We left off with a summary of the life of Jesus before His 3 year ministry began. I had to add that in because we jumped from Jesus being born to Jesus being crucified. There is so much in between that story, I had to Give You that part of the Story. Here we are today, at Crucified. 

So, let’s jump in!

In summary, the purpose of the ministry of Jesus was to proclaim the Kingdom of God, offering redemption to those willing to receive it through his death and resurrection, while equipping disciples to continue His mission. Jesus demonstrated the Kingdom of God through His teachings, miracles and most importantly, His example. While Jesus had many followers and believers, the Pharisees and the Romans were threatened by the underlying message of the ministry of Jesus. There is a consistent overtone of the Pharisees struggling to maintain their power and authority and their desire to eliminate Jesus from questioning their authority on God.  One of the many messages of Jesus was to turn societal norms upside down. Power and authority belong to God, not a human. Jesus delivered the message that those of earthly power and authority should use their influence not for themselves, but rather for the service and needs of others. This message threatened both the Pharisees and the Romans creating tension. Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey (low of all low animals) instead of a white horse as one of the many examples of demonstration he provided in His ministry.    

Adam Ate
Noah Floats
Abraham’s Oath
Jacob Schemes
Joseph Dreams
Bush Lit
Sea Split
Law Spoken
Tablet Broken
Judges Appointed
Kings Anointed
God Forgotten
Rulers Rotten
Kingdom Broke
Prophets Hope
Mary Favored
Baby Savoir
Crucified
Jesus Died
Third Morn
World Reborn
Spirit Glows
Love Grows.

Crucified.

After Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, he went to the temple and cleansed it by driving out the money changers and merchants, calling them “dens of thieves”. He stayed there for 3 days continuing to teach, and continuing to challenge and outwit the religious leaders. This further enraged them, feeding their desire to eliminate Jesus. Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 Disciples, betrays Jesus for 30 pieces of silver by revealing His location in the Garden of Gesthame. Jesus is arrested and taken to the Sanhedrin (Religious Leader Board) to face trial where he is found guilty of blasphemy. Meanwhile, Peter is in the courtyard denying he knows Jesus 3 times. Due to Roman law, the Sanhedrin is unable to execute Jesus on their own. The religious leaders drag Jesus to the Roman court in front of the governor of Rome, Pontius Pilate with a false narrative. They framed Jesus as a political rebel against Caesar. Pilate finds no guilt. Pilate attempts to release Jesus, yet the angry mob of people demand the crucifixion of Jesus. A barbaric criminal by the name of Barabbas is offered by Pilate instead of Jesus for crucifixion. The crowd instead chooses Barabbas to be released and DEMANDS Jesus to be crucified. The treatment of Jesus to this point is mentally, physically and spiritually abusive. This treatment only worsens, into torture – the most extreme beating, mentally exhausting and spiritually challenging torture one could only ever imagine, let alone endure. Jesus was physically assaulted, flogged extensively, beaten, kicked, spit on, insulted and even received a crown of thorns pressed into His skull as they mocked Him as “The King of the Jews.” The torture continued as Jesus was forced to carry His own cross to the city of Golgotha (City of the Skull) where he was crucified. nailed to the cross and left slowly to agonize and hang in exhaustion, dehydration, and asphyxiation until his death.