Crucible Hill: A Lenten Devotion: That Stake of Wood

I have been writing as of late about Eve for a forthcoming publication and as I study and read Genesis 3: 15, the protoevangelium provokes me to reflect on the cross some thousands of years after Eden.

No theology is genuinely Christian which does not arise from and focus on the cross. – Martin Luther

Lent is now suddenly upon us and though I am not now of a denominational tradition that celebrates the liturgical calendar, I did as a child. I have a deep longing to study and keep many of the traditions for myself, so on today, Ash Wednesday, I am well aware of my shortcomings and even more so, my sin. I reduce to ashes my dried palm from Palm Sunday last as I pray for His forgiveness, thankful that He died for them—for me.  

The cross is beautiful to me. What Christ endured on the cross for my sake is unfathomable, His love is unfathomable; His love, body, and blood poured out for me.

When I survey the wondrous cross On which the Prince of glory died, My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride. Isaac Watts

Scripture—the blessed Holy Writ—makes clear that the death of Christ was necessary. It was part of God’s divine plan to redeem fallen, lost humanity. What a stiff-necked people we are in our fallenness. The Fall of creation was one of the most tragic occurrences the world has seen. It was a cosmic event of catastrophic proportions for which the remedy was beyond Adam and Eve’s power to repair. Though their sin was beyond their ability to mend God proved faithful in His promise to send the Messiah to restore what was broken.

“ Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness. Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification” {Rom. 4:22-25 NASB}.

The cross of Christ is beautiful to the sinner. That is why I have been troubled recently (I posted on social media) by the trend in some circles of Christians who assert that Jesus did not actually die and that the account of His crucifixion was only a metaphor. They further claim that the cross is repulsive and that only a mean and angry God would require the blood of His Son to satisfy His anger for sin. Further still, I can barely stand to write the accusation, they claim that this would be cosmic child abuse for Him to require such a gruesome sacrifice. 

 “So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified” {John 19:16 NASB}.

I wish there had been another way. I wish that Christ did not have to endure such suffering on my behalf. Jesus too, prayed that the cup would pass from Him {Matt. 26:29 NASB}. But He came to do the will of the Father, it was not cosmic child abuse, He was the perfect Lamb of God, taking on the sin of the world, to reconcile God’s beloved creation back to Himself. He did not choose some random person in which to impose the requirement of sin upon, rather He took the payment of such sin on Himself as well.

“Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (In the scroll of the book it is written of Me) To do Your will, O God.’” After saying above, ‘Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have not desired, nor have You taken pleasure in them’ (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will.’ He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” {Heb. 10:7-10}.

The crucifixion was Jesus’ voluntary act of laying down His life and taking it up again {Jn. 10:18}. No one takes it from Him. He came to do the will of the one who sent Him. He was not taken against His will; He was not martyred; He was not assassinated. He laid down His life. He did really die for our sins. I cannot imagine faithful followers of Jesus (who were martyred and died very brutal, gruesome deaths themselves) defending, suffering, and dying for a metaphorical cross. It is unimaginable. If He did not literally die, He did not literally rise from the dead. If He did not rise, our faith is in vain, and our message is useless, and then it would follow, so is our faith in Him{1 Cor. 15:14}.

“First, as the Lord shall help me (for who shall describe the cross without the help of Him that hung upon it) what did Paul mean by the cross? Did he not include under this term, first, the fact of the cross; secondly, the doctrine of the cross, and thirdly, the cross of the doctrine? I think he meant, first of all, the fact of the cross. Our Lord Jesus Christ did really die upon a gallows, the death of a felon. He was literally put to death upon a tree, accursed in the esteem of men.” Charles Spurgeon, The Cross Our Glory, Sermon No. 1859.

God is Holy. Sin required a sacrifice. Jesus was that perfect one-time sacrifice. These are biblical truths. Where would we all be if not for the cross? How can one look upon it with such contempt? Such venom? Would it have been better for Him to annihilate us that we be separated and suffer apart from Him for eternity? Would it better for Him to allow us to live depraved? God let it not be so! He would not let it be. That is not gruesome, it is beautiful. I pray for those who are veiled from the truth of the cross and are a stumbling block and deceiving others by their teaching. God have mercy on them. Paul spoke about those who claim Christ did not die in his letter to the Corinthians,

“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.’ Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” {1 Cor. 1:22-25 NASB}.

“We could summarize all of this background to Bonhoeffer’s Christology in one sentence, albeit a complex one: The cross was a stumbling block to the Romans; the cross was a stumbling block to the Nazis; the cross was a stumbling block to moderns; and—unless we are humbled and brought low beneath the cross to see its power and beauty—the cross can be a stumbling block to us.” 

Stephen J. Nichols, Bonhoeffer on the Christian Life: From the Cross, for the World

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See my series on the Jesus and fulfilled prophecy here
See my series on A Protestant's View on Stations of the Cross for Lent here

Sabbath Sanctuary: Holy Saturday Why did Jesus have to die?

It sits nicely tucked away in its box—the bronzed cross that hung on my wall for many years as a symbol of blessing for my home. I packed it away after redecorating the place it hung and came across it this morning.

Remembering that His hands were pierced instead of mine.

Bronze represents judgment. Jesus took upon Himself the wrath due to me on the cross. A cross to bless my home came with a great price from God, who sent His Son. 

Yesterday, we remembered Christ and His crucifixion, His holy sacrifice for our filthiness and sin. Every sin I have committed, every idle word I have spoken, was nailed to the cross yesterday. There seems to be a void after the horrific crucifixion scene the previous day and the celebration of an empty grave on Sunday. Sabbath Saturday seemed quiet; the dust settling from the events and commotion of the traumatic events of the previous day, and a calm hush appeared to hold the city captive. It looked like everything was dead. Everything the disciples hoped for is gone—their dreams died and were buried with Jesus. The perceived injustice broke their hearts, and indeed, the question had to well in their minds—why did He have to die?

Many have asked this question through the centuries since He laid down His life for the world. It was foretold through the Old Testament: “They are striking the judge of Israel on the cheek with a rod. Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; One will come from you to be the ruler over Israel for Me. His origin is from antiquity, from eternity” {Micha 5:1a–2 HCSB}. This speaks to His eternal nature, the pre-existent Christ—the Lamb that was slain {Revelation 13:7-9}came in the flesh. Jesus told His disciples that everything written about Him in the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled {Lk. 24:44}.

“Christ has sinlessly borne the sins of the world. In His innocence, he has submitted first in the full waters of the Jordan and then in the bloody waters of the cross, to baptism for sin’s repentance becoming cursed for us in over us and save us from our sin.” [1]

Some argue that this sacrifice is cruel and sadistic, but they are misguided. It was a price motivated by the love and compassion of the only wise God. He could have chosen to leave us in our sins, awaiting judgment, displaying His perfect justice. He could have chosen to save no one. But God, in His love, chose to redeem us instead of leaving us to wallow in the mire.

Because He is holy and sin requires judgment, Christ’s atonement was necessary. Jesus prayed in the garden to let the cup of His death pass from Him {Matt. 26:39}, if only there was another way…but He always prayed according to Father’s will. This is evidence that Jesus couldn't avoid His death and the cup of His suffering if He was going to fulfill the Father’s purpose and redeem mankind.

“Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Hime, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him” {Isaiah 53:1-6 NASB}.

But this is not the end of the story. Friday happened, but Sunday is coming! The Suffering Servant is now the victorious King! 

“He will divide the spoils with the strong. This means that we share in Christ’s inheritance. According to Paul, we co-heirs with Jesus cause we have been adopted into the family. We are God’s children. ‘Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if we indeed share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory’ {Rom. 8:15}.”[2]

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” {John 3:16}. But His justice required a way for our sins to be paid for, for He is a holy God and cannot allow sin to go unanswered. Paul tells us that was why God sent Christ to be the propitiation {Romans 3:25}, the only perfect sacrifice to pay for our sins. The love and justice of God were the ultimate cause of the atonement.

On this Sabbath, Passover, and Easter weekend, reflect on God’s holiness and justice and rest in His love, which chose to redeem you and make available His promises for your life. In His holiness, He saw your sin; in His justice, He provided the sacrifice through Christ; and because He loves you, He redeemed you.

Saturday is almost over…Sunday is Resurrection!

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[1] Alan E. Lewis, Between Cross And Resurrection: A Theology Of Holy Saturday (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001), 45.

[2] R.T. Kendall, Why Jesus Died: A Meditation Of Isaiah 53 (Oxford: Monarch Books, 2011), 185.

The Passover Lamb: Behold the Lamb of God

It is Holy Week, and many eloquent writers have penned beautiful prose concerning the beauty of what we remember this week. Here are my humble musings, what my heart is breathing on this Good Friday. Not only is this Good Friday for the body of Christ, it is also Passover for the Jews, beginning at sundown. I love when Passover falls at the same time as Easter; the two are more connected than appears on the surface {I will elaborate on this in a moment}. Let’s begin at Good Friday.

Good Friday is a solemn day—or should be in proper reflection. Before Jesus made His way to the cross, He had a battle to overcome in the Garden of Gethsemane. This is where Jesus had an intense spiritual battle, and through His struggle, he remained obedient to God and submitted Himself to the will of the Father. He agonized as He pondered what was to come and prayed for the cup to pass. Through His love for us, He remained obedient; He saw beyond the cross to those He loved and desired to redeem. He chose to obey the Father's will and endure His impending suffering. Jesus chose obedience, and the Lord sent an angel to minister to Him.


“And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, saying, ‘Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.’ Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him” {Luke 22: 41-43 NASB}.

Jesus received His strength from the Lord. When the Lord sent the angel unto Him, the Father strengthened Him and enabled Him to remain obedient until death.

Jesus suffered immensely on our behalf, and it is important to remember that He not only died for us, but He also died in our place and on our behalf. The brutality that Jesus experienced absorbed God’s wrath and reconciled us to the Father. He exhibited the grace and mercy of God on behalf of sinners and conquered death. He was the last and perfect sin offering.

“This is the law of the sin offering: In the place where the burnt offering is killed, the sin offering shall be killed before the Lord. It is most holy” {Leviticus 6:25 NASB}.

Christ—the holiness of God—is beautifully prophesied in the Old Testament. Just as the high priest was adorned with the words holiness unto the Lord, Christ was holiness in the deepest and fullest sense of the word. The Old Testament tells the story that Jesus completes in the New Testament. We would not have the New Testament without the Old Testament.

Leviticus chapter four details the requirements for the sin offering. I encourage you to read it; it is too lengthy for this space. Below is a brief summary;

The sacrifice for the sin offering offered at the Tabernacle had to be the first-born male, without spot or blemish. The sacrifice was required to be inspected by the priests to ensure the sacrifice satisfied God’s requirements. In the New Testament, Jesus fulfilled this requirement, as He, upon inspection seven times, was found to be without fault:

1. Pilate: John 19:4; Pilate came out again and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that I find no guilt in Him” {NASB}.


2. Herod: Luke 23: 14-15; “You brought this man to me as one who incites the people to rebellion, and behold, having examined Him before you, I have found no guilt in this man regarding the charges which you make against Him. No, nor has Herod, for he sent Him back to us; and behold, nothing deserving death has been done by Him” {NASB}.


3. The High Priest: John 18 says that after Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas, he could find no fault with Jesus.


4. Caiaphas: Matt. 26:57-75; Could not get the witnesses to agree on any wrongdoing by Jesus.


5. Judas: Matt. 27:4; “I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent blood” {NASB}.


6. The Centurion: Matt. 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!’” {NASB}.


7. The thief on the cross: Luke 23:40-41; “But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong” {NASB}.



Jesus is not only our sin offering, He is also our Passover Lamb. It is no accident that Christ was crucified on Passover. He was not only crucified on the day, but also at the same hour.


“With this many lambs, it was necessary for the Jews to prepare them for sacrifice at nine o’clock in the morning…they then killed them at three o’clock that afternoon so that the Passover could be completed before six o’clock, which would begin a new day.”[1]


As Israel was slaughtering the lambs with knives, spikes were driven into the flesh of our Lord, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy…He was wounded for our transgressions….



“Then at three o’clock as the people were praising God and slaughtering the lambs, Jesus died. Mark was careful to note the time and wrote that it was the ninth hour (three o’clock Jewish time) when Jesus breathed His last breath (see Mark 15:33-37).”[2]


On Passover, the Israelites were to take hyssop and apply the lamb's blood on the doorway's lintel and each side post. Now, as Christ hanged on the cross dead, His blood is applied to humanity, and the destroyer has to passover in the presence of the Blood.


The only way to the Father is to believe that Jesus Christ died and rose from the dead for our sin; to attempt any other passageway is to negate the cross. In the Tabernacle, there was only one door;


Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” {John 14:6 NASB}.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it… And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” {John 1: 1-5, 14 NASB}.

“Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement” {1 John 5:5-8 NASB}.


“And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament. They which are called might receive the promises of eternal inheritance” {Hebrews 9: 15 NASB}.

Dear Jesus, thank you for being the perfect sacrifice for sin. Thank you for loving the world so much that you died to redeem it. Father, I thank You for bringing forth the birth of Your Son. I acknowledge Jesus Christ as my only mediator and propitiation for my sin and give you all the glory, honor, and praise. Jesus, You are our Paschal Lamb. Thank You for Your shed blood that marks us for You and sends the destroyer on his way. In Your precious Name, Amen.




Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

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[1]Booker, Richard, Celebrating Jesus In The Biblical Feasts (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers, Inc., 2009), 42-43.

[2] Ibid.

The Wonder of God's Word: The Prophecies of Christ’s Death

The Bible contains a plethora of prophecies over hundreds of years concerning the Messiah. These prophecies were fulfilled completely in the thirty-year precious life span of  Jesus of Nazareth; many being fulfilled in one day. These prophecies truly accomplish the purpose of the Lord for the earth and mankind. These prophecies carefully pointed to the person, words, and works of Christ.

The following Old Testament prophecies deal with events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus Christ including His betrayal, trial, death and burial. They were uttered by many different prophets over a period of 500 years, yet they were all fulfilled within twenty-four hours on the day that He died for the sins of the world (Bible.org).

Prophecies Relating to Christ’s Crucifixion

SOLD FOR THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER

Prophecy:

And I said to them, “If it is good in your sight, give me my wages; but if not, never mind!” So they weighed out thirty shekels of silver as my wages {Zechariah 11:12}.

Fulfillment:  
Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me to deliver Him up to you?” And they weighed out to him thirty pieces of silver {Matthew 26:14-15}.

 BETRAYED BY A FRIEND

Prophecy: 

For it is not an enemy who reproaches me, Then I could bear it; Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me, Then I could hide myself from him. 13 But it is you, a man my equal, My companion and my familiar friend. 14 We who had sweet fellowship together, Walked in the house of God in the throng {Psalm 55:12-14 See also Psalm 41:9; Zechariah 13:6}.

Fulfillment:  And immediately he went to Jesus and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 50 And Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him {Matthew 26:49-50}.

THE MONEY CAST TO THE POTTER

Prophecy:

Then the LORD said to me, “Throw it to the potter, that magnificent price at which I was valued by them.” So I took the thirty shekels of silver and threw them to the potter in the house of the LORD { Zechariah 11:13}.

Fulfillment: 

And he threw the pieces of silver into the sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself. 6 And the chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the temple treasury, since it is the price of blood.” 7 And they counseled together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers {Matthew 27:5-7}.

THE DISCIPLES FORSOOK HIM

Prophecy: 

“Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, And against the man, My Associate,” Declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered; And I will turn My hand against the little ones” {Zechariah 13:7}.

Fulfillment: 

“But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled {Matthew 26:56; See also Mark 14:27}.

ACCUSED BY FALSE WITNESSES

Prophecy: 

Malicious witnesses rise up; They ask me of things that I do not know {Psalm 35:11}.

Fulfillment: 

Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death; and they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward {Matthew 26:59-60}.

SMITTEN AND SPIT UPON

Prophecy: 

I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting {Isaiah 50:6}.

Fulfillment:

And they spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head {Matthew 27:30}.

DUMB BEFORE HIS ACCUSERS

Prophecy: 

 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth {Isaiah 53:7}.

Fulfillment: 

And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He made no answer. Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so that the governor was quite amazed{Matthew 27:12-14 }.

WOUNDED AND BRUISED

Prophecy: 

But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed {Isaiah 53:5 }.

Fulfillment: 

Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he delivered Him to be crucified. . . . And after weaving a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they kneeled down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” {Matthew 27:26, 29}.

CARRYING THE CROSS

Prophecy: 

My knees are weak from fasting; And my flesh has grown lean, without fatness {Psalm 109:24}.

Fulfillment: 

They took Jesus therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha {John 19:17}. 

And when they led Him away, they laid hold of one Simon of Cyrene, coming in from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus {Luke 23:26}.

HANDS AND FEET PIERCED

Prophecy: 

For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet {Psalm 22:16}.

Fulfillment: 

And when they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left {Luke 23:33}.

CRUCIFIED WITH THIEVES

Prophecy: 

 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors {Isaiah 53:12}.

Fulfillment: 

And they crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left. (And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And He was numbered with transgressors.”) {Mark 15:27-28}

PRAYED FOR HIS PERSECUTORS

Prophecy: 

Isaiah 53:12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors {Isaiah 53:12}.

Fulfillment: 

But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves {Luke 23:34}.

PEOPLE SHOOK THEIR HEADS

Prophecy: 

I also have become a reproach to them; When they see me, they wag their head {Psalm 109:25}.

Fulfillment: 

And those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads {Matthew 27:39}.

PEOPLE RIDICULED HIM

Prophecy: 

 “Commit yourself to the LORD; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him” {Psalm 22:8}

Fulfillment:

 In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him, and saying,  “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we shall believe in Him. “He trusts in God; let Him deliver Him now, if He takes pleasure in Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God’” {Matthew 27:41-43}.

PEOPLE ASTONISHED

Prophecy: 

 I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me {Psalm 22:17}

Fulfillment: 

 And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One” {Luke 23:35}.

GARMENTS PARTED AND LOTS CAST

Prophecy: 

 They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots {Psalm 22:18}.

Fulfillment: 

The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. 24 They said therefore to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; that the Scripture might be fulfilled, “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots” {John 19:23-24}.

BEING FORSAKEN

Prophecy: 

For the choir director; upon Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning {Psalm 22:1}.

Fulfillment: 

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? “that is, “ My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” {Matthew 27:46}.

GALL AND VINEGAR

Prophecy: 

They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink {Psalm 69:21 }.

Fulfillment: 

 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop, and brought it up to His mouth {John 19:28-29}.

COMMITTED HIS SPIRIT TO GOD

Prophecy: 

 Into Thy hand I commit my spirit; Thou hast ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth {Psalm 31:5}.

Fulfillment: 

And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit.” And having said this, He breathed His last {Luke 23:46}.

FRIENDS STOOD AFAR OFF

Prophecy: 

 My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague; And my kinsmen stand afar off {Psalm 38:11}.

Fulfillment: 

And all His acquaintances and the women who accompanied Him from Galilee, were standing at a distance, seeing these things {Luke 23:49}.

BONES NOT BROKEN

Prophecy: 

He keeps all his bones; Not one of them is broken {Psalm 34:20}.

Fulfillment:

But coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs; . . For these things came to pass, that the Scripture might be fulfilled,” Not a bone of Him shall be broken {John 19:33, 36}.

HEART BROKEN

Prophecy: 

 I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me {Psalm 22:14}.

Fulfillment: 

 but one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water {John 19:34}.

HIS SIDE PIERCED

Prophecy: 

 “And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him, like the bitter weeping over a first-born {Zechariah 12:10}.

Fulfillment:
But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. And he who has seen has borne witness, and his witness is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. For these things came to pass, that the Scripture might be fulfilled,” Not a bone of Him shall be broken. “And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced” {John 19:34-37}.

DARKNESS OVER THE LAND

Prophecy: 

 “And it will come about in that day,” declares the Lord GOD, “That I shall make the sun go down at noon And make the earth dark in broad daylight {Amos 8:9}.

Fulfillment: 

 Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour {Matthew 27:45}.

BURIED IN A RICH MAN’S TOMB

Prophecy: 

His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth {Isaiah 53:9}.

Fulfillment: 

And when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given over to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away {Matthew 27:57-60 }.

A Liturgy: Experience Christ ( Stations of the Cross IX, X and XI)

Station #9: Jesus Falls the Third Time.
Jesus falls again…

It is only in our brokenness that we truly realize the only help we have is the Lord.

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber {Psalm 121:1-3 NASB}.

He is our only refuge and strength. Sometimes, our journey in life breaks us; but God is always with us. Even when we cannot trace Him, we can trust Him. 



It is when we are totally broken before Him, when we are ready to surrender all to Him; ready to surrender to His will, His purpose, and His ways, that He can use us. Breaking is not the end; it is the beginning of something new from the Lord.

Station nine observes Jesus’ third fall. He is tired and weary but receives strength from His Father in heaven. He knows the only place to go for help. Jesus draws on the Father, and is able to make it to His feet. It does not matter that His enemies are yelling at Him, spitting on Him, and beating Him. They will not hinder Jesus from completing His purpose; we need to follow Jesus’ example. When your enemies have surrounded you, trying to beat you down, keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. Keep fighting, even when falling down repeatedly; just get up and keep going.

We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body {2 Corinthians 4: 8-10 NASB}.

We must keep going as Jesus did. It is a hard journey at times, but we have the Lord’s example. He drew strength from the Father, and made it possible for us to draw strength from Him.

Station #10: Jesus is Stripped

They part my garments among them, and cast lots for my vesture {Psalms 22:18}.

Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seem woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be; that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did {John 19: 23-24}.

This is yet one more humiliation Christ had to endure. He was stripped of His clothing; hanging naked on the cross. A robe is always worn as the symbol of office or authority, and dignifies a man for the office he holds. Christ held the office of the Creator of the world.

“A further picture of His Eternal Deity, His divine Personage, and his matchless grace is seen in the fact that this robe was woven in one piece—it was seamless. This indeed was skillful work. It was the work of a craftsman. But no loom on earth could ever have produced the wonderful fabric of the Incarnate God…His life was seamless. It had no beginning, it knows no end.”[1]

El Greco 1541-1614

“Many would like to strip Jesus, our Great High Priest, of His Divinity. But they could not and cannot.”[2]

Jesus laid down His life and was humiliated for us. The Jews didn’t take it from Him, the Romans didn’t take it from Him. He laid down His life no one took it from Him…

This same outer clothing He laid down once before this—

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. So He came to Simon Peter. He said to Him, “Lord, do You wash my feet?” Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not realize now, but you will understand hereafter” {John 13:3-7 NASB}.

We need to live in humility as Jesus did, and we as believers need to follow Christ’s example and lay aside those things that hinder us from running the race.

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us {Hebrews 12:1 KJV}.

This process hurts and humbles us before the Lord. The Lord does not do it to embarrass us. He does it to cleanse us and to make us whole, restoring us through the stripping process. Though we seem naked, waiting for us is a beautiful garment—a robe of righteousness.

Remember today that Jesus laid aside His life today to be a servant. He laid aside His life

To reconcile us to the Father. He laid aside His life to be the perfect sacrifice for sin, to make it possible for us to approach God. Can you lay aside your life for Him?


Station # 11: Jesus Is Nailed to the Cross

For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me;
They pierced my hands and my feet {Psalms 22:16 NASB}.

I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn {Zechariah 12:10 NASB}.

And one will say to him, ‘What are these wounds between your arms?’ Then he will say, ‘Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends {Zechariah 13:6 NASB}.

Jesus is nailed to the cross. He is the only sacrifice that we will ever need for our sins. The high priest was required to enter the Holy of Holies every year on the Day of Atonement to present a sacrifice for the people of Israel. Not only is Jesus the final Passover Lamb, He is now our High Priest forever. He went to the Father and sprinkled His blood on the Mercy Seat in heaven before God, removing forever the veil of separation between God and man. How fitting that we remember Jesus, our Passover Lamb, that He was nailed to the cross for our exodus from the power of sin on this day.

It is powerful to me that this year, Purim and Easter coincide in the same week. Though the feast of Esther is not a biblical feast, it meant life and death for the Jews. Yet another hell-sent puppet attempted to wipe out the Jews from the face of the Earth. If Haman had succeeded in annihilating the Jews, the Messiah could not put on the robe of human skin and grace this lost world.

That day, as Christ hung on the cross, people throughout Jerusalem were preparing for the Passover, unaware of the events surrounding the crucifixion:

Up until the instant of its occurring, what a busy three hours had passed on Golgotha! The Crucified Himself was busy, if we may use the word. What interest He showed in what was taking place about Him! He was audibly interceding for His crucifiers, listening to the cry for mercy of the dying thief, and answering him in that sublime assurance of salvation; recognizing the presence of His mother and the beloved disciple and executing His last will and testament concerning her and him. The soldiers were busy watching and mocking Him, dividing His garments among them and casting lots for the seamless coat. The chief priests were busy criticizing Pilate’s inscription on the cross and venting their indignation. The scoffers were busy—priests, rulers, and the multitude passing by, wagging their heads, railing and reviling. All the currents of iniquity surged on unchecked around the cross. —William Nicholson The Six Miracles of Calvary

Following the noise and business is three hours of complete and utter darkness. Bone chilling darkness, as Nicholson says, a miracle, a visible suspension of nature. At noon, after three hours of hanging on the cross—all light was absent…

It will come about in that day, declares the Lord GOD, That I will make the sun go down at noon and make the earth dark in broad daylight {Amos 8:9 NASB}.

What a cruel darkness that must have been for Jesus, yet He endured it to overcome it. The darkness of sin will never hang over you or I because of His precious blood.

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it {John 1:5 NASB}.

Darkness knows no power over you, Jesus overcame the darkness….

[1] C.W. Slemming, These are the Garments, (Ft. Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1974), 44-45.
[2] Ibid.