The Passion of Jesus on the Cross

“It was the third hour when they crucified him” (Mark 15:25 ). That means 9am. Pilate had ordered a sign over his head: “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (John 19:19 ). Passersby ridiculed him, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matthew 27:40). The soldiers mocked him. The chief priests with the scribes and elders added their scorn, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him” (Matthew 27:42). And even the robbers who were crucified with him reviled him.
Jesus drank the cup of suffering unmixed, and refused any pain-deadening anesthetic. “They offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it” (Matthew 27:34). About noon , near the end, he cried out, “‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'” (Matthew 27:46). Amazingly these seemingly hopeless words are the exact words of the beginning of Psalm 22 in the Old Testament, which then resolves into a Psalm of great hope. The poet, who seems to begin with despair, finally exults in God and says, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you” (verse 22). The early church did not miss the connection between Jesus' agonizing words and the final hope of this psalm. They applied these very words of triumph to Christ after his resurrection (Hebrews 2:12 ). Yes, there was a kind of God-forsakenness on the cross, but the abandonment was not final.
After three hours on the cross, Jesus died. His disciples saw the awesome, world-changing moment from different angles, and summed it up in different ways. Matthew said, “Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit” (Matthew 27:50). John wrote, “When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished,' and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30 ). Luke, who was not there, and may have gotten his information from Jesus' mother, wrote, “Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!' And having said this he breathed his last” (Luke 23:46 ).
To make sure he was dead, a Roman soldier “pierced his side with a spear” (John 19:34). He was taken down from the cross by his family and friends, and buried in a borrowed, cave-like tomb. Pilate gave orders for the tomb to be sealed and guarded. A great stone was rolled over the mouth of the tomb and guards were stationed. There the body lay until early Sunday morning.
-John Piper. www.desiringgod.org

Today our Savoiur died, a perfect man, paid the price for the sins of the world. How can we refuse him? The suffering he went through, the ridicule he endured, all for a world of people who hated him. I pray that today as we reflect on his death on the cross we take the time to praise God for this incredible gift to us, for his mercy upon us, and that each day until we meet him we might honor and praise him for his grace.