| Palm Sunday This is commonly referred to as the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem where Jesus is declared to be the Messiah-the Son of David. People waved palm branches while others threw their cloaks down onto the ground as Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The people cried out and said, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21v9) Monday Jesus was now spending His last week in and around Jerusalem and went up to the Temple on Monday. There He found the money changers and filled with a righteous anger He overturned the tables of the money changers and whipped others with cords. He declared to the astonished crowds that although God had ordained His House to be one of a House of Prayer fro all Nations they had turned it into a den of thieves. Tuesday During one of the teachings that Christ gave to the people of Jerusalem and all that had gathered to celebrate the Passover, the religious leaders of His day came to Him with a trick question trying to get Him to betray Himself either into the hands of Rome or into the hands of the Temple authorities. They did this by asking Him if it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar-if he said no and went with popular and public opinion; He would have been arrested by the Romans for encouraging rebellion against Rome. If He said yes, the Temple authorities would have said that He was a Roman supporter and puppet of Herod the Tetrarch. Jesus instead asked for a coin and asked whose face appeared on the coin and the people replied Caesar’s. Jesus then said to them that they should give to Caesar what is his and to God what is God’s. The people were amazed at this teaching. Wednesday Traditionally believed to be the day on which Judas finally agreed to betray Jesus for 30 pieces of silver (the price of a slave) and the day on which Jesus was anointed by a woman with very expensive perfume. The disciples complained about this and said that they could have sold the perfume and used the money to alleviate the suffering of the poor. Jesus then corrected them and said that they need to realise what had just happened. The woman had just anointed Him and prepared him for His burial. They still did not believe that He would be taken from them and were not thinking along those lines. He reminded His disciples that what the woman had done was a beautiful thing because although they will always have the poor to minister too they would not always have Him with them. Thursday/Friday Since the Jewish day begins at sundown and finishes at sundown-technically the Last Supper would have taken place on what we call a Thursday but what would have been considered to the Jews to be the beginning of Friday. • The Last Supper (Matthew 26v20-30) Jesus and His disciples meet in a specially prepared room for the Passover meal and His Last Supper with them. This is from where the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist has its origins. Every single one of the disciples, upon hearing Jesus say that somebody would betray Him from among their number, deny the possibility that it could have been one of them. Peter is the boldest. Judas leaves and goes to betray the Christ. • The Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26v36-27v2) It is here that Jesus is betrayed and arrested. He is beaten up and taken away to the religious leaders to stand trial before them. They eventually condemn Him based on false and manufactured evidence. • 6AM (Matthew 27v11-14 and Luke 6-12) Jesus is led away and stands trial before Pilate. Pilate not wanting to condemn an innocent man sends him onto to Herod hoping that Herod would solve the problem for him. Herod however thinks the whole matter is a big joke and sends Jesus back to Pilate as he also wanted nothing to do with the Christ’s death. • 7AM (Matthew 27v26; Luke 223v11, 23-24; John 19v16) Jesus is returned to Pilate and after a lot of manipulation by the Chief Priests Pilate condemns Jesus to death. He makes a public show of washing his hands in front of the people and saying that he is innocent of Christ’s blood but that does not make any difference with regards to his culpability. • 8 AM (Matthew 27v32-34; Luke 23v26-31) Jesus is led up the Via Delarosa to Calvary or Golgotha (the Place of the Skull). • 9 AM-The Third Hour (Mark 15v25; Luke 23V34 Jesus is crucified. (Mark 15v24) The soldiers cast lots for the clothing of Jesus. • 10 AM (Matthew 27v39-40; Mark 15v31; Luke 23v36-39) Jesus is insulted, mocked and humiliated. (Luke 23v40-43) Jesus and the criminal on the Cross next to Him and the promise of Paradise. (John 19v26-27) Jesus speaks to Mary His mother and to His disciple John from the Cross telling them of the new family that now existed. • 12 Noon-The Sixth Hour (Mark 15v33) Darkness covers the land for 3 hours. • 1 PM (Matthew 27v46) The cry of Dereliction-My God, My God, why have you forsaken me? (John 19v28-29) Jesus is thirsty. • 2 PM (John 19v30) Jesus prepares Himself for His death and declares that the work that He had come to do was finished. • 3 PM-The Ninth Hour (Luke 23v46) Jesus cries out to His Father and says that He surrenders His spirit into His Father’s Hands. |
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