John 18:17,18—Carrying His own cross, He went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). Here they crucified Him, and with Him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
King of the Hill is a great game if you are tough, athletic and big. It would seem that conquering mountains has always been an obsession for mankind. The possessor of high ground occupies the strategic advantage and holds bragging rights.
How fitting that the Romans led Jesus to high ground to crucify Him. Calvary provided a view of Jerusalem. It was a place where convicted criminals were displayed so all could see the folly of breaking the law. Nailed to wooden beams, Jesus, God’s holy Son, was raised a spectacle before the jeering countrymen He came to save.
He didn’t need to open His mouth. Just a thought would have sufficed. Instantly, legions of angels would have streaked to His defense. He could easily fry his adversaries with one laser look. Just a wave of the hand and Calvary might have blazed with judgment instead of an agonized silence.
Satan laughed no doubt at the puny sight of a slain Creator. The religious leaders smirked at the pathetic manner in which the One they jealousy despised succumbed. But God never intended to take the hill. His plan was not to make Calvary a historical battleground on which His Boy would be King. Instead, Calvary became Paradox Hill. The One Who was perfect took on all our sins. The One Who possessed authority let others decide His fate. The One with miraculous powers would not turn spikes into spears. The One Who came to save others died Himself.
One military man watched closely the battle on Calvary between good and evil. He reached a conclusion not shared by the masses. "The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, ‘Surely this was a righteous man’" (Luke 23:47). God let a hill be taken to win the world. Lives are not changed today because of the authority of those who decided Jesus would hang on dead timber on a hilltop. Lives are changed because of an empty grave off the hill where Jesus rose victorious to give us our only shot at salvation. The real King of the hill is not the one left standing at the top but the One Who sits at the right hand of God in heaven, the Maker of all hills. He is the Champion of Calvary . . . something to think about in reveration.
Inspiration
Calvary means "the place of a skull," and that is where our Lord is always crucified, in the culture and intellect of men who will not have self-knowledge given by the light of Jesus Christ.—Oswald Chambers in The Highest Good
