Luke 23:44

The Bible says in Luke 23:44-46, “And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.” There are two kinds of deaths. There is a physical death, but there is also a spiritual death. Jesus suffered both kinds. We know about the physical death. When we say that Jesus died on the cross, we are talking about Jesus dying physically. That’s what is referred to when Jesus cried out and said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”

What is physical death, but the separation of the spirit from the body? As dark as death may sometimes appear to be, never forget that for the believer to die is simply to sleep and then to awake in the most glorious of all countries where the love of God will be manifested as never before; and where, according to Jesus, we shall be as the angels of heaven. Even so, from a human standpoint there is a certain sting to death. Perhaps it’s the finality of it, or the separation from loved ones, or the disaster that caused the death. But faith in Christ can even take away this pain. Paul wrote in First Corinthians 15:55-57, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Jesus died for us physically, and He also died for us spiritually. What is spiritual death? Spiritual death is to be spiritually separated from God. That separation from God will be one of the worst of the sufferings of hell. In this life in certain ways both the wicked and the good are blessed of God. It rains on both the just and the unjust. But those who end up in hell will be forever separated from all that is good and all that is true and all that is wonderful. Somehow when Jesus was on the cross, He suffered the eternal pains of hell. He suffered spiritual death, so that we could have spiritual life. The evidence for this is recorded in Matthew 27:46 where Jesus said, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” That’s probably also the reason that it says in Luke 23:44, “And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.” What Jesus suffered by being spiritually separated from the Father, no human eyes were allowed to see. Even God needs privacy sometimes.

The work that Jesus did on the cross was a great work. It was the work of salvation. Because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, salvation became a free gift. No human being can earn salvation. Jesus earned it by what He suffered on the cross. That’s part of the significance of the veil of the temple being rent in two. The veil was an important part of the temple. The veil signified the fact that human beings were not allowed into the presence of a holy God. The holiness of God is in great contrast to the sinfulness of mankind. No human being could earn or deserve to be in the presence of God. But because of what Jesus suffered on the cross, we can receive a free and full entrance into His presence forever. This is the doctrine of imputed righteousness. This is the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith. True Christians are not righteous people who have been made righteous by their good works or their conservative life-styles. True Christians are sinners who have been saved by grace. It’s all because of Jesus. Nothing is because of us.

The Bible says in Luke 23:47-49, “Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man. And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned. And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things.” Perhaps there is significance to the fact that a Roman soldier, a Gentile, was the first to be touched by the crucifixion of Christ. The message of who is Christ and what He did on the cross is for everyone in the world. Of course, the centurion is not the only one who was touched. Luke 24:48 says, “And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned.” There is something about the crucifixion of Christ that touches the hearts of men and women and children everywhere. It’s a gripping story to tell. It’s a story that has a natural connection to the heart of humans everywhere, because all have sinned and all need to be restored to spiritual fellowship with God. There is good news to tell about a Savior and what He did for mankind. It’s a story of suffering that was motivated by the great love of God. It’s a story of hope and salvation and forgiveness and life after death. It’s a wonderful story. Fanny Crosby wrote a great gospel hymn that contains the words:

Tell me the story of Jesus, Write on my heart every word.

Tell me the story most precious, Sweetest that ever was heard.

Tell of the cross where they nailed him, Writhing in anguish and pain.

Tell of the grave where they laid him, Tell how he liveth again.

Love in that story so tender, Clearer than ever I see:

Stay, let me weep while you whisper, Love paid the ransom for me.

Tell me the story of Jesus, Write on my heart every word.

Tell me the story most precious, Sweetest that ever was heard.

Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men to myself.” This was true two thousand years ago, and it’s still true today. Make sure that your message centers around Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ crucified. People are touched by the crucifixion of Christ and all that it means for their happiness and salvation.

The Bible says in Luke 23:50-56, “And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and a just: (The same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them;) he was of Arimathaea, a city of the Jews: who also himself waited for the kingdom of God. This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.” When God wants something to happen, He is able to accomplish His will. God always finds a way. Often God uses a human being as an instrument of His will. This time God used Joseph of Arimathaea. It was the will of God that Jesus be buried with the rich. Isaiah 53:9 foretold concerning the Messiah, “And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death.” So God found a rich man to do His will. It’s not a sin to be rich. There are not many, but there are some rich people in this world who serve God. We know that the Jewish leaders conspired to have Jesus put to death, but not all of the Jewish leaders. Joseph was an exception. Always evaluate people based upon their own individual merits. Do not make the mistake of evaluating someone based upon whatever group you think they belong to.

We are probably given this information about Joseph and all that he did to prepare the body of Jesus so that we would be assured that Jesus really did die. For someone’s body to have been put through the embalming process, there would have been no doubt that he was dead. Of course, the Roman soldiers had already made sure that Jesus was dead. That’s why they pierced His side with a spear. They were surprised that He had died so soon. They were expert executioners and they knew when someone was dead.

The women who were faithful to Jesus followed Joseph and saw what he did with the body of Jesus. To express their devotion to Jesus and their compassion for Jesus, these women wanted to prepare ointments to bring back to the grave so that they might anoint His body there. The women returned to the grave the next morning, and what took place is recorded in Luke 24:1-5, “Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?”

These women came seeking the dead Jesus, but they did not find the dead. They found the living. That’s exactly what always happens whenever someone seeks Jesus. They find that Jesus is alive. It’s a wonderful thing to serve God. He turns the tables. Sometimes when things seem to be at their darkest, God turns on the light. These women came to the grave probably at the lowest point of their lives. The forces of evil appeared to have won. Their Master was dead, and they came to His grave to mourn His death. But their despair was quickly turned to joy, because Jesus was risen from the dead. The grave could not hold Him. Evil had not won the victory. Everything was wonderful.

The angel continued speaking to the women in the next verses and the Bible says in Luke 24:6-12, “He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered his words, And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not. Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.”

Notice what the angel did to explain to the women what had happened. He simply quoted Jesus. He reminded the women of what Jesus had already said to them. “The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” The same thing is often true for every believer. Things happen to us sometimes and we become disturbed and troubled and afraid. But it would all be so unnecessary if we would only remember the promises and the teachings that have already been given to us in the Bible. That’s the importance of memorizing some of the great promises of God and having them ready in our minds to apply to whatever circumstances arise. For these women who came to mourn at the grave of Christ, everything was fine as soon as they “remembered” the words of Jesus.

Of course, the disciples for three years had had a difficult enough time believing the things that Jesus had told them, so we are not surprised to see that they did not believe what the women had told them about Jesus being raised from the dead. Even though Peter did not initially believe what the women had said, he still ran to the tomb to see for himself. What Peter saw is what the visitors see today: an empty tomb. One of the reasons that it was so important for Peter to find out if Christ was risen was because of how much Peter was ashamed at his own failure to stand with Jesus at the trial of Christ. If Christ were risen from the dead, then Peter’s failure was not so bad after all. The results of Peter’s failure had been wiped away. The slate had been wiped clean. There was a purpose to it all. That’s just like the grace of God and the mercy of God. Sometimes it appears as though we must suffer great negative consequences for our own failures and sins. But just at the correct moment, God shows us that He has taken care of everything. He even uses our failures to perform His great eternal will, and He gives us a new chance and a new start. However weak and failing you may be or may have been as a believer, you must know that the risen Christ died and rose for you also. God still loves you. All of the promises of God still apply to you. You are just as much one of God’s children and just as much a part of God’s plan now as you were before you failed. “A smoking flax does he not quench, and a bruised reed does he not break.” It is a wonderful thing to be one of God’s children and to be a recipient of the benefits of the death and resurrection of Christ! We should not be mournful as the disciples were at the crucifixion of Christ. We should be joyful and full of hope as the disciples were at the resurrection of Christ.

___________________________________________________