Did He Really Die?…Mark 15:44-45

Pilate couldn't believe that Jesus was already dead, so he called for the Roman officer and asked if he had died yet. The officer confirmed that Jesus was dead, so Pilate told Joseph he could have the body.“…

The absolute and total physical death of Christ is essential to the gospel. Certain liberals and detractors have for years tried to obscure or deny this vital teaching, claiming that Christ merely “swooned” on the cross and later revived in the tomb, then appeared to His followers who falsely claimed His resurrection.

But to the Christian, the death of Christ is not an option. The Bible teaches that sin had separated each man from God,

Romans 3:23

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard.

being declared righteous only “through faith in his blood”

Romans 3:25

For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past,

which was shed on the cross. “Without shedding of blood is no remission” of sin

Hebrews 9:22

In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.

There can be no Christianity without the real death of the real, sinless Son of God.

It seems that the gospel writers, in recounting the events of the crucifixion, go to great lengths to make sure no one misunderstands.

In Mark 15, for example, nearly 20 people are mentioned who no doubt would testify to His death. Consider the likely testimony of

The Roman guards who had tortured Him to the point of death,nailed Him on the cross …Mark 15:15-25 …So to pacify the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified. The soldiers took Jesus into the courtyard of the governor's headquarters (called the Praetorium) and called out the entire regiment. They dressed him in a purple robe, and they wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head. Then they saluted him and taunted, "Hail! King of the Jews!" And they struck him on the head with a reed stick, spit on him, and dropped to their knees in mock worship. When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified.…Simon from Cyrene… A passerby named Simon, who was from Cyrene, was coming in from the countryside just then, and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus' cross. (Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus.) And they brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha (which means "Place of the Skull"). They offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it.Then the soldiers nailed him to the cross. They divided his clothes and threw dice[c] to decide who would get each piece. It was nine o'clock in the morning when they crucified him. A sign announced the charge against him. It read, "The King of the Jews."……and watched Him die.…Mark 15:33–38 …At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o'clock. Then at three o'clock Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?"(David used the same words in his Psalm 22:1

…The bystanders and the Executioner…Mark 15:25

Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink. "Wait!" he said. "Let's see whether Elijah comes to take him down!" Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

The centurionwho were trained in killing.They knew how to recognize death

Mark 15:39

When the Roman officer who stood facing him saw how he had died, he exclaimed, "This man truly was the Son of God!".

Mark 15:44-45

Pilate couldn't believe that Jesus was already dead, so he called for the Roman officer and asked if he had died yet. The officer confirmed that Jesus was dead, so Pilate told Joseph he could have the body.

The two thieves

Mark 15:27,32b

Two revolutionaries(Or Two criminals). were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left……..Even the men who were crucified with Jesus ridiculed him.

The mocking passers-by

Mark 15:29

The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. "Ha! Look at you now!" they yelled at him. "You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days.Well then, save yourself and come down from the cross!"

The chief priests and scribes

Mark 15:31

The leading priests and teachers of religious law also mocked Jesus. "He saved others," they scoffed, "but he can't save himself!32 Let this Messiah, this King of Israel, come down from the cross so we can see it and believe him!" Even the men who were crucified with Jesus ridiculed him.

The grave keepers

Mark 15:46

Joseph bought a long sheet of linen cloth. Then he took Jesus' body down from the cross, wrapped it in the cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone in front of the entrance.

All would have had no doubt.

Pilate was convinced

Mark 15:44-45

Pilate couldn't believe that Jesus was already dead, so he called for the Roman officer and asked if he had died yet.The officer confirmed that Jesus was dead, so Pilate told Joseph he could have the body.

His many friends who watched

Mark 15:40-41,47

Some women were there, watching from a distance, including Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James the younger and of Joseph[i]), and Salome. They had been followers of Jesus and had cared for him while he was in Galilee. Many other women who had come with him to Jerusalem were also there…… Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where Jesus' body was laid.

There can be no doubt Christ surely died, and He died “to give his life as a ransom for many”

Mark 10:45

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."