Friday April 6, 2012

Read Mark 15:16-39

 

I don’t know that we can really imagine what happened to Jesus on that first Good Friday. We have sanitised the Jesus of history and we have been barraged with images of glowing, perfect-haired, smiling Jesus that radiates in every situation. Such was not the case on that first Good Friday.

 

Jesus was flogged. Flogging was done with a many corded whip that had lead balls or jagged bone on the tips. These would either pound the flesh or rip it to shreds. There are historical accounts of people dying at this pre-execution flogging because their entrails simply dropped out.

 

Jesus was beaten and mocked and ridiculed by the Roman soldiers. To them, this was simply another criminal they had to dispose of. They made fun of Him. They spat on Him. They bashed Him with the staff they had mocked Him with. They pounded His head where the crown of thorns sat. His skull would surely have been pierced, if not broken.

 

They led Jesus out to be crucified. He was so bloodied and so weak that He could not carry the cross beam. Simon of Cyrene was ordered to carry the cross for Jesus.

 

They nailed Jesus to the cross and left Him to die. But as He died many strange things happened.  As this “man” died darkness was upon the land, the rocks split open and the ground shook violently. Angels appeared. The curtain in the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom. Jewish lore has it that it would take two teams of oxen pulling at either ends of the curtain to tear it, it was that thick. Yet now as this “man” died, the curtain tore in two from top to bottom.

 

The Roman soldier who saw all this bowed the knee and confessed that, ‘Surely this man was the Son of God!’ An eyewitness who was used to seeing people die, even on the cross confessed that Jesus was the Son of God. An eyewitness who was as tough as nails fell on bended knee and made the good confession.

 

On the very first Good Friday the Son of God died among such wondrous signs

that even a Roman Centurion was compelled to bow down and confess Him the Son of God. Have you made that good confession? Have you bowed the knee and humbly confessed that Jesus is the Son of God? This is exactly what God desires for each of us - to see and accept His Son Jesus in our lives.

 

Prayer:

¥ Ask God to use His Word to continue to bring conviction upon all who were at church today. Pray for believers and non believers alike. Pray for Christ’s name to be glorified.

¥ Pray that those who preach on Sonday would be filled with God’s Spirit and able to clearly and powerfully proclaim the resurrection.