The Crucified Friend For the sake of the fellowship the Lord Jesus was asking for, He endured the agony. He accepted the judgment, and the carrying of the cross, and He underwent death, and was buried in the grave so that He carries us as friends to Him for eternity. 1. His judgment before Pilate 2. His judgment before Herod 3. The Jews’ Persistence to Crucify Him 4. The cross and Simon the Cyrene 5. The cross and the lamenting women 6. His crucifixion between two thieves 7. Giving up the Christ 8. His burial 1. His judgment before Pilate: The Lord Jesus came to reconcile man to the Father, and cover man’s sins by His blood. But man accused Him of provoking the people and was the source of rebellion; for the evangelist says, “ Then the whole multitude of them arose and led Him o Pilate, and they began to accuse Him saying, ‘We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying He himself is Christ, a king” (Luke 23:1, 2) The evangelist St. Luke mentions the civil accusation clearly. In the religious council He was accused of blasphemy. Here, before Pilate, the accusation was that He was perverting the people so they do not pay taxes to Caesar, and that He appointed Himself a king, even though He was previously asked and answered, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. Also, when they wished to take Him by force and appoint Him king, He disappeared from among them! St. Cyril the great says, “They led Jesus to Pilate. They, too, were given up to the Roman soldiers who have occupied their minds, their land and have invaded their city, where the holy and revered places were, and the inhabitants were killed by the sword and by fire. In them, the prophecies of the saintly apostles were fulfilled, for one of them says, “Woe to the guilty! How unfortunate they are, for what their hands have done shall be done to them” (Is. 3:11). Another prophecy says, “As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head” (Obadiah 1: 15) There is no doubt, Pilate has heard that the Lord has called to give Caesar what is Caesar’s. When he saw that the Lord Jesus was a poor man, and that He could not appoint Himself king, he asked Him maybe mockingly, or just for appearance, “Then Pilate asked Him saying, ‘Are You the King of the Jews?’, He answered him and said, ‘It is as you say’. So Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowd, ‘I find no fault in this Man’” (Luke 23:3, 4). As St. Cyril the great says, “They led Jesus to Pilate, and they devised several accusations, and they brought them up against Christ. They were false accusations that had no proof whatsoever. By this, they were more malicious than the atheists, for Pilate had justified Him from any accusation saying, “I find no fault in this man”. Pilate said this three times. When the leaders could not provoke the governor against Him by rational means, “But they were more fierce, saying, ‘He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place” (Luke 23:5). They might have wished to threaten the governor by this, because the situation is not limited in his area only, but that it extends to other places as well. This means that if Pilate does not pass a verdict over Him, another ruler will do so; thus the governor would be looked upon as careless in the eyes of Caesar, leaving those who cause chaos without any judgment. It also maybe for this reason that Pilate sent Him to Herod and to Galilee, so that if He is pronounced innocent or guilty, there would be another governor’s verdict supporting him before Caesar. According to the Roman law, moreover, every person stands before his district governor to be judged. Therefore Pilate did not wish to trespass over Herod’s concerns, despite the enmity existing between them. It is as if Pilate paid consideration to the earthly law, quite contently, and handed Him over to another governor, whereas the Jewish leaders did not pay any regard to the divine law of God, and gave up the Lord Jesus to be crucified unto the death sentence wrongfully. We also notice that the Lord Jesus did not defend himself with a single word. He counted the truth in which He is, well testified about by this silence, and that He does not need any words to testify of Him. This is what the evangelist proclaims in the encounter between the Lord Jesus and Herod, as we shall see. He came to draw our hearts by His love, and not to defend Himself. 2. His judgment before Herod: “Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad, for he had desired for a long time to see Him, because he had heard many things about Him, and he hoped to see some miracle done by Him. Then he questioned Him with many words, but He answered Him nothing. And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him. Then Herod with His men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back to Pilate. That very day Pilate and Herod became friends with each other, for previously they had been at enmity with each others.” (Luke 23: 8-12) We notice in the encounter between the Lord Jesus and Herod the following points: First: Herod wished to be assured of what he had heard about the Lord Jesus, and this is why he was so happy to see Him. It was not to be blessed by Him, or to know the truth, but it was to see miracles and wonders. But the Lord did not come to parade miracles, but rather to save the souls. This is why He kept silent and did not even answer the accusations alleged against Him, therefore Herod scorned Him and his men ill-treated Him. Second: In his judgment, whether it be with the chief priest or Pilate or Herod, the Lord kept silent, so the words be fulfilled, “like a lamb to the slaughter and like a sheep that is before its shearers is silent” (Isa. 53:7). The Lord was likened to being a lamb in being silent so He would be counted righteous and not guilty. St. Augustine This is an awesome example calling on the human hearts to endure the humiliation in a firm spirit. The Lord was accused and yet He kept silent! In His silence He was just, because He was in no need of some one to defend Him. St. Ambrosios Third: St. Ambrosios commented on the gorgeous robe that Herod dressed the Lord in saying, “Herod dressed the Lord in a white robe to point out that the agony He endured was because of no blame in Him; for He is the lamb of God that is unblemished carrying gloriously the sins of the world. Fourth: Father Theophlactiss thinks the friendship that ensued between Pilate and Herod due to the killing of the Lord Jesus after the enmity that had existed between them, that His is a reproach to us. Satan has united the two enemies to carry out his evil purpose. As for us, we are divided against ourselves instead of being united for the sake of the salvation of our souls. As for St. Ambrosios, he thinks the friendship between the two enemies, a reference to the unity that has come to be between the people of Israel and the Gentile nations through Christ’s death, by the acceptance of everyone as members in the New testament church, the new covenant church. 3. The Jews Insist on Crucifying the Lord: First: We are not surprised that the Lord Jesus, though He was falsely accused, has been silent, whereas the enemies stood in defense of Him, among whom were Pilate and Herod. Pilate testified, “and indeed, having experienced Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning all the things of which you accuse Him. No neither did Herod” (Luke 23:14, 15). When they insisted on killing Him once and twice, He assured them, “why what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him” (Luke 23: 22), but they cried out insistently that He be crucified! Pilate rebuked them and offered some justification for himself, saying, “I have found no fault in this man…” here are those who know the divine law and have sublime qualities, and say they are Moses’ disciples, here they are asking that He be put to death. It is He who is blameless, He is the head and the teacher of every righteousness. It is He who grants the believers every righteousness in great skill. They have become all the more, deserving of every severe punishment, because Pilate whose job was to condemn Him, had pronounced Him innocent. St. Cyril the Great Secondly: The Lord has exerted every effort even His own life, for the sake of offering His fellowship to mankind, yet, His own rejected Him and preferred Barabas to Him, “and they all cried out at once saying, ‘away with this man, and release to us Barabas’ who had been thrown into prison for a certain rebellion made in the city and for murder” (Luke 23:18, 19). They wanted to kill the righteous one and release the rebellious and the killer. As St. Ambrosios says, “the word ‘barabas’ means the son of the father. It is as if these are the ones to whom it has been said, “you are of your father, the devil” (John 8:44). Now they are preferring their fathers son, that is the Anti-Christ, rather than the son of God. Third: For the third time they cried out vehemently, and begged Pilate to crucify Him, “But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that He be crucified. And the voices of these men and of the chief priests prevailed. So Pilate gave the sentence that it should be as they requested. And he released to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison, but he delivered Jesus to their will” (Luke 23:23-25). These cruel and unlawful shouts have been rebuked by the Lord in Isaiah the prophet, “For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the people pf Judah, are His pleasant planting, He expected justice, but saw bloodshed, righteousness but heard a cry” (Is. 5:7). At another place he spoke of them, “woe to them, for they have strayed from Me! Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against Me! I would redeem them, but they spoke lies against Me” (Hos. 7:13). Also, “their officials shall fall by the sword because of the rage of their tongue” (Hos. 7:16). It is said that Pilate gave the word that their desire be done, for this was good in their eyes, because Pilate’s will was defeated, and the verdict has been pronounced. They resisted and vehemently opposed Pilate, and they overcame him. Thus this was a trap to them and was the cause of their perdition. It is this that pushed them to disastrous and incessant perdition and devastation. St. Cyril the Great 4. The Cross and Simon the Cyrene: “Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon Cyrene, who was coming from the country, and on Him they laid the cross that He might bear it after Jesus.” (Luke 23:26). We have said that the word ‘simon’ means to ‘to hear’ or ‘to obey’, ‘cyrene’ means ‘the inheritance’, which is a Gentile city in Libya. Therefore ‘Simon the Cyrene’ refers to the church of the new covenant that has become higher by means of the obedience in the faith. She has come form the Gentiles to share her Christ His cross, and be blessed with Him by this honorable reverence. St. John the evangelist mentions that the Lord Jesus has carried the cross (John 19:17), for this is the sign of His kingdom. As Isaiah the prophet has said, “authority rests on His shoulders” (Isa. 9:6). On the way because He wanted to make of the church a queen that shares Him His glories it was allowed that Simon, the church representative, carry the cross. St. Ambrosios says, “the time has come so that the conqueror raises his banner and so the cross was put on His shoulders. The Lord carried His banner, then He handed it over to the martyrs, for them to raise as well, “take up your cross and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). I wish we would go out with Simon in obedience that springs out of faith, going from the field of this world so as to carry the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus we share Him His inheritance and His glories. 5. The Crucifixion and the Lamenting Women: “And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women who also mourned and lamented Him. But Jesus, turning to them said, ‘Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children, for indeed, the days are coming in which they will say, ‘blessed are the barren wombs that never bore and breasts which never nursed!’ then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘fall on us’ and to the hills ‘cover us’! for if they do their things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry” (Luke 23: 27-31) Because the evangelist St. Luke wrote to the Gentiles, he wished to focus on a womens’ position and her esteem in the eyes of a Christian. The men have rebelled against the truth and the multitudes revolted asking for the crucifixion of the righteous and the release of the killer, whereas a crowd of women were lamenting what happened and following the Lord in those bitter moments. Our Christ, the real friend, turned to these women, to direct their human tears that were full of pity on Him to the sincere repentance and ask for the salvation of their souls and their childrens’ saying, “do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children”. The Lord himself wept over Jerusalem, since it did not want to weep over itself, the Lord wants us to weep so as to escape from the perdition. He who weeps a lot in the world, is saved in the future; because, ‘the heart of the wise is in the house of lamentation, whereas the heart of the ignorant is in the house of laughter”. The Lord Himself said, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh” (Luke 6:21). Let us weep, then for a time, and then be joyful forever. Let us fear the Lord and wait for Him, in confession of our sins. Let us revert from our wickedness, so we are not told, “woe is me! ….the faithful have disappeared from the land and there is no one left who is upright” (Micah 7:12) St. Ambrosios Furthermore, many of the fathers think the words here are addressed to the Jewish nation, for He called them, ‘daughters of Jerusalem’ He declared to the Jews that it is appropriate for them that they rather weep over what would befall Jerusalem. If the Roman verdict has been pronounced of crucifying the ‘green branch’, that is the Lord Jesus, then Jews will hand over the ‘dry branch’, to the Roman swords where Jerusalem will be besieged, and the temple will be absolutely destroyed. He called Himself ‘the green tree’ or ‘the green branch’ that bears leaves and fruits and blossoms. As for its fruits these are His teachings, His advice and the testimony of the power of His godliness in His divine miracles that are indescribable: the dead He has raised to life, and He healed the lepers, and healed the blind, and many other wonders He did that urge us to give absolute gratitude to the perfection. Despite the marvels that He performed, the Romans and particularly Pilate condemned Him. It was Pilate who unjustly passed judgment over Him and inflicted on Him cruel scorn. This is why He says if the Roman rulers have poured on Me these matters, even though they witnessed Me adorned in tremendous glory such as this, then what would they do to Israel, now that they have realized it is a dry and fruitless branch? For they do not find in the Israelites an unusual thing worthy of honor or mercy. Therefore they will burn them with fire unmercifully and would exercise against them fierce cruelty. St. Cyril the Great He called Himself ‘the green wood’, and us ‘the dry branch’ because He himself in Him is life and the strength of the divine nature. But as for us humans, we are called the dry branch. Pope Gregory the Great If Christ the Lord, ‘the tree of life’ did not depart from this world except after He had endured the agony for our sakes and due to our iniquity, then don’t we expect ourselves to suffer, we the dry branch that is fruitless? As for the days in which the barren women are blessed, the days of besieging Jerusalem have come, when the honest women have eaten their children due to their excessive hunger, as the Jewish historian, Youssofios, described. 6. His Crucifixion Between Two Thieves: The evangelist St. Luke offered us a description of the Lord’s crucifixion, in which was mentioned. First: For more humiliation they crucified Him between two thieves, one on the right, the other on the left, and thus the words of Isaiah the prophet have been fulfilled, “He was numbered with the transgressors, yet He bore the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isa. 53:12). The evangelist also describes the position of the two thieves, saying, “Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, ‘If You are Christ save Yourself and us’ But the other answering, rebuked him saying, ‘ Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds, but this Man has done nothing wrong’ Then he said to Jesus, ‘Lord remember me when You come into Your kingdom’ and Jesus said to him, ‘assuredly I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:39-43) If you have been crucified with Him as a thief, then come to know God since you are a repentant thief. Kneel down to Him who was hung for your sake, even if you yourself are hung. Make use of your malice, and press your salvation by means of your death. Enter with Jesus into paradise, so you learn from where you have fallen, (Rev. 2:5). St. Gregory El Naznizi The thief believed at a time when He learned themselves absolutely failed. The thief did not believe in their words, and yet his faith was such that he confessed Him who he saw nailed to the cross, and did not see Him risen or king. St. Augustine Christ Himself took the thief from the cross to Paradise, to show that repentance will not be delayed in its mission. He transformed the killer’s death to a martyr. St. Jerome Do not be ashamed to consider this thief a teacher for us. It is him who the Lord was not ashamed of, but rather He made him enter into paradise before anyone else! I do not only see Him as worthy of admiration but I bless him as well, because he did not think about his pain, but he rather forgot about himself and was concerned about his friend, trying to save Him from perdition. In this way he became a teacher when on the cross. Meditate on how he fulfilled the apostles law. He was not only concerned about himself, but he did every means as much as he could to save the other from perdition and guide him to the truth. The thief confessed, and so he found the doors of paradise open! He confessed, and so he was told enough to ask for the kingdom, even though he was a thief! Tell me, you thief, how did you remember the kingdom of heaven? What happened now and before your eyes are the nails, the cross, the accusation, the humiliation, and the swearing. He would say, yes, I can see all of these, but the cross itself is the symbol of the kingdom. Thus I call the One crucified on it, the king because the king has to die for the sheep. St. John Chrsystome Despite this, the cross itself, when we meditate well, is the judgment seat. The judge has sat in the middle: one thief believed and so he was saved, and the other blasphemed and so he was condemned. By this He meant He is the judge of the living and the dead; yes, someone on the right and the other are on His left. St. Augustine He was hung on the precious cross, and two thieves were hung with Him as well. What does this signify? To the Jews, this was out of real humility, but it was a remembrance of the prophecy, for it is written, “He was numbered with the transgressors” (Is. 52:12). For our sakes He became a curse, that is, under the curse, for it was also written, “for anyone hung on a tree, is under God’s curse” (Deut. 21:23). “But to Him, this deed wiped out the curse for us. In Him and with Him, we became blessed. Because the righteous king David knew this, he said, “we are blessed from the Lord, the creator of heaven and earth” for by His agony, the blessing came upon us. He has paid the debt on our behalf and carried our sins away, “but He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, upon Him was the punishment that made us whole, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isa. 53: 5, 6). As I said the two thieves were hung to mock Him even in the agony that has brought salvation to the world in its totality. But one of the thieves remained in the Jewish wickedness, and uttered the words of blasphemy like they did. But the other one took a praiseworthy road for he believed in the Lord at a most bitter moment of torture for himself. He rebuked the violent cries of the Jews and the words of the one being crucified with him. He confessed his sins so he could be justified. He testified of Christ blamelessly, and reproached the Jews for their impotence in loving God. He also condemned the verdict of Pilate. He became a confessor of the savior’s glory and condemned the pride of those who crucified Him. St. Cyril the Great On the cross, the thief’s hands and feet were nailed. He had nothing free to act except His heart and His tongue. By an inspiration from God, the thief offered all that was free in himself, for it is written, “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:10). The thief became all of a sudden filled with grace, and he received all of these three virtues the apostle mentioned and held unto them on the cross. He therefore obtained the salvation since He came to believe in God, that the rules and reigns, when though he saw the Lord saw as he was dying as well. He yet had the hope by which he asked to enter the Lord’s kingdom. He also kept the love as well, in great zeal at the moment of his death, since he rebuked his brother thief, his colleague. Pope Gregory the Great The Lord forgave him quickly because the thief repented quickly. Grace is of more value than the request. The thief asked the Lord to remember him, as for the Lord He answered him in an overflow, “assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise”. Life means to be with Christ, and where Christ is, the kingdom is also. St. Ambrosios Second: The evangelist St. Luke related the name where Christ was crucified to the crucifixion between two guilty men. He said, “and when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left” (Luke 23:33). In the tradition, it is mentioned that the place was called Calvary, where Adam, the head of mankind was buried. It is as if the cross was raised on Adam’s grave, where his skull was changed to dust due to his corruption. The Lord has been crucified between criminals who stand for the present corruption. In other words, the savior was hung on the cross to save us from Adam's sin as well as from the actual iniquity. Because humanity was corrupted, the Lord declared His body so that wherever corruption is manifested there is found the incorruption. This is why He was crucified in Calvary, where the Jewish scholars say Adam was buried. Pope Athanasius the apostolic The cross was raised in the middle, as assumed untop of Adam's grave. St. Ambrosios Some think the word 'Calvary' is translated from the Aramaic, 'golgotha'. It has been called as such due to its circular shape that is similar to mans skull or because it was the crucifixion site where there was a lot of crucified skulls. Furthermore, some scholars believe that the Lord Jesus was crucified between two thieves instead of Barabas who was supposed to be crucified as their leader, their colleague and their motivator for crimes. Thus, the Word replaced this killer. Thirdly: The four gospels have recorded seven words the Lord Jesus uttered on the cross, three of which have been mentioned in the gospel according to our teacher St. Luke. These seven words are: three words before darkness fell: a. -'' Father forgive them for they know not what they do"(Luke 23:34) - "Assuredly I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise"(Luke 23:43) - "Woman, behold your son!…behold your mother!" (John 19: 26, 27) b. A word during a darkness: -"My God! My God! Why have You forsaken me" (Matt 27:46, Mark 15:34) c. Three words after the darkness: -"I am thirsty" (John 19:28) -" It is finished" (John 19:30) -"Father into Your hands, I commit my Spirit" (Luke 23:46) These seven words, that the evangelist St. Luke mentioned the first, the second and the seventh have all been offered for our sake, so we be blessed with His through His work of salvation on the cross. The first is addressed for the sake of these enemies so He grants them the forgiveness, for He has come to eliminate the enmity and grant reconciliation. The second was offered to the thief in a personal sense to confirm His personal relation with everyone without remembering the past. The third was offered to His mother and to John the beloved to proclaim this care of every soul and His care to all our needs. The fourth implied a kind of reproach so we have the full courage in our speaking to God. The fifth revealed His thirst towards us, and His eagerness to man that is uninterrupted. The sixth He declared the victory of salvation, and the seventh He offered us the absolute relief. Fourth: "Then Jesus said, 'Father forgive them for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34) He said this, not because He is unable to forgive them Himself, but rather so as to teach us to pray for the sake of our persecutors, not by words only, but by actual deeds as well. He says, "forgive them" if they repent, for He is merciful to those who repent if they wish to wash with their faith their many sins that they have committed. St. John Chrsystome The objective of the cross is to save and forgive, not caring as to what may befall Him. He did care about dying by their means, but rather, only to die for their sake. St. Augustine Look how he kept on being gentle even when dealing with those who was crucified him St. John Chrsystome Allow them to be cultured by means of your it deeds if there is no other way. Face the wrath with meekness and their haughtiness with humility in their blasphemy with your prayers. Let us prove in real gentleness that we are their brethren. Let us follow the Lord's example who endured the injustice, and thus compete in your endurance of injustice, scorn and degradation. Let Satan have no place in your hearts where he could nestle. St. Ignatius the Enlightened Fifth:"and they divided his garments and cast lots" Luke 23:34 The lord Jesus has carried our sins he has been hung on the cross naked so He redeems us from the shame of Sin. We said in the interpretation of St. Matthew 27:35, that the cloak divided into four parts refers to the extended church into the four corners of the universe. As for the garment that was woven from the top (John 19:13) for which they cast their lots without being cut, this refers to the church that has to bear the qualities of her groom. Thus it is heavenly, for it is woven from the top, without any cutting or division. This has also been spoken of by St. Cyril the great. St. Ambrosios thinks the four soldiers refer to the four evangelists have recorded who have recorded what we are blessed with. As for the garment they cast their lot for, this refers to the Holy Spirit that is not granted according to man's personal worthiness, but rather it is a free gift of God. Sixth: When the lord Jesus was hung on the cross, He became an object of scorn by everyone: the multitudes and the rulers, the Jews and the Roman soldiers, for it is said, "and the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered saying, 'He saved others, let Him save Himself if He is the Christ and the chosen of God' the soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering him some wine and saying, 'if You are the King of the Jews save yourself'" ( Luke 23:35-37) The rulers wished to mock Him, and thus they confessed in their own are tongues, 'He saved others', and this confession has come to be testimony against themselves. Indeed, He has come not to save Himself for He's not in need of any salvation. As a Physician, He came forth to heal those who are sick. As Pope St. Athanasius the apostolic said, 'Indeed the Lord our savior, wished to be known as the savior, not by saving Himself, but by the salvation of others. The physician is not considered as such by healing Himself, but by showing his skill with patients. Likewise is the Lord, by being the savior, He does not need to save Himself. It is not by His coming down from the cross that he becomes a savior but by his death. Indeed the great salvation of humanity is fulfilled by His death more than by His coming down from the cross' He has accepted to drink the vinegar, as St. Ambrosios says, for He has taken our corruption to nail it on the cross. As His rejection of the wine blended with bitterness this is not to avoid the sour bitterness, but rather because the bitterness gives a kind of anesthesia, and thus the crucified does not feel the agony he passes through. The Lord wished to endure the agony till the very end. As for the bitterness, St. Ambrosios says, "Surely, He has taken the bitterness of our life in His human body" Seventh: "And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew. This is the king of the Jews" (Luke 23:38) His error was a crown to Him that showed His hidden reality a king. As mentioned in the book of the songs of Solomon, "Go forth, O daughters of Zion, and see king Solomon with the crown, with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding, the day of the gladness of his heart" (Song 3:11). Notice that Satan's wiles have reverted to him. His guilt has been written in three languages so that no one passing by would fail to know He has been crucified for appointing Himself king. It was written in Greek, in Latin, and in Hebrew. These languages are the ones that have the most significance among the Roman Gentiles, the most knowledgeable among the Greeks and the most worship to God among the Jews. All of these yield to the dominion of Christ. Father Theophlactus 6.The Giving up of the Spirit: Though the human authorities have united together in an effort to see the crucified Lord Jesus, yet the thief on the right hand managed to take the kingdom and be blessed with the divine fellowship on a level. Now and just before the Lord Jesus gives up the ghost in the Father's hand, the solid and insensible nature has begun its role in testifying to Him what has been denied by the sensible and earthly creation, till the Roman centurion came to believe in Him and testify of Him. "Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. Then the sun was darkened and the veil of the temple was torn in two. And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, 'Father into Your hands I commit My spirit' having said this He breathes His last. So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God saying, ' certainly this was a righteous Man!' And the whole crowd that came together to that sight, seeing what had been done, beat their breasts and returned, but all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood a distance watching these things" (Luke 23: 44-49) We notice the following in the above passage: First: According to the Jewish calculation, now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. This is due to the fact that nature wished to express its rejection to what man has done to the incarnate Word of God? Or did wish by this darkness to draw the curtain of nature on this horrific sight? Or did nature wish to declare that the crucified is the Creator? Prior to this, the prophets have testified this happening, saying, "on that day there shall not be neither cold nor frost, but there shall be continuous day, not day and not night, for at evening time there shall be light" (Zech. 14:6, 7). "On that day, says the Lord God, I will make the sun go down at noon, and darken the earth in broad daylight. I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into laments" (Amos 8:9, 10). "I clothe the heavens with blackness, and make sack cloth their covering" (Isa. 50:3). St. Ambrosios Yes indeed, the nature laments itself and what it has; the sun has darkened, and the rocks split open and cracked, and the temple seemed like someone clothed in grief, for the veil was torn from top to bottom. St. Cyril the Great Second: The temple veil got torn from the middle, for the enmity now was wiped between God and man. Thus the holies of holies was opened to all those who believe, the members of the crucified body. As Father Theophactus says, 'the holies of holies is no longer a place not be approached' St. Ambrosios says that the old veil was torn so the Jews could, by means of faith, to witness the mystery declared to them. Thus they would accept the Gentiles with them, without any division of the two nations, the Jewish and the Gentile, that is, to manifest the church of the New covenant. (Revise St. Ambrosios's comments in the gospel book according to St. Mark pages 293 & 294) Third: "Jesus cried out with a loud voice, 'Father into Your hands I commit My spirit'" (Luke 23:46) The Son commits His human Spirit into the Father's hands; and even though He is in the highest, yet He enlightened Hades to save all there in it. He committed His Spirit into the Father's hands so that the heavens themselves be released from the chains of darkness. Thus there would be peace in heaven, and earth could follow it. He gave up the Spirit by His own will, and this is why He added "in a loud voice". St. Ambrosios This voice tells us that the souls of the saints no longer descends to Hades as before, for the are now with God, since Christ has made this beginning of a change. St. John Chrisystome Fourth: When the centurion saw the Lord Jesus giving up the Spirit so strongly, and when he heard the Lord yielding it up and committing it into the Father's hands, he believed saying, "Certainly this was a righteous Man" (Luke 23:47), "Indeed this Man was the Son of God" (Matt. 27:39). The centurion had seen many of those crucified, die. But, the death of this crucified One, was unique. He shock the depth of his heart and drew it to believe in Him, particularly when he saw with his own eyes how nature testified to Him. The Lord's words had been fulfilled, "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw the peoples to Myself" (John 12:32). He has been lifted up on the cross and has attracted the thief on His right hand, the centurion, and many others who were witnessing this, and were watching from afar. St. John Chrisystome says, 'Great is the dominion of the Crucified; after much scorn, humiliation and scourging, the centurion was moved to regret, and also the multitudes. Some say the centurion was later a believing martyr, when he matured in the faith' 8. His Burial: Joseph of Aramithea who was "a council member, a good and just man" (Luke 23:50) was bold enough to ask for the body of the Lord Jesus, for he was waiting for God's kingdom (Luke 23:51). When Pilate agreed, "Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of a rock, where no one had ever lain before. That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near. And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment" (Luke 23:53-56). Joseph was a secret and hidden disciple to the Lord Jesus. He was eager to listen to the Lord. But due to fear, he could not declare being a follower to Him. When the time of crucifixion came, this fear was wiped out, and he asked boldly for the Lord's body. Hardship could turn many people from being afraid to having courage, and thus they have become worthy in the eyes of God and of people. They become deserving by God's grace to put oils on the body of Christ, that is, the church, by the precious spices that are manifested strongly at the time of ordeal. If you were Joseph of Aramethea, ask for the body from the one who has crucified the Lord. Make Him a king to you, He who cleanses purifies the world (1 John 1:7)
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