Day 316 – Jesus’ Death & Burial

• Over the last 315 days we have seen the outworking of God’s salvation plan for mankind, culminating in today’s events, as Jesus died on the cross for us. Spend a moment considering how your understanding of this event has changed since January 1st.
• As Jesus died, darkness descended over the land, despite it being the middle of the day. What do you think that represented?
• The ripping of the temple curtain from top to bottom should not be overlooked. It’s a massive event. The temple curtain marked off the area to the Most Holy Place, which you’ll remember from the time of the Tabernacle in Moses’ day. Do you remember that only one person, the High Priest, could go here, and only once a year? With Jesus’ death, there was no need for a special place to come to God, nor was there now any suggestion that God could live in a temple made by human hands. Jesus had opened the way to God because He death with our sins on the cross: the perfect sacrifice. Jesus is our Great High Priest!
• Matthew stated that the curtain was ripped from “top to bottom”. Why do you think the direction of the rip might be interesting?
• Jesus’ death was confirmed as He was stabbed in his side, causing “blood and water” to come out. He was most definitely dead – the spear likely pierced His lungs and heart. Where was He taken, and who by? What security measures were put in place to secure Jesus’ body in the tomb?
• Why do you think the Romans and religious leaders were so keen to protect the body? How do the words of Matthew 27:53-66 encourage you about the conspiracy theories you may have heard about Jesus’ body?
• The words in Hebrews give deep theological understanding to Jesus’ death on the cross. What does it mean in Hebrews 2:10 where it says He “brought many sons to glory”?
• Verses 14-18 (especially the last two) of Hebrews 2 discusses why Jesus had to die like a man. What does it say?
• Imagine how the different people who knew Jesus must have been feeling in the hours after the death. Think of His mother, of the disciples, of the guards, the Romans and the religious leaders. What about when the darkness descended, or the curtain tore in two?

You may well know the words of the Creed. The Apostles’ Creed (or Nicene Creed), to give it its full title, is a declaration of the Christian faith, shared by many Christians of different denominations and throughout thousands of years. A modern version of the Creed says this:

“I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.”

That final line in the quote above is the most contested. Many groups of people miss it out, because they are not convinced that Jesus did descend into Hell. Some passages suggest he may have been (Romans 10:7, Ephesians 4:7-10 and 1 Peter 3:18-20 for example). Others, such as the one we read two days ago in Luke 23:41 where Jesus tells the thief “today you will be with me in Paradise”, suggest otherwise.

This One Story plan isn’t the place to speculate about where Jesus “was” during these days. Focus, instead, on what God was doing as He laid upon His Son the sin of us all. For the first time in all eternity, Jesus was separated from His Father, taking the wrath and punishment we deserve and He – marvellously – didn’t. There has been no greater act in human history.