John 19:16 Then Pilate handed Yeshua over to them to have him put to death on the stake.
So they took charge of Yeshua. 17 Carrying the stake himself he went out to the place called Skull (in Aramaic, Gulgolta). 18 There they nailed him to the stake along with two others, one on either side, with Yeshua in the middle. 19 Pilate also had a notice written and posted on the stake; it read,
YESHUA FROM NATZERET
THE KING OF THE JEWS
20 Many of the Judeans read this notice, because the place where Yeshua was put on the stake was close to the city; and it had been written in Hebrew, in Latin and in Greek. 21 The Judeans’ head cohanim therefore said to Pilate, “Don’t write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but ‘He said, “I am King of the Jews.”’” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
23 When the soldiers had nailed Yeshua to the stake, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, a share for each soldier, with the under-robe left over. Now the under-robe was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom; 24 so they said to one another, “We shouldn’t tear it in pieces; let’s draw for it.” This happened in order to fulfill the words from the Tanakh,
“They divided my clothes among themselves
and gambled for my robe.”[John 19:24 Psalm 22:19(18)]
This is why the soldiers did these things.
25 Nearby Yeshua’s execution stake stood his mother, his mother’s sister Miryam the wife of K’lofah, and Miryam from Magdala. 26 When Yeshua saw his mother and the talmid whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Mother, this is your son.” 27 Then he said to the talmid, “This is your mother.” And from that time on, the talmid took her into his own home. (Complete Jewish Bible).***
My youngest loves to play with her toy jack-in-the-box. Crank the handle and hear the music. Wait for the surprise: out jumps the jack! She cackles with joy.
Jack-in-the-box is either a toy you enjoy or hate. Not everyone loves something popping out at you—even if you know it is coming eventually. The anticipation is all too often worse than the event.
Waiting can be like that: a dread that pools in your stomach and sends a chill up your spine. What have you waited for, anticipating the worse? How many of those times was the waiting worse than what you were waiting for?
The disciples and followers of Christ were witnesses to his death and anticipating their own demise. What the authorities did to Jesus, his followers dreaded would happen to them. The future looked dim. They did not know the end of the story: Jesus would live again!
In the midst of these dark moments, Jesus points his followers to one another. It is in community that we can find solace while waiting. Our fellow members of the Body of Christ can walk through the anticipation and whatever it is we face.
Hymn for Today: "All Your Anxiety" by Edward Henry Joy.
1. Is there a heart o’erbound by sorrow?
Is there a life weighed down by care?
Come to the cross, each burden bearing;
All your anxiety—leave it there.
Refrain: All your anxiety, all your care,
Bring to the mercy seat, leave it there,
Never a burden He cannot bear,
Never a friend like Jesus!
2. No other friend so swift to help you,
No other friend so quick to hear,
No other place to leave your burden,
No other one to hear your prayer.
Refrain: All your anxiety, all your care,
Bring to the mercy seat, leave it there,
Never a burden He cannot bear,
Never a friend like Jesus!
3. Come then at once; delay no longer!
Heed His entreaty kind and sweet,
You need not fear a disappointment;
You shall find peace at the mercy seat.
Refrain: All your anxiety, all your care,
Bring to the mercy seat, leave it there,
Never a burden He cannot bear,
Never a friend like Jesus!
Thought for Today: Throw all your anxieties upon him, because he cares about you. (1 Peter 5:7).Please pray:
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