It is still Thursday night, Jesus’s final night on Earth. Judas and the crowd have arrived at the garden gate and arrested Jesus. The disciples have scattered, and Jesus is alone. To read about the supper and Jesus praying in the garden, go here. Jesus anticipated supper and became emotional in the garden.
Now, there is one disciple who kind of stays with Jesus. Peter follows the crowd as they take Jesus to the high priest’s house for the illegal trial.
Peter stays in the courtyard and sits by the fire, warming himself. I have often wondered what thoughts were going through his mind during this scene. While he sits there, a servant girl looks at him and says, ” This man was with Him, too.”
Peter denies it, saying he doesn’t know the man. After some time, another one says, “You are one of them too.” Peter then replies, “I am not!” Then another hour goes by, and another insists, looking at Peter, ” This man was certainly with him because he is a Galilean.”
Now, Peter is angry, begins cursing, and replies, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about; I do not know the man.” As soon as he said this, a rooster crowed, and Peter looked up and saw Jesus looking at him and remembered what He said to him just a few hours ago,” Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” Then Peter runs out of the courtyard and cries bitterly.
While Peter is in the courtyard, Jesus is inside, being questioned by the chief priests, scribes, and elders. Now, this trial was illegal for a few reasons,
The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false testimonies to put on Jesus so they could put Him to death, but none were found. Finally, Caiaphas, the high priest, began to question Jesus. ” Don’t you have an answer for these men who are testifying against you?”
Jesus just kept silent.
Then he asked Jesus, ” Are you the Messiah, the Son of God?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
The high priest was so upset that he tore his robes and yelled,” Why do we need any more testimony? You have heard His blasphemy. What is your desire?” And they all agree and condemn Jesus to death.
It was Jewish custom that anyone who was tried and condemned to death as a blasphemer would be stoned. But because of the false testimony against Jesus, they needed more, so they tied Him up and took Him to Pilate.
Morning has now come, and the leaders have taken Jesus to Pilate. Pilate asks Jesus if He is the King of the Jews, and this time, Jesus answers, ” You say so.” Before, with the Jewish leaders, He didn’t answer; now, before Pilate, He does, because refusing to answer would be an admission of guilt.
Pilate then asks Jesus if he hears the testimonies against Him. Still, Jesus stays silent, and Pilate is amazed. If Jesus’s answers are satisfactory, then Pilate can release Him. Pilate found no wrongdoing in Jesus and wanted to release Him.
A custom during the Passover Festival was that the governor, Pilate, could release a prisoner they requested. Pilate knew it was envy that caused the religious leaders to hand Jesus over to him, so he asked the crowd if they wanted Jesus to be released.
Because the chief priest and scribes were in the crowd, they began to stir them up and shouted for Barabbas. Now, Barabbas was in prison with others who had been in the rebellion and had committed murder.
Pilate still wants to release Jesus and asks the crowds again, and they shout louder, “Release Barabbas! Crucify Jesus.” Then, a third time, Pilate said again, ” What do you want me to do with Jesus? What has this man done?” and the crowd shouts, “Crucify Him, crucify.”
So, Pilate dips his hands in a bowl of water and tells the crowd that he washed his hands of this man’s blood and then releases Jesus to be flogged and crucified.
They take Jesus away, and the soldiers beat Him with whips that have pieces of bone that, when they hit flesh, rip it open. Then, pull on His beard and rip it out by the handfuls. They make a crown out of thorns and place it on His head. A purple robe is draped around Him, and the soldiers begin spitting on Him, hurling insults, and calling Him names.
Once the soldiers are finished beating him, they lead Jesus out. Because Jesus is so badly beaten and weak that He could not carry His own cross, they forced a Cyrenian man named Simon who was walking by to carry it for Jesus.
They arrive at the place called Golgotha, or The Skull, and crucify Jesus. Two criminals are crucified, one on the right and one on the left. Some believe that these two were in prison with Barabbas.
The centurion and the other soldiers who crucified Jesus were casting lots to see who would get His clothing. They also made a sign that said in every language the charge by which Jesus was crucified; it said, “KING OF THE JEWS.”
The crowds gather and continue shouting, mocking Jesus. “If He saved others, why doesn’t He save Himself, if this is the Messiah, the Chosen One?” Others said, “Ha! The one who would destroy and rebuild the temple in three days, save yourself and come down from the cross!” Even the criminals mocked Him.
God’s timing for everything is always amazing! When they crucified Jesus, it was 9:00 a.m., and then at noon, darkness came over the whole Earth. This darkness was God’s divine judgment against sin and the sinners who unjustly executed the Son of God.
This darkness lasted until 3:00 p.m., when Jesus cried out loud, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” Even when Jesus felt most abandoned by God, He affirmed His relationship with His Father and endured God’s wrath as the sin-bearer.
If you remember, the Passover lamb had to be killed at a particular time. When Jesus cries out, “It is finished,” it is 3:00 p.m., and the priests are in the temple preparing for the lamb sacrifice. When Jesus dies, the veil in the temple rips from top to bottom!
It is believed that this curtain was 60 feet long and 30 feet wide, and was the width of a man’s hand. Because it was so heavy when wet, it took 300 men to carry it. Only the power of God could rip the curtain!
Jesus, the Passover Lamb, has just torn the final barrier between God and us, giving those who believe in Him complete access!
As it was almost the time of preparation, the day before the Sabbath. A wealthy man named Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Sanhedrin who did not agree with them, went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’s body to bury him. Usually, the Romans left the bodies to rot on the cross, but Pilate respected the Jewish scruples and allowed Joseph to take the body.
There was a garden near the crucifixion site where the tomb was located. This tomb belonged to Joseph and had never been used. So, Joseph and Nicodemus (whom Jesus had spoken to before) wrapped the body in linen cloths with fragrant spices of myrrh and aloe.
After preparing the body, they took Jesus and laid Him inside, then rolled a large stone over the entrance and went home and rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.
“Now the Earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:2
Satan thinks he has finally won. Darkness is again covering the Earth because Jesus is dead. But Jesus said, “I will rise on the third day.”
Friend, it’s Friday, and all hope seems lost, but start counting the days!!
