Easter

Tomorrow is Easter, so instead of doing a fun, entertaining blog post, I am going to do a serious, Easter-related post. You do not have to be a Christian, Catholic, or any religion for that matter to celebrate Easter, though it is a holiday related back to religion. This is going to be a very long post, just to let you know. I do not know all of the spellings, terms, and exact information straight from my head, so I did use the Bible and a reliable Christian website to make sure I have things correct.

If you do not know just what Easter is, it is the resurrection of Christ. Christians believe, according to Scripture, that Jesus came back to life, or was raised from the dead, three days after his death on the cross. As part of the Easter season, the death of Jesus Christ by crucifixion is commemorated on Good Friday, always the Friday just before Easter. Through his death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus paid the penalty for sin, thus purchasing for all who believe in him, eternal life in Christ Jesus. By God giving his own son's life, he was forgiving us all of our sins and giving us new and everlasting life. It shows just how much God loves us, like it says in John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

The night before Jesus died is known as 'The Last Supper.' This was a meal with all of Jesus' disciples, including those who would betray him later on. Jesus, being the son of God, knew already that this was his last night, but his disciples did not. After the supper, Jesus and his disciples go to the Garden of Gethsemane, (pronounced guess-sim-any) where Jesus leaves to pray. When he comes back from praying, all of his disciples are asleep. Since he knows that these are his last hours, he is disapointed with his disciples and asks why they cannot stay awake. The disciples respond that they are sorry and that they won't do it again, so Jesus goes off to pray again. Still, when he returns, his disciples are asleep.

Meanwhile, Judas, a disciple of Jesus, is planning on betraying Jesus. Judas has devised a plan and created a signal for his followers who wish to betray Jesus, because he calls himself the 'Son of God.' The signal is to kiss Jesus on the cheek, to let the others know who they are to arrest, for calling himself the Son of God. After Jesus has prayed and his disciples have fallen asleep, Judas approaches Jesus and kisses him on the cheek. The followers of Judas are watching and see the signal, so they approach Jesus and arrest him.

The next day, Jesus goes on trial before Pilate, a leader of the people. After being on trial, he is sent away to Herod and a decision is made so he is returned to Pilate: he is sentenced to death. After being sentenced to death, Jesus is led away to Calvary and must carry his own cross to where he will be crucified.

Mark 15: 25 says, "It was the third hour when they crucified him." The third hour in Jewish time would have been 9 a.m.

Once Jesus was hung up on his cross, the soldiers began gambling for his clothes, and once they had won all of his clothers, they insulted, mocked and beat him.

Matthew 27:39-40 says, "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!""

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!""

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!"" Luke 23:39 - "One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!""

At the sixth hour, for us, it would've been about noon, darkness covers the land for three hours.

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?""
 
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." 3 p.m./The ninth hour
 

After Jesus was crucified, his body was placed in a tomb. A large stone covered the entrance and soldiers guarded the sealed tomb. On the third day, a Sunday, a few women, including Mary Magdalene, went to the tomb at dawn to anoint the body of Jesus. Then, a violent earthquake took place as an angel from heaven pushed back the stone. The guards shook in fear as the angel, dressed in bright white, sat upon the stone. The angel announced to the women that Jesus who was crucified was no longer in the tomb, "He is risen, just as he said." The women went into the tomb to inestigate and found it was empty, Jesus had risen from the dead!

This is just a very brief story of Easter and Jesus' death, I left out a lot, but if you have questions or I have time, I will post more. :) Easter isn't just about hunting for Easter eggs, the Easter Bunny, and pastel colors, it is about the death and resurrection of someone who loves you so much, he put his faith in his creator and died, so that you can be forgiven and live eternal life! Remember, God loves YOU! He created you and has a special plan for you, no matter how crazy your life gets, it is already planned out and God knows what he is doing!

Happy Easter!