The Journey

Isa. 53:⁷ “He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.”

Easter is a very emotional time for a lot of Christians. Not because Jesus is suffering. Jesus is alive and well. But because Jesus suffered. I am always extremely honoured when I get the opportunity to share my thoughts at a time as this. It is an unthinkable thing that happened about this time over two thousand years ago. If we are anything, we owe it to the cross and to Jesus. One of the most significant things about the cross is the shedding of the Blood of Jesus. And we know that without the shedding of blood there can be no remission of sin. Love drove Jesus to the cross and it was love and not the nails that kept Jesus on the cross.

We will kick off this season with a journey through what Christ went through in a nutshell. We will be reflecting on the suffering of Christ and on the seven words that Jesus spoke on the cross of Calvary. It is unfortunate today that some Christians do not even know that there are seven words that Jesus spoke on the cross of Calvary. What is the significance of those words and should we pay attention to them? We ought to pay attention to every recorded word that Jesus spoke on earth. Therefore, the seven words on the cross are hugely significant. However, our first point on this journey is the journey to the cross.

The journey to the cross begins with Pilate condemning Jesus to death on the cross, when the Jewish leaders chose that Jesus be crucified over the criminal Barnabas. The next point on the journey was Jesus being whipped. His back was shredded for us but still Jesus took up His cross. And as He journeyed to Golgotha, Jesus fell which sparked up a lot of mockery. This was Jesus’ first fall. Then Jesus looked and saw His mother in deep sorrow. Jesus was tired and in pain and so He struggled with carrying the cross. The soldiers conscripted Simon of Cyrene, a black man to help Jesus carry His cross. Should we bring race into this? Not at all but for those who struggle to find men of colour in the Bible, there you go.

As Jesus journeyed on, a woman came up to Him and wiped His face with her veil. The story in the Church circles is that her name was Veronica, but no such name is recorded in the Bible. What was recorded is that a woman came up to Jesus and wiped His face. As He proceeded, Jesus fell the second time and when He looked, He saw the women of Jerusalem crying for Him. And said to them, ‘Daughters of Jerusalem, do not cry for me, cry for yourselves…’ (please read Luke 23:27-30). Then Jesus fell the third time. Did you know that Jesus fell three times on the way to the cross? It is hugely significant, please research it for yourself. Next, Jesus was stripped of His garments and then He was nailed to the cross. Which is where He spoke the seven words, the last seven expressions of Jesus Christ on earth. As we engage these words beginning tomorrow, we pray that God will open our hearts to hear Him, in Jesus Name.

Prayer: Father, please open my heart to hear what You are saying to me, in Jesus Name. Amen!