Date: (3/29/15)
Question: "What Is Passion Week / Holy Week?"
Answer: Passion Week (also known as Holy Week) is the time from Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday (Resurrection Sunday). Also included within Passion Week are Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. Passion Week is so named because of the passion with which Jesus willingly went to the cross in order to pay for the sins of His people. Passion Week is described in Matthew chapters 21-27; Mark chapters 11-15; Luke chapters 19-23; and John chapters 12-19. Passion Week begins with the triumphal entry on Palm Sunday on the back of a colt as prophesied in Zechariah 9:9
Passion Week contained several memorable events. Jesus cleansed the Temple for the second time (Luke 19:45-46), then disputed with the Pharisees regarding His authority. Then He gave His Olivet Discourse on the end times and taught many things, including the signs of His second coming. Jesus ate His Last Supper with His disciples in the upper room (Luke 22:7-38), then went to the garden of Gethsemane to pray as He waited for His hour to come. It was here that Jesus, having been betrayed by Judas, was arrested and taken to several shameful trials before the chief priests, Pontius Pilate, and Herod (Luke 22:54-23:25).
Following the trials, Jesus was scourged at the hands of the Roman soldiers, then was forced to carry His own instrument of execution (the Cross) through the streets of Jerusalem along what is known as the Via Dolorosa (way of sorrows). Jesus was then crucified at Golgotha, was buried and remained in the tomb until His glorious resurrection.
It is referred to as Passion Week because in that time, Jesus Christ truly revealed His passion for us in the suffering He willingly went through on our behalf. What should our attitude be during Passion Week? We should be passionate in our worship of Jesus and in our proclamation of His Gospel! As He suffered for us, so should we be willing to suffer for the cause of following Him and proclaiming the message of His death and resurrection.
Jesus Christ made seven final statements during his last hours on the cross. These phrases are held dear by followers of Christ because they offer a glimpse into the depth of his suffering to accomplish redemption. Recorded in the Gospels between the time of his crucifixion and his death, they reveal his divinity as well as his humanity.
During the Easter season, especially on Good Friday, Christians focus on the passion of Jesus Christ, or his suffering and death on the cross. Jesus' final hours on the cross lasted about six hours. We will break down these events recorded in Scripture, including the events just before and immediately following the Crucifixion. Many of the actual times of these events are not recorded in Scripture. The timeline represents an approximate sequence of events. We will start the Seven Last Sayings of Christ in this study. But first, let's look at the timeline of Jesus' final hours……………
Timeline of Jesus' Final Hours
Preceding Events
The Last Supper Matthew 26:20-30; Mark 14:17-26; Luke 22:14-38; John 13:21-30)
In the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-45)
Jesus is Betrayed and Arrested (Matthew 26:47-56; Mark 14:43-52; Luke 22:47-53; John 18:1-11)
The Religious Leaders Condemn Jesus (Matthew 27:1-2; Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71)
6 AM. Jesus Stands Trial Before Pilate (Matthew 27:11-14; Mark 15:2-5; Luke 23:1-5; John 18:28-37)
Jesus Sent to Herod (Luke 23:6-12)
7 AM. Jesus Returned to Pilate (Luke 23:11)
Jesus is Sentenced to Death (Matthew 27:26; Mark 15:15; Luke 23:23-24; John 19:16)
8 AM. Jesus is Led Away to Calvary
(Matthew 27:32-34; Mark 15:21-24; Luke 23:26-31; John 19:16-17)
The Crucifixion
9 AM. - "The Third Hour" Jesus is Crucified on the Cross
Mark 15: 25 - It was the third hour when they crucified him. (NIV). (The third hour in Jewish time would have been 9 a.m.)
Luke 23:34 - Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (NIV) (Mark 15:24)
10 AM. - Jesus is Insulted and Mocked
Matthew 27:39-40 - And the people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. "So! You can destroy the Temple and build it again in three days, can you? Well then, if you are the Son of God, save yourself and come down from the cross!" (NLT)
Mark 15:31 - The leading priests and teachers of religious law also mocked Jesus. "He saved others," they scoffed, "but he can't save himself!" (NLT)
Luke 23:36-37 - The soldiers mocked him, too, by offering him a drink of sour wine. They called out to him, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!" (NLT)
Luke 23:39 - One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" (NIV)
11 AM.
Jesus and the Criminal Luke 23:40-43 - But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."
Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." (NIV)
Jesus Speaks to Mary and John
John 19:26-27 - When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, "Woman, he is your son." And he said to this disciple, "She is your mother." And from then on this disciple took her into his home. (NLT)
Noon - "The Sixth Hour"
Darkness Covers the Land
Mark 15:33 - At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. (NLT)
1 PM.
Jesus Cries Out to the Father
Matthew 27:46 - And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (NKJV)
I Thirst! Jesus is Thirsty
John 19:28-29 - Jesus knew that everything was now finished, and to fulfill the Scriptures he said, "I am thirsty!" A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. (NLT)
2 PM.
It is Finished
John 19:30a - When Jesus had tasted it, he said, "It is finished!" (NLT)
Luke 23:46 - Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last. (NIV)
3 PM. - "The Ninth Hour"
Events Following Jesus' Death
The Earthquake
Matthew 27:51-52 - At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. (NIV)
The Centurion - "Surely he was the Son of God!" (Matthew 27:54; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:47)
The Soldiers Break the Thieves' Legs (John 19:31-33)
The Soldier Pierces Jesus Side (John 19:34)
Jesus is Laid in the Tomb (Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42)
Jesus Rises from the Dead (Matthew 28:1-7; Mark 16:1; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-9)
By all accounts Jesus didn't do a lot of talking on the cross. He was silent during the hours he hung there, except for a very few words. But these Seven Last Words provide a window into Jesus' soul, a way to understand what is ultimately important to this One who is dying on the cross.
These Words reveal his incredible love, his determination, his humanness as well as his divinity, his intimate relationship with his Father, and finally his trust.
One way to meditate on these Seven Last Words personally might be one each day in a single week, especially during Holy (Passion) Week.
Week # 1 Luke 23:34: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do"
Week # 2 Luke 23:43: "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise."
Week # 3 John 19:26–27: "Woman, behold your son. Son Behold your mother."
Week # 4 Matthew 27:46: "My God, My God, have you forsaken me?"
Week # 5 John 19:28: "I thirst."
Week # 6 John 19:29-30: "It is finished."
Week # 7 Luke 23:46: "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit."
Week # 8 Conclusion
In this study the guideline is different. In each weeks' study we will have a title, theme, warm-up question, goal, (3) questions on the weekly verse, (3) questions on the title, (3) questions on life application, and (1) question on Jesus personality (passion); we will have a beginning prayer, and an ending prayer, and I am reading three chapters of the book of John weekly. When studying the last sayings of Jesus on the cross there is so much to learn from, but we will only touch bases with some of the gold nuggets in the saying for now. Our theme is Passion Week because we desire to tap into Jesus' passion for the Church.
Reading the book of John:
Week # 1 (John 1-3)
Week # 2 (John 4-6)
Week # 3 (John 7-9)
Week # 4 (John 10-12)
Week # 5 (John 13-15)
Week # 6 (John 16-18)
Week # 7 (John 19-21)
God bless this study, amen.
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