What Jesus said on the Cross
Good Morning Friends,
Jesus said a lot of things. Just pick up a Red Lettered Bible and there is so much not written down as well. Jesus often quotes scripture to flesh out the word. At Calvary he quotes Psalm 22 and Psalm 31. They are linked to today’s scripture and in their fullness should help us capture the message and meaning of what was happening on the cross. Because it is complex I thought that today, in practice and in patient preparation for Holy Week today we might experience a musical meditate on What Jesus said on the Cross.
Scripture: “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
Luke 23:34
“Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
Luke 23:43
“Woman, behold, your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!”
John 19:26-27
“ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?”
Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34 and Psalm22
“I am thirsty.”
John 19:28
“It is finished!”
John 19:30
“Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.”
Luke 23:46 and Psalm 31
Message: The seven saying of Christ on the Cross do create a Gospel harmony when combined. To convey the complexity of the messages they have been put to music since the 15th Century and the number is growing. The most famous of them all, over the last six centuries, is probably The Seven Last Words of Our Saviour
On the Cross by Joseph Haydn. It was composed for a Good Friday Service back in 1785-86.
Here is the link to this sublime work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cPchmU-pB4
The recording last a little over an hour. It is well worth the listen as you meditate on the scripture of the day. It is not easy territory. Haydn himself explained the origin and difficulty of writing the work in a reissue of the work in 1801:
“Some fifteen years ago I was requested by a canon of Cádiz to compose instrumental music on the Seven Last Words of Our Savior On the Cross. It was customary at the Cathedral of Cádiz to produce an oratorio every year during Lent, the effect of the performance being not a little enhanced by the following circumstances. The walls, windows, and pillars of the church were hung with black cloth, and only one large lamp hanging from the centre of the roof broke the solemn darkness. At midday, the doors were closed and the ceremony began. After a short service the bishop ascended the pulpit, pronounced the first of the seven words (or sentences) and delivered a discourse thereon. This ended, he left the pulpit and fell to his knees before the altar. The interval was filled by music. The bishop then in like manner pronounced the second word, then the third, and so on, the orchestra following on the conclusion of each discourse. My composition was subject to these conditions, and it was no easy task to compose seven adagios lasting ten minutes each, and to succeed one another without fatiguing the listeners; indeed, I found it quite impossible to confine myself to the appointed limits.”
The priest who commissioned the work, Don José Sáenz de Santa María, paid Haydn in a most unusual way – sending the composer a cake which Haydn discovered was filled with gold coins. Read today’s scripture and listen to the link and you too might be similarly surprised by joy.
Pray we really believe that Christ has forgiven our sins. Pray we forgive others. Pray we put our ultimate trust in Jesus and the promise of paradise. Pray Jesus, remember us when He comes into His kingdom and as we today seek to live within the Kingdom. Pray the full humanity and divinity of Christ Jesus engage our hearts in a relationship with the family of God. Pray we consider that the Father abandoned the Son for a time in preparation for the Resurrection so that we might not be abandoned for eternity. Pray we too thirst for the refreshing living water of the spirit. Pray we live trusting that Christ has finished the work of Salvation and will finish the work begun in us. Pray we experience God’s salvation through Christ, living our life in God’s hands.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 