Of all the extra-biblical reading I have done during Lent, this has impacted me the most. It is from a sermon by Charles Spurgeon July 11, 1886, as edited by Nancy Guthrie in Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross
Then they spit in his face and struck hi. And some slapped Him. Matthew 26:67
Let us go in thought to the palace of Caiaphas the high priest, and there let us, in deepest sorrow, realize the meaning of these terrible words: "Then did they spit in his face." There is more of deep and awful thunder in them than in the bolt that bursts overhead, there is more of vivid terror in them than in the sharpest lightning flash: "Then did they spit in his face."
Observe that these men, the priests, and scribes, and orders, and their servitors, did this shameful deed after they had heard our Lord say, "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. "It was in contempt of this claim, in derision of this honor which he foretold for himself, that "then did they spit in his face," as if they could bear it no longer, that he, who stood to be judged of them, should claim to be their Judge; that he, whom they had brought at dead of night from the garden of Gethsemane as their captive, should talk of coming in the clouds of heaven: "Then did they spit in his face."
Nor may I fail to add that they thus assaulted our Lord after the high priest had rent his clothes. My brethren, do not forget that the high priest was supposed to be the representative of everything that was good and venerable among the Jews. The high priest was the earthly head of their religion; he it was who, alone of mortal men, might enter within the mysterious veil; yet he it was who condemned the Lord of glory, as he rent his clothes, and said, "He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy." It makes me tremble as I think of how eminent we may be in the service of God, and yet how awfully we may be enemies of the Christ of God. Let none of us think that, though we even clamber up to the highest places in the church, we are therefore saved. We may be high priests, and wear the Urim and the Thummim, and put on the breastplate with all its wondrous mystic stones, and bind around us the curious girdle of the ephod, and yet, for all that, we may be ringleaders in expressing contempt of God and of his Christ. It was when Caiaphas, the high priest, had pronounced the word of condemnation against Christ, that "then did they spit in his face." God grant that we may never take upon ourselves any office in the Church of God, and then, girt about with the authority and influence which such an office might lend to us, be the first to pour derision and contempt upon the Christ of God! Yet I do not hesitate to say that when men look to the earthly priesthood instead of looking to Christ, the great High Priest, when men are taught to trust in the mass instead of trusting in Christ's one sacrifice for sin upon the cross, it is then that the very priests do lead the way in spitting in his face. Antichrist never more surely dwells anywhere than in the place where Christ is thus dishonored, and none do him such dire disgrace as those who ought to bow at his feet, and lift him high among the sons of men, yet who reject him, and refuse his rightful claims.
There are two or three thoughts that come to my mind when I think that these wicked men did actually spit in Christ's face,—in that face which is the light of heaven, the joy of angels, the bliss of saints, and the very brightness of the Father's glory. This spitting shows us, first, how far sin will go. If we want proof of the depravity of the heart of man, I will not point you to the stews of Sodom and Gomorrah, nor will I take you to the places where blood is shed in streams by wretches like to Herod and men of that sort. No, the clearest proof that man is utterly fallen, and that the natural heart is enmity against God, is seen in the fact that they did spit in Christ's face, did falsely accuse him, and condemn him, and lead him out as a malefactor, and hang him up as a felon that he might die upon the cross. Why, what evil had he done? What was there in his whole life that should give them occasion to spit in his face? Even at that moment, did his face flash with indignation against them? Did he look with contempt upon them? Not he; for he was all gentleness and tenderness even towards these his enemies, and their hearts must have been hard and brutal indeed that "then did they spit in his face." He had healed their sick, he had fed their hungry, he had been among them a very fountain of blessing up and down Judaea and Samaria; and yet, "then did they spit in his face." I say again, relate not to me the crimes of ancient nations, nor the horrible evils committed by uncivilized men, nor the more elaborate iniquities of our great cities; tell me not of the abominations of Greece or Rome;—this—this, in the sight of the angels of God, and in the eyes of the God of the angels, is the masterpiece of all iniquity: "Then did they spit in his face." To enter into the King's own palace, and draw near to his only-begotten Son, and to spit in his face,—this is the crime of crimes which reveals the infamous wickedness of men. Humanity stands condemned of the blackest iniquity now that it has gone as far as to spit in Christ's face.
O my brothers, let us hate sin; O my sisters, let us loathe sin, not only because it pierced those blessed hands and feet of our dear Redeemer, but because it dared even to spit in his face! No one can ever know all the shame the Lord of glory suffered when they did spit in his face. These words glide over my tongue all too smoothly; perhaps even I do not feel them as they ought to be felt, though I would do so if I could. But could I feel as I ought to feel in sympathy with the terrible shame of Christ, and then could I interpret those feelings by any language known to mortal man, surely you would bow your heads and blush, and you would feel rising within your spirits a burning indignation against the sin that dared to put the Christ of God to such shame as this. I want to kiss his feet when I think that they did spit in his face.
Then, once more, my thoughts run to him again in this way, I think of the tender omnipotence of his love. How could he bear this spitting when, with one glance of his eye, had he been but angry, the flame might have slain them, and withered them all up? Yet he stood still even when they did spit in his face; and they were not the only ones who thus insulted him, for, afterwards, when he was taken by the soldiers into Pilate's hall, they also spat upon him in cruel contempt and scorn.
Observe that these men, the priests, and scribes, and orders, and their servitors, did this shameful deed after they had heard our Lord say, "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. "It was in contempt of this claim, in derision of this honor which he foretold for himself, that "then did they spit in his face," as if they could bear it no longer, that he, who stood to be judged of them, should claim to be their Judge; that he, whom they had brought at dead of night from the garden of Gethsemane as their captive, should talk of coming in the clouds of heaven: "Then did they spit in his face."Nor may I fail to add that they thus assaulted our Lord after the high priest had rent his clothes. My brethren, do not forget that the high priest was supposed to be the representative of everything that was good and venerable among the Jews. The high priest was the earthly head of their religion; he it was who, alone of mortal men, might enter within the mysterious veil; yet he it was who condemned the Lord of glory, as he rent his clothes, and said, "He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy." It makes me tremble as I think of how eminent we may be in the service of God, and yet how awfully we may be enemies of the Christ of God. Let none of us think that, though we even clamber up to the highest places in the church, we are therefore saved. We may be high priests, and wear the Urim and the Thummim, and put on the breastplate with all its wondrous mystic stones, and bind around us the curious girdle of the ephod, and yet, for all that, we may be ringleaders in expressing contempt of God and of his Christ. It was when Caiaphas, the high priest, had pronounced the word of condemnation against Christ, that "then did they spit in his face." God grant that we may never take upon ourselves any office in the Church of God, and then, girt about with the authority and influence which such an office might lend to us, be the first to pour derision and contempt upon the Christ of God! Yet I do not hesitate to say that when men look to the earthly priesthood instead of looking to Christ, the great High Priest, when men are taught to trust in the mass instead of trusting in Christ's one sacrifice for sin upon the cross, it is then that the very priests do lead the way in spitting in his face. Antichrist never more surely dwells anywhere than in the place where Christ is thus dishonored, and none do him such dire disgrace as those who ought to bow at his feet, and lift him high among the sons of men, yet who reject him, and refuse his rightful claims.There are two or three thoughts that come to my mind when I think that these wicked men did actually spit in Christ's face,—in that face which is the light of heaven, the joy of angels, the bliss of saints, and the very brightness of the Father's glory. This spitting shows us, first, how far sin will go. If we want proof of the depravity of the heart of man, I will not point you to the stews of Sodom and Gomorrah, nor will I take you to the places where blood is shed in streams by wretches like to Herod and men of that sort. No, the clearest proof that man is utterly fallen, and that the natural heart is enmity against God, is seen in the fact that they did spit in Christ's face, did falsely accuse him, and condemn him, and lead him out as a malefactor, and hang him up as a felon that he might die upon the cross. Why, what evil had he done? What was there in his whole life that should give them occasion to spit in his face? Even at that moment, did his face flash with indignation against them? Did he look with contempt upon them? Not he; for he was all gentleness and tenderness even towards these his enemies, and their hearts must have been hard and brutal indeed that "then did they spit in his face." He had healed their sick, he had fed their hungry, he had been among them a very fountain of blessing up and down Judaea and Samaria; and yet, "then did they spit in his face." I say again, relate not to me the crimes of ancient nations, nor the horrible evils committed by uncivilized men, nor the more elaborate iniquities of our great cities; tell me not of the abominations of Greece or Rome;—this—this, in the sight of the angels of God, and in the eyes of the God of the angels, is the masterpiece of all iniquity: "Then did they spit in his face." To enter into the King's own palace, and draw near to his only-begotten Son, and to spit in his face,—this is the crime of crimes which reveals the infamous wickedness of men. Humanity stands condemned of the blackest iniquity now that it has gone as far as to spit in Christ's face.O my brothers, let us hate sin; O my sisters, let us loathe sin, not only because it pierced those blessed hands and feet of our dear Redeemer, but because it dared even to spit in his face! No one can ever know all the shame the Lord of glory suffered when they did spit in his face. These words glide over my tongue all too smoothly; perhaps even I do not feel them as they ought to be felt, though I would do so if I could. But could I feel as I ought to feel in sympathy with the terrible shame of Christ, and then could I interpret those feelings by any language known to mortal man, surely you would bow your heads and blush, and you would feel rising within your spirits a burning indignation against the sin that dared to put the Christ of God to such shame as this. I want to kiss his feet when I think that they did spit in his face.
Then, once more, my thoughts run to him again in this way, I think of the tender omnipotence of his love. How could he bear this spitting when, with one glance of his eye, had he been but angry, the flame might have slain them, and withered them all up? Yet he stood still even when they did spit in his face; and they were not the only ones who thus insulted him, for, afterwards, when he was taken by the soldiers into Pilate's hall, they also spat upon him in cruel contempt and scorn.There are still some who spit in Christ's face by denying his Godhead.They say, "He is a mere man; a good man, it is true, but only a man;" though how they dare say that, I cannot make out, for he would be no good man who claimed to be God if he was not God. Jesus of Nazareth was the basest of impostors who ever lived if he permitted his disciples to worship him, and if he left behind him a life which compels us to worship him, if he was not really and truly God; therefore, of all those who declare that he is not God,—and there is a very great company of them even amongst the nominally religious people of the present day,—we must sorrowfully, but truthfully say, "Then did they spit in his face."They also do the same who rail at his gospel. There are many, in those days, who seem as if they cannot be happy unless they are tearing the gospel to pieces. Especially is that divine mystery of the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ the mark for the arrows of the wise men, I mean those who are wise according to the wisdom of this world. We delight to know that our Lord Jesus Christ suffered in the room and place and stead of his people.Yet I have read some horrible things which have been written against that blessed doctrine, and as I read them I could only say to myself, "Then did they spit in his face." If there is anything that is beyond all else the glory of Christ, it is his atoning sacrifice; and if ever you thrust your finger into the very apple of his eye, and touch his honor in the tenderest possible point, it is when you have aught to say against his offering of himself a sacrifice unto God, without blemish and without spot, that he might put away the iniquities of his people. Wherefore judge yourselves in this matter, and if ye have ever denied Christ's Deity, or if ye have ever assailed his atoning sacrifice, it might truly have been said of you, "Then did they spit in his face."Further, this evil is also done when men prefer their own righteousness to the righteousness of Christ. There are some who say, "We do not need pardon, we do not want to be justified by faith in Christ, we are good enough already," or, "We are working out our own salvation; we mean to save ourselves." O sirs, if you can save yourselves, why did Jesus bleed upon the cross? It was a superfluity indeed that the Son of God should die in human form if there be a possibility of salvation by your own merits; and if you prefer your merits to his, it must be said of you also, "Then did they spit in his face." Your righteousnesses are only filthy rags; and if you prefer these to the fair white linen which is the righteousness of saints, if you think to wash yourselves in your tears, and so you despise that precious blood apart from which there is no purging of our sin, still to you does our text apply, "then did they spit in his face," when they preferred their own righteousness to Christ's.The same thing is, oh! so sadly true when anyone forsakes the profession of being a follower of Christ's. There are some, alas! who, for a time, have appeared to stand well in the Church of God,—I will not judge them,—but there have been some who, after making a profession of religion, have deliberately gone back to the world. After seeming for a while to be very zealous, they have become worldly, gay, and perhaps even lascivious and vile. They break the Sabbath, they neglect the Word of God, they forsake the mercy-seat; and their last end is worse than their first. When a man forsakes Christ for a harlot, when he gives up heaven for gold, when he resigns the joys he professed to have had in Christ in order that he may find mirth in the company of the ungodly, it is another instance of the truth of these words, "Then did they spit in his face." To prefer any of these things to Christ, is infamous; and the mere act of spitting from the mouth seems little compared with this sin of spitting with the very heart and soul, and pouring contempt upon Christ by choosing some sin in preference to him. Yet, alas! how many are thus still spitting in Christ's face.If ever anybody should despise us for Christ's sake, let us not count it hard, but let us be willing to bear scorn and contempt for him. Let us say to ourselves, "'Then did they spit in his face.' What, then, if they also spit in mine? If they do, I will 'hail reproach, and welcome shame,' since it comes upon me for his dear sake." See, that wretch is about to spit in Christ's face! Put your cheek forward, that you may catch that spittle upon your face, that it fall not upon him again, for as he was put to such terrible shame, every one who has been redeemed with his precious blood ought to count it an honor to be a partaker of the shame, if by any means we may screen him from being further despised and rejected of men.
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