Page 104 - Life of Christ - textbook (3)

Study Section 17: Jesus is Crucified and Resurrected

17.1 Connect.

The darkest day in history was the day the Messiah was crucified on a hill called Calvary.
Gospel of John says, “He came unto His own, but His own received Him not” (John 1:11).
Throughout His ministry among the Jews, He proved repeatedly that He was the Messiah
by the thousands of miracles He performed publicly. Yet, despite the miracles, He was
rejected by the religious leaders and many of the people. Their hearts were hardened,
and their eyes blinded to what He had demonstrated to them: The Messiah, the Son of
God had come. In their defiance against God, they fulfilled God’s plan to allow the Messiah to suffer
and die for the sins of mankind. Jesus was crucified. However, in three days, He arose from the dead
proving He had conquered sin and death. He became our living Savior and Lord. Today we will see the
plan of God fulfilled….

17.2 Objectives.

1. The student should be able to explain the details about Roman crucifixion and the location
where Jesus was crucified.

2. The student should be able to explain the process of Jewish burials and the attempt of the
wicked religious leaders to prevent Jesus from rising.

3. The student should be able to describe Christ’s resurrection and look at some details about the
event.

17.3 Jesus on the Cross (Matthew 27:31-34, Mark 15:20-23, Luke 23:26-33 and John 19:17;
Matthew 27:35-44, Mark 15:24-32, Luke 23:33-43 and John 19:18-27; Matthew 27:45-
50, Mark 15:33-37, Luke 23:44-46 and John 19:28-30; Matthew 27:51-56, Mark 15:38-41
and Luke 23:50-54)

The Romans designed crucifixion to be unspeakably cruel, mercilessly lingering,
inescapably public, and publicly certifiable. Those who were crucified publicly died for
their crimes as witnessed by the masses who watched. Thus, crucifixion was always on a
low hill outside the city gate because all people must pass that way. Jesus was forced to
carry the horizontal piece of the cross to the place of execution, just outside the main
gate on the north of the city. This beam weighed around 100 lbs. The journey from the
fort to Calvary was about a half mile, up a hill.

Golgotha or Calvary was also called the Place of the Skull. It was a small hill located outside the north
city gate which reminded people of a human skull. There criminals condemned by the Romans were
publicly stripped, beaten, and nailed to a cross to die, sometimes hanging for days before death would
come. The only way to hasten death by suffocation was by breaking the legs of the criminal, thus
preventing him from pushing up to take a breath. Death occurred within minutes.

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