A Perverse Salvation - Mark 15:15

"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." Why was it necessary for Jesus not only to suffer an agonizing death, but to have severe cruelty and indignity inflicted upon Him? In addition to being flogged with a lead-tipped whip by Pilate's order, Jesus was also:

• Taunted, struck on the head, spit upon, and mocked by a large number of Roman soldiers (vs. 16-20)
• Verbally abused and mocked by people passing by the place where He was executed (vs. 29-30)
• Mocked by the Jewish religious leaders (vs. 31-32)
• Ridiculed by the criminals who were executed alongside Him (vs. 32)

While it seems that the immensity of the indignities that Jesus suffered were almost perverse, it was somehow necessary because of the extent of human depravity. In other words, the magnitude of His suffering expressed the enormity of His salvation. Although I can't exactly explain why Jesus had to suffer so much, I do know that the dignity with which He endured indignity was (and is) transformative: "When the Roman officer who stood facing him saw how he had died, he exclaimed, This man truly was the Son of God!" (vs. 39). He must be the Son of God redeeming us to endure so much in such a way. So, let the way that Jesus suffered and died define the way that you live!