There's really so much to say on Good Friday. It's a somber day, and I really do feel myself being more reflective. It's unreal that God--the Creator of the universe, who holds the entire cosmic galaxies and time itself in His hands, would care enough for mankind to satisfy His own judgment by sending His very Son. The choice that mankind made (to sin) was all ours, and yet God chose to watch His own, beloved, perfect Son be unfairly tried, beaten beyond recognition, made to carry a heavy beam through town, and then have nails driven into his flesh. For us. For me.
All of these thoughts led me to research more about crucifixion. I don't believe I can appreciate what my Jesus did for me if I don't get a visual image in my head. Below is some of what I found. Read this with Jesus in mind.
Crucifixion was often performed to terrorize and dissuade the onlookers from perpetrating the crimes punishable by it. Victims were left on display after death as warnings so that others who attempt dissent might be forewarned. Crucifixion was usually intended to provide a death that was particularly slow, painful (hence the term excruciating, literally "out of crucifying"), gruesome, humiliating, and public, using whatever means were most expedient for that goal. Crucifixion methods varied considerably with location and time period.
The Greek and Latin words corresponding to "crucifixion" applied to many different forms of painful execution, from impaling on a stake to affixing to a tree, to an upright pole (a crux simplex) or to a combination of an upright (in Latin, stipes) and a crossbeam (in Latin, patibulum).[6]
In some cases, the condemned was forced to carry the crossbeam on his shoulders to the place of execution. A whole cross would weigh well over 300 pounds (135 kilograms), but the crossbeam would weigh only 75–125 pounds (35–60 kilograms).[7] The Roman historian Tacitus records that the city of Rome had a specific place for carrying out executions, situated outside the Esquiline Gate,[8] and had a specific area reserved for the execution of slaves by crucifixion.[9] Upright posts would presumably be fixed permanently in that place, and the crossbeam, with the condemned person perhaps already nailed to it, would then be attached to the post.
The person executed may have been attached to the cross by rope, though nails are mentioned in a passage by the Judean historian Josephus, where he states that at the Siege of Jerusalem (70), "the soldiers out of rage and hatred, nailed those they caught, one after one way, and another after another, to the crosses, by way of jest."[10] Objects used in the crucifixion of criminals, such as nails, were sought as amulets with perceived medicinal qualities.[11]
While a crucifixion was an execution, it was also a humiliation, by making the condemned as vulnerable as possible. Although artists have depicted the figure on a cross with a loin cloth or a covering of the genitals, writings by Seneca the Younger suggest that victims were crucified completely nude.[12] When the victim had to urinate or defecate, they had to do so in the open, in view of passers-by, resulting in discomfort and the attraction of insects. Despite its frequent use by the Romans, the horrors of crucifixion did not escape mention by some of their eminent orators. Cicero for example, in a speech that appears to have been an early bid for its abolition,[13] described crucifixion as "a most cruel and disgusting punishment", and suggested that "the very mention of the cross should be far removed not only from a Roman citizen’s body, but from his mind, his eyes, his ears."[13]
Frequently, the legs of the person executed were broken or shattered with an iron club, an act called crurifragium, which was also frequently applied without crucifixion to slaves.[14] This act hastened the death of the person but was also meant to deter those who observed the crucifixion from committing offenses.[14]
The length of time required to reach death could range from a matter of hours to a number of days, depending on exact methods, the prior health of the condemned, and environmental circumstances. Death could result from any combination of causes, including blood loss, hypovolemic shock, or sepsis following infection, caused by the scourging that sometimes preceded the crucifixion, or by the process of being nailed itself, or eventual dehydration.[31][32]
A theory attributed to Pierre Barbet holds that, when the whole body weight was supported by the stretched arms, the typical cause of death was asphyxiation.[33] He conjectured that the condemned would have severe difficulty inhaling, due to hyper-expansion of the chest muscles and lungs. The condemned would therefore have to draw himself up by his arms, leading to exhaustion, or have his feet supported by tying or by a wood block. When no longer able to lift himself, the condemned would die within a few minutes. Experiments by Frederick Zugibe have, however, revealed that, when suspended with arms at 60° to 70° from the vertical, test subjects had no difficulty breathing, only rapidly increasing discomfort and pain.[34][35] This would correspond to the Roman use of crucifixion as a prolonged, agonizing, humiliating death. Legs were often broken to hasten death through severe traumatic shock and fat embolism.
It is unfathomable to me that Jesus would obey His Father and go through with the plan that was ordained for Him. Because of the culture, Jesus would have known exactly what a crucifixion was like, and what was in store for Him. And because He was also fully God (and thus all-knowing), He knew that there would be people from generation to generation who would reject Him and His offer of salvation. Yet He still died to pay the penalty for our sins, so that we could be healed, redeemed, and holy in the eyes of God.
For me, in order to fully appreciate Easter Sunday and the celebration that it is, I need to allow myself to be somber, reverent, and reflective on the death of my Lord. It's necessary for me to get to a very deep, sad place so that my worship is truly celebratory on Sunday. I have to admit that it hasn't been this way for me every year. In fact, Good Friday tends to pass along like any other day, with Easter being the focus. But you can't celebrate one without understanding and reflecting upon the other.
Jesus, forgive me for my total complacency in understanding Your sacrifice for me. It's beyond belief and affects me to my core today.
