April 3, 2026

For those who would like to participate, will be taking communion together at the end of today’s post. 

Passion Week: Good Friday

Today is Good Friday, called this because of an ancient usage of the word “good” as a synonym for holy. (In the same way that the Holy Bible at times is called the “Good Book.”) Holy Friday, indeed.

From Gethsemane, Messiah was led to a mock trial, after which He was beaten mercilessly with a cat-o’-nine-tails. This procedure was so brutal that some victims didn’t survive it. The leather cords, tipped with sharp metal, tore at the flesh of the victim, ripping off pieces of flesh. The whip, with its nine cords, delivered 39 times, made a total of 351 lashes. This was barbaric and brutal, not only lacerating the back, but the cords wrapped around to the front of the victim’s body, including the face. It is hard to describe this lashing without being too graphic for most readers. The depiction of the horrific damage in The Passion movie is no exaggeration. Suffice it to say that when finished, the victim was often unrecognizable.

The soldiers also beat Christ with their fists and spat on His face. To mock Him as “the King of the Jews,” a crown made of thorns was placed on His head and pressed into His skin, causing great pain and more loss of blood. When the ordeal was finished, Jesus was so mangled and covered with spittle and blood that He literally was unrecognizable. Isaiah said, “Many people were shocked [astonished; appalled] when they saw Him. His appearance was so damaged [disfigured; marred] He did not look like a man; His form was so changed they could barely tell He was human” (Isaiah 52:14 The Expanded Bible). The added punishments and torture, much more than the typical victim of crucifixion was afflicted with, can only be explained as the fury of hell.

Yeshua endured this for you and me. Isaiah 53:5 and 1 Peter 2:24 tell us it was this beating that purchased our healing. Place your faith for healing in this substitutionary sacrifice today.

Christ was then led to His crucifixion. There are several prophetic references and/or occurrences in the Old Testament pointing to the Cross. One passage of extreme importance is Deuteronomy 21:22-23, which references one who experienced death by hanging on a tree as being “cursed.” It is abundantly clear from Galatians 3:13 that this verse refers to Jesus hanging on the “tree,” taking our curse. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.’”

Yeshua’s crucifixion took place at Golgotha, which means “the place of the skull.” God, millennia before, had ordained that this would be the place and, with the forces of nature, carved the international symbol of death onto the hillside. This was also the location of Isaac’s interrupted sacrifice (Genesis 22), which pictured the Cross. Like Isaac, we were spared, and God Himself provided the sacrifice. “Then Abraham looked up [lifted his eyes] and saw a male sheep [ram] caught in a bush by its horns. So Abraham went and took the sheep, offering it as a whole burnt offering to God, and his son was saved [in the place of his son]. So Abraham named that place The Lord Provides [or Sees; Hebrew: Yahweh Yireh]. Even today, people say, ‘On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided [or seen]’” (Genesis 22:13-14; The Expanded Bible). In this chosen place, high on a hill so all could see the Passover Lamb bearing our sin, suffering, and shame, God provided the sacrifice for our sins.

Jesus carried His own Cross, though He was able to carry it only part of the way. It was actually the crossbeam that He carried. When He arrived at the place of crucifixion, He was first tied and nailed with spikes to this crosspiece, which contained a hole in the center, enabling it to slide down onto the permanent upright post. After a victim was tied and nailed to this portion, it was lifted and placed onto the top of the vertical section, whereupon it would fall down and slam into place. This is often when dislocations would occur in the crucified person–as the crosspiece slammed down, and stopped. And indeed, we know this occurred with Christ, as was prophesied of Him in Psalm 22:14. The sliding down of the crosspiece is also why the spikes were placed at the bottom of the hands where they joined the wrist; this placement would sustain more weight. It’s also why the victim was tied to the crossbeam. If they were not secured in this way, they would often be torn loose.

Yeshua hung on the Cross for six hours in this emaciated state. While there, He spoke seven times. Time does not permit me to comment on each, but they are all significant. Halfway through the ordeal, at noon, the sun disappeared, and the sky grew dark (Luke 23:44-45). This was a fulfillment of Amos 8:9-10: “‘It will come about in that day,’ declares the Lord God, ‘That I will make the sun go down at noon and make the earth dark in broad daylight. Then I will turn your festivals into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation, and I will bring sackcloth on everyone’s loins, and baldness on every head. And I will make it like a time of mourning for an only son, And the end of it will be like a bitter day.’” Surely this is a prophetic picture of the Light of the World being snuffed out for us. 

It was at the end of the three hours of darkness that Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46-47; Mark 15:34). He was quoting from Psalm 22, which is a detailed prophecy of the Cross. Christ was crying out in anguish because, for the first time in all of eternity, He was experiencing separation from His Father. It is also the only record we have of Him addressing God as anything other than Father.

Christ took our sins upon Himself (2 Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 53:5). Most scholars agree that when this occurred, He bore our separation from the Father. Though Jesus no doubt knew this would occur, the actual experience was more than He could endure, and cried out in anguish. It is worth noting that Christ never cried out during the beatings, scourging, thorns, spikes, or dislocations - only when this separation occurred from His Father, as He bore our sin.

Finally, it was enough. The price had been paid. Christ made His final two statements. The first, “It is finished,” I have written of before in the GH15 posts. This was not a quiet statement referencing His death, but a loud declaration by Christ, also a quote from Psalm 22:31. This decree was one word in Greek (tetelestai)(1) (John 19:30) and also in the Hebrew of Psalm 22 (asah).(2) Using the literal meaning of these words, Christ was declaring that He had fully accomplished His assignment, paid our debt in full, and was bringing forth the new creation!

Yeshua then released His spirit to the Father. Death did not take Him; He “yielded up His Spirit” (Matthew 27:50). It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon. The priests in the Temple were performing their customary duties when, at the very moment Jesus yielded up His Spirit, the veil in the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). The purpose of this veil had been to separate humans from the Holy of Holies, the dwelling place of God on earth. With this symbolic act, God was declaring that the separation caused by our sin was removed, and we could now draw near to Him, entering His presence once again!

Why don’t you spend some additional time with Him today? He would like that.

Pray with me:

Thank You, Father, for the Cross and the pain it caused You. Thank You for sending Christ to be our substitute. Thank You for placing our sins upon Him in order to bring us back into Your family. Thank You for allowing the lashes, the wounds, the crown of thorns, and the separation, for surely it was agonizing for You, as well as for Yeshua.

And thank You, Jesus, for Your heart of humility and love. You are both Son of Man and Son of God. Through Your sacrifice and our faith in it, You have made us sons and daughters of the Most High. We are so grateful. Now, by faith, we appropriate all of the cleansing power of Your shed blood, and the healing virtue that flows from every wound You suffered. By Your stripes, we are healed!

And in remembrance of You and what You did for us on Calvary, we partake of the Communion Meal. We take the bread, which represents Your body, broken for us - a price paid so we can be restored. [Pause; eat the bread] 

We take the cup, a representation of Your blood, spilled for us, the price paid for our redemption from sin. We give You thanks today, Jesus. We give You thanks. [Drink the cup]

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

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1. James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. No. 5055.

2. Ibid. Ref. no. 6213.

April 2, 2026

Passion Week: Redemption Began In Gethsemane

“Leaving there, He went, as He so often did, to Mount Olives. The disciples followed Him. When they arrived at the place, He said, ‘Pray that you don’t give in to temptation.’” 

(Luke 22:39 MSG)

“The place” spoken of by Luke was Gethsemane. It had become Christ’s favorite place of prayer in Jerusalem; notice the phrase, “as He so often did.” This is how Judas, who had left the last supper early to betray Christ, knew where to take the soldiers to find Him. Christ would spend three hours there that night agonizing over the ordeal He was facing. During this time, He would wrestle with His natural, human desire for this cup of suffering to pass from Him: “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Christ’s request was genuine; He knew what He was facing that night and the next day.

The agony of these three hours was horrific, much worse than most people realize. Luke tells us Christ started this time of prayer on His knees. Matthew adds that He eventually fell on His face in agony. Mark added that He fell repeatedly. In other words, Christ would kneel, then fall on His face. He would rise to His feet again, only to fall once more - first to His knees, then onto His face. At one point, the agony of what He was experiencing, as well as the knowledge of what was coming, became so great that the capillaries in His face burst, and blood mixed with sweat oozed through the pores of His skin (Luke 22:44). This is a painful medical condition known as hematidrosis. “Doctors don’t know exactly what triggers hematidrosis, in part because it's so rare. They think it could be related to the body’s ‘fight or flight’ response… Sometimes it seems to be caused by extreme distress or fear, such as facing death, torture, or severe ongoing abuse. It’s probably where the phrase  ‘sweating blood,’ meaning fear and trepidation, comes from.”(1)

“While the extent of blood loss generally is minimal, hematidrosis also results in the skin becoming extremely tender and fragile.”(2) Many scholars believe our redemption was actually beginning here when Christ’s blood began to be shed, even before His beatings and crucifixion began.

Through a blending of the gospel accounts, and with more in-depth definitions of the words chosen by Holy Spirit to describe this ordeal in the garden, we can gain a more complete picture of what Jesus truly experienced. When He “withdrew” from the disciples to pray by Himself (Luke 22:41), Luke uses a stronger word than the other Gospel writers, apospao,  which means “to tear away.”(3) Wuest translates it accordingly, “He tore himself away from them.” Probably more than any time in His life, Christ wanted the comfort of being with friends, yet He knew He would have to face this ordeal alone.

We are told by Matthew and Mark that Yeshua became “sore amazed, exceedingly sorrowful and very heavy” in His mind and emotions (Matthew 26:37-38; Mark 14:33-34 KJV). Literal definitions of the Greek words used give us poignant descriptions of what He was feeling: 

• Ademonein: “to be troubled and in anguish, to be in a state of great anxiety; used of one who is rendered helpless, disoriented, agitated, and anguished by the threat of an approaching event.” (4) 

• Perilupus: “to be very sad, environed or surrounded with deep grief.” (5) 

• Ekthambeisthai: “to be exceedingly astonished, either with wonder or fear; to be in the grip of a shuddering horror.” (6)

Wuest says Christ was “thoroughly alarmed.” Though He knew in advance this trauma was coming, the intensity of it was even greater than what He had expected. Based on these definitions, it was alarming to Him!

Astonishing. Disorienting. Horrifying. Matthew tells us Jesus was agonizing “to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38). The word used demands that this be taken literally. Though death could never have taken Christ before the time came for Him to yield up His spirit, in a strictly physical sense, here in the garden, His body was close to death.

Again, I believe our redemption began here in the garden of Gethsemane. It was here that Christ began taking our wounds, rejections, and sorrows on Himself, as Isaiah prophesied of the Savior:

“He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging, we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:3-5 NASB)

Don’t waste a moment of Christ’s suffering for you. Everything He did was redemptive. Every second of suffering and abuse was for you and me, taking our place. Let it bring healing to every part of your soul that may be hurting. Jesus wants you healed from every form of abuse, rejection, betrayal, and loss. He paid for this! Receive it.

After three hours of agony, Christ prevailed. He broke through into peace, and His spirit was now in complete control of every emotion. At this point, Judas came with soldiers and betrayed Christ with a kiss, kataphileo(7). The word reveals that this was more than just a friendly kiss on the cheek (phileo)(8), a common greeting in many countries. The prefix kata(9) strengthens it, implying a stronger affection, perhaps with a hug or a lingering kiss on the cheek. That is why Jesus questioned him, “Are you betraying me with [this type of affection], Judas?” (Luke 22:48)

Christ then asks the soldiers, “Who are you seeking?” When they told Him, He simply said, “I AM” (John 18:4-5). Jesus did NOT say “I am He,” as most translations state. He spoke His God-name from throughout eternity: “I AM.” And the power of His words, of His name, knocked the soldiers backward onto the ground (verse 6). Christ is, indeed, Almighty God.

At this point, Peter, perhaps emboldened by what happened to the soldiers, pulled out a sword and cut off the ear of Malchus, a servant of the High Priest. Jesus promptly touched Malchus and healed his ear! (Luke 22:51) The great I AM, indeed! The Healer! The Great Physician! The Creator! And in this time of His suffering, the Savior is seen ministering to His enemies.

At this point, Jesus was led away to be tried, beaten, and crucified. We will look at this tomorrow.

Pray with me:

FATHER, the agony You must have felt during Christ’s sufferings had to have been immeasurable. The temptation to answer His prayer, “Let this cup pass from Me,” must have been overwhelming. But You knew there was no other way to save us - our sins required a perfect, sinless substitute. “You who spared not Your own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall You not also with Him, freely give us all things!” (Romans 8:32). Thank You!

And JESUS, words fail us. You, the Prince of Peace, suffered overwhelming mental anguish and emotional trauma for us. You allowed Yourself to feel the pressure until Your capillaries burst and Your skin oozed blood. Through this, You now give us unexplainable peace and unspeakable joy. We worship You today, exalting You above all others. We love You from the depths of our hearts. May our incense of worship rise before You, bringing the pleasure You so deserve.

As incredible as it sounds, we are the reward of Your suffering. Let this “reward” satisfy Your heart even more in this hour - send revival to the earth! Bring a billion souls into Your family in this coming revival. Your Father, who cannot lie, gave You the nations as Your inheritance. No one can take them from You.

HOLY SPIRIT, show the world just how wonderful this God-Man is. Open their eyes to His glory, His selfless love, His humility. Give them dreams about Him that awaken desire - a longing to know Him. Surely, there is no one like Him - give them a taste! Let not the wicked stop this. Ruin their plans, judge their strategies, thwart their efforts…and reveal this glorious Man. 

And in His name, we pray, Amen.

Tomorrow we will have communion together as we remember Good Friday, the day of Christ’s death.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

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1. https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/hematidrosis-hematohidrosis. 

2. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hematidrosis. 

3. This is a combined definition from these sources: 

   Strong, James. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990.

   Thayer, Joseph Henry. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1977.

   Vine, W.E. The Expanded Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words. Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 1984.

   Zodhiates, Spiros, The Complete Word Study Dictionary. Iowa Falls, IA: Word Bible Publishers, 1992.

4. Ibid.

5. Ibid.

6. Ibid.

7. Ibid.

8. Ibid.

9. Ibid

April 1, 2026

Introduction

Thank you for your prayers during the past couple of days. Ceci and her family are doing well, and her precious mother was honored well in her Memorial and Celebration Service. 

Passion Week: The Alabaster Box

During the week of Christ’s Passion, we are told the story of a woman anointing Christ’s head and feet with very expensive ointment. (Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9; John 12:1-8)

“Now Jesus was in Bethany, in the home of Simon, a man Jesus had healed of leprosy. And as He was reclining at the table, a woman came into the house, with an alabaster flask filled with the highest quality of fragrant and expensive oil. She came to Jesus, and with a gesture of extreme devotion, she broke the flask and poured out the precious oil over His head. But some were highly indignant when they saw this, and they complained to one another, saying, ‘What a total waste! It could have been sold for a great sum, and the money could have benefited the poor.’ So they scolded her harshly. Jesus said to them, ‘Leave her alone! Why are you so critical of this woman? She has honored me with this beautiful act of kindness. You will always have the poor, whom you can help whenever you want, but you will not always have Me. When she poured the fragrant oil over Me, she was preparing My body in advance of My burial. She has done all that she could to honor Me. I promise you that as this wonderful gospel spreads all over the world, the story of her lavish devotion to Me will be mentioned in memory of her.’” (‭‭Mark‬ ‭14:3-9‬ ‭TPT‬‬)

This oil was very expensive, worth a year’s wages based on the average income of the day. We know from John’s account (John 12:1-8) that this was done by the same Mary who sat at Christ’s feet, mesmerized by His words, in Luke 10:38-42. She was the sister of Martha and Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead.

The timing of Mary’s offering was just days before His death, and Jesus said she was anointing Him for His burial. Whether Mary had grasped the reality of His words about His imminent death and resurrection, or whether Jesus was simply applying the offering in that light, is unclear. Two things we do know: It was a very costly offering from Mary, and it was precious to the Lord. “Wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done shall be spoken of in memory of her,” He stated (Matthew 26:13).

Some speculate that the scent of this powerful perfume would have lingered in Christ’s hair for several days. Did the fragrance help sustain Him as He agonized in Gethsemane? Perhaps the sweet aroma comforted Him even through the torturous six hours on the Cross.

Never underestimate the fragrance of your worship.

Others in the room thought Mary’s offering to be a waste. Some actually scolded her (Mark 14:5). I know the feeling. When I canceled all other activities for three months in the church I pastored in Colorado Springs, lavishing ninety days of 24/7 worship on the Lord, I, too, was criticized. One influential Christian leader in our city rebuked me, calling the ninety days of worship “a complete waste of time.”

It’s interesting just how much perspectives can differ. For me, those three months remain among the most meaningful days of my life. They were my alabaster box of costly perfume, the most lavish offering I’ve had the honor of giving Christ. For the person who rebuked me, they were a complete waste of time. Never allow others’ lack of revelation to cheapen your offering. Like Mary, give Christ your best.

Others may mock your sacrifice of time, money, or possessions, but go ahead and “waste” it on Him. Some will rebuke/scold you, as they did Mary, calling your passionate praise too radical, but pour out your offering in spite of their ridicule. Still others will label your extravagant worship as excessive religious zeal. Don’t let their misguided criticism deter you - pour out your costly perfume!

The list of Christ’s followers in the room as Mary anointed Jesus was quite the “who’s who.” The twelve disciples were present. You’d think they would have understood that Jesus was more than worth this offering, but they were too practical: “It should have been given to the poor,” was their protest. Christ’s thoughts? “Go ahead and anoint Me; there will be ample time to care for the poor after I’m gone.”

Simon, the former leper whom Christ had healed, was present. This was actually his home. One might think his new skin, replaced appendages, and restored life would, in his mind, merit the “wasting” of some costly perfume on Jesus. Evidently not - he didn’t come to Mary’s defense. And then there was Lazarus, Mary’s brother, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. He had been dead so long that he stank. Surely he would see the validity of his sister’s costly perfume sacrifice. But no, Lazarus didn’t come to her defense, either.

Could it be that the others’ familiarity with Christ had lessened their wonder of Him, their awe? We don’t know. They certainly didn’t come to Mary’s defense. We do know that only one worshiper that day had the love and revelation necessary to anoint the Savior. How sadly typical. So many miss opportunities to lavish affection on Him. It is not uncommon for me to see church attendees waste opportunities to break their alabaster box of love and pour it on the Master. They’ve been in His presence so often, sang so many songs, and prayed so many prayers that the experience just isn’t quite worth what it used to be. So, they give Him token praise and watered-down worship. Cheap perfume. I doubt if the fragrance of their praise makes it past Sunday lunch.

But while the others that day wasted an opportunity to comfort God–what an amazing thought–Mary poured out her costly perfume. And its fragrance sustained Him through Gethsemane, the beatings, mocking, lashing, spittle, spikes, dislocations, and thorns.

Don’t allow another day to go by without becoming one of the “fragrance creators.” Let nothing deter you. Your alabaster box is your heart; your love and worship are the perfume. Break it open and pour it out. At the scent of your offering, He’ll meet with you. And He’ll cherish your worship, just as He did Mary’s.

Pray with me:

Father, thank You for including Mary’s story in Your Holy Book. We are impressed and motivated by her example, yes. But just as importantly, we are awed by Christ’s moving acceptance and appreciation of it. May we always give Him our best today. May the fragrance of worship ascend to Him daily from our hearts and lives. And may You, Abba, always find the sweet fragrance of worship ascending to Your throne. We love You very much.

Jesus, thank You for Your amazing, unfathomable humility. We will never know just how much You humbled Yourself to serve us as You did. You became human, touchable, breakable. Your love is unmatched. We worship You today with our hearts, hands, offerings, and words. We are so grateful to be partakers of Your life, righteousness, strength, healing, and wholeness.

We continue to pray for the turning of our nation and for our government to be transformed. Change those who can be changed; replace the others. You are the God of salvation; bring it to this land. And we wholeheartedly include other nations in this prayer - send revival throughout the earth. Work Your divine purposes in the Middle East. End the efforts of terrorists and bring a great harvest in the region. 

We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Our decree:

We are passionate worshipers of our great God, and we will break our alabaster box, giving Him all our love and honor.

Click here to watch/hear Cece Winans perform the song,  The Alabaster Box. This is one of our favorites.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.