Father Into Your Hands...

Let’s start by taking a step back to look at the time line of Jesus’ last day. It’s the middle of the night and Jesus is in the garden praying. He is arrested in the dark and taken to the house of the high priest where he is waits (and also beaten) until day break and brought before the elders for a few questions. They then take him to Pilate (just after daybreak), who sends him to Herod. Then he is sent back to Pilate, and in the next few hours he is flogged befoe carrying the cross through the city and outside the gate to be crucified. He is place on the cross and left there to die which is where our scripture for today starts. Read Luke 23:44-49

The first thing we learn is it was about the 6th hour, which according to the notes at the bottom of my bible informs me that it is noon. Jesus on limited or no sleep has been taken various places, beaten, flogged, carried the cross, and put up on the cross by noon.

The second thing we learn is there is darkness… for three hours in the middle of the day! Then at the 9th hour four major things happen: 1. There is an earthquake (Matt 27:51) 2. Bodies are being raised (Matt 27:52) 3. The curtain is torn 4. Jesus, gives up his spirit and dies (Jn 19:30, Lk 23:46). Had I seen all this happen I think my automatic reaction would be to freak out a bit. Most likely there was a bunch of chaos, fear, terror, screams and people running around frantic. The earthquake is bad enough to be splitting rocks and the curtain being torn was probably one of worst things that could happen to the temple. I don’t even know what to say about bodies being raised…

With everything going on needless to say things were loud, people were upset, and things were looking a little hopeless. So what should people do? Pray? Cry out to God for help? Something else? In Isaiah 53:6-7 Jesus sets the example, he is silent and doesn’t open his mouth. While sometime we need to tell God what is on our hearts, other times we need to be silent and trust and give ourselves over to his hands. Jesus commits his spirit into the Father’s hands (Lk 23:45) because he trusts him and knows it is the only thing to do.

We should come before God in the same way, trusting Him and knowing there is no other way. In the amidst of chaos, a busy week, a stressful moment, temptation, whatever it is to be still and know that he is God so He will be exalted (Ps 46:10). Take the focus off your suffering for a moment and put it back on God. David gives us the same advice in Psalm 4:4-5 (take a quick look… Ps 51:16-17 defines sacrifices of the righteous). We are to search our hearts and remain silent. Many times in our lives when things seem overwhelming God is usually trying to get our attention to say something that were not listening to. So why not stay silent and listen so we know how to pray and don’t fall into sin and hardness of heart?

The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him. (Hab 2:20) Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your mist? (1Cor 3:16) Let us therefore, as God’s temple, be silent before him so that He may be exalted and glorified through the Spirit alive and dwelling within us.