Rays of Divine Glory as Seen in Christ's Passion

Jesus repelled his captors in the garden with just the words "I am he," giving us a glimpse of his divine power and glory. In this sermon we learn the importance of this act and how it applies to us and Christians everywhere.

After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the chief priests made their decision to kill Jesus. After they captured him, they brought him into the Sanhedrin and questioned him, looking for reasons to have him put to death. Jesus' answers serve as both a declaration of his deity and as a prophecy of his eternal rule in Heaven.

During Jesus' trial at the Sanhedrin, Pilate's wife is given a prophetic dream, which causes her suffering and leads her to warn her husband to leave Jesus alone. Her warning reveals Christ's true righteousness and makes it clear that he is the standard by which God measures all people. We also recognize God has given us an invitation to trust in Jesus as our savior, since we don't measure up to that standard on our own.

While hanging a cross beside Jesus, a dying criminal makes a true confession of faith. Jesus then promised and assured the criminal that he was going to Heaven when he died. It is through that confession and promise we get another glimpse of Jesus' full glory and deity.

For three hours while Jesus hung dying on the cross, there was a supernatural darkness that covered all the land. This miraculous event is tremendous proof of Jesus' deity, as it shows the impending death of the one who spoke "Let there be light" during creation, and it shows God the father judging his innocent son in place of all mankind.

When Jesus died on the cross, the temple curtain, which was the barrier to the most sacred part of the temple, was torn apart. Through the tearing of the curtain we see that Jesus is the High Priest and we are priests, so we have direct access to God and Christ is our intercessor. Jesus' death also got rid of the Old Covenant and brought us into the New Covenant.

We see a glimpse of Jesus' divine glory when he institutes the Lord's Supper (also known as Holy Communion). It is a miracle that only God can bring about, given purely as a blessing for those that truly believe it, and because it is God's word, we hold tightly to it.

We see yet another glimpse of Jesus' divine glory in his death on the cross and the conversion of the centurion. Sinners are converted to believe they are not righteous -- but Christ is, and he is the true son of God -- ultimately leading them to confess their faith.

This Easter we look not just at Jesus' resurrection, but also the resurrection of many believers who were already entombed when he gave up his spirit on the cross. These resurrections are proof of the victory Christ won over sin and death, and they show us that, for believers, death is merely a sleep for the body.