-Death on a Cross-
A medical doctor provides a physical description:
Thecross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man isquickly thrown backwards with his shoulders againstthe wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression atthe front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, squarewrought iron nail through the wrist deep into thewood. Quickly he moves to the other side and repeatsthe action, being careful not to pull the arms tootightly, but to allowsome flex and movement. The cross is then lifted intoplace. The left foot is pressed backward against theright foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, anail is driven through the arch of each, leaving theknees flexed. The victim is now crucified. As heslowly sags down with more weight on the nails in thewrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots along thefingers and up the arms to explode in the brain- thenails in the wrists are putting pressure on the mediannerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid thiswretching torment, he places the full weight on thenail through his feet. Again he feels the searingagony of the nail tearing through the nerves betweenthe bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue, crampssweep through his muscles, knotting them deeprelentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps comesthe inability to push himself upward to breathe. Aircan be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He fightsto raise himself in order to get even one smallbreath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungsand in theblood stream, and the cramps partially subsided.Spasmodically, he is able to push himself upward toexhale and bring in life-giving oxygen. Hours oflimitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint wrenchingcramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searingpain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as hemoves up and down against rough timber. Then anotheragony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chestas the pericardium slowly fills with serum and beginsto compress the heart. It is now almost over-the lossoftissue fluids has reached a critical level - thecompressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick,sluggish blood into the tissues - the tortured lungsare making frantic effort to gasp in small gulps ofair. He can feel the chill of death creeping throughhis tissues. Finally, he can allow his body to die...All this the Bible records with the simple words, "andthey crucified Him" (Mark 15:24).What wondrous love is this? Many people don't knowthat pain and suffering our Lord, Jesus Christ wentthrough for us...because of the brutality, crucifixionwas given a sentence to only its worst offenders ofthe law. Thieves, murderers, and rapists would be thetypes of people who got crucified. Yet, here Jesus isbeing crucified between two hardened criminals...Whatdid Jesus do? Did he murder anyone? Did he stealanything? The answer as we all know is NO!! Jesus didnothing to deserve this type of death, yet He wentwilling to die, in between 2 thieves, so that we mightbe saved. And there, in between the sinners, was ourslain Savior for our sins. God sent his son Jesus tothis horrible death so that we wouldn't have to.
... Yet we still try to deny Him, worship our own idols, play the leading roll in our story, try to live the life alone that He wants to be glorified in and apart of...
-Blessings-
Thecross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man isquickly thrown backwards with his shoulders againstthe wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression atthe front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, squarewrought iron nail through the wrist deep into thewood. Quickly he moves to the other side and repeatsthe action, being careful not to pull the arms tootightly, but to allowsome flex and movement. The cross is then lifted intoplace. The left foot is pressed backward against theright foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, anail is driven through the arch of each, leaving theknees flexed. The victim is now crucified. As heslowly sags down with more weight on the nails in thewrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots along thefingers and up the arms to explode in the brain- thenails in the wrists are putting pressure on the mediannerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid thiswretching torment, he places the full weight on thenail through his feet. Again he feels the searingagony of the nail tearing through the nerves betweenthe bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue, crampssweep through his muscles, knotting them deeprelentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps comesthe inability to push himself upward to breathe. Aircan be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He fightsto raise himself in order to get even one smallbreath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungsand in theblood stream, and the cramps partially subsided.Spasmodically, he is able to push himself upward toexhale and bring in life-giving oxygen. Hours oflimitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint wrenchingcramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searingpain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as hemoves up and down against rough timber. Then anotheragony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chestas the pericardium slowly fills with serum and beginsto compress the heart. It is now almost over-the lossoftissue fluids has reached a critical level - thecompressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick,sluggish blood into the tissues - the tortured lungsare making frantic effort to gasp in small gulps ofair. He can feel the chill of death creeping throughhis tissues. Finally, he can allow his body to die...All this the Bible records with the simple words, "andthey crucified Him" (Mark 15:24).What wondrous love is this? Many people don't knowthat pain and suffering our Lord, Jesus Christ wentthrough for us...because of the brutality, crucifixionwas given a sentence to only its worst offenders ofthe law. Thieves, murderers, and rapists would be thetypes of people who got crucified. Yet, here Jesus isbeing crucified between two hardened criminals...Whatdid Jesus do? Did he murder anyone? Did he stealanything? The answer as we all know is NO!! Jesus didnothing to deserve this type of death, yet He wentwilling to die, in between 2 thieves, so that we mightbe saved. And there, in between the sinners, was ourslain Savior for our sins. God sent his son Jesus tothis horrible death so that we wouldn't have to.
... Yet we still try to deny Him, worship our own idols, play the leading roll in our story, try to live the life alone that He wants to be glorified in and apart of...
-Blessings-
posted by Bensonator at
10:38 AM
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