Tag Archives: Crucifixion

April 5, 2013 · 5:14 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around The Cross: The Political High Priests

annas.caiaphas“In looking at the faces around the cross, which do you think was the most sinister?  On whose shoulders above all others rests the responsibility for this supreme crime of history? Whose hands are the most stained by this innocent blood? ”

These questions raised by Clovis Chappel, a preacher of the early 20th century, are interesting and intriguing.

Was it the betraying Judas?  The denying Peter? The cowardly Pilate?  The clamoring Jewish crowd? The suborned witnesses?  The brutal Roman soldiers?   Continue reading →

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March 29, 2013 · 7:21 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: Mary Magdalene

The BibleIn the Louvre Museum in Paris there is a painting depicting Jesus on the cross.  The world is engulfed in darkness.  The stars are dim.  And in the shadows there is the form of a woman kneeling.  Her hands are caressing and her lips are pressing against the bloody, mangled feet of Jesus.

That woman is Mary Magdalene.  Continue reading →

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March 22, 2013 · 7:39 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: The Face of Fortune

Barabbas.2

•He is an infamous face.

•He’s mentioned by name in all four gospels.

•Thirty-eight verses in the New Testament tell his story.

•Yet he never speaks a single word.

•We know nothing about his family.  His Age. Or marital status.

•He disappears from the Bible record as quickly as he appears.

•Yet movies have been made about him.  Books have been written.  Sermons have been preached.

Can you guess who he is? Continue reading →

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March 15, 2013 · 9:04 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: The Pathetic Pilate

PilateMax Lucado calls it “the most famous trial in history.”

And the Judge?  A man unqualified for the job.  His position was the result of the right connections.  And a fortuitous marriage to Claudia Proclua, whose father was Tiberius, the Roman Emperor.

So in A.D. 26 Pontus Pilate was appointed governor of Judea.  He was responsible for maintaining law and order in the raucous land filled with Jews that hated Rome.  He handed out justice. And collected taxes.

Historians describe him as tactless. Stubborn. Cruel.  Censorious. Demanding. Self-justifying.  Tyrannical.  And disrespectful of religion. Pilate was everything that Jesus wasn’t. Continue reading →

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March 8, 2013 · 7:07 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: The Repentant Robber

cross.Thief,2He was a transgressor. A thief. A loser.  He deserved to die.  And so on that fateful Friday he and his comrade in crime would be executed. They would die alone and unknown.  Except for an unexpected intervention in providence.

Between the two thieves would be an innocent man.  A good man. A blameless man.   Actually, a sinless man.  It was the man called Jesus. It was the day Christ was crucified between two outlaws. Continue reading →

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February 22, 2013 · 4:56 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: Simon

simon.CyreneThe journey was long and arduous.  It was eight hundred miles from the North African city of Cyrene in Lybia to Jerusalem.  But the time, effort and expense would be worth it.  No doubt this dark-skinned man, a Hellenistic Jew, named Simon, was eagerly anticipating the feast days.  The Passover.  The fellowship. The communion with other worshipers.  An opportunity to honor the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

We don’t know if it was his first trip.  Or his last.  Or maybe he settled there.  But we can know this. He never forgot it.  And neither did his sons, Rufus and Alexander.  Continue reading →

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February 15, 2013 · 8:50 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: Peter

Peter.Deny.JesusSelf-assured. Self-assertive.  Self confident.  These words describe the attitude of one of the faces around the cross.  He was a follower of Jesus.  A part of the inner circle.  He was a daring man.  A man of faith.  A man of action. Some might say his boldness bordered on arrogance. That he was over-confident.  Brash. Bellicose.

You know the name  behind this face is Simon Peter.  The apostle. Do you remember what he did? Continue reading →

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February 1, 2013 · 6:13 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: Blasphemers

Cross.FacesWe used to hear the expression, “Don’t kick someone when they are down.”  But today, it seems many delight in “piling on.”  It’s seen in schools where kids bully a weaker child.  Or when someone is caught in a crime.  Or when popular opinion turns upon the object of its scorn.  Then every thing is “fair game.”  And everyone can join in the “fun.”

That’s what happened on the Friday Jesus died on the cross.   Continue reading →

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January 25, 2013 · 6:17 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around The Cross #1

Jesus.Cross.CaryingHow’s your Friday so far?  Just another normal day? You awoke.  Ate some breakfast.  Began your daily routine.  Checked out the news.  Went to work.  And you pretty much expect it to end like most Friday’s.  Right?

Did you ever think what is was like on that Friday Christ was crucified?   Continue reading →

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January 18, 2013 · 5:27 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Remember When?

Bible.Communion“Memories warm you up from the inside. But they also tear you apart.”  –Haruki Murakami

God has given us the tremendous ability to remember.  Our minds recall the innocence of youth, the joy of many “firsts” in life—our first kiss, our first car, and our first real job.  We relive pleasant memories of vacations, time spent with family, and fun times with our friends. Continue reading →

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