Willingly, Jesus endured the cross for us!
“So Pilate then took Jesus and had Him flogged.
(John 19: 1-3 NASB)
And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and placed it on His head, and put a purple cloak on Him;
and they repeatedly came up to Him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
and slapped Him in the face again and again.”
During a visit to a castle that dated to the 5th Century, we wound our way through the gardens, hallways, churches, and terraces. This particular castle was unlike any I had ever visited due to the fact that the stroll through the “outside” area consumed more of our time than the stroll through the “inside” area of the castle. Even one of the many churches within the castle wall sat roofless due to a bombing of the castle by the English in 1909 before the Great War.
Like most holy areas, whenever we stepped into the church, we were met by a cross hanging upon the wall. The sign at the entry way did not necessarily need to proclaim that we entered a holy place because the cross inside told the story we needed to hear.
Maybe that’s why it seems so right that the cemetery where the nuns were placed was one of many crosses. In this particular cemetery, one that was not located outside on the castle grounds or even in the interior of the floors (as one sees in many cathedrals), this cemetery was actually one that had the appearance of a multi-stool restroom. Odd—I know because I thought so too.
We bent down our heads & stepped through the doorway to enter two separate rooms that contained numerous “toilet-like” structures. Above each one (the “toilet-like” seat), a cross was carved into the wall. In reading the castle brochure, we learned that this was the location where the bodies of the deceased nuns were placed to decompose.
Truly, the stench of this area of the castle must have been horrendous!!!
Since that discovery earlier this week, I have contemplated the stench of death upon the cross, the one that was necessary for Jesus to endure for our sins. This cross was carried outside the city gates of Jerusalem by Jesus Himself, was hewed from a tree, and was the instrument that freed every believer from his penalty of sin.
Truly, the stench of the area of Golgotha must have been horrendous!!!
And yet, at this site was the cross Jesus endured so all could come to know the LORD!
Thank You, Jesus!
Because of what You have done, the cross of Calvary has now become a wonderful sweet-smelling aroma & a place of redemption—because of the sacrifice of Jesus upon Calvary’s cross.
Thousands of years removed of Jesus’ crucifixion, the cross of Calvary still remains the only way to God’s eternal salvation!
Truly, the sweet smell of God’s love (for you and for me) is found at the cross of Jesus!
“And then Pilate came out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing Him out to you so that you will know that I find no grounds at all for charges in His case.”
(John 19: 4-7 NASB)
Jesus then came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold, the Man!”
So when the chief priests and the officers saw Him, they shouted, saying, “Crucify, crucify!”
Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him;
for I find no grounds for charges in His case!”
The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die, because He made Himself out to be the Son of God!”
- Willingly, Jesus went to the cross so that each of us could be reconciled to God!
- Willingly, Jesus endured the cross of Calvary so that each of us could come to know God!
- Willingly, Jesus suffered the humiliation and turmoil of the cross so that we could be saved!
Willingly, Jesus did this for each one of us!
“Now it was the day of preparation for the Passover; it was about the sixth hour.
(John 19: 14-19 NASB)
And he said to the Jews [Pilate said], “Look, your King!”
So they shouted, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!”
Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?”
The chief priests answered, “We have no king except Caesar.
So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified.
They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out carrying His own cross,
to the place called the Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called, Golgotha.
There they crucified Him,
and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between.
Now Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It is written:
JESUS THE NAZARENE,
THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
The cross!
- An instrument placed over the areas where bodies of godly nuns decomposed.
- A household decoration that may adorn one’s home.
- A decorative piece of jewelry often worn around one’s neck.
- An instrument of torture, one of shame, humiliation, and death.
THROUGH JESUS—THE CROSS IS—
- Now a place of reconciliation!
- Now a place of redemption!
- Now a place of salvation!
- Now a place most-glorious!
Praise God, I am so thankful for Calvary’s Cross because that’s where I met Almighty God!
Praise God, I am so thankful Jesus willingly endured the cross!
JESUS ENDURED THE CROSS
- FOR EVERY MAN, WOMAN, BOY, & GIRL!
- SO THAT WE MIGHT COME TO KNOW GOD!
“For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.”
(John 5: 18 NASB)