The Life of Christ - Lesson 37
Time - 4/3/30 AD, 14 Nisan
The Last week - Wednesday, the Sixth Hour (12 a.m.)

Having been scourged, beaten repeatedly in the face and having had tufts of his beard ripped out, Jesus was given a heavy cross to carry up the northern ridge of Mt. Zion to Golgotha, "the place of the skull," an ascent of over 200 feet. He collapsed and the Roman soldiers forced Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross the rest of the way. Having endured the mocking of his enemies and the shunning of his friends, Jesus arrived at the place of crucifixion and was stripped and nailed to the cross like an animal. Then He was raised up for all to see His shame and suffering. Jerusalem being surrounded with the camps of hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who had come for Passover, there was evidently a large crowd surrounding him. Below him He could see the Temple with the many tens of thousands of worshippers gathered there to begin the sacrifice of their Passover Lambs. Because of its location on the northern ridge of Mt. Zion, much of Jerusalem could have looked up and seen the cross. During the first interval after He was nailed to the cross and raised up, and before the darkness when His intense suffering for our sins began, he made three proclamations.

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September 5, 2010
"God's Plan is Eternal"
Background & Lesson: Ephesians 1:1-14

Motivation: How do we praise God?  The first chapter of Ephesians is a marvelous doxology of praise; verses 3-14 are one unbroken sentence praising God for what He has given each believer.

The Life of Christ - Lesson 36

Time - 4/3/30 AD, 14 Nisan

The Last week - Midday Wednesday

In the last lesson we saw Jesus' examinations before Pilate and His examination by Herod Antipas. We saw how Pilate repeatedly attempted to release Jesus, but was finally coerced by threats of political retaliation into sending Jesus to the cross. We also dealt in detail with several questions regarding the chronology of the crucifixion. This time we will study the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the central point of history.

The Life of Christ - Lesson 35

Time - 4/3/30 AD, 14 Nisan

The Last week - Very Early Wednesday Morning

In the last lesson we saw Jesus' examination by Annas, the former High Priest, and then studied the trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin in the house of Annas' son in law Caiaphas. As  Jesus waited in courtyard for the verdict, the guard had already started beating Jesus. They knew the verdict had been decided long before. After the Sanhedrin agreed on a verdict, they sent Him to Pilate. They had to. Only the Roman governor had the legal jurisdiction to execute a prisoner. Besides they knew Jesus was popular, and they wanted Rome to take the blame for what they were doing.

The Life of Christ - Lesson 34

Time - 4/3/30 AD, 14 Nisan

The Last week - Very Early Wednesday Morning

The Trials before the High Priest and Sanhedrin

Arrival at the High Priest's Compound and the Admittance of John and Peter

The crowd bound Jesus and took Him to the courtyard of the High Priest (see map on last page), where the High Priests waited, and the rest of the Sanhedrim were to be gathered. John and Peter must have followed behind in the darkness and both arrived at about the same time. It is logical to assume that Peter and John either arrived together or that Peter arrived just before John, since when John entered he knew Peter was waiting at the gate. Neither of them could have been too far back from the group that had taken Jesus, as they probably learned its destination by keeping it in sight through the winding and narrow streets of Jerusalem. The courtyard of the High Priest must have been common to both the houses of Annas and Caiaphas. As we know from Josephus, Annas was one of the wealthiest and most influential men in Jerusalem. He had served as officiating High Priest from 6 AD to 14 AD. In 18 AD he had procured the post of officiating High Priest for his son-in-law Caiaphas. At this time (30 AD), it is probable that he and Caiaphas were the only living high priests.[1] In the next 40 years before the destruction of Jerusalem, he saw to it that five of his sons served as High Priest. It is evident he led a tight patriarchal family. In such a family, it would not seem unusual that Annas would not let Caiaphas live out from under his watchful eye.

The Life of Christ - Lesson 33

Time - 4/2/30 AD, 13 Nisan

The Last week - Tuesday Evening

After the Last Supper.

At the close of the last lesson, we saw Jesus warning the eleven disciples about the dangers and the opposition they would face in the coming age. At the same time, He had been encouraging them with the promise of the power God would provide them through the Spirit and the power of prayer.