REMEMBERING THE CROSS

John 12:32: “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”

Jesus died by crucifixion and crucifixion was designed to be the most humiliating and degrading of all deaths. The Cross was reserved for slaves, foreign criminals, and political enemies. It (The Cross) was for those considered to be the lowest of the low and the worse of the worst. In an attempt to save Him from being crucified, Pontius Pilate ordered that Jesus be scourged or flogged by the Roman soldiers. He was stripped of all His Clothing and tied to a post by His Wrists with His Hands high enough over His Head to virtually lift him off the ground. His Feet dangled, and The Skin on His Back and Buttocks was completely taut and exposed. One or two lectors or scourge-bearers then began to deliver blows to Jesus with a flagrum or a whip with long, leather tails. His whip probably had metal weights or even bits of sheep bones braided into the straps. The iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones literally cut into the innermost layer of His Skin. Each time Jesus was struck, His Skin would literally be torn away, and His Muscles were probably deeply lacerated. Physicians say that His liver and kidneys may have been bruised, His Ribs were cracked and they may have punctured His Lung and given Him what was called a pneumothorax in the process. A crown of thorns that were 2-3 inches long was then pressed into His Skull, baptizing His Face with blood. A purple robe was thrown across His Shoulders and Back, and the soldiers mocked Him by spitting on Him and beating Him with reeds as they said, “Hail, King of the Jews.” They paraded Him around the fortress courtyard and threw objects at Him from the gallery. He was then stuck across His Head with a measuring rod as He was scourged even further. Finally, they beat Him with their fists and shamelessly spewed more of their phlegm in His Face before sending Him back to Pilate.

After being sentenced to die by crucifixion, Jesus began His Ascent up the Vio Dolorosa or “The Road of Sorrows” to die on Calvary’s Cross. All the while Jesus was stumbling up Calvary, He was being beaten and taunted by the Roman soldiers. When they got to the top of the hill, the crossbeam was taken off their necks and laid on top of the other piece of wood that formed The Cross. The team of four soldiers assigned to Jesus stripped and then pushed Him down on The Cross. He was held down by one soldier laying across His Chest, another cross His Legs, while two others stretched out His Arms and drove five-inch long, three-eights-inch square nails through the inside part of Both His Wrists. They bent His knees, placed His Feet flat against the wood, and drove a nail through each Foot. The biggest mistake they made was to elevate or to lift up the Cross. They should have let Jesus die on the ground because He said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” (John 12:32) Because of the Cross and Jesus’ Victory over death, hell, and the grave, people from all races, cultures, and nationalities can now come to Jesus.

The exhortation today is to remember The Cross and to appreciate how Jesus suffered to redeem us back to God.

Let’s Pray: Father, thank You for the Cross of Christ and Your Victory over death, hell, and the grave, in Jesus’ Name, amen.”

Daily Prayer: “Oh, that You would bless me indeed,

and enlarge my territory,

that Your hand would be with me,

and that You would keep me from evil,

that I may not cause pain!”

The Prayer of Jabez, I Chronicles 4:10

Questions to Ponder:

Who helped Jesus carry His Cross up to Calvary?
How long did Jesus hang on The Cross?
What Words does the Bible record Jesus saying when He felt as if God The Father had forsaken Him?