Topical Studies
Shame
(From Forerunner Commentary)
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God allowed His Son to suffer crucifixion because it was a very shameful way to die. It was the death of criminals and incorrigibles, for those considered "the scum of the earth." No one in Jesus' day would have bragged that his uncle had been crucified any more than we would be proud of a relative who was executed by electric chair. To make matters worse, Jesus was crucified between two robbers (Matthew 27:38). The typical passerby would have judged Jesus guilty by association. Why and how does shame enter the picture? Why did Jesus have to die a shameful death? Sin causes shame. Sin is shameful. Jesus died a shameful death to depict the shame brought on by our sins. It is shameful to be known as a thief, a pervert, an adulterer, a liar, or a murderer. It should be shameful to be known as an idolater or one who takes God's name in vain, breaks the Sabbath, or disrespects his parents. Sin does not make us look good, nor does it make our family proud of us. Sin is shameful. We should be ashamed to sin! Crucifixion was shameful not only as a penalty, but also as a process. In most cases, the victim was stark naked—allowed little or no loin cloth. The Bible in many places discusses the shame of nakedness (Isaiah 47:3; Revelation 3:18; 16:15). Imagine being a sinless person, having committed no crime or sin, yet exposed to all who passed by. Being a modest man, Jesus was ashamed to have to be exposed to His mother and the other women, the apostle John, and a multitude of spectators, male and female. What humiliation our Savior endured for us! The theme of "the shame of the cross" is discussed in Scripture. Notice two passages in Hebrews. . . . looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2) . . . if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. (Hebrews 6:6)
Staff
Why Did Jesus Have to Die by Crucifixion?
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Genesis 3:7-11 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
This account of Adam's and Eve's reaction to their sin demonstrates that sin destroys innocence. Were two people ever more innocent at the beginning of their lives than Adam and Eve? Immediately after sinning, though, they felt shame because of their nakedness, and they doubly showed their guilt by hiding from God. Do the truly innocent have any need to hide? Do the innocent need to feel shame? Sin leaves a tarnish on a person's mind so that he does not look at life in quite the same way anymore. David expresses how this tarnish affected him in Psalm 40:12, "My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up." Paul later explains, "To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled" (Titus 1:15). A well-known series of scriptures, beginning in Matthew 18:1, touches on innocence and its destruction. It starts with a question from the disciples: "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" Jesus replies that unless we become as little children, we will not be in the Kingdom of Heaven. Is not the beauty of their innocence and the harmless vulnerability of little children a major reason why we find them so adorable? They produce no harm, shame, or guilt. But what happens as they become adults? They become sophisticated, worldly, cosmopolitan, cynical, suspicious, sarcastic, prejudiced, self-centered, cool, uninvolved, and many other negative things. They also seem to lose their zest for life. Sin does that.
John W. Ritenbaugh
What Sin Is & What Sin Does
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Deuteronomy 21:18-21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
We can dishonor our parents through stubbornness, mocking, scorning, angrily talking back to them, thievery, and violence. These will eventually be punished by death, shame, disgrace, darkness of understanding (ignorance), and destruction. Through greedy human reasoning, the Pharisees encouraged financial neglect of parents to increase the riches of the treasury, a hypocrisy Jesus condemned (Matthew 15:3-9; Mark 7:6-13).
Martin G. Collins
The Fifth Commandment
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Luke 15:11-16 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The younger son shows a lack of respect for authority and deference to his elders. His central problem is pride, just as it was the root of Satan's failure (Isaiah 14:13). He finds out that shame and destruction follow pride (Proverbs 11:2; 16:18). In his disrespect for authority, he thinks primarily of himself, totally disregarding how it affects others. His request for his inheritance is not to benefit others but to pursue pleasure—especially entertainment (Proverbs 21:17). As a result, his unwise actions bring him to the point of despair and a re-evaluation of his life. By demanding his share of his inheritance before his parents' deaths, he shows that he looks upon God's gifts as debts rightfully owed to him. Impatiently, he demands his share immediately. People today constantly, selfishly, and arrogantly press their rights rather than fulfill responsibilities. Many will not wait until marriage for sex but seek it now. They do not want to work for wealth but gamble to get it immediately. Sadly, they will also wait a long time before taking care of their spiritual needs—and then only when brought to despair (II Corinthians 6:2; Ecclesiastes 7:8).
Martin G. Collins
Parables of Luke 15 (Part Three)
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Luke 18:13 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The publican and the multitude who repented at Peter's preaching felt the plague of sin, each in his own heart. This mourning springs from a conscience made tender and a heartfelt awareness of hostility toward God's will and personal rebellion against Him. It is grief expressed because one has become acutely aware that the morality he holds falls so far short of holiness that shame rises to the surface. One also feels this agony when he realizes that his personal behavior and attitudes have caused the death of his Creator and Savior.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Beatitudes, Part Three: Mourning
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