Right about now, 3 PM, some 2,000 years ago, Jesus cried out one last time, dying by crucifixion after being nailed to the Cross. Have you ever been by someone’s side when they died? Picture yourself on that hillside. What is running though your mind as you watch Jesus struggle and then breathe His last breath? To read the gospel accounts of Jesus’s death – Matthew 27:45-56, Mark 15:33-41, Luke 23:44-49, John 19:28-37.

One passage in the death of Jesus narrative often gets overlooked, and this passage really does change everything. Let’s look at it.

Here is the context- we read in Exodus chapters 26 and 27 that in the Tabernacle the Most Holy Place (sometimes called the Holy of Holies), the innermost chamber of the temple, was separated from the Holy Place by a curtain (veil). God resided in the Most Holy Place. Any Israelite could come to the temple to pray or to bring an offering, but only priests could sacrifice the animals or burn incense in the Holy Place. And only the high priest could enter The Holy Place one day a year to offer blood for his sins and the sins of the world.

The meaning of all this is that in Old Testament days the people did not have personal access to God. We see this is Hebrews 9:7, “But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.” (I encourage you to read this in context in Hebrews 9.)

Having said all of that is to say this – When Christ died on the Cross we read these words in Matthew 27:50-51, “And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split”

The curtain (veil) referred to in that passage is the curtain that separated the people from the presence of God. What does that mean for us here and now? Because of Christ’s death on the Cross, through His blood, we now have personal access to God. Jesus is now our High Priest and through Him we can come into God’s presence.

So, take some time right now to reflect upon what it means for you to be able to come into the presence of God.

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.

We sometimes say, figuratively, “I feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders.” About this time of day, some 2,000 years ago, Jesus literally carried the weight of the world, the sins of the world, the brokenness of the world, on His shoulders!

John 19:17 tells us that Jesus carried His own cross. The Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, Luke) don’t use that language. They imply it and tell us that Simon of Cyrene helps because Jesus was too weak from the brutal beating that He had just endured.

Today, as back then, Jesus lovingly desires to lessen your load. His back is stronger than yours. What can you “unload” right now?

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.

We have been “participating in” all that Jesus did this week. Today we continue on that journey; a painful journey that takes us from a garden to a hillside.

Have you ever had your day start off badly? If you remember from yesterday, we left off with Jesus being betrayed by one of His (formerly) closest allies, leading to Him to be arrested on the trumped up, and made up, charges (John 18:12). Have you ever been falsely accused of something you did not do or say? How did that make you feel? Angry? Betrayed? Lonely? We are sure that is how Jesus also felt at this moment.

As badly as Maundy Thursday ended for Jesus, today, Good Friday didn’t start off any better. After being falsely arrested, Jesus’s disciples, who had been with Him in the garden, did not try and stop the injustice. Instead, the scriptures tell us that they fled for their lives (Matthew 26:56, Mark 14:50). Have you ever deserted a friend in their time of great need because you were more concerned about your own well-being than the well-being of your friend?

Jesus is arrested, bound, and taken to the home of the high priest. Once there, things continue to get worse. Jesus is put through six trials; three religious trials by the Jewish leaders and three civil trials by the Romans. There was no such thing as the double jeopardy clause (fifth amendment of our US Constitution) in those days. First Jesus is questioned Annas before being sent to Caiaphas, who finds Jesus guilty of blasphemy (by proclaiming Himself to be the Son of God); this charge carries a death sentence. If that isn’t enough, Jesus then faced the Sanhedrin (the Jewish ruling authorities), who declared Him guilty of blasphemy. Jesus is then sent to the Roman Governor of Judaea, Pilate, for legal sentencing of death.

Rome isn’t buying the blasphemy charge, so Jesus is charged with treason, punishable by death under Roman law, but Pilate said, “I find no guilt in this man (Luke 23:4).” Jesus is sent to Herod Antipas, who questioned Jesus but also found no guilt (Luke 23:9). Jesus then faced Pilate for a second time, again charged with treason, but once again Pilate finds Jesus not guilty of all charges (Luke 23:14). It is here that Pilate caves into pressure from the Jewish leaders and the crowd, offering to release either Jesus or Barabbas (Matthew 27:16 calls him a “notorious prisoner”).

You know how the story goes: Jesus loses the vote and is condemned to die by crucifixion, but not before He is flogged and beaten horrifically. Nails were then pounded in Jesus’s hands and feet and He died a long and painful death, giving up His spirit around 3 PM. Jesus endured all this for you, never once trying to argue His way out of the charges.

(The trials and crucifixion narratives can be found in Matthew 26:57-27:44, Mark 14:53-15:32, Luke 22:66-23:43, John 18:12-19:27.)

Have you ever wondered what God the Father was thinking as He watched His Son being so unfairly, and inhumanly, treated? Will you tell God and Jesus thank you right now; thank you for their extraordinary display of love for you? Not just in words, but also by the way you conduct your life!

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.

I strongly encourage you carve out 30 minutes sometime today to do this exercise. This time should be when you don’t have to quickly rush off to the next activity. And if today is not suitable for an extended quiet time, I ask you to carve out some time this weekend.

When you are ready, find a comfortable space where you can be uninterrupted. Leave your phone and all other devices and distractions in another room. Ask God to help you enter into His presence. Quiet your soul. Put aside the many thoughts running through your head. Allow your mind to slow down. Take a few deep breaths. Take a few more deep breaths. Slow your breathing. Feel the tightness of your muscles begin to relax. Now close your eyes and just sit quietly. Sit for as long as it takes for you to feel a sense of calmness. If you are still having a hard time settling down, ask the Holy Spirit to calm your soul. Once you feel a sense of calm and quietness, watch this eight minute video. I think you will be profoundly impacted.

Click the link to watch the video – WATCH THE LAMB- RAY BOLTZ-OFFICIAL VIDEO – YouTube

After watching the video, talk to God, talk to Jesus. Just have a conversation. Whatever comes to mind, just tell them. Allow this moment to draw you into the presence of the One who loves you more than you can even begin to imagine. Don’t rush away, whatever it is you have to do next, it can wait. Just sit and soak in the presence of God.

You are in a room with good twelve friends. A wallet filled with money is missing. Someone in the room is the thief. How do you feel at that moment, wondering which person you can no longer trust? Are others in the room looking at you?

Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” depicts just that; consternation among the twelve disciples when Jesus announces that one of them would betray Him. Due to the medium the mural was painted on, environmental factors and intentional damage, the original painting is quite worn. But just envision yourself in that room, about now, early evening, two thousand years ago.

The meal would not have been at a banquet table; rather, sitting on the floor or on cushions. But da Vinci gets his point across, everyone is saying “Hmm, who is it? It’s not me!” When in fact, we all betray Jesus at times.

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.

In this morning’s post I made reference to the Greek word “kataluma,” which is only found two places in the New Testament.

Kataluma is the Greek word for guest house or lodging place. It is only used in Luke’s version of the birth of Jesus (2:7) – “and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn (kataluma).” – and also in Luke’s version of the Passover meal where Jesus instructs Peter and John as to where this meal will occur (22:11, and its parallel passage, Mark 14:14) – “and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room (kataluma), where I can eat the Passover with my disciples? And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.’”

A few days before Easter why do I give you this information about the birth of Jesus? In the birth narrative, I believe it is probable that Joseph and Mary arrived in Bethlehem only to find Joseph’s ancestral home full of people, thus they ended up in the lower level of the house and laid baby Jesus in the feeding trough (animals were kept in the house, usually in a lower room from the main floor) because there was no vacancy upstairs in the rooms reserved for guests. I actually wrote about that during Advent. Click here if you are interested in what I wrote.

So, is it a coincidence that Jesus began his life in a “lower room” of a kataluma and ended his earthly ministry in the “upper room” of a kataluma? (Matthew’s gospel only references “house” and John has no mention of the location of the Last Supper.)

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.