Good morning! Today we are reading the twenty third chapter of Luke. Jesus had been betrayed by Judas, with a kiss, and captured by the chief priests. After the elders had decided he was guilty, they took him to Pilate. Pilate spoke with Jesus, but saw no fault in him. Pilate, I think, was not a strong willed man. He didn't want to make a decision against Jesus, so when he discovered that Jesus was from Galilee, placing him under the jurisdiction of Herod, Pilate sent him to Herod, who happened to be in Jerusalem at the time.
Herod had heard of Jesus and had wanted to see him for some time. He wanted to see a miracle. But Jesus spoke nothing in Herod's presence. Herod and his followers mocked Jesus and dressed him in a royal robe and sent him back to Pilate.
Again, Pilate saw no guilt in Jesus, certainly none that would require death, as his accusers wanted. He suggested that he would chastise Jesus and let him go. The custom of the time was that at the Passover a prisoner would be set free. But the people insisted on crucifying Jesus. They wanted Barabbas, a known murderer set free. Pilate gave another attempt to set Jesus free, but the crowd wanted Barabbas. They insisted that Jesus be crucified.
On his way to Calvary, where he would be crucified, a Cyrenian by the name of Simon was pressed into service to carry the cross for Jesus. Two thieves who would hang on crosses that day also, were with him. Just as the soldiers were mocking Jesus, one thief also taunted him, saying save yourself, and us too! But the other thief rebuked the first one. He understood that Jesus had done no wrong, as he and the other man had. Jesus told him that he would be with Jesus that very day in paradise.
At the sixth hour, about noontime, the sky grew dark. It stayed dark until about 3 pm, or the ninth hour of the day. The veil in the temple tore completely in two. Jesus gave up the ghost.
Afterwards Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. He wrapped him in linens and placed him in the tomb. The women prepared spices, then rested on the Sabbath.
Have a great day.
Showing posts with label crucifixion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crucifixion. Show all posts
Monday, February 6, 2012
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
A Morning Cup of Tea; Crucifixion
Good morning! I apologize for not having a cup of tea post out yesterday.That was entirely my fault.
Today we are in Mark chapter fifteen. It is the morning after Jesus was captured and falsely accused of blasphemy. The chief priests have held a consultation with the the elders and scribes and the whole council, and they bound him over to Pilate.
Pilate asked Jesus, Are you King of the Jews? Jesus simply answered, Thou sayest it. He spoke nothing more to defend himself when the chief priests accused him. Pilate absolutely knew that whether or not Jesus was the Son of God this man was innocent and the charges were trumped up by those who were jealous of him. Pilate, however, was a politician, and he acceded to the wishes of the people on this one.
The custom at the time was that a prisoner would be released during the celebration of Passover. Pilate gave the crowd two choices : a murderer by the name of Barabbas, or Jesus. The chief priests moved around the people, urging them to call for Barabbas, which they did.
Jesus was scourged, mocked by placing a purple robe and a crown of thorns upon his head, struck, and spit upon. Jesus has had very little if any sleep during this time; he had spent the evening in prayer before his capture. The scourge is possibly the worst beating a person could receive: It consists of several of leather cord in which sharp pieces of stone or glass is embedded. All of this rips into the flesh, leaving gaping wounds and can injure internal organs depending upon how severely a person is beaten. And during all of this, Jesus could have simply said, Enough. I'm not doing this anymore. But he didn't. He who had never once sinned became the sacrificial lamb for you and me, and all others.
He was taken to Golgotha, and was made to carry his own cross until he no longer could. Then Simon the Cyrenian was compelled to carry it for him.. There Jesus was nailed to the cross and hung between two thieves.
The cross is an extreme torture device. The nails used to secure a person to the rough wood are large, and the person is positioned in such a way as they eventually cannot draw themselves up enough to breathe properly. They are in severe pain the entire time. During all of this Jesus' clothes were torn apart and the soldiers were casting lots to see who would get the pieces. People were yelling at him to save himself.
At one point the sky darkened. Jesus cried out, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which, interpreted is, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me? And shortly after he cried out and gave up the ghost. He died there on the cross.
Because it was so close to the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea quickly asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate granted it once determining that Jesus was dead, and Joseph bought fine linen for the body and wrapped it and placed it in the sepulcre, with a huge stone rolled in front of it.
Today we are in Mark chapter fifteen. It is the morning after Jesus was captured and falsely accused of blasphemy. The chief priests have held a consultation with the the elders and scribes and the whole council, and they bound him over to Pilate.
Pilate asked Jesus, Are you King of the Jews? Jesus simply answered, Thou sayest it. He spoke nothing more to defend himself when the chief priests accused him. Pilate absolutely knew that whether or not Jesus was the Son of God this man was innocent and the charges were trumped up by those who were jealous of him. Pilate, however, was a politician, and he acceded to the wishes of the people on this one.
The custom at the time was that a prisoner would be released during the celebration of Passover. Pilate gave the crowd two choices : a murderer by the name of Barabbas, or Jesus. The chief priests moved around the people, urging them to call for Barabbas, which they did.
Jesus was scourged, mocked by placing a purple robe and a crown of thorns upon his head, struck, and spit upon. Jesus has had very little if any sleep during this time; he had spent the evening in prayer before his capture. The scourge is possibly the worst beating a person could receive: It consists of several of leather cord in which sharp pieces of stone or glass is embedded. All of this rips into the flesh, leaving gaping wounds and can injure internal organs depending upon how severely a person is beaten. And during all of this, Jesus could have simply said, Enough. I'm not doing this anymore. But he didn't. He who had never once sinned became the sacrificial lamb for you and me, and all others.
He was taken to Golgotha, and was made to carry his own cross until he no longer could. Then Simon the Cyrenian was compelled to carry it for him.. There Jesus was nailed to the cross and hung between two thieves.
The cross is an extreme torture device. The nails used to secure a person to the rough wood are large, and the person is positioned in such a way as they eventually cannot draw themselves up enough to breathe properly. They are in severe pain the entire time. During all of this Jesus' clothes were torn apart and the soldiers were casting lots to see who would get the pieces. People were yelling at him to save himself.
At one point the sky darkened. Jesus cried out, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which, interpreted is, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me? And shortly after he cried out and gave up the ghost. He died there on the cross.
Because it was so close to the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea quickly asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate granted it once determining that Jesus was dead, and Joseph bought fine linen for the body and wrapped it and placed it in the sepulcre, with a huge stone rolled in front of it.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
A Morning Cup of Tea: The Crucifixion
***Warning*** I have explained some parts of Jesus' suffering a little more graphically than the usual " he was beaten and hung on the cross." I wrote it this way in order to make myself and any other reader think about what Jesus did that we might be saved from our sins. It wasn't just a given. We have to accept that gift by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17), believing it to be true (Romans 10:10) , publicly acknowledging Jesus as the Son of God (Romans 10:10, repenting (turning away from) our sins, being baptized, (Acts 2:38) and living the life.
Today we begin chapter 27 of Matthew. It is now morning, and the chief priests and elders have taken counsel and they want Jesus put to death. They bound him up and delivered him to the governor, Pontius Pilate.
Judas had seen all this and knew that he had done wrong. I don't think he realized that when the chief priests and elders had wanted Jesus, they wanted him dead. But, as sometimes is the case, we let sin take the lead (in this case, greed; love of money) and we jump head first into a situation without thinking it through. Judas was now sorry that he had betrayed Jesus. He knew Jesus was innocent and death was wrong. He tried giving the money back and explaining to the chief priests and elders, but they refused to take back the money. That's your problem, not ours, they told him (paraphrased, v4). Judas threw down the thirty pieces of silver to the floor of the temple and left. He hanged himself afterward.
The chief priests and elders decided the money couldn't go into the treasuries because it was blood money, so they bought the potter's field in which to bury strangers.
Jesus was taken in front of Pontius Pilate, who asked him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answered Thou sayest (v 11) and said nothing more. When the chief priests and elders accused him, he stayed silent.
During the feast of the Passover it was the custom to allow a prisoner of the people's choice to go free. Pilate gave them a choice: Jesus or Barabbas, a known murderer. The chief priests and elders incited the crowds to ask for Barabbas.
When the governor asked what should be done of Jesus, they answered: Crucify him.
At this point, after Pilate symbolically washed his hands of the blood of Jesus, Jesus was scourged. If you have watched The Passion of the Christ or know a little about history, you know this wasn't your normal everyday whipping. The people who did this tended to use a cat o' nine tails, a whip with several lines, instead of one, and most of the time they had embedded in the leather, pieces of glass or sharp stone, which cut into the flesh. It left the victim's back torn and bloody. Not an easy thing to think about.
After this was done, Jesus' clothes were ripped from him and they replaced the clothes with a crimson robe. They placed a crown of thorns on his head -none too gently I'm sure- and put a reed in his hand, and bowed down to him, mocking him. Then they spit on him and took the reed and hit him on the head with it. They took the robe from him and had his own clothes put back on him, and led him away to be crucified.
Think about this for a moment if you will. Here is an innocent man, the Son of God, who never once sinned. He has been up presumably all night, been hit and spit upon, and they just beat him with a whip that ripped open his flesh. Taking clothes on and off where a wound is fresh hurts like crazy, and most of us reading this has never known the type of beating like this. And now he was going to be crucified, adding more suffering to his body.
Being nailed to a cross meant having huge nails -stakes almost, driven into your wrists and your feet. There is just enough room for you to try and lift your body up so that you can breathe. We think of today's electric chair or gas chamber, or even hanging from not so long ago as cruel and unusual. Those are tame compared to crucifixion. They don't even come close.
Jesus was placed on the cross, between two thieves. He was continually mocked as he was up there suffering. To drink he was offered vinegar mixed with gall, which he refused. His clothes were torn apart and the soldiers cast lots for them.
When Jesus died on that cross, there was an earthquake. The veil of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. There was no separation between God and man now. And graves were disturbed and bodies popped up. Many people saw this happen. A centurion who witnessed all this realized then that Jesus was indeed the Son of God ( v33-54).
Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. He wrapped him in clean linen and had him laid in the tomb which he had just purchased for himself. A large boulder was placed in front of the tomb.
The next day the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. They told him, This deceiver told people that he would arise in three days. We need to have the tomb sealed and a guard put up so his disciples can't come in and steal the body, thereby fooling the people into believing he really rose from the dead. Pilate allowed it to be done. And thus ends chapter 27. Please read this for yourself. I have only told the story in my own words.
Today we begin chapter 27 of Matthew. It is now morning, and the chief priests and elders have taken counsel and they want Jesus put to death. They bound him up and delivered him to the governor, Pontius Pilate.
Judas had seen all this and knew that he had done wrong. I don't think he realized that when the chief priests and elders had wanted Jesus, they wanted him dead. But, as sometimes is the case, we let sin take the lead (in this case, greed; love of money) and we jump head first into a situation without thinking it through. Judas was now sorry that he had betrayed Jesus. He knew Jesus was innocent and death was wrong. He tried giving the money back and explaining to the chief priests and elders, but they refused to take back the money. That's your problem, not ours, they told him (paraphrased, v4). Judas threw down the thirty pieces of silver to the floor of the temple and left. He hanged himself afterward.
The chief priests and elders decided the money couldn't go into the treasuries because it was blood money, so they bought the potter's field in which to bury strangers.
Jesus was taken in front of Pontius Pilate, who asked him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answered Thou sayest (v 11) and said nothing more. When the chief priests and elders accused him, he stayed silent.
During the feast of the Passover it was the custom to allow a prisoner of the people's choice to go free. Pilate gave them a choice: Jesus or Barabbas, a known murderer. The chief priests and elders incited the crowds to ask for Barabbas.
When the governor asked what should be done of Jesus, they answered: Crucify him.
At this point, after Pilate symbolically washed his hands of the blood of Jesus, Jesus was scourged. If you have watched The Passion of the Christ or know a little about history, you know this wasn't your normal everyday whipping. The people who did this tended to use a cat o' nine tails, a whip with several lines, instead of one, and most of the time they had embedded in the leather, pieces of glass or sharp stone, which cut into the flesh. It left the victim's back torn and bloody. Not an easy thing to think about.
After this was done, Jesus' clothes were ripped from him and they replaced the clothes with a crimson robe. They placed a crown of thorns on his head -none too gently I'm sure- and put a reed in his hand, and bowed down to him, mocking him. Then they spit on him and took the reed and hit him on the head with it. They took the robe from him and had his own clothes put back on him, and led him away to be crucified.
Think about this for a moment if you will. Here is an innocent man, the Son of God, who never once sinned. He has been up presumably all night, been hit and spit upon, and they just beat him with a whip that ripped open his flesh. Taking clothes on and off where a wound is fresh hurts like crazy, and most of us reading this has never known the type of beating like this. And now he was going to be crucified, adding more suffering to his body.
Being nailed to a cross meant having huge nails -stakes almost, driven into your wrists and your feet. There is just enough room for you to try and lift your body up so that you can breathe. We think of today's electric chair or gas chamber, or even hanging from not so long ago as cruel and unusual. Those are tame compared to crucifixion. They don't even come close.
Jesus was placed on the cross, between two thieves. He was continually mocked as he was up there suffering. To drink he was offered vinegar mixed with gall, which he refused. His clothes were torn apart and the soldiers cast lots for them.
When Jesus died on that cross, there was an earthquake. The veil of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. There was no separation between God and man now. And graves were disturbed and bodies popped up. Many people saw this happen. A centurion who witnessed all this realized then that Jesus was indeed the Son of God ( v33-54).
Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. He wrapped him in clean linen and had him laid in the tomb which he had just purchased for himself. A large boulder was placed in front of the tomb.
The next day the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. They told him, This deceiver told people that he would arise in three days. We need to have the tomb sealed and a guard put up so his disciples can't come in and steal the body, thereby fooling the people into believing he really rose from the dead. Pilate allowed it to be done. And thus ends chapter 27. Please read this for yourself. I have only told the story in my own words.
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