Dead Quiet

Day 39—John 19:1-42

Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken,” and, as another scripture says, “They will look on the one they have pierced.” (Read the whole passage)

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Jesus walked into Jerusalem hailed as a king. Within a few days, the crowd was calling for His execution: “Take Him away! Take Him away! Crucify Him!” (vs. 15).

A thorny crown fiercely adorned His kingly head (vs. 2). Purple robes clung sarcastically to His brutalized body as soldiers spat on Him, slapped Him and mocked Him (vs. 3). But the only throne this King was raised upon was a rough, wooden cross (vs. 18). A sign saying “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” displayed His identity in mocking irony (vs. 19).

Weak and pitiful, naked and bloody, thirsty and suffocating, Jesus hung on the cross. It was not pretty. It was horrific.

The price of sin and the power of evil exacted its heavy toll as the King of kings took that crushing weight upon Himself. The sum total of all evil intent was directed at His weak human form. The Father turned His face away and the unity of the godhead was impacted in ways we will never understand in this life.

Then, Jesus died on the Cross. His body hung limp and bent at awkward angles; suspended by nails that tore the skin. His side was pierced and watery blood flowed out.

The sudden, unnatural stillness that falls upon the dead gripped Jesus. Unlike the peaceful rhythms of sleep, the stillness of death is blank and sinister. His body was wrapped in linen strips and spices before He was placed in the stillness of a tomb.

Although to all appearances darkness overcame light and death overtook life, there was a dead quiet that was humming with life. He did these things so that we might have life and the world might be redeemed. Jesus died and Jesus was still…but it was not the end.

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Dig Deeper

Take some time in quiet to reflect upon the great cost that God took upon Himself for us.

Family Talk

Think about kings you have read stories about. What sort of things do they do? What do they wear? How do they treat the people in their kingdoms? How is Jesus different from those kings? Talk about how Jesus is the King of all kings, the one who made everything and everyone, but He let Himself be beaten and killed so that He could pay for our sins.