the Tree and the Crown

Mark 15:17-18

They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!”

It is morning. A kangaroo court and a bloodthirsty mob has condemned an innocent man to a torturous death. It is shortly after Jesus was subjected to “the halfway death,” in which he was stripped naked, tied down to a post, and lashed with a Roman whip that contained pieces of bone and metal.

But the torment and cruelty do not stop there.

Roman soldiers weave a crown made of thorny stems from a plant called “acanthus;” they painfully set the crown on the head of Jesus. It is part of a mock coronation ceremony, consisting of satirical salutes, the draping of a purple robe, and the repeated striking of Jesus’s head with a staff. With each strike of the staff, the thorns are driven deeper into his scalp.

There is obvious irony in this historical narrative: the King of kings is crowned with shame and pain rather than the honor and glory he is owed. He permits himself to be so crowned so that he might purchase salvation for his people.

But if we look a little closer, the thorny crown weaves together an even richer tapestry of redemptive history. In a way, the story of redemption can be traced through the story of trees.

In the beginning, before sin entered the world, we read that the trees of the Garden of Eden were “pleasant to the sight and good for food” (Gen 2:9). However, Adam and Eve began to experience death and were barred from the tree of life because they ate—in defiance of God’s command—from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. After being driven out, an angel with a flaming sword, we read, stood sentry, guarding the way to the tree of life (Gen 3:24).

As a result of their fall, the ground would produce “thorns and thistles,” a picture of how humanity’s sin cursed the ground and made it resistant—even hostile—to producing good, life-giving fruit.

Praise God, however, that was not the end of the story.

When the Lord commands the construction of the temple, where He promised to dwell with His people on earth in a special way, the temple was constructed with the finest cedars, junipers, cypresses, and olive trees; the walls and doors were decorated with carved palm trees, gourds, and open flowers (1 Kings 6)  In this way, the temple intentionally evoked the Garden of Eden and served to remind people that the Lord was at work to bring His people back to His presence.

In Isaiah 55, we have a vision of the future when all creation responds with praise to the redemptive work of God. And in verse 13, we have this marvelous promise: “Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the Lord, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Here we have a clear reversal of Genesis 3; when the Lord comes to renew all things, the thorns and briers shall give way to magnificent trees that speak of His lifegiving power.

And in the final chapter of the Bible, in the new Jerusalem, the river of life flows through the streets of the city, watering the tree of life that we first saw in Genesis 1-3. And the tree of life, we read, “yields its fruit each month” and its “leaves were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse” (Rev 22:2).

So, where did the curse go?

It fell upon Christ, who wore the cursed crown made of thorns.

It fell upon Christ, who was crucified on a wooden cross to redeem us from the curse, for “Cursed in everyone who is hanged on a tree” (Gal 3:13).

The curse fell upon Christ. When Christ died, the curse died with him.

It is only because Jesus wore the crown of thorns and was nailed to a tree that we can eat of the tree of life. He alone is the new temple through whom people of every nation can draw near to God. And anyone who puts their faith in Him are forever free from the curse and power of sin. The thorns and thistles of our hearts can now be excised when we put our faith in Him.

This is the persistent, consistent, theme of the Bible: the Lord takes what is twisted and straightens it out. He takes what is tainted and purifies it. He takes what is sad and makes it untrue. He takes what is dead and brings it to life.

And we see this most vividly on Easter Sunday. With his resurrection from the dead, Christ’s crown of thorns has been replaced with a crown of gold (Rev 14:14). He is the victorious King who will reign forever. Praise God for Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and the week that changed history! Praise God for Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

The Lord bless you, New City, and may your hearts be moved afresh as we worship the crucified and risen Lord during Holy Week this year.

Moses

P.S., Please join us for the special joint Good Friday Service at the Redeemer University Auditorium on April 18 at 10 AM. Be sure to invite your friends, family, and neighbours to join us!