 |
Daily DevotionalsDevotion for April 21, 2011 Romans 4:25 "He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God." NLT The men guarding Jesus that night placed a blindfold over His eyes. They began beating Him, slapping Him, and spitting in His face. They mocked Him by asking, "Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?" (Luke 22:63-65, Matt 26:27-68 NKJV). Later a company of soldiers clothed Him in purple, twisted a crown of thorns together, and placed it on His head. Again they mocked Him by saluting and crying out, "Hail, King of the Jews!" Again and again they struck Him on the head with a reed while they spit on Him, and knelt down to pretend to worship Him. Once finished with their torture, they removed the purple clothing, placed His own clothes back on Him, and then led Him away to be crucified. (Mark 15:;17-20). The soliders brought Him to a place called Golgotha, and when they tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh, a mixture given to relieve pain, Jesus refused to take it. They divided His garments and cast lots to determine who would get them and at nine o'clock in the morning, they crucified Him (Mark 15:22-25). We can't be sure exactly what caused Jesus' physical death. We only know nine hours after His arrest He hung on the cross after being beaten and bruised, spit on and denied. So many things were going on in His body at the same time. We can deduce He was suffering from dehydration, blood loss, and severe trauma to the muscles. He hadn't slept in over 24 overs and since the arrest He'd had nothing to eat or drink. The beating He received contused His lungs, bruised the muscles, and most likely damaged both kidneys. His blood loss was made worse because He had to constantly move up and down on the cross in order to relieve muscles in His thighs, and each time He did, it tore the skin on His back, reopening wounds. The loss of bodily fluids probably meant He was suffering from Hypoveolemic Shock, a condition in which the heart is unable to pump adequate blood to the organs, muscles and vital tissues. In addition to that, decreased respiratory volume meant that carbon dioxide was building up in the lungs and reducing oxygen in the blood, a condition known as hypoxia. Utimately this can lead to sufocation. (The History Channel). No, we don't know what caused Him to die, but we do know why He had to die. "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:2 NIV) "But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." (Romans 5:8 NLT) "He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him." (1 Thessalonians 5:10 NIV)
Please pray with me: Lord, thank you for dying for me. Words cannot adequately express the way I truly feel, but I give thanks today, knowing I will have eternal life because of You. Amen. S.T.G. (a member of Hindman Baptist Church, Three Forks Baptist Association)
Campus Journal My Utmost For His Highest
|
|