Shame and Disgrace, Part 3 (June 25, 2026)

Mark 15 brings shame and disgrace right up to the cross, where shame was fully displayed against the Lord Jesus Christ. Pilate knew the chief priests had delivered Jesus for envy, not because Jesus had done any wrong. Pilate was a sinful man, but even he saw the real truth behind it. The wrong was not in Christ, but in their own hearts.

The soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and made a special display of mockery just for Him. The purple robe, the crown of thorns, the fake salute, the reed striking His head, the bowing of their knees, and the spitting in His face were not ordinary treatment for every prisoner. Their whole purpose was to make Him look as bad as they could. The king of the Jews was mocked by Rome, and the Jews themselves opened the door for Rome to disgrace their whole nation.

Spitting in someone’s face was one of the oldest and strongest signs of contempt, rejection, humiliation, and public disgrace. Numbers 12 shows God comparing shame to a father spitting in his daughter’s face. Deuteronomy 25 shows the law using spitting as a visible public mark of disgrace against a man who failed his family duty. The act was understood across cultures as a deep insult, and that makes what was done to Christ all the more despicable.

Isaiah 50 shows that Jesus did not hide His face from shame and spitting. The Servant says, “I gave my back,” and “I hid not my face,” because His life was not taken from Him. He laid it down. He set His face like a flint, and He could say, “I shall not be ashamed,” because no wrongdoing was in Him.

John 9 gives a powerful contrast. Men used spittle to disgrace Christ, but Christ used spittle and dirt to heal a blind man. Man uses something to hurt, condemn, and shame, but God uses it to heal and restore. Jesus is always working in the opposite direction than man is.

The cross was designed for maximum shame. Jesus was stripped, mocked, railed on, numbered with transgressors, and shamed down to the very last breath. Hebrews says He endured the cross, despising the shame, for the joy set before Him. Jesus took shame upon Himself so sinners could share in His joy.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus did not hide His face [41:15] Jesus did not shield Himself from the shame that came against Him. Isaiah’s words show more than suffering, because they show willing surrender. The shame did not find a guilty man trying to cover himself, but a sinless Savior giving Himself for sinners. [41:15]
• 2. Man shamed what God would save [45:13] The same human heart that uses contempt to condemn is met by a Christ who uses even lowly things to heal. Spittle becomes a striking picture, because man used it to insult Jesus, while Jesus used it to open blind eyes. God’s ways run opposite to man’s cruelty, and His mercy overturns the meaning of disgrace. [45:13]
• 3. The cross exposed public humiliation [49:17] Crucifixion was not only meant to kill a man, but to strip him, display him, and make him an object of laughter. Jesus endured not just pain, but the full weight of being mocked, shamed, and treated as vile. The cross shows how far Christ entered into human disgrace in order to bring sinners back to God. [49:17]
• 4. Joy strengthened holy endurance [57:39] Jesus looked beyond the immediate suffering to the joy set before Him. That joy did not make the shame unreal, but it kept shame from turning Him aside from His mission. Spiritual endurance grows when future glory weighs more heavily than present humiliation. [57:39]
• 5. Christ bore shame to share joy [59:01] Jesus took shame upon Himself so that sinners could share in His joy. That truth reaches deeper than mere relief from guilt, because Christ brings His people into the fruit of His own triumph. Gratitude grows when the soul sees that the shame deserved by sinners was willingly carried by the sinless Son.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [17:49] - Grace That Is Mercy
• [27:09] - Shame and Disgrace at the Cross
• [28:07] - Pilate, Barabbas, and Envy
• [29:12] - Soldiers Mock the King
• [31:15] - Numbered With the Transgressors
• [34:32] - Spitting as Public Disgrace
• [40:19] - Isaiah 50 and Willing Shame
• [43:11] - Jesus Uses Spittle to Heal
• [47:33] - Shame Down to the Last Breath
• [49:17] - Crucifixion Designed for Shame
• [55:05] - Set His Face Like a Flint
• [57:19] - Spiritual Endurance in Suffering
• [57:39] - Focused on the Joy Ahead
• [59:01] - He Took Shame to Give Joy

Bible Reading

Mark 15
“And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified. And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band. And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head, And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him. And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him. And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors. And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, Save thyself, and come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save. Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.” [26:42]

Isaiah 50:6-7
“I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” [40:29]

Hebrews 12:2
“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 is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” [42:36]

John 9:6-7
“When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore and washed, and came seeing.” [43:11]

Observation questions

1. In Mark 15, what specific actions showed that the soldiers were not merely punishing Jesus, but openly mocking and disgracing Him? [29:12]
2. What does Mark 15 show about the different groups who joined in mocking Jesus at the cross?
3. In Isaiah 50:6-7, what words show that this suffering was willingly accepted rather than forced on an unwilling victim? [41:05]
4. In John 9:6-7, what did Jesus do with spittle, and how is that scene very different from what was done to Him in Mark 15? [45:13]

Interpretation questions

1. Pilate knew that Jesus had been delivered up for envy. What does that reveal about the real source of Christ’s rejection, and what does it say about the human heart? [28:33]
2. Isaiah says, “I hid not my face from shame and spitting.” How does that deepen the understanding of Christ’s obedience and willingness at the cross? [41:15]
3. Jesus was numbered with transgressors though no wrong was found in Him. Why was it important that the sinless Savior entered so fully into the place of public shame? [31:48]
4. Hebrews 12:2 says Jesus endured the cross “for the joy that was set before him.” How does future joy strengthen present endurance without making suffering seem small or unreal? [57:39]

Application questions

1. Shame has a way of turning people inward and making them want to hide. When have shame, embarrassment, or fear of what others think made it hard to obey God openly? [55:05]
2. Jesus did not let mockery or rejection detour Him from His mission. Where is there a temptation right now to back away from what is right because it may cost reputation, comfort, or approval? [57:30]
3. Human beings often use words, looks, and attitudes to wound and disgrace others. In what relationships would it be good to ask whether there has been a habit of shaming people instead of helping them? [45:13]
4. Christ took what men used for contempt and moved in the direction of healing. What would it look like this week to answer someone’s coldness, criticism, or disrespect with mercy instead of retaliation? [44:54]
5. Crucifixion was designed for maximum shame, and Jesus entered that place willingly. How does remembering the shame He bore affect the way personal insults and embarrassments are viewed? [49:17]
6. Jesus looked beyond immediate suffering to the joy ahead. What helps keep the eyes fixed on promised joy when present burdens feel heavy and personal? [58:17]
7. Christ bore shame so sinners could share in His joy. What would thankful living look like in a concrete way this week if that truth really stayed in view? [59:01]