Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

If I am being honest, this passage of the Bible is one of the hardest for me to read. I always want to skip over the crucifixion because it’s just too painful. Thinking of the excruciating pain Jesus went through is heartbreaking and overwhelming. However, I know that it is the most crucial part of His story and of our story. Salvation through the cross is the foundation of our beliefs as Christians. Timothy Keller said, “We must go back again and again to the gospel of Christ crucified, so that our hearts are more deeply gripped by the reality of what He did and who we are in Him.”

In Luke 23, we see Pilate and Jesus in front of a frenzied crowd. They are demanding that Pilate condemn Jesus to death. Pilate tells them that he finds no fault in Jesus, but they don’t care. When Pilate realizes that the crowd isn’t listening to reason, he decides to send Jesus to Herod. How often do we pass the buck like Pilate does? We don’t want to step up and make the hard decisions, so we tell someone else to do it. Pilate’s plan doesn’t work, though. Herod only mocks Jesus, and he sends him back.
Now, Pilate is forced to decide. Does he crucify an innocent man, or does he free him? As he stalls, the crowd grows angrier. Pilate was known for being unfair and cruel, but he hesitates to condemn Jesus. He gives the crowd multiple chances to change their minds.

How often are we faced with the right thing to do versus what the crowd wants us to do? Faced with an angry mob of people, I would hope I would have enough courage to free Jesus. Honestly, there have been times in my life when I was uncourageous, and the crowd won. The beautiful truth of the gospel, though, is that Jesus did win. He defeated the grave and saved me from my sin. He did that for you, too!

Pilate eventually gives into the crowd, and he sends Jesus to be crucified. Here comes the overwhelming part. I cannot imagine the pain Jesus was in as they beat Him and crucified Him. His body was so weak that another man was ordered to carry His cross for Him. They took him to a place called the Skull and crucified Him with two criminals. The incredible thing is that during all this Jesus is still showing mercy and forgiveness. His love is so great that in the midst of His worst, unimaginable pain, He was still thinking of others. While being obedient to God the Father, He was thinking of God’s ultimate glory along with you and me as future believers. He didn’t come to save Himself. He came to save us.

One of the criminals acknowledges Jesus and implores Him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus tells him that he will be with Him in paradise. I love the simplicity of the criminal’s words. He simply asks Jesus to remember him. Asking Jesus to save us isn’t complicated. He is waiting for us to humbly ask Him the question, so we can be with Him in paradise.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your sacrifice. Thank You for enduring the pain of the cross to save me. Thank You for Your grace and mercy even when I am not courageous enough to stand up to the crowd. Give me the strength and courage to face the crowd and make the righteous decisions that glorify You.
• This week on the Venture Church App, check the app every day from Palm Sunday to Easter for new content to prepare your heart and mind for Resurrection Sunday. Walk through the sacred timeline that forever changed humankind’s relationship with God by taking a personal journey through Holy Week with our daily guide.

Family Application: Luke 23

By: Robbie Jefcoat

Today, we are going to learn about one of my favorite people in the Bible! You know what’s crazy? I don’t even know his name. Jesus had been taken by the soldiers, beaten up, and was hanging on the cross for me and for you, but Jesus wasn’t alone. Beside Him were two other people, simply referred to as thieves. Jesus was not like these other two people - Jesus was innocent. Jesus chose to go to the cross for me and for you because He loves us so much, but these thieves were not perfect; they had messed up and were being punished.

These two thieves were very different men, one was making fun of Jesus and calling him names, but the other saw Jesus for who He really was, the son of God. The thief saw that Jesus was innocent, that Jesus was kind, and that Jesus loved him. He simply asked, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus responded and said, “Truly, I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Even on the cross, Jesus was love. Even when Jesus was experiencing so much pain, Jesus still wanted to encourage and help others. The thief saw this and wanted to be with Jesus forever. It didn’t matter what the thief had done to get himself on the cross, all that mattered was that he loved Jesus and wanted to spend forever with Him. And that’s exactly what Jesus wanted too.

• Prayer: Jesus, help us to look toward You and know that You are God. Even on days when we mess up or don’t feel super happy, remind us that You love us all the time. Thank You for Your love and thank You for being available.
• Check out the “Holy Week Family Guide” on the Venture Church App! On the homepage of the app, click on the “Journey through Holy Week” button to find a daily guide. On each day of Holy Week, you can watch a short video, reflect on scripture, and download the “Holy Week Family Guide” PDF. Use this tool with your family and share it with friends!