The mockery alone would have made the crucifixion unbearable. "Save yourself," would have cut to the heart when you knew you were hanging there to save others and you were, in fact, saving them by not saving yourself. The Greek language has many words for ridicule and making fun of someone. They must have been a sarcastic bunch.
The details Luke chose to include give us all we need to believe, yet are somewhat mysterious. No one else records the speech with the daughters of Jerusalem nor the criminals repentance. This is here that we might know it is never too late! Jesus came into his kingdom that very day. And the thief on the cross came with him.
The soldier and the crowd were affected by the eclipse and the experience of watching Jesus die. This was not a normal execution.
Luke is very explicit about the tomb. He describes the construction of it (hewn out of a rock), the newness, the location (the women followed to see for future reference). He is explicit about the linen cloth. He is setting us up for the resurrection!
3 comments:
v43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." So, what was Jesus doing between crucifixion and the resurrection? Does the Bible tell us or is what I remember from Sunday School about breaking gates of hell and putting Satan in his place an interpretation? Wasn't he separated from the Father (who would have been in Paradise? Right?)
Tiff, Great and classic question. A few things may help.
The separation Jesus felt from God was on the cross because of the sin of ours he bore,resulting in his death. It was not necessarily ongoing while his body was in the grave.
Hebrews 2:14 & 1 John 3:8 tells us that Jesus destroyed the work of the devil through his life and death. That does not necessitate him going physically to hell and pounding him like they were in a bar fight.
I think the thing that makes the best sense of all the evidence is that Jesus died (was separated from God). Once he died he went to paradise, as did the thief. 2 Cor. 5:6-8 tells us this would be normal for believers, too.
Great questions.
That certainly is different thinking for me. Jesus' separation from God after death has been a big part of my thoughts/meditation during communion. I don't care about the bar fight, but always dwell on the separation between the Father and Son. I guess being apart from each other was something I could at least kind of get my mind around. But separation due to sin is so un-understandable; the perfection vs the failure. I don't know anything about perfection and can't really fathom holiness. I'll have to think about this some more. Thanks for the answer.
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