Jesus’ suffering on THAT DAY for you. DAY 37 2x2

Every Good Friday, there are church services all over the world. On that day, the church I serve has a 7:30 pm service and I also preach at an Indian Christian organization that meets from 12 noon to 3 pm. During the latter service, seven different pastors preach 7 sermons on the Jesus’ seven last words.  Many immigrant churches and some American churches do the same.

Why those three hours - from noon to 3? In Luke 23:44-46, Jesus is on the cross from the sixth hour until his death at the ninth hour.  The Jewish Day, Yom (as in Yom Kippur), begins at sunset (around 6 pm our time) followed by the sunrise (around 6 am our time). That is why in Genesis 1 it is described, “there was evening and there was morning, the first day (Yom)”(Genesis 1:3-5). Some say Yom is a representation of life itself. You and I begin our lives in darkness, in the womb, and then we come out into the light and live our lives and then we and go into darkness, i.e. death, before going to the True Light (Revelation 22:5).  

The Jewish daytime hours begin at dawn (6 am) and end at sundown (6 pm). According to Luke, Jesus is on the cross from the sixth hour (noon time) until his death at the ninth hour (3 pm). Churches use the three-hour window based on the hours of darkness (Luke 23:44). The problem with that is many people think that Jesus suffered on the cross for only three hours. A reading of the Gospel of Mark clears this – Jesus was crucified (Mark 15:25) at the third hour (9 am). So the truth is Jesus suffered 6 hours on the cross. And don’t forget his punishment and suffering that began earlier that night.  

Also, when Mel Gibson’s movie “ The passion of Christ” was released, people have informed me that they truly understood Jesus’ suffering. Their thinking/observation is based on the 45 minutes or so suffering shown in the movie. But the truth is Jesus suffered for hours since it is estimated Jesus was arrested between midnight and 1 pm.

Why am I writing all of this? We can estimate the number of hours that Jesus suffered, but you and I can only fathom(that too not fully) His suffering in the hands of human beings – the beating, the slapping, the whipping, the spitting – that’s all we can visualize. And then there is the crucifixion- under the Romans crucifixion is often a long, horrible, drawn-out process. All of this we can only picture and somewhat comprehend. In addition, there is another aspect of Jesus’ suffering, in my opinion, that you and I can never truly comprehend or understand. Why do I make this statement? You and I, as human beings, can only understand Jesus’ suffering in the hands of humans. What about the suffering in the hands of God? I believe you and I cannot understand Isaiah 53:4-6, i.e. what truly happened on the cross.

 Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, even if you and I were to read Isaiah 53:4-6 a dozen times, we can never understand Jesus “smitten by God”, “crushed for our iniquities”,  “upon him was the chastisement”, or ‘our iniquity laid on Jesus”. Nevertheless, let us be glad and be thankful that Jesus took on our punishment.  

Dear God, while my finite mind cannot grasp what Jesus went through for me, I am grateful for everything that He did for me. Help me to better understand and appreciate in your mercy and grace. Amen.