Click here to access Matthew 27
Jesus goes before Pilate who doesn't want to crucify Jesus, he see the religious leaders for who they are. However, Pilate preferred to please the people than to do what was right. What followed is a violent beating and what had to be an incredibly painful death. And why did He do this? For us. Something that is still difficult to comprehend, yet there it is. My favorite part of this passage is when Matthew tells of how the curtain in the temple was torn from the top to the bottom. Allowing access to the Holy place of God! I've heard it said that the flip side to it is God's Spirit no longer lived in one place but it was now out. I'm not sure how I feel about that, I think God always available to His people.
The curtain splitting is one of my favorite images too. The other from this chapter is when the people cry out "Let His blood be on us and our children!" In a way, that's horrifying--that they're saying calling for the blood of an innocent man to be their heads, on their CHILDREN'S heads. Essentially, they're asking to be cursed. But because it was Jesus, because His blood is cleansing, it's instead their salvation. Love that.
ReplyDeleteYou might be interested in this: http://www.bible-time-line.com/echarts/Rose_Bible_e-Charts_EasterStory.pdf
ReplyDeleteIt talks about what Jesus went through and the medical effects to him through the beating he took.
There are just so many people in this chapter experiencing so many different things. I like this verse:
ReplyDelete19 Just then, as Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Leave that innocent man alone. I suffered through a terrible nightmare about him last night.”
Pilate's wife knows that justice is not being served and that an innocent man is being accused. And, Pilate knows, too. We often think of Pilate as the culprit, but he gives the people a choice. And they choose to crucify Jesus. We are often given a choice to go along with the mob mentality or speak up for injustice. How often we are quick to go along with the crowd.
Matthew 28
ReplyDelete20 “But the chief priests and leaders persuaded the crowd to ask for the release of Barabbas and the execution of Jesus.”
Are we fully-persuaded, or can we be persuaded because we haven't sought God's Word for ourselves?
44 “Even the criminals crucified with him were insulting him the same way.”
Luke 23:40-43 Glad one then saw Him for Who He Is!
52,53 “The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. They came out of the tombs after he had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.”
Life-changing for everyone!
56b “...and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.” ~*~ James and John
so glad she continued to stay close