Luke 23 35-49 v 41 “We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong” v 47 “When the Roman Officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said “surely this man was innocent”
Jesus was nailed to the cross. From noon until three o clock, He was dying and even in that time two people were so moved by Him that they turned to God. One of the criminals then said” Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom. “And the officer, a Centurion, a professional who had witnessed other executions knew that this was different. It was dark, in the middle of the day when it should have been light, the curtain in the temple was torn in half. He would have been notified of this by one of his subordinates. He heard the words. “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands”. “When the Roman Officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said “surely this man was innocent”
Even in the darkest moment of Jesus dying on the cross there is light in the heart of the criminal and the soldier in charge of the execution.
I am sure most of us have experienced the loss of someone close to us. Have navigated the months, weeks, days, hours before they died with calls to family, Drs appointments and organizing the care they need to be as comfortable as possible, sometimes things go well and sometimes they do not. Then they are gone. In the tears and grief that follows we recount this story, the last few months, days, and hours. We look in our darkest time for the light. My husband and I visited my Mom and Dad the week before my Dad died, we provided relief for my brother and sister and Mom and we played scrabble and my Dad won. Light in the dark.
Jesus even with His death showed that there is light in the dark. Good Friday. Thanks be to God. Amen
CrossWalk 