This Easter is standing out to me in a unique way. It`s the first Easter since my trip to Israel with 33 LIFE listeners in November, and I'm finding that I'm thinking about it a lot differently than I ever have before.
It`s different reflecting on Easter when you've actually been to the places you're reading about. They take on new meaning and significance. Journey with me for a second, you may see things in a new light.
This is the Garden of Gethsemene, where Jesus spent His last night before He was crucified, praying to His Father and calling for His will, despite the pain that Jesus would suffer. I pictured Jesus walking among the trees the same way that I did, but remembering how He created each tree in love, and looking at the temple a few hundred feet away...and crying that the people (that He loved so much more than the trees) did not understand His love and what He was trying to do.
I remember picturing Jesus being led from the garden and up these steps after he was arrested, escorted by an angry mob.
Those steps are right beside the house of Caiaphas, where Jesus spent his last night before He was crucified. Never once have I thought about what Jesus last night must have been like...until I visited the house of Caiaphas. He spent it in a damp, dark, disgusting, 20 foot deep pit, where the only way in or out was by being lowered through a hole in the ceiling. What a long night that must have been. I bet He didn't sleep a wink. He must have spent the whole night in prayer, praying for the souls of those about to crucify Him, and for the strength to go through with the pain and suffering He was about to endure.
In Nazareth we saw a replication of a cross from Jesus' day. The crosses we have today in our churches and homes and around our necks are perfectly carved, ornate, and beautiful. The cross we saw was a log for the crossbeam, mounted on another log, both jagged, both rough. It also had a seat on it, which I never knew. I knew that those being crucified would suffocate, then push up to get air, then go rest a bit, then push again, etc...horrible torture. The seat prolonged that torture so that the person could sit for a few seconds, and then push up...awful.
It's believed Jesus was crucified here (can you see the skull in the mountain? There's actually 2-3 of them)...
...and laid here (far left)...
...and the stone was rolled over the entrance...
As you reflect on Easter, remember the suffering Jesus went through. The (perhaps) bittersweet feeling of walking through the Garden of Gethsemane, the long night in a dungeon, the beatings before the cross and the pain of the cross itself... And it was GOD that went through that for US. Doesn't make sense, should be the other way around. Talk about leading by example - that's complete sacrifice..
It`s different reflecting on Easter when you've actually been to the places you're reading about. They take on new meaning and significance. Journey with me for a second, you may see things in a new light.
This is the Garden of Gethsemene, where Jesus spent His last night before He was crucified, praying to His Father and calling for His will, despite the pain that Jesus would suffer. I pictured Jesus walking among the trees the same way that I did, but remembering how He created each tree in love, and looking at the temple a few hundred feet away...and crying that the people (that He loved so much more than the trees) did not understand His love and what He was trying to do.
I remember picturing Jesus being led from the garden and up these steps after he was arrested, escorted by an angry mob.
Those steps are right beside the house of Caiaphas, where Jesus spent his last night before He was crucified. Never once have I thought about what Jesus last night must have been like...until I visited the house of Caiaphas. He spent it in a damp, dark, disgusting, 20 foot deep pit, where the only way in or out was by being lowered through a hole in the ceiling. What a long night that must have been. I bet He didn't sleep a wink. He must have spent the whole night in prayer, praying for the souls of those about to crucify Him, and for the strength to go through with the pain and suffering He was about to endure.
In Nazareth we saw a replication of a cross from Jesus' day. The crosses we have today in our churches and homes and around our necks are perfectly carved, ornate, and beautiful. The cross we saw was a log for the crossbeam, mounted on another log, both jagged, both rough. It also had a seat on it, which I never knew. I knew that those being crucified would suffocate, then push up to get air, then go rest a bit, then push again, etc...horrible torture. The seat prolonged that torture so that the person could sit for a few seconds, and then push up...awful.
It's believed Jesus was crucified here (can you see the skull in the mountain? There's actually 2-3 of them)...
...and laid here (far left)...
...and the stone was rolled over the entrance...
As you reflect on Easter, remember the suffering Jesus went through. The (perhaps) bittersweet feeling of walking through the Garden of Gethsemane, the long night in a dungeon, the beatings before the cross and the pain of the cross itself... And it was GOD that went through that for US. Doesn't make sense, should be the other way around. Talk about leading by example - that's complete sacrifice..
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