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Isaiah 53: 3-12 (NIV) – He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

         Today I am reflecting on how much God loves us. On Good Friday I have a habit or tradition of thinking about and reflecting on just what Jesus had to go through that Thursday night – Friday. I reflect on the fact that Jesus was physically, mentally, emotionally, and relationally beaten up for me. Have you ever just sat down and thought about everything that took place the Thursday night that Jesus was betrayed until he surrendered his life on the cross the following day? He was mentally beaten up to the point that his sweat was like drops of blood. Luke 22:44 (NIV) – And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Looking up the word anguish on the internet the definition says anguish is severe mental, or physical pain or suffering. Jesus was in so much anguish or suffering just from the knowledge of what he was going to have to go through that his sweating was like drops of blood. He was mocked by the Roman Soldiers when they blindfolded him and punched him and demanded that he Prophesy (Luke 22:63-65 ). He was mocked when they put the crown of thrones and the robe on him (Matthew 27:27-31). He was once again mocked by the Roman soldiers and the people when he hung on the cross. In Mockery, they put up a sign above his head that read “King of the Jews” (Matthew 27:37, Luke 23:36-38).

Emotionally he was beaten up from the moment that he went to the Garden to pray. Luke 22: 39 – 46 says that he went to the Mount of Olives with his disciples to pray. He asked his disciples to pray that they wouldn’t fall into temptation. Then he went just a stone’s throw away to pray to his Father alone. He knew what he was going to have to go through in the next 24 hours and he prayed to ask God if he was willing, to take the cup away from him or in other words, He was asking God if he was willing to take the burden of our sins away from him, to do it. If not, He was still willing to take on the burden. After Jesus finished praying for a little bit, he found his disciples sleeping instead of praying. These were his brothers with whom he had spent a good part of the last three years of his life. They couldn’t stay up for a little bit to pray with him. He had to feel emotionally beat up because of that. Judas who was one of his twelve closest friends betrayed him. He betrayed him with a kiss which would have been another emotional slap in the face of Jesus. If we go back a few hours before, we will see in Luke 22:34 that Jesus tells Simon Peter that he would deny that he knows Jesus three times. Another emotional slap in the face of Jesus. Fast forward a few hours and what Jesus told Simon Peter took place. Simon denied he know Jesus three times. Jesus being fully God and fully Man I’m sure each of those times that Simon denied knowing Jesus that his fully God side felt the denial. Three more emotional slaps in Jesus’ face. How about when the soldiers came to take him to the high priest? The disciples wanted to use violence against the soldiers and Jesus asked them not to. But Simon didn’t listen and swung his sword at a soldier and cut off his ear. Jesus was probably beaten up by the fact that Simon didn’t listen.  All of the accusations of the high priest after he was brought before them. More emotional pain that Jesus had to bear.

How about the emotional stress he felt when Pilate stood him in front of the crowds of people and asked them whom he should release? Jesus who was innocent or Barabbas who was a murderer? Jesus had to stand there and listen to the crowds yelling” Crucify Him !” Not just the crowd yelling “Crucify Him !” at him, but when he was walking through the city streets the people would yell at him. They would mock him. I don’t know how he did it. He had to be just emotionally drained.

Physically he was beaten within two whips short of death. They say that the Roman empire at this time had torturing down to a science. Apparently, they knew the number of whippings a person could take before the person would die. The Roman soldiers mocked him, spit on him, beat him with their fists, and whipped him. They put a crown of long thrones on his head as a way to mock him. But I doubt they gently placed the crown, no they probably pushed it down on him so that the thrones would pierce his head. After he was sentenced to die, he had to carry his cross through the town and up to the hill where they place the cross so that all could see. During his torturing walk through the town, he was spit on, punched, and hit by objects thrown at him by his own people. The Jewish people of the town were physically abusing him because he wasn’t the king or messiah that they expected him to be. The final physical abuses he took were all that came with dying on a cross. He was nailed to the cross through his hands or wrist and through his feet. Then his cross was lifted up and placed in a hole so that the cross would stand up. His body would have to work and fight so that he would be able to breathe.

Relationally Jesus was beaten up by people and God. Jesus’ disciples fled and hid in fear after he was betrayed. He was betrayed by one of the disciples, one of his closest brothers. Jesus was mocked and turned against by the Jewish people whom a week before were crying out Hosanna to him. He was denied three times by Simon Peter, just as Jesus had told Simon he would. He was relationally abused by us.

Let’s be humble for a minute and agree that Jesus was Relationally abused by Humanity pretty much from the being of our creation. As soon as Adam and Eve decided to disobey God, Humanity was abusing their relationship with God and Jesus. Sure, you can read through the bible and see that there are some people who were obeying God most of the time, but you also see people who are not. You can look in History books that talk about different cultures and empires and you will see some people who were following God and others that weren’t. Just look at the world today, humanity, in general, is trying to make Man a god instead of humbling themselves to the knowledge that there is only one God.

Jesus knew all of these and still humbly gave himself up for us. He loved us through every painful breath that he took on that cross. He loved us through every painful beating he took from the soldier’s whip. He loved us even though we were standing there mocking him. We may not have physically been there that day, but it was for our sins that he died, so in a roundabout way we were part of the crowd that was there that day. The last relational abuse he took was from his father. From the moment that he was sentenced, he was marked for death. While hanging on the cross he could feel the distance from God growing. I believe this was the first time in Jesus’ earthly life that he had felt distant from God. God loved his Son, but God is a Righteous being who cannot be around Unrighteous things. While dying on the cross our sin (which is unrighteous) was being laid on him. Jesus’ Righteousness was being muddied and covered by our sins. So, because of the sin of the world, God was turning his back on Jesus for that moment. That is why Jesus cried out ‘Father, Father why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)

So, as I reflect on Holy Thursday – Good Friday I am drawn closer to the grace that I received. Every bit of pain and agony that Jesus felt draws me closer to him. I am more aware of what grace really cost him. I thank God every day for the grace that I receive because of his death, burial, and resurrection. Praise and Glory to Jesus Christ.