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Matthew 27:54
Now the centurion, and those who were with
him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw
the earthquake and the things that were
happening, became very frightened and said,
"Truly this was the Son of God!"
When in Jerusalem,
do as the Romans do?
• “When in Rome, do • Ambrose (340-397),
as the Romans do”
wrote to Augustine
(354-430): Si fueris
• The proverb has
Romae, Romano
evolved over time,
vivito more; si fueris
basically saying that
alibi, vivito sicut ibi
one should adapt to
('When you are in
the culture where
Rome live in the
one is located (while
Roman style; when
not compromising
you are elsewhere
moral or spiritual
principles, of course) live as they live
elsewhere')
The principle in the New Testament
• The apostle Paul
makes a statement
consistent with the
principle of this
proverb as he writes
to the believers in
Corinth, with the
motivation being to
convey the gospel
without any
“artificial” hindrance
The Apostle Paul
in Rome
(one artist’s concept)
1 Corinthians 9:19-23
For though I am free from all men, I have made
myself a slave to all, so that I may win more. 20
To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might
win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as
under the Law though not being myself under
the Law, so that I might win those who are
under the Law; 21 to those who are without law,
as without law, though not being without the law
of God but under the law of Christ, so that I
might win those who are without law. 22 To the
weak I became weak, that I might win the weak;
I have become all things to all men, so that I
may by all means save some.
A dark night before a dark day
• The Jewish leaders
had spent the night
“capturing” &
condemning Jesus
• But they preferred,
that the Romans
do the dirty work
of getting this
troublesome Jesus
out of their way
Courtyard
of what is
thought to
have been
Caiaphas’
house –
here Peter
would deny
that he
even knew
Jesus
A dark night before a dark day
• So the Jewish
leaders brought
Jesus to the Roman
governor, Pontius
Pilate, to have him
give official sanction
to their condemnation
of Jesus & to do what
the Romans did so
well - crucifixion
Should we do like this Roman?
• Pontius Pilate was
• Pilate even asked,
the Roman
“What is truth?”
governor in Judea
(John 18:38)
from 26 to 36 AD
• Pontius Pilate four
• He ruled from
times said of Jesus,
Antonia Fortress,
“I find no guilt in this
which was located
man.” (John 18:38;
next to the temple in
19:4,6,22) & tried to
Jerusalem
free him (John 19:13)
Should we do like this Roman?
• He found that Jesus • He also ordered a
had done nothing
sign (epigraphon)
wrong, & tried to
to be placed over
pass the matter
Jesus’ head, “Jesus
onto Herod…
the Nazarene, the
King of the Jews”
• Against the advice
(John 19:19), which
of his own wife, he
was Pilate’s version
bowed to pressure
of the legal charge
& ordered Jesus
against Christ
flogged & crucified
Should we do like these Romans?
• Once Pilate handed • They flogged Him
down the sentence,
severely, as usual
the Roman soldiers • Then, as usual, they
took over their
had Him carry His
routine duties
own cross-piece
• Playing cruel games, until He was unable
they mocked, struck,
to do so Himself,
& spat on Jesus,
then they forced
crowning Him with
Simon of Cyrene to
thorns
carry it for Him
Should we do like these Romans?
• Quintilian (42-118
• Both Roman &
AD), a Roman
Jewish law required
rhetoretician, wrote,
that the crucifixion
“Whenever we
take place outside
crucify the guilty, the
the city gates
most crowded roads
are chosen, where
the most people can
see and be moved
by this fear.”
Should we do like these Romans?
• Crucifixion
(stauroō) was
Rome’s cruelest
punishment –
reserved for the
worst of the worst
criminals & the
lowest levels of
society
• At about 9 AM the
soldiers drove the
nails into Jesus’
wrists & feet, as
they did with the
others - condemned
criminals - placed
on crosses on each
side of Him
Should we do like these Romans?
• As they always did,
they cast lots for
Jesus’ singular
garment – to see
who would get the
meager spoils
• Scripture records
that there were
four soldiers, one
of them a centurion
• From there, they
had little left to do,
but to remain at the
crucifixion site to
make sure that
nobody made any
attempts at a
rescue of any of
those who had
been crucified
Should we do like these Romans?
• Then some things
• There was also, at
began to happen
some time during
that were anything
Christ’s crucifixion,
but routine
an earthquake
• From the sixth hour • The way in which
to the ninth hour
Jesus died - at
(noon to 3 PM), a
about 3 PM - also
darkness fell on the
got their attention…
land – most
definitely not routine
John 19:30
He said, " It is finished!" And He bowed His
head and gave up His spirit .
Most who died of crucifixion took days to die,
but Christ died within six hours of His
crucifixion; Christ died after crying, “It is
finished!”, not only would this have been
understood as a final statement, but this was
also an accounting term which was used to
declare, “The debt has been paid!”
Mark 15:39
When the centurion, who was standing right in
front of Him, saw the way He breathed His
last, he said, "Truly this man was the Son of
God!“
Given that this was the same centurion quoted
in Matthew 27:54, we see that all the unique
events of that day had impacted him, & that
He, along with the other soldiers, were
convinced that Jesus’ claim, that He was
indeed the Son of God, was actually true
Were Roman soldiers all pagan
Romans through & through?
• Luke 3:14 – Some
soldiers came to
John the Baptist to
ask him what they
should do
• Matthew 8:5-13;
Luke 7:2-10 – A
centurion asked
Jesus to heal his
servant
• Acts 10:1-48 –
Cornelius the
centurion - well
regarded by the
Jews - is given a
vision from the Lord
& the gospel from
Peter
What the Roman soldiers heard…
• These soldiers were • The Roman soldiers
likely there at the
had heard the Jews
hearing before
jeering at Jesus for
Pilate when they
His claim to be the
heard the Jews
Son of God, & the
accuse Jesus of
criminals being
claiming to be the
crucified with Christ
Son of God (John
joined in as well
19:7)
(Matthew 27:38-44)
Should we do like these Romans?
• The Jewish leaders
expressed concern
that Jesus’ body
might be taken
away by His
disciples, so they
requested of Pilate
that a Roman guard
be set at Jesus’
tomb
• Pilate granted that
the tomb would be
sealed with his seal
& guarded by
Roman soldiers
• Some have said
these guards of the
tomb were Jewish
Temple guards,
but…
Why the guards at the tomb
were most likely Roman
• Guarding the tomb
would likely have
been outside the
authority of the
temple guard
• Why come to Pilate
for orders if the
Jews could just use
their own temple
guard & seal?
• “Guard” (koustodia,
of Latin origin) was
only used for this
guard duty (Matthew
27:65,66; 28:11)
• In Matthew 28:11,
the soldiers are
concerned about
Pilate finding out that
they failed at watch
What the Roman guards at
the tomb would have done
• The guards would
have set the seal of
the governor on the
stone over the entry
to the tomb & the
adjacent bedrock,
so that breaking the
Roman governor’s
seal would incur the
death penalty
What the Roman guards at
the tomb would have done
• The guards would
have set the seal of
the governor on the
stone over the entry
to the tomb & the
adjacent bedrock,
so that breaking the
Roman governor’s
seal would incur the
death penalty
• They would have
set guards in shifts,
being at least four
guards & possibly
more
• A failure of a guard
at the tomb would
result in a severe
penalty, possibly
death
Alright, so what happened next?
• The guards would
have taken shifts,
watching through
Friday evening, all
day Saturday, into
the night, until early
Sunday morning,
when their routine
would be radically
interrupted…
Early Sunday morning…
• Mary Magdalene,
Mary the mother of
James, & Salome
arrive at the tomb
• They find the tomb
open & empty & the
Roman soldiers
who were standing
guard shaken to the
point of immobility,
overwhelmed by an
angelic presence
• .
Early Sunday morning…
• While these women
go to tell the
disciples that Jesus
is risen, the Roman
soldiers just go…
• .
When Christ’s resurrection
did take place
• Rather than
• These soldiers do
recognizing then
not appear to be the
reaching a spiritual
same ones who
conclusion, some of
crucified Jesus, saw
the soldiers then
Him die, & then
went to the Jewish
recognized Him as
leaders for political
the Son of God
cover & some “hush
money” – the other
soldiers just ran
So should we do as any of
these Romans have done?
• The only Romans
who recognized
Christ for who He
was were the very
ones who had
crucified Him
• They had forced
Him to carry His
cross until He could
no longer do so
• They had driven the
nails into Jesus’
hands & feet &
watched Him die
• When all was said &
done – in spite of
what they had done
– they recognized
Christ for who He
really was
We all now stand at a need to
make the same recognition
• If you are not one
who has recognized
Jesus Christ as the
Son of God – that
He died, was buried
& rose again – to
pay for your sins &
give you new life,
then there is no
more important
question before you
We all now stand at a need
to make the same recognition
• If you are one who
• But our need to
has already come to
recognize Christ as
recognize Jesus
the Son of God is
Christ as the Son of
not just once & final
God, given for you, • What the centurion
then that is eternally
did not know that
wonderful!
day was that there
• It will take eternity
were a great many
to find out how
others on that same
wonderful that is!
cross that day
Romans 6:3, 8-11
3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been
baptized [placed by immersion] into Christ Jesus
have been baptized [placed by immersion] into His
death?
8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that
we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ,
having been raised from the dead, is never to die
again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For
the death that He died, He died to sin once for all;
but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Even
so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive
to God in Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of
witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside
every encumbrance and the sin which so
easily entangles us, and let us run with
endurance the race that is set before us,
2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and
perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before
Him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and has sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God.
Between “the cross” & having “sat down”
is Christ’s burial, resurrection & ascension