And so they crucified Him. Crucified who? Jesus. Who crucified the Son of God? The “churchgoing” crowd—the religious of the day. Those who claimed to know God were those who had Jesus arrested. They were the ones who brought Him before Pilate. They were the ones who stirred up the people to request of Pilate that Jesus be crucified. So Jesus was whipped with a lead-tipped whip and nailed to a cross, where He died. The worshippers of God killed Jesus.
The following verse stood out as I read the account of Jesus’ crucifixion. Upon Jesus’ death, the Bible says, At that moment, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart,(Matthew 27:51, NLT) This tearing of the veil means that God accepted Jesus’ blood sacrifice for the sins of all mankind, tearing down the partition that stood between us and God. And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. (Hebrews 10:19–20, NLT)
As believers, we have direct access to God through Jesus. As the religious mob of Jesus day thought they were crafty in doing away with Jesus by having Him crucified, Jesus was doing away with the Old Covenant and the entire system that the religious were trying to protect. Believers, let us rejoice in the sacrifice of Jesus, which enables us to come directly to God. There is no longer a partition! What, then, does this mean? Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16, ESV) How close are you to God? Are you enjoying this new life-giving way called Jesus?
Thank you for joining me as I read and journal chronologically through the Bible! This devotional reflection comes from Matthew 27 and Mark 15.