation involved sending His Son into the world to die in our place. The record of Scripture is, “But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief” (Isa 53:10a), and “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16a), and “this Man [Jesus], was delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23a), and Peter, praying to the Father, said, “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur” (Acts 4:27-28), and “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all” (Rom 8:32). Chafer notes, “Human hands might inflict physical suffering and death as any victim would die, but only the hand of God could make Christ a sin offering, or could lay on Him the iniquity of others (2 Cor 5:21; Isa 53:6).”[7]

Jesus Willingly Went to the Cross

     Though the Father sent Jesus into the world to be an atoning sacrifice for sin, He did not force Him onto the cross. Jesus consented to come into the world and go to the cross and die for us. He voluntarily laid down His life. The writer of Hebrews states, “Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, ‘Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, but a body You have prepared for Me’” (Heb 10:5). Jesus, in hypostatic union, speaking from His humanity, said, “Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of Me) to do Your will, O God” (Heb 10:7). Constable notes, “Jesus was not some dumb animal that offered its life without knowing what it was doing. He consciously, voluntarily, and deliberately offered His life in obedience to God’s will.”[8] Jesus’ voluntary death on the cross is found in several passages. Jesus said, “I lay down My life for the sheep” (John 10:15), and “no one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative” (John 10:18). Paul wrote, “Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma” (Eph 5:2), and “Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her” (Eph 5:25), and “the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Gal 2:20), and “who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed” (Tit 2:14). The writer to the Hebrews tells us that Christ “offered up Himself” (Heb 7:27; cf., Heb 9:14).

Satan Was Instrumental in Jesus’ Crucifixion

     The very first prophesy related to the cross is found in Genesis, when God told Satan, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel” (Gen 3:15). Concerning Genesis 3:15, Chafer notes, “it is implied that Satan did what he could in the exercise of his power—directly, or indirectly, through human agents—against the Savior.”[9] Satan’s seed refers to all those who reject God and Christ and are part of Satan’s kingdom of darkness.[10] Jesus said to unbelieving Jews, “You are of your father the devil” (John 8:44), and all unbelievers are “the sons of the evil one” (Matt 13:38). These were used by Satan to help in the crucifixion of Christ. On the night before Jesus’ crucifixion, John records, “During supper, the devil had already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him” (John 13:2). During the meal, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me” (John 13:21), and “After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly’” (John 13:27). Here we observe a coalescence of Satanic and human activity to betray Jesus to those who would crucify Him. In this regard, Satan was the motivating force behind Judas, his willing instrument, to bring about the death of Jesus.[11]

     In the Garden of Gethsemane, the chief priests, officers of the temple, and Jewish elders came to arrest Jesus (Luke 22:52a), and He said to them, “While I was with you daily in the temple, you did not lay hands on Me; but this hour and the power of darkness are yours” (Luke 22:53). Those who came physically to “lay hands” on Jesus were the Jewish authorities who conspired to kill Him. God, in His sovereignty, permitted this to happen, because it served His greater purposes to bring about salvation through the cross. But even though it was their hour to act, these men were not acting alone, as Luke’s reference to “the power of darkness” demonstrates that Satan was behind them, driving them on as his agents of lies and destruction. Later, Luke would use the term darkness as a symbol of the sphere of Satan’s authority (Acts 26:18), as would Paul (Col 1:13).

Unbelieving Jews Crucified Jesus

     Though it was the Romans who actually placed Jesus on the cross and drove the nails, it was, according to Scripture, unbelieving Jews who conspired and lied about Jesus to have Him crucified (Matt 26:3-4; John 11:53). At the time of Jesus’ trial before Pilate, the Jews who were present all shouted, “Crucify Him” (Matt 27:22). God permitted Jesus’ crucifixion, both by the Jews and Romans, because it served His greater purpose. Luke recorded Peter, who said, “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death” (Acts 2:22-23). Clearly this address was to the “Men of Israel,” who rejected Jesus and “nailed [Him] to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death” (Acts 2:23; cf. Acts 4:10; 5:30; 10:39). In Acts 4:27, Luke recorded that there were “gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus…the peoples of Israel” (Acts 4:27), to crucify Him. Paul wrote about “the Jews, who both killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets” (1 Th 2:14b-15a).

Unbelieving Gentiles Crucified Jesus

     Though many unbelieving Jews were directly responsible for collaborating in the crucifixion of Jesus, it was Gentiles who actually did the work of placing Him on the cross. That’s what Jesus foretold His disciples, saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, and will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucify Him, and on the third day He will be raised up” (Matt 20:18-19). It was said of the Roman soldiers, “After they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him” (Matt 27:31). Luke records in Acts, “truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel” (Acts 4:27).

     As Christians, we must not see Christ dying at a distant time or place. We should see our own hands driving the nails that put Him there and then lifting the cross. The crucifixion was not only for us, but by us. It was our sin that necessitated His death and judgment. We must see Jesus bearing all our sin and paying the penalty of the Father’s wrath that rightfully belongs to us. In May 2006, I wrote the following poem as I thought about the role I played in placing Jesus on the cross.

Christ to the Cross

(by Dr. Steven R. Cook)

Dr. Steven R. Cook

[1] Merrill Frederick Unger et al., “Cross”, The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1988), 264.

[2] See Harold Hoehner’s book, Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ, pages 95-114.

[3] W. E. Vine and C. F. Hogg, Vine’s Topical Commentary: Christ (Nashville, TN; Dallas; Mexico City; Rio de Janeiro: Thomas Nelson, 2010), 108-109.

[4] Wendell G. Johnston, “Cross,” ed. Charles R. Swindoll and Roy B. Zuck, The Theological Wordbook, Swindoll Leadership Library (Nashville, TN: Word Publishing, Inc., 2000), 77–78.

[5] William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, ed. Arthur Farstad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1880.

[6] Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1993), 49.

[7] Ibid., 51.

[8] Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), Heb 10:5.

[9] Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, vol. 3, 49.

[10] The seed of Satan ultimately relates to the coming Antichrist, who will, during the time of the Tribulation, seek to destroy Israel and prevent the coming of Jesus to rule over the earth. See Arnold Fruchtenbaum’s comments on Genesis 3:15 in his book, The Book of Genesis, Ariel’s Bible Commentary.

[11] On a separate occasion, after Jesus was born, Satan wanted to kill the baby Jesus. The apostle John—operating from divine viewpoint—records that Satan, “stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth, he might devour her child” (Rev 12:4). But Satan’s attack was not direct; rather, King Herod was his tool to accomplish the nefarious deed. Matthew records the account in his Gospel (Matt 2:1-23). Herod was the human agent who wanted to kill Jesus, but Satan was the motivating force behind the attack.

     When God the Son added perfect humanity to Himself, this enabled Him to experience suffering and death with, and on behalf of, humanity. The suffering of Christ may be viewed in at least two ways: 1) His suffering during His time on earth prior to the cross, and 2) the suffering of the cross. As the God-Man, Jesus was perfectly holy in all His thoughts, words, and actions. Such perfect holiness brought with it a special form of suffering in this world that the rest of us could never know, since we are capable of yielding to the pressures of sinful temptation. When the time of His death was nearing, Jesus told His disciples “that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day” (Matt 16:21; cf., Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22). It’s noteworthy that Jesus said His suffering, dying, and resurrection were things that “must” happen to Him. The use of the Greek verb dei (δεῖ) here denotes divine necessity, which meant it was the will of God the Father that these things happen to Christ. Thomas Constable notes, “Jesus said that it was necessary (Gr. dei) for Him to go to Jerusalem. He had to do this because it was God’s will for Messiah to suffer, die, and rise from the dead. He had to do these things to fulfill prophecy (Isa 53; cf. Acts 2:22–36).”[1] The absolute necessity of Jesus’ death on the cross further emphasizes our helplessness to save ourselves, for if our salvation could have been secured by any other means, then the death of Christ would have been unnecessary.

     While in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed to God the Father, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will” (Matt 26:39). In His humanity, Jesus struggled to face the cross, understanding the scope of what it meant and the agony associated with it. Jesus prayed a second time, saying, “My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matt 26:42). The reference to the “cup” speaks of the suffering of the cross. John A. Witmer states, “In the Old Testament a ‘cup’ sometimes symbolized wrath (Jer 25:15), and so Jesus was aware that His coming death meant He would bear the wrath of God the Father against sin. Though Christ had no sin (2 Cor 5:21), He bore the sins of the world on Himself (1 Pet 2:24). Thus He was made ‘a curse for us’ because of His being hanged on a tree (Gal 3:13).”[2]

     While on the cross, Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt 27:46). This was the cry of Jesus from His humanity. Peter tells us that Jesus “Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross” (1 Pet 2:24). Peter’s reference to Jesus’ “body” indicates humanity, not deity. Sin cannot be imputed to deity. Humanity can bear sin. It was while Jesus was on the cross that He bore the wrath of the Father as He died in our place and bore the punishment that rightfully belongs to us. And the Spirit sustained Jesus’ humanity while He bore our sins. Robert G. Gromacki states, “God the Son incarnate suffered and died. The Father did not suffer and die. Nor did the Holy Spirit suffer and die, even though He filled Christ when the Savior suffered and died.”[3] The suffering and death of Jesus on the cross was salvific, as Jesus was made “sin on our behalf” (2 Cor 5:21). Mark wrote, “When the sixth hour came, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour. At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which is translated, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” (Mark 15:33-34; cf., Matt 27:45-46; Luke 23:44-46). Concerning this moment on the cross, Witmer states, “It was at this point, as Jesus bore the sin of the world, that God, the Judge of sin, turned away from Jesus Christ, His incarnate Son, the Sin-bearer, as far as the personal consciousness of Jesus was concerned.”[4] But there is some mystery at work here, for God the Father could not forsake God the Son, as a separation within the Trinity is not possible. Yet, somehow, the humanity of Christ—not His deity—was forsaken at the time of the judgment on the cross, otherwise the words of Jesus would be meaningless. But Jesus’ suffering and death did happen, and it was His time on the cross that brought about our salvation; a salvation that is applied to us at the moment we trust in Christ as our Savior.

     Even after Jesus’ resurrection, Jesus said to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” (Luke 24:26). In the book of Acts, Luke records that Jesus “presented Himself alive after His suffering” (Acts 1:3). Peter said, “the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled” (Acts 3:18). And Paul reasoned “from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead” (Acts 17:2b-3; cf., Acts 26:23). Jesus’ suffering and death were necessary for salvation to be available to humanity. 

The Cross & Crucifixion

     The cross overshadowed the life of Jesus, and He knew dying for lost sinners was the ultimate purpose of the Father. When facing the cross, Jesus said, “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour ‘? But for this purpose I came to this hour” (John 12:27). For lost sinners, the cross of Christ is both personal and purposeful. It is personal, because “Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8), “for our sins” (1 Cor 15:3), and “not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). And His death was purposeful, as Christ “died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God” (1 Pet 3:18), and that we might “reconciled to God through the death of His Son” (Rom 5:10). The cross is God’s righteous solution to the problem of sin, as well as His greatest display of love toward sinners. At the cross, God judged our sin as His righteousness required, and pardons the sinner as His love desires. To understand the cross of Christ is to understand the heart of God toward a fallen world He wants to save.

     The word “cross” translates the Greek noun stauros (σταυρός), which refers to “a pole to be placed in the ground and used for capital punishment, cross.”[5] The word “crucify” translates the Greek verb stauroō (σταυρόω), which means, “to fasten to a cross, crucify.”[6] Crucifixion was practiced by ancient cultures such as the Egyptians (Gen 40:19), Persians (Est 7:10), Assyrians and Greeks. By the time of Christ, the Romans had used crucifixion as a means of death more than previous cultures. According to John Stott:

• "Crucifixion seems to have been invented by “barbarians” on the edge of the known world and taken over from them by both Greeks and Romans. It is probably the most cruel method of execution ever practiced, for it deliberately delayed death until maximum torture had been inflicted. The victim could suffer for days before dying. When the Romans adopted it, they reserved it for criminals convicted of murder, rebellion or armed robbery, provided that they were also slaves, foreigners or other nonpersons."[7]

     Just prior to crucifixion, a person was scourged with a whip which had thongs that were braided with sharp objects such as nails. As an act of public humiliation, criminals carried their own cross to the place of execution, and once there, were stripped naked before being fastened to the cross, either with rope or nails. Being tied to a cross with ropes was less painful in the beginning, but would leave the victim to hang for a longer period of time, even days, which would make the experience more painful in the end. Some who were tied to the cross are recorded to have lasted for nine days. Nailing a person to a cross was more painful from the beginning and would have led to a quicker death. The body would hang between three to four feet from the ground. Sometimes a soporific was given to the victim to help numb the senses. In Jesus case, it was “wine mixed with myrrh” (Mark 15:23), which our Lord rejected because it would have clouded His thinking (Matt 27:34). In some situations the Romans would break the victim’s legs which would hasten death, but according to Scripture, Jesus was already dead by the time the soldiers considered doing this (John 19:32-34). Unger notes, “In most cases the body was allowed to rot on the cross by the action of the sun and rain or to be devoured by birds and beasts.”[8] We know that Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus, came to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body, that he might bury it, and Pilate granted his request (Matt 27:57-60). It’s most likely that Jesus was crucified in April, AD 33.[9]

     The cross of Christ became central to the message of the gospel. The apostle Paul was sent by the Lord Jesus “to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void” (1 Cor 1:17). Paul was not concerned with human sophistry, winning arguments, or impressing his audience by means of rhetorical prowess, but merely with presenting the simple message of the cross of Christ, which brings eternal salvation to those who trust in Jesus as their Savior. Paul continued his line of reasoning, saying, “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God...[and] we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor 1:18; 23-24). Paul summarized his message when he said, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2). The image of a crucified Savior seems entirely foolish to a world that creates its saviors out of strong heroes; strong in the human sense of one who can save himself and others. Jesus is certainly strong; after all, He’s God! And He does save forever those who come to Him in faith.

Dr. Steven R. Cook

[1] Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), Mt 16:21.

[2] John A. Witmer, “Jesus Christ”, Understanding Christian Theology (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003), 352.

[3] Robert G. Gromacki, “The Holy Spirit”, Understanding Christian Theology (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003), 468–469.

[4] John A. Witmer, “Jesus Christ”, Understanding Christian Theology, 352.

[5] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 941.

[6] Ibid., 941.

[7] John R. W. Stott, The Cross of Christ (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2006), 29.

[8] Merrill Frederick Unger et al., “Cross”, The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1988), 264.

[9] See Harold Hoehner’s book, Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ, pages 95-114.

The Spirit’s Regeneration, Indwelling, Baptizing, and Sealing Ministry

At the moment of salvation, God the Holy Spirit performs several acts for new believers, which include regeneration (John 3:6; Tit 3:5; 1 Pet 1:3), indwelling (John 14:16-17; 1 Cor 3:16; 6:19), baptizing (1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:27), and sealing (Eph 4:30).

Regeneration

The word regeneration itself occurs only twice in the Bible (Matt 19:28 and Tit 3:5). In both places the Greek word used is paliggenesia (παλιγγενεσία), which means, “the state of being renewed… [the] experience of a complete change of life, rebirth of a redeemed person.”[1] Regeneration means new believers receive spiritual life at the moment they trust in Christ alone as their Savior. Geisler states, “The new birth of which Jesus speaks is the act of regeneration, whereby God imparts spiritual life to the believer’s soul (1 Peter 1:23).”[2] Paul Enns agrees, saying, “Succinctly stated, to regenerate means ‘to impart life.’ Regeneration is the act whereby God imparts life to the one who believes.”[3] Ryrie notes:

• "Although the word regeneration is used only twice in the Bible (Titus 3:5, where it refers to the new birth, and Mt 19:28 where it refers to the millennial kingdom), the concept of being born again is found in other passages, notably John 3. Technically, it is God’s act of begetting eternal life in the one who believes in Christ. While faith and regeneration are closely associated, the two ideas are distinct, faith being the human responsibility and the channel through which God’s grace is received, and regeneration being God’s supernatural act of imparting eternal life."[4]

David Anderson adds:

• "The NT uses a number of different words and images to convey the doctrine of regeneration. The noun palingenesia is used just twice: Matthew 19:28 and Titus 3:5. In Matthew, Jesus is speaking of the regeneration which will occur at His second coming. He refers to setting up His kingdom, placing the twelve over the twelve tribes of Israel, and rewarding those who have sacrificed for His cause. But in Titus 3:5, we have a direct reference to the rebirth of the believer: “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.”[5]

To the concept of regeneration, the Greek words anothen (ἄνωθεν) and anagennao (ἀναγεννάω) can be added. Jesus, while speaking to Nicodemus, said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again [anothen] he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3; cf., John 3:7). The word anothen (ἄνωθεν) generally means “from a source that is above.”[6] That is, from a heavenly source. (At least two English translations, NET & YLT, render the word “from above”). Because Nicodemus confused physical birth with spiritual birth (John 3:4), Jesus clarified His statement, saying, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). Jesus was talking about spiritual birth, or regeneration, which comes from the source of heaven. Peter used the Greek word anagennao (ἀναγεννάω) when he wrote about Christians who have been “born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet 1:3), and who “have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Pet 1:23). The basic meaning of anagennao (ἀναγεννάω) is to “beget again, cause to be born again.”[7] In both instances the word denotes imparting new life.

This work of the Spirit is directly related to the believer’s salvation. According to Walvoord, “The work of regeneration can be assigned to the Holy Spirit as definitely as the work of salvation can be assigned to Christ.”[8]And the believer’s new life is the basis for a new walk with the Lord. Ryrie notes, “Regeneration does not make a man perfect, but it places him in the family of God and gives him the new ability to please his Father by growing into the image of Christ. Fruit from the new nature is proof that regeneration has occurred (1 John 2:29).”[9] Lighter states:

• "The means by which regeneration is accomplished eliminates all human endeavor. Though personal faith in Christ as Savior is necessary, faith does not produce the new life; it does not regenerate. Only God regenerates. Human faith and divine regeneration occur at the same time, but the one is man’s responsibility as he is enabled by the Holy Spirit, and the other is the work of God imparting the divine life."[10]

Indwelling

The indwelling ministry of the Holy Spirit for every believer was an innovation that was future from the time of Jesus’ ministry on earth. Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38). And John tells us, “But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:39). The Spirit would begin His special ministry on the day of Pentecost, and it would involve His personal indwelling of every believer. Prior to His crucifixion, Jesus spoke of this, saying, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17). Notice that Spirit would not only be with them, would be in them. Merrill Tenney writes, “This distinction marks the difference between the Old Testament experience of the Holy Spirit and the post-Pentecostal experience of the church. The individual indwelling of the Spirit is the specific privilege of the Christian believer.”[11]

This new indwelling ministry by God the Holy Spirit is different than His work in believers in the OT. Under the Mosaic Law, only a select few received the Holy Spirit (Ex 31:1-5; Num 11:25; 27:18; 1 Sam 16:13), and that was conditioned on His sovereign purposes. But now, in the dispensation of the church age, God the Holy Spirit would personally indwell both the local church (1 Cor 3:16-17), as well as each individual believer (1 Cor 6:19). Paul wrote to the Christians living in Corinth, saying, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor 3:16). Concerning the Spirit’s indwelling the church in 1 Corinthians 3:16, Radmacher states:

• "There are two words translated temple in the NT. One refers to the temple building and all its courts; the other refers strictly to the Most Holy Place where no one but the high priest could go. Paul uses the latter term to describe the local church, in whom God dwells. Unlike 1 Corinthians 6:19, where the word temple refers to the individual believer, and Ephesians 2:21, where the word speaks of the church universal, these verses speak of the local church as God’s temple. God takes very seriously our actions in the church. destroy: Any person who disrupts and destroys the church by divisions, malice, and other harmful acts invites God’s discipline (1 Cor 11:30-32)."[12]

Paul also describes the Spirit’s indwelling each Christian in 1 Corinthians 6:19, where he wrote, “do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?” According to Constable, “Previously Paul taught his readers that the Corinthian church was a temple (naos; 1 Cor 3:16). The believer’s body is also a temple. The Holy Spirit is actually indwelling each of these temples (Rom 8:9; cf. Matt 12:6; 18:15–20; 28:16–20; Mark 13:11; John 14:17, 23).”[13] What we find in the church age is that all three Persons of the Godhead indwell every believer (John 14:16-17, 20, 23); however, the Holy Spirit has a special ministry which began on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-4; 11:15-16; 1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:26-28), and will continue until the church is raptured to heaven (2 Th 2:7; cf. John 14:1-3; 1 Th 4:13-18; Tit 2:13). Chafer states:

• "The Spirit made His advent into the world here to abide throughout this dispensation. As Christ is now located at the right hand of the Father, though omnipresent, so the Spirit, though omnipresent, is now locally abiding in the world, in a temple, or habitation, of living stones (Eph 2:19-22). The individual believer is also spoken of as a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19). The Spirit will not leave the world, or even one stone of that building until the age-long purpose of forming that temple is finished…The Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost and that aspect of the meaning of Pentecost will no more be repeated than the incarnation of Christ. There is no occasion to call the Spirit to “come,” for He is here."[14]

Baptizing

The subject of baptism has been, and continues to be, a subject of confusion. The word baptize is a transliteration of the Greek verb baptizo (βαπτίζω) which broadly means to “plunge, dip, [or] wash,”[15] and is often used “of the Christian sacrament of initiation after Jesus’ death.”[16] The Greek noun baptisma (βάπτισμα) refers to the result of a dipping or immersing. In Classical Greek literature, the verb baptizo (βαπτίζω) “was used among the Greeks to signify the dyeing of a garment, or the drawing of water by dipping a vessel into another.”[17] The Greek poet Nicander (ca. 200 B.C.) used both bapto (βάπτω) and baptizo (βαπτίζω) when describing the process of making pickles. According to James Strong, “When used in the New Testament, this word more often refers to our union and identification with Christ than to our water baptism.”[18] 

There are numerous baptisms mentioned in the Bible, some are wet and some are dry. John the Baptist said, “I baptize you with water” (Matt 3:11a), clearly making the baptism wet. But then, John the Baptist spoke of Jesus, saying, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matt 3:11b). These latter two baptisms are both dry, where no one gets placed into water. A few other baptisms mentioned in Scripture include the baptism of the cross (Mark 10:35-38; Luke 12:50), the baptism of Moses (1 Cor 10:1-2), and the baptism of Christians (Matt 28:16-20). For the Christian, water baptism is a picture of the believer’s spiritual union and identification with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection (Rom 6:3-7; Col 2:11-12). Water baptism does not save (1 Cor 1:17). It never has and never will. God saves at the moment believers place their faith solely in Jesus (John 3:16; 1 Cor 15:3-4). At the moment of faith in Christ, God the Holy Spirit unites new believers spiritually to Christ, adding them to the church, the body of Christ. Paul wrote, “For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:12-13). Lewis Chafer states, “As a ground upon which the certainty of eternal security rests, the baptism of the Spirit should be recognized as that operation by which the individual believer is brought into organic union with Christ. By the Spirit’s regeneration Christ is resident in the believer, and by the Spirit’s baptism the believer is thus in Christ.”[19] Merrill F. Unger comments:

• "This momentous spiritual operation is set forth in the NT as the basis of all the believer’s positions and possessions “in Christ” (Eph 1:3; Col 2:10; 3:1–4; etc.). The operation is prophetic in the gospels (Matt 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16–17; John 1:33–34, where Christ is the baptizer), historic in the Acts (cf. Acts 1:5 with Acts 11:16), and doctrinal in the epistles (1 Cor 12:13, where the Spirit is named specifically as the agent; Rom 6:3–4; Gal 3:26–27; Col 2:9–12; Eph 4:5). The Spirit’s baptizing work, placing the believer “in Christ,” occurred initially at Pentecost at the advent of the Spirit, who baptized believing Jews “into Christ.” In Acts 8, Samaritans were baptized in this way for the first time; in Acts 10, Gentiles likewise were so baptized, at which point the normal agency of the Spirit as baptizer was attained. According to the clear teaching of the epistles, every believer is baptized by the Spirit into Christ the moment he is regenerated. He is also simultaneously indwelt by the Spirit and sealed eternally, with the privilege of being filled with the Spirit, as the conditions for filling are met."[20]

Sealing

Several times Paul used the Greek verb sphragizo (σφραγίζω) when writing to Christians. Paul wrote of God “who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge” (2 Cor 1:22). To the Christians at Ephesus he wrote, “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph 1:13), and “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Eph 4:30). In each of these uses the verb sphragizo (σφραγίζω) means “to mark with a seal as a means of identification…so that the mark denoting ownership also carries with it the protection of the owner.”[21] Laney Jr., states, “In ancient times a seal was used as an identifying mark, indicating the rightful ownership of the object sealed. And so the sealing ministry of the Spirit marks believers as God’s own possession, guaranteeing their security for eternity.”[22] Concerning Paul’s use of sphragizo (σφραγίζω) in Ephesians 1:13, Harold Hoehner comments:

• "God seals the believers in Christ with the promised Holy Spirit when they have not only heard but also believed the gospel of salvation. The sealing with the Spirit must not be confused with the other ministries of the Spirit. The indwelling of the Spirit refers to his residence in every believer (Rom 8:9; 1 John 2:27). The baptizing ministry of the Spirit places believers into the body of Christ (1 Cor 12:13). The filling by the Spirit is the control of the Spirit over believers’ lives (Eph 5:18). The sealing ministry of the Spirit is to identify believers as God’s own and thus give them the security that they belong to him (Eph 1:13; 4:30; 2 Cor 1:22). The very fact that the Spirit indwells believers is a seal of God’s ownership of them."[23]

The Holy Spirit is Himself the seal that marks us as owned by God and guarantees our future redemption and glory (Eph 1:13-14; 4:30). These blessings are completely the work of the Holy Spirit for the benefit of Christians and occur at the moment believers trust Jesus as their Savior. These are facts based on objective statements in Scripture and are accepted by faith, not ever-changing subjective feelings. Though Christians can grieve and/or quench the Holy Spirit with personal sin (Eph 4:30; 1 Th 5:19), and though they may suffer divine discipline because of personal sin (Heb 12:5-11), they cannot grieve Him away. Joseph Dillow notes:

• "The ancient practice of using seals is behind the figurative use of the word here. A seal was a mark of protection and ownership. The Greek word sphragizō is used of a stone being fastened with a seal to “prevent its being moved from a position” (BDAG). In fact, this was apparently the earliest method of distinguishing one’s property. The seal was engraved with a design or mark distinctive to the owner. The seal of ownership or protection was often made in soft wax with a signet ring. An impression was left on the wax signifying the owner of the thing sealed. When the Holy Spirit seals us, He presses the signet ring of our heavenly Father on our hearts of wax and leaves the mark of ownership. We belong to Him. He certifies this by His unchangeable purpose to protect and own us to the day of redemption. In Ephesians 1:13-14, we are told that the Holy Spirit Himself is the seal. He is impressed upon us, so to speak. His presence in our lives is thus a guarantee of God’s protection and that we are owned by God. A broken seal was an indication that the person had not been protected. The Holy Spirit cannot be broken. He is the seal of ownership. In Ephesians 4:30, we are told that we are sealed unto the day of redemption. This sealing ministry of the Spirit is forever and guarantees that we will arrive safely for the redemption of our bodies and entrance into heaven (Romans 8:23). He is the seal that we are now owned and protected by God until the day of redemption."[24]

Dr. Steven R. Cook

[1] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 752.

[2] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Volume Three: Sin, Salvation (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2004), 123.

[3] Paul P. Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1989), 338.

[4] Charles Caldwell Ryrie, A Survey of Bible Doctrine (Chicago: Moody Press, 1972).

[5] David R. Anderson, Free Grace Soteriology, ed. James S. Reitman, Revised Edition. (Grace Theology Press, 2012), 235.

[6] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 92.

[7] Ibid., 59.

[8] John F. Walvoord, The Holy Spirit, 131.

[9] Charles Caldwell Ryrie, A Survey of Bible Doctrine (Chicago: Moody Press, 1972).

[10] Robert P. Lightner, Handbook of Evangelical Theology: A Historical, Biblical, and Contemporary Survey and Review, 199.

[11] Merrill C. Tenney, “John,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: John and Acts, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 9, 147.

[12] Earl D. Radmacher, Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary, 1464–1465.

[13] Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), 1 Co 6:18.

[14] Lewis S. Chafer, He that is Spiritual (Grand Rapids, Mich. Zondervan Publishing, 1967), 26.

[15] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 164.

[16] Ibid., 164.

[17] W. E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, and William White Jr., Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 1996), 50.

[18] James Strong, βάπτω bapto, Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon (Woodside Bible Fellowship, 1995).

[19] Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, vol. 3, 337.

[20] Merrill F. Unger and R.K. Harrison, “Baptism of the Spirit,” The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1988).

[21] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 980.

[22] Charles R. Swindoll and Roy B. Zuck, Understanding Christian Theology (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003), 206.

[23] Harold W. Hoehner, Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 240.

[24] Joseph C. Dillow, Final Destiny: The Future Reign of the Servant Kings, 4th Edition (Houston, TX: Grace Theology Press, 2018).