Now Jesus was going up to
Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, “We are going
up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests
and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him
over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day
he will be raised to life!” Matthew 20:17-19
How would you feel if you knew you would be punished for
something you didn’t do? Now add to that
public ridicule and a severe beating.
Then to top it all off you would be nailed to a cross and left to die. I
wouldn’t want that and neither would you.
Jesus willingly went through all that pain for you and I. Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion depicts this horrific event in Christ’s life very
accurately. It’s difficult to watch
without a supply of tissues by your side.
The Romans were masters of torture. They knew how to prolong the suffering and
just how to nail someone to a cross so they would experience as much pain as
possible. A popular notion is that
Christ carried the entire cross up the Via Dolorosa (way of sorrows) to
Golgotha’s hill. This is not true. He carried the crossbar or patibulum
only. The post was already in the
ground. The spikes were heavy, probably
square and made of iron material. They
were not placed in the palms of His hands for the weight of His body would have
caused them to rip through His hand between the fingers. No, the spikes were strategically placed
where the forearm bones meet the wrist, just below the hand. The remaining spike was hammered through both
feet just inside the Achilles tendon.
That was how a Roman crucifixion was done. No one lasted very long when crucified. It was a cruel, painful death and in Christ’s
case was undeserved. He took all that
pain and agony to pay for your sins and mine.
It must be understood that Christ had to take on this torturous death to free mankind of their
sin. A price had to be paid by
someone. The only One capable of such a
feat was God Himself, in the form of His own creation. The glorious ending to the story is found in
Christ’s resurrection or raising to new life.
It is symbolic of the new life we find in Christ when we relinquish control
of our will and submit to the will of God.
Our debt has been paid in full, never to be held against us ever
again. With such a wonderful sacrifice
made for you, the least you can do is live for Him. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
Reference used: http://www.allaboutjesuschrist.org
