BIND The SACRIFICE with CORDS ...

HOLY WEEK

in commemoration of

The Great --- and Final --- Passover

CHRIST our Passover+

is sacrificed for us;

therefore, let us keep the feast.

not with old leaven,

neither with the leaven

of malice and wickedness;

but with the unleavened bread

of purity (Gk) and truth.

1 Corinthians 5:7,8

+  +  +

The LORD JESUS CHRIST'S triumphal entry into Jerusalem --- the first one --- was over.  The Temple of GOD was cleansed. Now laid before HIM+ was the bleak business of Binding the Sacrifice unto the horns of the altar, the task for which HE+ had been preparing HIMSELF+ since HE+ had been born among men.

GOD is the LORD,

Which hath shewed us light:

bind the sacrifice with cords,

even unto the horns of the altar.

Psalm 118:27

BIND:  from Strong's Concordance {631}; — 'acar, aw-sar'; a primitive root; to yoke or hitch; by analogy, to fasten in any sense, to join battle: — bind, fast, gird, harness, hold, keep, make ready, order, prepare, prison(-er), put in bonds, set in array, tie.

And they came to the place

which GOD had told him of;

and Abraham built an altar there,

and laid the wood in order,

and bound Isaac his son,

and laid him on the altar

upon the wood.

Genesis 22:9

BOUND:  from Strong's Concordance {6123}— `aqad, aw-kad'; a primitive root; to tie with thongs: — bind.

Here we see the prophetic fore-runner of the Sacrifice of the LAMB+ of GOD.  Abraham's obedient preparations to sacrifice Isaac, his son, his only-beloved son, shows us that.

We are thankful that The LORD GOD did not require this sacrifice from Abraham's hand... and that HE does not require this of us.  HE provided Abraham a ram in the thicket and an angel to tell him the obedience in his heart was received as "acceptable" to GOD.  

 How was this prophetic Scripture

fulfilled in CHRIST ?

Were there ropes which tied

and bound our LORD to The Altar

... the altar of the Cross ?

While walking the mile or so to Golgotha, our LORD was made to carry the crossbeam of His+ Cross. HE+ may have been tied to that crossbeam at this point for HE+ was very depleted of strength. How could HE+ hold His+ lacerated arms up to balance about an 100-pound,  rough-hewn, beam of wood?

Indeed, so depleted and weak from the cruel treatment of the soldiers and His+ scourging , Our LORD was unable to carry the crossbeam plus continue His+ walking to Golgotha. So, the expedient soldiers snatched a traveler to carry it. Simon of Cyrene was plucked from the crowded way as Simon was simply travelling through Jerusalem from the country.

The Ropes of the Cross of JESUS

It is not so written in Scripture that there were any actual ropes or leather thongs used when they crucified Our LORD, although some Christian art would have us "see" ropes in a variety of ways in pictures of the crucifixion.

This, however, we do know for certain: His+ binding came from within His+ heart. HE+ always did the Will of His+ Heavenly FATHER. 

 JESUS saith unto them,

My meat is to do the will

of HIM that sent ME+,

and to finish HIS work.

John 4:34

Saying, FATHER,

if THOU be willing,

remove this cup from ME+:

nevertheless not My+ will,

but Thine, be done.

Luke 22:42

The Ropes of the Cross of JESUS

Are our hearts bound to that Cross of JESUS , the cross HE+ has chosen for us to bear, following HIM+ ?

Do we have cords of love that bind us closely to His+ Will, no matter what the cost ?

Do we stand for the Truth of The LORD, as a true Servant of CHRIST?  Are we really His+ Servant, doing the Will of GOD from our hearts ?

Servants, be obedient to them

that are your masters

according to the flesh,

with fear and trembling,

in singleness of your heart,

as unto CHRIST;

Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers

but as the Servants of CHRIST,

doing the Will of GOD

from the heart;

Ephesians 6:5-6

Let us pray:

Dear LORD JESUS, I acknowledge my guilt: I have sought to squirm out of doing Your+ Will.

So many times, I have taken the easy way out, not speaking Your+ Truth from the Scriptures in love, but just smiling and going on. I was not willing to pay the price. 

I have avoided the uncomfortable, the rejection and anger, which follows.

How shall I ever stand during persecution ?

Cleanse me from protecting Self. Cleanse me from hiding Your+ Truth.

I repent. Bind my heart to Yours+, O LORD. Bind my heart to do Your+ Will at all times.

Bind me to YOU+ ; I give You+ the cords of my heart, O LORD.

I offer this, my imperfect prayer, to YOU+, O CHRIST.

+  +  +

O GOD our FATHER, WHO for our Redemption Didst Give .... HOLY MONDAY

HE+ is NOT HERE !

O GOD our FATHER... 

   WHO for our Redemption didst give Thine Only-Begotten SON+ to the death of the Cross. 

   And... 

   by HIS+ glorious Resurrection has delivered us from the power of the adversary. 

   Grant ...

     us so to die daily from sin that we may evermore live with HIM+ in the joy of His+ Resurrection... 

    Through...

 .... the Same, Thy SON+ JESUS CHRIST Our LORD, Our Great HIGH PRIEST+,  Our only MEDIATOR+ and ADVOCATE+,  WHO+ lives and reigns with THEE and Thy Blessed HOLY SPIRIT...

    ONE GOD, 

now and forever, 

world without end, 

Amen. 

HOLY MONDAY ~ ~ ~ The Cleansing of the Temple ~ ~ ~ The Day of the Blood-Red EARTH !

JESUS CLEANSING THE TEMPLE

Drawing courtesy of J.J. Tissot / Sacred Art Meditations

^{Scripture Verses courtesy of  Bibleworks. org,  recorded by Matthew, chapter  21}

⁴ All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,

⁵ Tell ye the Daughter of Zion, 

Behold, 

thy KING+ cometh unto thee, 

meek, 

and sitting upon an ass, 

and a colt the foal of an ass.

⁶ And the disciples went, and did as JESUS commanded them,
⁷ And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set HIM+ thereon.
⁸ And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.

⁹ And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying,

Hosanna to the SON+ of David: 

Blessed is HE+ 

that cometh in the name of The LORD; 

Hosanna in the highest!

¹⁰ And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?
¹¹ And the multitude said,

This is JESUS the Prophet+ of Nazareth of Galilee.

¹² And JESUS went into the Temple of GOD, 

and cast out all them 

that sold and bought in the Temple, 

and overthrew the tables of the money-changers, 

and the seats of them that sold doves,

¹³ And [ JESUS ] said unto them, 

It is written, 

My+ house shall be called 

the house of prayer; 

but ye have made it a den of thieves!

¹⁴ And the blind and the lame came to HIM+ in the temple; and HE+ healed them.

¹⁵ And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that HE+ did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, 

Hosanna to the SON+ of David; 

they were sore displeased,

¹⁶ And said unto HIM+, Hearest thou what these say? 

And JESUS saith unto them, 

Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?

¹⁷ And HE+ left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and HE+ lodged there.

MEDITATION ~ ~ ~ 

Oh, that cleansing of the Temple of GOD!  

This was the second ... but not the last... CLEANSING of the Temple of GOD that The LORD effected.

I+ and MY+ FATHER are ONE. 

John 10:30

Do we think HE+ will not cleanse the temple of GOD on earth, in us,  AGAIN?  

Yes indeed, the cleansing is appointed, the testing is determined,  and it is moving towards us all, right on schedule... HIS+ pre-determined schedule. 

There is a phenomenon taking place in the Heavens, called the 4 blood-red moons. It is real. 

The times of these lunar eclipses are, scientifically, RIGHT IN LINE with the ancient Jewish calendar of Passover and Sukkoth. ( It would behoove readers to research this on the Internet for themselves. )

Photo courtesy of
 www.earthsky.org

On the night of April 14-15,
the planet Mars – closest in 6 years – will be near the eclipsed moon.
The star Spica will also be nearby.
Illustration via Classical Astronomy.

Above, ^ , is a graphic of what will take place in the skies TONIGHT, starting at 2 a.m. , and lasting for 77 minutes.

Lunar eclipse of March 3, 2007.

 Image by Joshua Valcarcel via Wikimedia Commons.

Courtesy of www.earthsky.org

Photo courtesy of www.earthsky.org

This is what a total eclipse looks like. 

This is the total eclipse of October 27, 2004 via Fred Espenak of NASA. 

We astronomy writers often describe a 

totally eclipsed moon as appearing ‘blood red.’ 

Here’s why the moon turns red during a total eclipse. 

www.earthsky.org

This is the blood red moon from the lunar eclipse in 2004. 

When the eclipse is beginning and ending, the moon is simply dark. 

HOWEVER: when totally eclipsed, the moon reflects light from the earth. It does this for a very short period of time and is breath-taking red. 

Is this how 

The ALMIGHTY 

sees this planet earth ?
.
.  .  .
.
.
...

Blood red ?
A blood-red earth.  

How could HE not see earth that way ? 

Does not the blood of the innocents slain cry out to HIM from the earth...from the blood-drenched battlefields...  from the hidden laboratories ?  

HE Who made the ear, 

does HE not hear ?

HE Who made the eye, 

does HE not see ?  

O earth, earth, earth, 

HEAR the WORD+ 

of The LORD! 

... before it is too late. 

And , "too late" is quickly approaching. 

Come unto ME+, 

all ye who labor and are heavy-laden

and 

I+ will give 

you rest. 

Take MY+ yoke upon you,

and learn 

from ME+. 

For I+ am meek and lowly of heart

and ye shall find rest for your souls.

Let us Pray:

LORD, have mercy upon me, a sinner, condemned to die. 

LORD, have mercy upon me, a sinner, who ignored THEE+  for so long, who turned a deaf ear to Thy+ HOLY Words, who has been pre-occupied with what makes my Self feel good.

LORD, have mercy upon me, a lost or stumbling sheep of Thy+ own fold. 

Destroy me not with this blood-red earth of those who delight to shed the blood of others. Cleanse me of anger, pride, and that horrible self-will. 

LORD, have mercy upon me!   

Bless GOD: 

FATHER, 

SON+, 

and HOLY SPIRIT,

both now and forever. 

Amen.