The instructions were given, we heard the specifics for the coming events, and everyone seemed ready to move out with new enlightenment.   Or so we thought.   Somehow, we missed a little information. Jesus was busy teaching the crowds, sharing the exciting news of the coming Kingdom of God.  While teaching, He healed anyone who was hurting and in need.  His life was totally given over to meeting needs, whether spoken or physical healing.  However, Jesus took time with us, the disciples, in teaching, filling in additional information from previous teaching, and sometimes just sharing His life and thoughts with us. On one memorable afternoon, Jesus took us aside and began to share information about His coming death.  We were shocked and I must say, we understood nothing that Jesus was saying.  We assumed that He would be with us forever…or least for a long, long time.  Afterall, He was Jesus!  Why would He leave us? Here is the gist of wh...

Early on Sunday morning, even before the sun had fully risen, the women made their way back to the tomb with the spices and ointments they had prepared. When they arrived, they found the stone was rolled away from the tomb entrance, and when they looked inside, the body of the Lord Jesus was nowhere to be seen. They didn’t know what to think. As they stood there in confusion, two men suddenly appeared standing beside them. These men seemed to glow with light. The women were so terrified that they fell to the ground facedown. Why are you seeking the living One in the place of the dead? He is not here. He has risen from the dead. Luke 24:1-6 (The Voice) The dark penetrated their very souls. Their hearts were broken, yet these faithful women had one final duty to perform. The body of Jesus still required a task that none of the disciples had volunteered for. The dead body needed to be anointed with spices and ointments, and it would have to be done quickly. The tomb loomed ahead o...

Now there was a man named Joseph…a good and upright man, who…was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body…wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. Luke 23:50-54 It’s quiet…very quiet, except for the crying and sobs. The crowds are gone and Jesus is dead. A few loyal followers remained behind to render their final, loving act of burial for Jesus. Mary and other women prepared their ointments while Joseph was away securing Jesus’ body from Pilot. It was a dangerous act for Joseph of Arimathea, yet he made the effort to show his love for Jesus. Jesus’ body was stiff and cold. The smell of death clinging to his lifeless skin made it difficult to wrap the long cloths around the body. The ointments were applied quickly and finally, His body was gently placed in the new tomb. Jesus was dead. Our Lenten journey is completed. In...

Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. Luke 23:46 Jesus was crucified and died. Matthew records that Jesus was beaten within an inch of His life, and carried His cross from the Roman Praetorium, through town and out to the crucifixion site.  Matthew further records, “and there they crucified him.” No fanfare nor explanation, merely that He was crucified. Matthew’s assumption was that the reader would understand the horrific process of crucifixion and no explanation was necessary. The explanation, however, begins with Jesus on the cross and His lack of response to the sneers and jeers of the soldiers, the religious leaders and the bystanders. Through this time of confusion and pain, Jesus’ only words were of forgiveness to the soldiers and promise of salvation to the thief. In other gospels, He prepares for His Mother’s future. How do we respond when confronted with sneers, jeers, confusion...

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” Luke 22:14-16 Passover was the highlight of all Jewish festivals. It was the remembrance of God’s miraculous deliverance of the Jewish nation from Egyptian bondage. Israel suffered 400 years as slaves to the mighty nation of Egypt, and Moses was appointed as the reluctant leader of these slaves.  Through plagues that tried the patience of both slave owners and the enslaved, God worked miracle after miracle and showed His mighty power resulting in deliverance for an oppressed people. Passover, a night of terror for non-believers, however for the Israelite believers who smeared lamb’s blood on the top and side posts of the entrance door to their home, it was a sign for the death angel to pass-over. God protected His ...