The wood. The thorns. The nails.
Christ's sacrifice has defined the very essence of
mankind's faith for the past 2000 years. What does
the cross mean? Have you ever contemplated it's
purpose and celebrated it's significance? The
following describes the suffering of Christ and
God's unconditional love for His people.
The cross: the hope of all humanity.
WHAT IS CRUCIFIXION?
A medical doctor provides a physical description:
The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man
is quickly thrown backwards with his shoulders against
the wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression at the
front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square wrought iron
nail through the wrist deep into the wood.
Quickly he moves to the other side and repeats the action,
being careful not to pull the arms too tightly, but to allow
some flex and movement. The cross is then lifted into place.
The left foot is press backward against the right foot, and
with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven through
the arch of each, leaving the knees flexed.
The victim is now crucified. As he slowly sags down with more
weight on the nails in the wrists, excruciating fiery pain
shoots along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the
brain- the nails in the wrists are putting pressure on the
median nerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid this
stretching torment, he places the full weight on the nail
through his feet.
Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through
the nerves between the bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue,
cramps sweep through his muscles, knotting them deep
relentless and throbbing pain.
With these cramps comes the inability to push him upward to
breathe. Air can be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He
fights to raise himself in order to get even one small breath.
Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood
stream, and the cramps partially subsided. Spasmodically, he is
able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in life-giving
oxygen. Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint
wrenching cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing
pain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as he moves up
and down against rough timber.
Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the
chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to
compress the heart. It is now almost over-the loss of tissue
fluids has reached a critical level-the compressed heart is
struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues
-the tortured lungs are making frantic effort to gasp in small
gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through
his tissues...Finally, he can allow his body to die...All this
the Bible records with the simple words, "and they crucified
Him"
(Mark 15:24).
What wondrous love is this? Many people don’t know that pain and
suffering our Lord, Jesus Christ went through for us...because of
the brutality, crucifixion was given a sentence to only its worst
offenders of the law. Thieves, murderers, and rapists would be the
types of creeps who got crucified. Yet, here Jesus is being
crucified
between two hardened criminals...What did Jesus do?
Did he murder anyone? Did he steal anything?
The answer as we all know is NO!!
Jesus did nothing to deserve this type of death,
yet he went willing to die, in between 2 thieves,
so that we might be saved. And there, in between
the sinners, was our slain savior for our sins.
There is no recompense for the gift of Jesus Christ.
He gave His life so that you and I might live.
And by His precious blood we are saved!
So we must share the glory of the Gospel with everyone we meet.
Praise to You sweet Jesus and to You all the Glory!
This is what Easter is all about.
May
God Bless you always
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