Read Matthew 27:32-66 and Luke 23:26-56
I have a confession to make.
When I looked to see what passages of Scripture I would be writing on this week, I almost started writing without even reading them first – not because I have them memorized, but because they focus on the crucifixion of Jesus, which we just spent several weeks on in our Surrounding the Cross sermon series. They’re fresh on my mind – do I really need to be reminded of the crucifixion of Jesus all over again? After all, Good Friday was less than a month ago.
And therein lies the danger for all of us – that we would begin to believe that we could or should ever move past the cross.
The crucifixion is familiar to most of us. The details or order of events may be a little cloudy, but many if not most of you reading this could recount the story of Jesus’ final hours, culminating in his death on the cross. The temptation is to skim past it quickly, to give it a cursory reading because we already know it.
To combat that temptation–my own temptation in writing this–we would be wise to remember Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15: “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Jesus Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures…”
According to the man that wrote 2/3 of the New Testament, the man whose influence on the spread of Christianity may be second only to Jesus, there is nothing more important than the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We’ll never move past it–only deeper and deeper into its significance.
VC Devotionals 