King found guilty. Verdict pronounced - flogging and Crucifixion.

The trial

After a night of waiting in the Temple court, shivering from the night cold a whisper circulates that my King has been tried. A group of soldiers emerge from the Temple. My King is bound and stumbling along between them. They march him straight to a short pole splashed with blood. A foot jams the back of my King's legs and he nosedives to the ground. 

No mercy

Now bound to the stake, I watch in horror as the flagrum is waved in the air and slashes down with force onto my King's back. The lead tips rip off his skin and blood spurts out in all directions as the torturous instrument returns to its owner. Strike one, strike two, strike three, on and on (Matthew 27:26). 

I choose to stand in front of my King and attempt eye contact. I feel sick as I can do nothing to ease the pain. As the whipping continues, open wounds grow and form trenches down my King's back. His hands in fists shaking, eyes tight shut with life draining away. Finally, he collapses and lying in his own blood the torture finishes. The soldiers watching laugh, how little life seems to mean to them. The sense of evil wandering around the courtyard chills my bones.

I try to reach my King's outstretched hand but a soldier stamps on it. I say nothing as the pain is minimal compared to such a shredded back.

The Crown of Thorns

To add insult to injury once my King has raised himself up and is struggling to keep upright, one of the soldiers rams a crown of thorns on his head. Another slings a red robe around his mangled shoulders (Matthew 27:27-31). The material is instantly drenched with blood and I see a grimace on my Saviour's face. 

The final journey begins

Scarcely able to put one foot in front of another, a burly soldier points to a Crossbar and demands that it be carried to Calvery. Two soldiers heave the wood onto his shoulders, the splinters digging into the muscles on his back. With steely determination, wiping the fresh blood out of his face my King slowly drags his decimated body towards his destiny. 

On the road to Calvary

The crowds hustle on either side of the road eager to see what is happening. Running behind the onlookers I jump periodically to keep an eye on the progress of my King. Three times he falls, smashing onto dust and stone, the crown of thorns piercing his head each time. I felt he wouldn't make the journey with such horrific injuries. On the third fall, I see soldiers seize a man from the crowd and command him to help (Matthew 27:32).

The King's final resting place

On the ground ready for the Crossbar lies the upright post. My King places his piece of wood in the groove. Still, the Cross is incomplete, its arms desiring a victim. My King without any force surrenders to the inevitable and collapses onto the wooden surface. I sob, can a man endure anymore? Then three soldiers hammer nails into his hands and feet.

The Cross is now dragged over small rocks bumping my King and creating spasms that surge through his body. The soldiers raise the Cross up and crunch it into the dry stony earth. The jolt wrenches his hands and feet moving them against the iron nails. 

I am not worth

Watching my King die in excruciating pain tears me apart. I see him gasp and I plunge to my knees - I am not worthy, forgive me, Father. His eyes fade and all is gone.

The wind is blowing up a storm and clouds darker than the night roll overhead. The earth is shaking and as I look towards Jerusalem I see the Temple split in two. My King's prophecy has been fulfilled (Matthew 24:2). 

An eerie silence descends, and my world turned upside down - now what? My King is dead....

This week is Holy Week a time to ponder on the events leading up to Christ's death and Resurrection. We too are on a journey not necessarily to the same grotesque end, but nonetheless to a place that requires sacrifice, forgiveness and love to walk there.  

Come and join me each day as I accompany Jesus on His journey.

God bless,

Margaret

https://www.facebook.com/MargaretKazmierczakAuthorBlogger/

www.margaretk.co.uk 

(Note: This is my expression of Holy Week, the order of events may have been a bit different.) 

Crucifixion the only way - Holy Week Day Four

Crucifixion the only way

Jumbled thoughts

My head is a jumble with all the talk last night. As the sun set the King revealed that he will be handed over to be crucified. How does he know this? I can scarcely bring myself to ponder on such a fate. The thought makes me feel sick, my body to tremble, I want to shout "no". I have just found him and my life has new meaning and direction. I can't bear the thought of losing my King so soon. 

A Prayer request on behalf of the King

I waited behind when everyone left the mount and cried. I prayed and pleaded for my King - don't take him away. Shattered from all my beseeching I staggered back to the house the King was staying in. All appeared quiet apart from some gentle snoring. 

Peaceful acceptance

I heard a noise, a shaky door squeaking as it opened. The silhouette of a man outlined by the eery moon stepped out. I leant flat against the wall, my heart pounding like an orchestral drum. But he sensed my presence and signalled me to draw closer. Without saying anything he enwrapped me in his arms and kissed my forehead. Instantly an overwhelming aura gripped me. From the tip of my head to my toes a new and exhilarating force penetrated my body. As my King released me his piercing eyes transfixed me. I saw sorrow and triumph at the same time. In my mind words formed - I love you. I gasped at the intensity and looked at the man in front of me, his demeanour victorious and vulnerable at the same time. Without warning an irresistible urge to sleep took over and peace ensued.

The next day

Awake and rested I search for my King and his disciples, but they have gone. The lady of the house points to Jerusalem.  I know he will be teaching once again in the Temple. Scrambling as fast as I can along the dusty road moving in and out of wagons full of wares and animals, I arrive, dirty and unkempt. 

A ruckus is in full flow. Soldiers and men arguing audibly, pushing and shoving one another. A man lies on the ground arms flailing, struggling to get up trying to avoid feet that tread on him as the fight intensifies. 

Trouble in the Temple

I ask a skinny young lad cowering behind a stall to explain the disturbance. His shaky voice expounds that a man in the Temple is stirring up trouble again. It had to be my King. 

The Temple was packed again, young and old craning to hear (Luke 21:37-38), as my King in full voice stood teaching the crowd.

The midday sun pierces down as my King emerges from the cold Temple.I track him to the Mount of Olives, observing the group chatting and enjoying one another's company. I do not follow further this time but leave them there to their intimate gathering. 






I know the growing discord in Jerusalem will heighten so I decide to stay outside the city walls....

This week is Holy Week a time to ponder on the events leading up to Christ's death and Resurrection. We too are on a journey not necessarily to the same grotesque end, but nonetheless to a place that requires sacrifice, forgiveness and love to walk there.  

Come and join me each day as I accompany Jesus on His journey.

God bless,

Margaret

https://www.facebook.com/MargaretKazmierczakAuthorBlogger/

www.margaretk.co.uk 

    

(Note: This is my expression of Holy Week, the order of events may have been a bit different.)  

Leading Priests,Teachers and Leaders plan to kill the King - Holy Week Day Three

This man is dangerous - say Leading Priests, Teachers of religious law and other Leaders.

The King is preaching in the Temple today - how I admire his courage after yesterday. 

The King teaches

The Temple is packed, sweaty bodies rubbing against friends and strangers. Children wriggling to find space, the elderly clutching onto anything or anyone they can.  

The mood among the people is mixed, some are excited to hear the King teach, while others weary and scared. Some strain to hear the message, others discourteous, mocking his words. There in the corner of my eye, I can see furtive glances. Priests, Teachers and other Leaders watching and waiting.   

Animosity

There is a lull in the teaching and the King stops. I can see him sensing the animosity oozing from the Religious Leaders. I watch him stare then turn back to the people. Voices recede into a static hush; arms, animated moments earlier drop to people's sides and heads having nodded enthusiastically, cease. A wave of silence breezes through the Temple, something is about to happen. The tension mounts, and you can cut it with a knife, as young and old eyes focus on the King. Then his finger points at the learned men. In unison, an unseen force turns all heads toward its target. 

The King's warning

The King speaks directly, "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people's faces." (Matthew 23:1-36)

I watch as their faces portray thunderous indignation. One after the other they throw questions at the King, trying to catch him out. But the King outwits them. What a man! You would have had to be there to see it, what a contest! Rumblings of discontent ripple from the Leaders and I can hear whispers, they are faint so that I decide to move closer. Did they really say "plotting to kill?" Panicked I rush closer to the King. I don't know what to do.

Just then the King calls to his disciples and tells them to get ready to leave. Quickly, they flock to him and I trail after them. They amble towards the Mount of Olives and I stealthfully hide behind a large dusty rock and listen, hungry for more teaching. There is no wind so I can hear without a flow of disruption. The commanding voice of the King speaks earnestly with a passion, sometimes sitting, sometimes standing. 

He is absorbed intimately in communicating imperative truths. (Matthew24-25) The disciples seem curious, asking questions to learn more. I, on the other hand, do not understand what is being taught and feel an unsettling loneliness. There is no one for me to confide in, to help me grasp the importance or meaning of his words.   

However, as I sit here I know that the power of the King's teaching is what I need and HE is WHO I need. I can't go back now, the only path is to go forward with my King wherever that takes me.....

This week is Holy Week a time to ponder on the events leading up to Christ's death and Resurrection. We too are on a journey not necessarily to the same grotesque end, but nonetheless to a place that requires sacrifice, forgiveness and love to walk there.  

Come and join me each day as I accompany Jesus on His journey.

God bless,

Margaret

https://www.facebook.com/MargaretKazmierczakAuthorBlogger/

www.margaretk.co.uk

 

 

Mayhem as King goes mad in Temple court

Eyewitness account

Last night I had the most wonderful sleep, dreams filled my mind of the triumphant entry the King made yesterday into Jerusalem. I had hunkered down close to the house the King stayed in overnight. I wanted to be near him.

The fig tree 

The King left early this morning with his friends, so I followed him at a distance. He must have been hungry, I know I was. On the road to Jerusalem, he stopped and appeared to be talking to a fig tree. His gesticulations implied a frustrated tone, I could hear something about a tree without fruit being useless, then it withered and died (Matthew 21:18-19).

The Temple

Their journey ended at the Temple. I stayed near to the group mingling with the heaving crowd. There were money changers everywhere, emphatically pronouncing their services. Animals bleating, birds screeching, deafening noises that added to the chaos. 

Chaos

Then the King exploded, he upturned tables scattering money in a blaze of anger. Animals frightened, scuttled from the Temple, knocking people over. Indignant traders yelled, trying to stop the mad man, pulling at his robes. But the King was too powerful. His abhorrence so apparent that no one could control him. Sweat poured off his brow, as he toppled the last table. From the depths of the King's stomach, an aggrieved compelling voice rocketed out above the crowd.   

My Father's house

“Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!” (John 2:16)

There were some Jewish leaders nearby and they turned on the King saying, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.”

“All right,” the King replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”    (John 2:18-19)

The truth of the barren tree

Wow, this man knew how to stir up a hornet's nest. I began to see the significance of the fig tree. A barren tree that bears no fruit simulates a desolate heart that knows the right words but doesn't know the Truth. 

As I watched the King sit, weary with exertion, his hands covering his tears, I felt an overwhelming love for him. He knew, he just knew what was going to happen and his heart bled. 

This week is Holy Week a time to ponder on the events leading up to Christ's death and Resurrection. We too are on a journey not necessarily to the same grotesque end, but nonetheless to a place that requires sacrifice, forgiveness and love to walk there.  

Come and join me each day as I accompany Jesus on His journey.

God bless

Margaret

https://www.facebook.com/MargaretKazmierczakAuthorBlogger/

www.margaretk.co.uk

Hope and the Temple

In the Temple he (Jesus) saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices; he also saw dealers at tables exchanging foreign money. Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers' coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. Then going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, "Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father's house into a marketplace. Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: "Passion for God's house will consume me." John 2:13-17

What state is your Temple in? 

Can God dwell in it, or is it cluttered with the goings on of this world? 

Jesus saw the state of the Temple and in no uncertain terms cleaned it out. God's house a sanctuary for prayer had become a place of wheeling and dealing. 

If our Temple is cluttered with the things of this world then there will be inadequate space for Hope. 

God wants us to free up the space that is occupied with hopeless things and allow His Hope to reside there. 

We are His temples. It is time to spring clean them and make them ready so that the Holy Spirit can continually empower us with Hope.

Passion for God's house

We too must have "passion for God's house" so that we can be consumed by that same Holy Spirit. 

Do not be afraid of cleansing the Temple, but instead rejoice that we still have time to be made ready for the Greater Kingdom. 

Hope can conquer anything when it has free reign in our lives.  Jesus desires us to be recipients of that Hope. He only ever does what is good and right for us, so prepare your Temples for a new breakthrough in your lives. 

God bless

Margaret

(https://www.facebook.com/MargaretKazmierczakAuthorBlogger/)

(www.margaretk.co.uk)