The Lord is rise indeed. Hallelujah! Happy Easter!
Up from the grave he arose, with a mighty triumph o’re his foes, he arose victorious from the dark domain, and he lives forever with his saints to raise, he arose, he arose, hallelujah, Christ arose!
On the next day, which was a Sabbath, the chief priests and the Pharisees went together to Pilate. They said, “Sir, we remember what this liar said while he was still alive. He claimed in three days he would come back from death. So please order the tomb to be carefully guarded for three days. If you don’t, his disciples may come and steal his body. They will tell the people he has been raised to life, and this last lie will be worse than the first one.” Pilate said to them, “All right, take some of your soldiers and guard the tomb as well as you know how.” So, they sealed it tight and placed soldiers there to guard it.
The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord’s angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead.
Many women had come with Jesus from Galilee to be of help to him, and they were there, looking on at a distance. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of James and John were some of these women.
That evening a rich disciple named Joseph from the town of Arimathea went and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate gave orders for it to be given to Joseph, who took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth. Then Joseph put the body in his own tomb that had been cut into solid rock and had never been used. He rolled a big stone against the entrance to the tomb and went away.
“At noon the sky turned dark and stayed that way until three o’clock. Then, about that time Jesus shouted, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?”which means, “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?”
“Some of the people standing there heard Jesus and said, “He’s calling for Elijah. One of them at once ran and grabbed a sponge. He soaked it in wine, then put it on a stick and held it up to Jesus. Others said, “Wait! Let’s see if Elijah will come and save him.” Once again Jesus shouted, and then he died. At once the curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, and rocks split apart. Graves opened, and many of God’s people were raised to life. They left their graves, and after Jesus had risen to life, they went into the holy city, where they were seen by many people. The officer and the soldiers guarding Jesus felt the earthquake and saw everything else that happened. They were frightened and said, “This man really was God’s Son!”
“People who passed by said terrible things about Jesus. They shook their heads and shouted, “So you’re the one who claimed you could tear down the temple and build it again in three days! If you are God’s Son, save yourself and come down from the cross!”
“Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross, so that everyone might come within the reach of you saving embrace. So, clothe us with your Spirit that we reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you, to the knowledge and love of you.”
When they came to the place called The Skull, they crucified Him there, along with the criminals, one on His right and the other on His left and Jesus in the middle and the scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘He was numbered with the transgressors’.
The soldiers nailed Jesus to a cross and gambled to see who would get his clothes. Then they sat down to guard him. Above his head they put a sign that told why he was nailed there. It read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.
After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth.
“Carrying His own cross, He went out to The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha.”
“And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means the place of the Skull, they offered him wine to drink mixed with gall, but after tasting it, he refused to drink it.”
“They stripped off Jesus’ clothes and put a scarlet robe on him. They made a crown out of thorn branches and placed it on his head, and they put a stick in his right hand. The soldiers knelt down and pretended to worship him. They made fun of him and shouted, “Hey, you king of the Jews!” Then they spit on him. They took the stick from him and beat him on the head with it.”
Lord God, whose blessed Son our Savior gave his body to be whipped and his face to be spit upon: Give us grace to accept joyfully the sufferings of the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light. Surely against me he turned his hand again and again all the day. My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones.