Holy Week ~ ~ ~ The Day HE+ Was Crucified ~ ~ ~
(Known to the Church as GOOD FRIDAY)
A Week of Two Sabbaths
Or, Why Can’t Christians Count to 3, Twice ?
The LORD JESUS said HE+ would be 3 days and 3 nights in the heart of the earth. HE+ was speaking most accurately, as HE+ always did. HE+ meant exactly what HE+ said. A school child can count 3 days and likewise 3 nights. Why can’t we?
Christians need to count like the Hebrews counted and take The LORD’S words to heart. Everything connected with Our LORD JESUS CHRIST was not only accurately predicted but it was most precisely accomplished… down to the utmost detail… including the timing of His+ death and Resurrection. Would Our Heavenly FATHER, Who set in motion the earth, sun, moon, and stars so accurately that their movements correct the clocks of mankind, be imprecise about any details connected with His+ Precious SON’S death and Resurrection ?
Let us look at the crucifixion scene.
Passover days, High Holy days, and Sabbaths all entered into the Passion Week of Our LORD. Coinciding with the Temple Sacrifices in the morning (9 a.m.) and evening (3 p.m.) was the Crucifixion and Finished Work of the Cross. The animal sacrifices set up during the time of Moses were established by GOD to be at the exact time of the beginning and ending of His+ Crucifixion. It was established that precise way to point to CHRIST.
Alfred Ederscheim, the historian, noted that about a million people would gather in Jerusalem during Passover. Naturally-speaking, sacrificing one million lambs would take a lot of time and, naturally-speaking, couldn’t be done on one day. Thus, the Passover sacrifices began a few days earlier in the Passover week and those in the Covenant of the Jews were permitted to partake of the Passover Meal at that time.
Thus, in order for the True LAMB+ of GOD to be sacrificed exactly on the Day of the Passover, HE+ had to partake of the Meal the evening before the day of the actual Passover. Passover began in the evening, at 3 p.m., as did all Jewish Days. If we are going to count as the Jews did… and Our LORD JESUS did… we must start counting the day when it began...on the evening before, at 3 p.m, the time of the evening sacrifice.
We will be in error if we follow the Western Civilization’s method of counting days which goes from 12 a.m. (midnight) through 12 noon to 11:59 p.m. The Jewish way of counting days is: evening-night time-day time.
HE+ did partake of the Last Passover Meal; we know the story well. After that Meal, it was night. HE+ entered the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. The intensity of the ordeal was so great that Our Savior began sweating drops of blood.
O thank You, Precious Savior, for going through this agony for me, for us, for whosoever wants to be near You in Heaven and through all eternity.
This is NOT counted as the “first night” in the “heart of the earth.” Our LORD, we see plainly, was still ON the earth, like as we are, preparing to offer HIMSELF as the Sacrificial LAMB+ on our behalf.
After His+ time in the Garden of Gethsemane, Our LORD was taken. It was still night. After that hideous night-time trial and mistreatment, Our LORD JESUS, our innocent LAMB without spot or blemish before GOD and man, was crucified at the time of the morning sacrifice in the Temple. HE+ was crucified on the High Holy Day of Passover. This does NOT count as one of the “days” in the heart of the earth. He+ was ON the earth, going through the agony of the Cross, battered and beaten but still in earthly human form.
O HOLY FATHER, how we thank THEE for giving us Thy SON. O Precious JESUS, we thank THEE+ for being willing to be given for us, unworthy creatures all, including me.
Precision. At precisely the time of the evening sacrifice, 3 p.m., the Finished Work of the Cross was completed. HE+ cried, “IT IS FINISHED, FATHER. INTO THY HANDS I COMMIT MY+ SPIRIT.” Our dear Savior’s earthly body died on the cross.
Thank You, Precious LORD JESUS. Thank You. Thank You for Your willingness to die for me, for us, for the entire race of mankind… whosoever will come. We would be lost without Your Costly Sacrifice of Your Life, precisely given at the Time Appointed by The FATHER.
Thus, at 3 p.m. at the precise beginning of Passover our LORD+ cried out and yielded HIS+ Spirit to HIS+ FATHER. Our LORD’S dead body was then laid in Joseph of Arimathea’s newly-carved tomb… and HIS+ Victorious Self entered into the heart of the earth, unbarring the Gates of Hell (Sheol). This was the FIRST NIGHT HE+ spent in the heart of the earth.
The following day after the crucifixion no work was done because it was the day time of the Passover. It was a High Sabbath, a High Holy Day. Keep in mind that Passover started at 3 p.m. the evening before when HE+ Finished the Work on the Cross. That is why the priests did not want to go into Pontius Pilate’s Judgment Hall; they would be unclean and could not celebrate the coming Passover. Thus, Pilate came out to them. This was the FIRST DAY He+ spent in the heart of the earth.
At 3 p.m. of Passover day-time began the second night HE+ spent in the heart of the earth. As the sun arose, this was a day of “preparation” for the regular weekly Sabbath. On this day of preparation, the women who followed Our LORD JESUS went to the market, bought spices, and prepared them for the dead body of Our LORD. This day of preparation activities became the second day HE+ spent in the heart of the earth.
At 3 p.m. on this second day, the Third Night HE+ spent in the heart of the earth began. The Jews began their weekly Sabbath then. The women who bought and prepared spices for His+ dead body, rested. They did no work after 3 p.m. that night, nor through the daylight hours of the ensuing day time, as it was commanded them to keep the Sabbath. The Third Day HE+ spent in the heart of the earth was the regular Jewish Sabbath.
So, from the Gospel accounts, we see Our LORD spent two Sabbaths: a High Holy Day (Passover) and the regular weekly Sabbath in the heart of the earth. HE+ also spent the day of preparation which fell between the two Sabbaths in the heart of the earth.
For the sake of clarity, let us put these times on our westernized calendar. HE+ ate the Last Passover Meal on Tuesday evening. That night, HE+ was taken from the Garden of Gethsemane and brought before Pontius Pilate. On Wednesday, HE+ was crucified at 9 a.m., the time of the morning sacrifice in the Temple.
He died on the cross at 3 p.m., the time of the evening sacrifice. Wednesday night was FIRST NIGHT.
Thursday day would have been Passover day time, a High Holy Sabbath. That was the FIRST DAY.
Thursday night would have then been the SECOND NIGHT.
Friday day (the day of the preparation) was the SECOND DAY.
Friday night, at 3 p.m., was the beginning of the Jews’ regular weekly Sabbath. Friday night was the THIRD NIGHT.
Saturday, the Jews’ weekly Sabbath day time, was His+ THIRD DAY in the heart of the earth.
When did HE+ arise? Scripture doesn’t pinpoint that precise moment. Scripture says that HE+ was seen early on the first day of the week… which would have been quite early Sunday morning.
Being consistent with the precise timing found in Scripture, it was likely HE+ came out of the heart of the earth when HE+ said HE+ did: precisely after 3 nights and 3 days in the heart of the earth. That would place His+ removal from the heart of the earth at precisely 3 p.m. on Saturday evening... at the end of the Jewish Sabbath... which is what the Gospel accounts record.
So… why don’t we be accurate and keep “Good Tuesday” instead of “Good Friday”?
We at the Order of the GOOD SHEPHERD personally mark the time, but we join with the church systems and put black on our cross on Friday and do the Good Friday services. We do this only to avoid causing confusion to the non-Christian (and Christian, more's the pity) world. May the LORD help us all to be unified and loving in our witness.
The important thing is to remember What HE+ did… and why.
In the name of the FATHER, the SON+, and the HOLY SPIRIT.
Amen
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