Shownotes
2023 WEEK 25 [MATT 27; MARK 15; LUKE 23; JOHN 19]
“It Is Finished”
June 19 – June 25
The trials of Jesus continue into this week's study. We'll study His incredible poise before the Jewish leaders, Pilate, Herod, and the multitude. We'll experience the day of the crucifixion from all four gospel writers and gain insights and understandings from each. We'll also study the compassion of those who would care for His body after His death.
On the creative side, we’ll create paper Easter lilies to teach about the 7 phrases Christ spoke from the cross. Next, we'll do a bit of magic to help our kids and classes understand the voluntary offering of His life for us. Finally, we'll put a new twist on a delicious Easter tradition to teach about the kindness of those who were left behind.
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CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST DISCLAIMER: This podcast represents my own thoughts and opinions. It is not made, approved or endorsed by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Any content or creative interpretations, implied or included are solely those of Maria Eckersley ("MeckMom LLC"), and not those of Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Great care has been made to ensure this podcast is in harmony with the overall mission of the Church. Click here to visit the official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Transcripts
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Hey everybody. Welcome back. This is week 25 of Creative. Come Follow me for the New Testament. And this week we are heading into some hard waters. So just like we talked about last week, where we studied mostly in the Garden of Gethsemane this week we head into the crucifixion and it's heavy. It's heavy all around, but it's the same kind of heavy that we experienced last week in that it's this launch pad for our hope.
Uh, this week you're gonna see a little bit of the Savior's trials where we ended last week. They'll be caught in all the different synoptic gospels and also in John, and we'll study those, the experiences with Pilate and with Herod. You'll also see how his crucifixion and his death impact those around him, especially the women who are around him will see that really beautifully.
nto. It's, it's hard because [:I think it's because this is our fourth year you guys were, we've seen types and shadows of the savior all across the Book of Mormon in Hear and learn about him from the doctrine of Covenants and then get him richly in type and shadow in the Old Testament. And now I feel like you start to see all those pieces.
pplicable than it is in this [:This is a night where everything hinges right. Satan, by the end of this week's study will be defeated and Christ will triumph and everything hinges on this week. What's pivotal to remember as you study, I think, is all of this is based on agency. Jesus Christ chose to do all these things. He's gonna have many opportunities and even temptations that hit him during this week to be less than what he was intended to be.
And he chose to be everything God the father asked him to be. In fact, one of my favorite verses, I put this in the notes, but I really love what we find in the Book of Mormon when Levi is speaking Messian. This is in 19 nine, it says, and the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of not.
him and he suffered with it [:He suffereth. It means he allows this to occur so that we can. Have freedom. That's the whole purpose behind it. And he does it out of a love for his father and love for us, and I just think it deserves every minute of attention we can give it. So grab your scriptures. Grab your notes. We're gonna be in all four gospels today, so we've got a lot of ground to cover and it's time to get started.
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Where we begin. And Matthew 27 is pretty close to where we left off last week. So we're gonna let Matthew tell us the overarching storyline and then we'll add in the other synoptic gospels to give you little details and then spend a little more time in John. Cause there's some new things in John you just don't get anywhere else, like there always is in John.
, we'll spend the most time [:I thought this was fascinating because it kind of adds to my thoughts before about how Judas may have had a whole nother game plan in mind. Remember, he was gonna go his way. It didn't, he didn't wanna do the Savior's plan. He wanted to do his way. And again, I still don't know his motives, but in my mind, I think this situation where he is frantic, cuz what he's just heard is that they're gonna condemn him to death.
he submitted himself, he put [:I, I don't think Juda saw this coming and now he sees it. Going so far, so fast, and I, I hate to say I have a whole lot of sympathy for Judas. I, I think he had a lot of opportunities to go another way, but I have been in this spot where I have made a mistake that I thought I could control the ramifications and they got beyond me.
You know, even a small one where you can start to see the ripple effects for your choices and you just wish you could pull them back and it's too late. You know, you can repent and you can try and fix things, but it's too late to fix all the damage that's been done and that, that's the spot Juda is in.
bling in this moment, and he [:And so what he does is he. Takes it out on himself. So you can see in verse four he says to the chief priest, I sinned in that I betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, what is that to us? See thou to that they have a callousness that is pushing him towards a certain end, I think. I think this adds to their big mounting pile of sins that in this moment with Judas, what should have happened is there should have been a mistrial.
Jesus' court case was hinging on Judas being the witness. So if Judas is now saying he's innocent, I lied and perjured himself, Jesus should have been set free, and Judas might have gone on trial for perjury himself in their court. That's now what happens here. In fact, they almost kind of push him towards Potter's field, not physically, but that's their impression.
member of the seventies, but [:It's only impacting me. It's not gonna hurt anybody else. He camouflages consequences in the moment of sin. And then when it's too late, he lets you see them in full color. You know, this is where Judas is. He can see the damage in full color and surround sound, and he is frantically trying to fix it and he can't.
So he takes it out on himself, and in verse five, he casts down the pieces of silver in the temple, throws down the 30 pieces, and he departs and went and hanged himself. In fact, if you go on the jst, you can learn that he goes to Potters Field. You can see this throughout the different gospels, but he goes to Potters Field and he hangs himself and falls, and then his bowels spill out and he dies.
gain, I'm not trying to push [:And how he prosecuted Christians and even was complicit in killing Christians. And then he. Turns and he spends the rest of his life trying to do good. Alma, the younger is similar where he talked about how he felt like he almost murdered them because he damaged testimony so deeply and so he gives the rest of his life to do good and I, I just wonder what could have been, I don't think suicide is ever, ever the answer, and I think there, there were options there, but Judas chose this one and you can see that the chief priests are wrestling with it cuz they don't know what to do with the money.
Ironically, they recognize that it's blood money. This is money that has been. Soiled because of their choices and Judith's testimony, and so they don't wanna put it in the Treasury. And so they go and they buy Potter's Field, this place that Judas actually died, and it becomes a burial place for peasants and others.
just this interesting little [:Then you're gonna see some of that in Matthew 27. What I think is really interesting is the Savior's response, because sometimes he answers and sometimes they don't. It doesn't. And sometimes he'll give a partial answer and sometimes he gives a fuller one. And when it comes to Herod, he won't answer it all.
And I found myself wondering like, why is it so different? And then I realized, I think that's part of poise. I think being able to read the room and know how your words are gonna impact the people around you, where their testimonies are, and how much they can appreciate, and how much is casting pearls before swine, that that's part of his gift.
talk to. I should be able to [:Even in this really hard circumstances. Just like last week pilot is constantly trying to shift. The blame to somebody else. Like he doesn't want Jesus to be executed, but he also doesn't wanna lose power and he doesn't wanna lose popularity. So he's continually like trying to pass the buck over and you can see the interaction.
This is where he offers VIS to the Jews and they, they don't, they don't take the bait. Pilot is hoping for an out where he can still hold onto his power. He's hoping to straddle both those post-it notes like we talked about last week. And he just can't do it. And so he gets pushed to a breaking point.
What's interesting in the Matthew account is what you see in verse 19, when he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him saying, have thou nothing to do with this. Just man for, I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. I think this wife, we don't know anything more about this.
ight of Christ that's within [:I've just had that many times, you know, like where I'm frustrated or I'm resentful, or I'm whatever. And then Jason will get inspiration and be like, Hey, have you thought about it this way? And I'll be like, oh yeah. You know, I, I just think it's one of the beautiful things about how, how the spirit works.
It's gonna find all kinds of different ways to try and. Try to get your attention. And pilot's wife is one of those. He doesn't respond. In fact, when he goes to the chief priest, they're persuading the multitude. So vi 20, it says that the chief priests have persuaded the people who are there, which is kinda interesting when you think about it.
e, clearly they're in charge [:Able to persuade. I remember when we were studying the Palm Sunday part where people are, you know, laying down their palms and praising the, this coming of the king and wondering how could they shift in such a short period of time from praising him to saying crucify him. And sometimes I wonder if it's because these pilgrims are new and the Pharisees of the scribes have a lot of sway, especially cuz they can control who can go to the temple and who can offer sacrifices.
And if you've just taken all your money and spent everything, you have to get to that place, you know, that's your pilgrimage. It'd be really hard to push back against the chief priest. And so they get, they get the sway of the crowd. I think it's interesting to see how pilot tries to. Deal with it. So in 22 it says, Pilate, say a unto them, what shall I do then with Jesus, which is called Christ.
e? But they cry out the more [:Pilots under the mistaken impression that you can, you can serve two masters or that you can be neutral. Honestly, I think they're both equally wrong. I think he thinks he can stand on this fine line of, well, it's not my fault. You know, and you see this throughout the scriptures. We saw this with layman and Lem.
You know, they're constantly trying to blame things on Lehigh or blame things on Nephi, and they talk about how their choices were. It's not their fault, you know, it's because they got carried into the wilderness. It's because whatever. You know, you saw this even back with Kane and Abel when Kane didn't have a good offering.
open hearts and still try to [:What can I do to fix it? I just think they're missing that piece. Pilate especially is missing that piece and he thinks he can wash his hands. I think it was Elder Holland who said his hands have probably never been dirtier because in this moment he's teaching everybody else that this is how you handle conflict and this is how you handle struggle with your integrity.
And he, he gives in. And then in the following verses you see what happens because of his weakness in that moment. Jesus is scoured. He's delivered, he's crucified, he's mocked. He's stripped of his clothing. And you know, they put false kingly robes on him and mock him. And what was fascinating to me, we're gonna study this more and the other gospels, but this is exactly what he told us apostles would happen.
yard? And this word for word [:And I just, this, I found myself sickened as I read it. I just, it felt like I. Honestly, the most comforting image that came to my mind is he is like a lamb to the slaughter. You know how we read that back in the Old Testament and we've read it again in the Book of Mormon? It is this. He is coming voluntarily and he will be led to somewhere really hard and we'll see it in all the different accounts, but I think the Matthew account is particularly poignant.
read in Isaiah in the Psalms [:One of the things you're gonna see is that the cross is carried by Simon. So this is someone who would've been one of the pilgrims who come, most people think he's from North Africa somewhere, and that he gets this chance to carry the cross. And there are some incredible conference talks about how each of us get to do this to a small degree, that when we endure it well and when we carry our crosses, whatever our burdens are, that we are uniting with Christ in beautiful ways.
as a verse that talks about, [:So it's, it's a way to dull the pain. It's some, in some gospels it's called a sour wine, and sometimes it talks about this mixture of ingredients, but it's designed to dull the pain. And so when Jesus tastes it, he won't have anything of it. He doesn't want, I think he wants a clear head. I think he wants to experience this in its fullness because he's all in.
And so he, he rejects whatever limited amount of comfort he possibly could have had in those moments. He. Pushes it away. It sort of reminded me of Joseph Smith in that story of the leg surgery. Do you remember that? Where he's like, I don't want any anesthesia, I just want my dad. And I just, when I went back and read that and then came back to this and knowing that this is the time when the savior's gonna feel a disconnect from his dad.
hen you see a little further [:So that's, that's what you're gonna see in back in Psalms 22. So that hymn basically speaks about that his garments are gonna be, they're gonna cast lots over his clothing. When they, when that psalm spoke of the Messiah, it prophesied that these things would happen, and then it happens right before everyone's eyes.
And then after that, the guards sit, so it says 36. And sitting down, they watched him there. I. The very fact that you could sit and watch the Savior on the cross. I just, I struggled with it. I think what was so hard for me is what I learned about the cross. So I'm not gonna go too deep into the excruciating experience of the cross.
ll looking up. In most Roman [:And so the people who are passing by and the guards who are sitting on the ground and looking at him, you know, they're right there at eye level. People who pass by are able to throw things and spit on him and say hateful things right to his face. And for some reason that was harder to me. I liked picturing him up higher.
You know, I just, that's what he was dealing with when they talk about him feeling. Mocked and betrayed. It is right to his face and that they sit there and watch him. I just, I just struggled with it. Then if you go on 39 and 40 and 41, this is where you see what people say. So the chief priests, the scribes, pastors by the Romans, even the other thieves, the murderers who are being crucified around him, they all cast doubt.
hen do this thing, you know, [:And Jesus was in a weakened state because he had been fasting for 40 days. I feel like. Do you remember in the Old Testament when we studied pro, that when we studied David and we learned that David, before he ever met Goliath, fought off a lion and a bear, and that that sort of prepared him. I don't think it actually gave him a lot of.
Skill with his sling per se. Maybe it did. I think it, it more likely prepared him spiritually and mentally so that he could know that he could do hard things with the sling. And I wonder sometimes if those temptations of the adversary are actually Jesus' version of a lion and a bear approaching that time when he'll fight Goliath, because this is much harder than fasting.
weak weekend state he's in. [:What these people say, if that'll be the son of God, this is in verse 40, come down from the cross. If the, if he be the king of Israel, let him now come down from the cross and we will believe him. That's what the scribes and the Pharisees say. He, he trusted in God. Let him deliver him. Now if he will have him for, he said, I am the son of God.
It's, you can hear the adversary's voice in the this group of people cuz his strategies haven't changed. And honestly, it's the same thing we talked about last week. If the adversary can get the savior to. To flinch in this moment. Then everything he's done so far is gone. All that triumph of Gethsemane and everything he's endured in the last 24 hours, it's gone.
her gospels you see a little [:And knowing what we know about the savior and malus, remember where he healed the guard's ear? Uh, from my perspective, I think it's just cuz he hated seeing somebody in pain and he hated seeing someone bleeding. And he just immediately helped this spot where there are two men suffering the exact same pain.
Well, not exact same, but the same crucifixion that he is experiencing. I think his heart must have. Ached to help them because he knows exactly what they're feeling and he can't, because he can't step off that cross. You know, it's the same thing we studied with Elder Corbridge last week, where there is one way if Jesus steps off this cross, which he absolutely could do at any point in any, any part of this process, all of it is gone.
over all the land until the [:And this is where that beautiful verse of scripture comes. This is in 46, where he says, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? There's a lot I I, I am not qualified to commentate on that verse. I will link you to a lot of people who are, um, there are prophets and apostles who have spoken on that verse and what it means and how close God the father really was in that moment, even though the savior felt forsaken.
And I just can't do it justice. So my hope is that you'll go read, go read Elder Maxwell. Go read Elder Holland. Go read President Nelson and learn what they have to say about it, cuz it's his level of pain and aloneness in this moment. The only phrase we have is from the savior himself, where he talks about how exquisite, you know, not, you know, it's how sore, you know, not, he can't even articulate it himself when he's trying to speak to Joseph Smith.
It is. It is [:You know, like, I don't, I don't know. But this is, these are familiar words to the Jews, and it should have caught their attention. Um, and it is, it just doesn't. Or if it does, it's too late. And so you see in 50, Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice yielded up the ghost. What's powerful to me about that, again, just studying the crucifixion and the experience physically, is that it puts a lot of strain on the lungs.
s is put strain on the lungs.[:None of the wounds from the nails would actually kill a person. It's what happens on the inside. So the very fact that in this key moment he is able to call out with a loud voice, tells you something about the endurance of the savior. I just think he sh inm mortal version, he shouldn't have been able to do that.
But because he is who he is, he pushes out sound and he then yields, uh, this is when he fully submits to the will of the father. Even in this profound loneliness. And I just, I found him utterly remarkable that he's able to do what he does. And then immediately the veil tears. So in the temple, remember when we made that paper T Tabernacle last year, that big thick purple and red with the Cher booms on it?
don't know, five, six inches [:And in fact, if you go in there accidentally, you could die based on what we learned in the old estimate. You're not gonna make it a really thin ome veil. They make it so thick that it can't be opened accidentally. And so that's what tears in half. And not just tears, but like according to Jesus, the Christ opens so that there is full view of the holy of Holies because this is the gift of the Savior when he chooses to fully yield and to give up his body and give up the ghost.
Things change. In fact, two big things change. First, the veil of the temple breaks, which breaks this boundary from men. And God passing through Jesus Christ represented by that veil. You now have access to God if you go through his way. And then the other thing that breaks is the ground. The ground breaks and there's an earthquake and the graves open up.
ople come outta their graves [: Pentecost, they're gonna have:You see these ramifications happen on the planet that there is, there are people who are dazzled and want to know more and it's, he's, it's almost like you can see the savior setting the stage for his apostles to be able to go, you know, almost like a stopped into Malone kind of moment. You know, where he's like setting it up so that they can then go and teach and preach and people will believe.
isn't that a beautiful thing [:Even in these hard, hard moments, like in Matthew, you learned that the women, the women disciples, followed Jesus even to this place. I don't know why the apostles aren't there, or maybe they are and we just don't have a record of it, but they, what we do know is that the women, especially those from Galilee, are here.
So Mary, his mother is at the cross. You're gonna learn about several who are there, and they are. Mourning him. I actually, when in my margins I put like, this is almost like the first relief society meeting now that this is the first time women have come together to mourn with each other. But the fact that they had to do it in silence, you know how we talked about earlier in the year that it was illegal to mourn someone who was deemed like, who had to be executed, and so they would've had to do this stoically in silence.
hibited by law. I don't know [:It is, you know, he was a champion of women. He had women disciples. He brought them out so they could learn and study, and he praised motherhood and he used it as a metaphor often, you know, like he understood the value of what they do, and he was constantly advocating for them. So for him to be lost would've been so hard, you know, I don't know if they worried that that meant their life was gonna retreat right back to where it used to be.
n you learn about Joseph, of [:This is one who's in the Sanhedrin who wasn't a part of the trials. This is how, you know there wasn't a full Sanhedrin group there cuz you learn later in the other gospels that he was not a part of the trials against Jesus. I almost wonder if he like came into town at the tail end or something and then is just horrified at what happens and he does everything he can to help.
So you see in the verses that he goes to pilot and requests the body of Jesus. Traditional Roman strategy was if you crucified someone, you left the body there until it was not there. You know what I mean? Until something else happened to it. Animals, people, whatever. Um, in Jewish society, they did not want to have a crucifixion scene out on the Sabbath, so there was pressure from the Jews to take the bodies down, but normally those would've been put in a mass grave or somewhere unmarked.
ed it in a clean linen cloth [:What's interesting to me about this is this is traditionally the woman's role. Like they would've done this part of the work where they take care of the body, where they wrap it in spices and they put the linen shroud on it. That's their work. And I love that they, even though they can't be the one to do this work, they watch.
So you can see that in 61 and there was Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sitting over against the sep. They are watching to make sure he is okay. And I just think that's sweet, right, that they are, and I think it's good that they're together. I think they need each other and they're gonna need each other.
And I wonder sometimes if it was hard for them to watch. Joseph do this. You know, he, if this isn't his traditional role, I, you know, like I've seen Jason rap Christmas gifts, her birthday gifts, and I'm like, oh, you know, you all clearly don't do this very often. And I just wonder if it was hard for them.
bout that in, in a few other [:Cuz remember there's priest, priest craft happening here. They have a lot more understanding than they're letting on. And so they're worried. So they go to Pilate and say, it's possible that one of those followers could go and take his body and then they're gonna claim that he got resurrected. Will you give us permission to seal the tomb?
And so Pilate gives them guards and he allows them to seal the tomb, which is just to like put a seal on it. Some people said it was like a wax seal that you put on the stones to show that it had been tampered with. That seal would be broken. What I thought was particularly haunting about this, despite the fact of what they're doing and why it's all happening on the Sabbath, these Jews who came against Jesus because of blasphemy and about their pious love of God.
hen on the Sabbath, not only [:There's just a, a darkness in their heart that I think is wiped out a lot of other things.
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Mark 15 is actually really similar to Matthew 27, both in what it entails and how it's told. So I won't spend too much time in Mark 15. But there are a few key things like, for example, I really like how he answers nothing to the Jews when the savior is on trial. In this fake trial. He won't answer them. I think it's interesting because.
wn out of proportion and you [:They just simply continue to be apostles and a prophet and they do their work, they stay fixed. And I think Jesus exemplifies that for them. In fact, I wonder if it's what ignites a fire in. The Jewish leadership that Jesus doesn't react. You can see a Pilate kind of is dazzled by it. So in four he is asking him why he's not answering.
And then in five, but Jesus answered nothing. So that Pilate marveled Pilate is a man who has wishy washy integrity. You know, like, uh, he, he is impressed by someone who can stand so strong. I think. I think that's his marveling. He is sort of dazzled by it cuz he is used to people graveling. He's used to someone who's about to be executed and in the hands of Pilate's choice, plead and beg for their life.
And Jesus is not, he [:You really need to either treat them with incredible compassion or walk away because either one of those options. It sort of neutralizes them. They, they don't know what to do and how to handle it. And I think the Jews were hoping that Jesus would plead for his life. I don't think they intended to grant it to him, but I think they hoped they would see Jesus beg and he doesn't, and neither does Pilate.
And it's powerful to watch. I was, there's a great quote. We've talked about it a couple times over the years, but it's attributed to Viktor Frankl, the concentration camp survivor, and he talks about stimulus and response. You, you remember how I talked about this? It basically says there's space between stimulus and your response, and in that space you get to choose how to react.
in that choice so that even [:Dignity, despite the fact that he is, his clothes have been torn from him. He is on trial, he has been beaten, he, he has dignity in this moment and in every moment after it, when you get a little further into Mark, you're also gonna learn more about what Baras was guilty of. So if you look at seven, he had committed murder in the insurrection.
Here's what's interesting about that. An insurrection means he was part of an uprising against Rome in Jerusalem in some way, and then in the process murdered someone. So what's risky about that type of person is at there. He's actually someone that the Jewish leadership should have been afraid of as well.
n insurrectionist is someone [:Because they wanted to stay in power among the Jewish society. And Romans, like Pilate, they also don't want insurrectionists around cuz that causes trouble. And then taxes don't get paid and they get replaced. So neither of neither pilot nor the Jewish leadership should have wanted Barabbas to be freed.
But that tells you something about the heart of these men, that even despite that threat being the alternative, they still say, Set Barabbas free. Crucify Jesus. And so that's what they say. They demand his release. And you see the same wrestle with Pilate that you see, you don't see the reference to his wife and the dream, but you see him wrestling with this decision and continually coming to the people saying, are you sure?
content, the people released [:You want to please somebody. That's important. You want to look really cool on social media. You want to extend the kind of love somebody hopes for two of them, even though it goes against what you believe. Like it's hard you guys. But when we make that compromise to content, the people, instead of please God, especially if we have to step away from God in order to do it like Pilate does, you've gone too far.
It's, that's, that's the risk when you cut that covenant line, you are, you are now. Untethered to God and Pilot is scrambling and so things go forward. They take him in, they beat him. They hit him with a read. There were so many things that I noticed this time. I, I've always known about the scouring on his back and the, the abuse to his body.
I never [:That happened to be Why I found it, but it showed a very serene Christ, but with a very bruised face, almost like someone who had just been in a. You know, heavyweight fight, like that kind of swollen eye, and it sounds irreverent, but it was actually kind of lovely. I gave a link in the notes so you can see it, but I picture that a little differently.
lood, you know, like he must [:He's just, he just suffers it, you know, like he continually will say, I will suffer with it. That's what he does. And so they take him to gha the place of the skull. In fact, you often see in the synoptic Osmos that Joseph Smith translate that's that to a burial place. So it doesn't necessarily have to look like a skull.
Although a lot of Christian traditions assume that Joseph Smith makes it seem like this is just a place where death happens. Um, and so that's where he goes next. And you, this is again where you see the wine that's mingled with merr to try and dull the pain and he won't take it. And you see the thieves on his right hand and on his left and begging him to save him himself and come down off the cross.
All those same temptations that we studied in Matthew, you see those in Mark as well. And I really liked what you saw in 32. It says, let, this is one of the temptations that's coming from the onlookers. Let Christ, the King of Israel descend now from the cross that we may see and believe and they, that were crucified with him.
Reviled him, I think is [:Like they still think he must have some kind of power, and that he, at some point he's gonna come off that cross and he's gonna conquer and they're willing to let him suffer in this process. I don't know for sure, but I, I think there's a. There's a hardness to it. Uh, when you're, you're allowing the savior to suffer in the hopes that he will do some big spectacle.
s pain and I am letting that [:You know, I think it's Elder Holland who said it's like a crucifying Christ afresh. I just think we have to be really cautious about that, and I wonder if some of that was happening in the Mark 15 account as all these people kind of stay around and wait to see what happens. You get the same phrase in 34 where it says, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?
And you can go in the footnotes and in the notes and learn a little bit more, but this is where you learn that the veil actually tears from the top to the bottom, which I just love. The visual of. It just means, in my mind, it means that choice came from heaven. It is a, he's going to tear open that veil and if you will pass through his way, you can have access to God.
That's the promise. And then you see the women watching and the same kind of story that we read in Matthew plays out and mark that they watch this burial, they see where this, um, tomb is and they will participate more in it as we go into next week.
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. So [:Beautiful statements about how, who this, who this Messiah is and was. And I love the way Luke phrases things. So if you go on Luke first, you see that the charges have kind of changed. Like I mentioned last week. We don't really have an actual charge against the savior. There's nothing that Pilate pronounces or that Herod pronounces.
In fact, both of them claim that he's innocent, that he is a just man. So if you go in the verses, you can see the Jews kind of scrambling to come up with something. So this is when he, they say to him, we found this fellow perverting the nation and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar saying that he himself is Christ a king.
bling now, trying to hope to [:To their mind, that just means he's causing commotion, which is true, right? Like he has. He's fulfilling the love of Moses and causing a whole new covenant to happen. This is, he is definitely causing commotion and that was his goal. And they are struggling. You know, they, they can't keep their power and their control if.
If he's around. So they really need to get rid of him. And you can see it in the verses. So this one, he goes Before Pilate Art thou king of the Jews. And he answered him and said, thou say it. So again, like we read the footnotes in Matthew, he doesn't deny that. In fact, he says what you're saying is absolutely true, basically.
And then in four then Pilate said to the chief priest and to the people, I find no fault in this man. I think it's really interesting that several times pilot uses the term, this man. I think he's trying to say to the Jews, I don't think he's trying to be a king. You know, he doesn't, he's making it really clear.
listen, he's not a threat to [:And then you see him pass things off. So basically what happens is he learns that Jesus has been teaching up in Galilee, cuz the Jews are trying to ramp things up and they're like, yeah, it's not just here though. He's been teaching in Galilee and as soon as Pilot hears Galilee, he's like, great, I'm gonna send him to Herod because Herod is over Galilee.
That's a whole different portion of the area than Jerusalem is. So luckily Herod happens to be in town in Jerusalem, and so Pilate almost like a hot potato, passes Jesus. And this whole court case over and says like, you're outta my hands. That doesn't make him less complicit, cuz he certainly could have stopped everything at this point.
hoped to have seen him some [:Herod has, I think, no concept of what is happening. We've talked about Herod in the past. This is not the Herod of Jesus' birth. You know, the one who executed all the babies. That's this guy's dad. This Herod is the one who beheaded John the Baptist and has this really creepy marriage and relationship.
And his daughter danced before like he's that guy and because the daughter and the wife requested John beheaded, it happens. Even though he thinks the people are gonna get mad because they all love John. That's who this is. And so when the savior comes before Herod, he has no words for Herod. And I just, that tells you something.
I think about the Saviors when he chooses, he will not speak because I think he loved to John. There may be lots of other reasons why he didn't speak to Herod, but the very fact that Herod is excited to see him, cuz he thinks he'll do some. Thing you know, he'll, he'll perform in some way is just sickening.
And then [:This is where you see that they've got a big multitude of people together. So if you look in 13 and Pilate, when he had called together the chief priest and the rulers and the people said unto them, you have brought this man unto me as one that perverted the people. And behold I've examined him before you and have found no fault in this man.
Touching those things where you have accused him of where, where of ye accuse him. Nor yet Herod for I sent him to, for I sent you to him. And Lo, nothing worthy of death is done with him. I will therefore chastise him and release him. That's what he says to this growing multitude of people, I'm gonna chastise him, which means I'm gonna physically correct him in some way and then I'm gonna let him go.
im to pilot, they got him to [:But they're the ones that are actually setting that. Those little minds around all the people, so they ramp people up. What's interesting to me is if over the next like five to 10 verses you see a really big contrast where so much of the message of this week is about the savior submitting his will to the father's will and letting it be swallowed up.
I feel like you also see what happens when a man lets his will be swallowed up by the people or popular opinion, cuz that's what happens. Luke in 16, I will therefore chastise him and release him Luke again in 22 and he said unto them the third time, what evil has he done? I have found no cause of death in him.
will. He has voluntarily set [:Um, I have to be. Wise, you know, I have to be cautious about believing, standing up for my beliefs. I think that prophets and the apostles have taught us to do it compassionately and to be careful, but also to stand like, to take a stand for what you believe and do not let your will get swallowed up.
Because once it's swallowed up by the people, there's, it's really hard to pull back. And that's what happens with Pilate. So then you see again that there's a great company of people, especially women who are going along with the Savior to this place of crucifixion. And only in the Luke account do you see this warning from the savior.
are gonna get. There is, um, [:Incredible indignities and children will die and women will die in horrible, horrible ways. And so he's warning about that and he says, if you think it's bad now with when it's green here, like when the savior is here, it will get so much worse when it's dry, when there is no living water around you, it's, it's gonna get hard.
And so that's a little warning. You see what I love about that is it's so in line with the savior character, even though he's on his way to the most painful part, this crucifixion phase, that he will be worried about them and warn them about the pains they will face. I just think it's a beautiful thing.
's speaking to are the Roman [:So before he says this phrase, father, forgive them for they know not what they do. What they have done is tear apart his clothing and they've cast lots. This actually gets mentioned many times in all the different gospels, and I found myself wondering like, what is it about the clothing? I know it's a fulfillment of prophecy and this is just total Maria theory here, but my mind went back to, remember in the Old Testament we were studying Hannah, and when she gives Samuel back to the Lord and.
She takes him to the temple. And then there's this one little verse that says she made him a coat every year. So she gets to go back to see him once a year at a festival or feast time. And she brought him a coat every year. And I always wondered like what that coat looks like and how much time she spent on the embroidery and what she put in the pockets.
I sometimes wonder if the reason we hear so much about his clothing, his arraignment is because it's precious to him in some way. Wouldn't that fit? You know, if I were married and I knew what he was heading into, I would've made him something. Or maybe it's something he inherited from Joseph and he's worn it all his life since Joseph died.
I don't know. But he [:They know not what they do. And I just thought that was beautiful. I mean, his grace and his extension of forgiveness is so. Big that it seems like any small forgiveness, I'm asked to make pales in comparison and I should just do it. You know, like I just, I just think it's beautiful. So when you look a little further, you see him talk to the thieves that are on either side of him.
ays, but the other answering [:So this is one thief talking to the other thief and he says, does thou not fear God? Seem that thou were in the same condemnation and we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds. But this man had done nothing amiss. He knows that Jesus doesn't deserve to be there among them. And so he says this thing, he says in 42, Lord, remember me when thou comus into thy kingdom.
And Jesus said unto him, verily I santo to this today, thou shall be with me in paradise. Jesus only says seven things on the cross, and this is one of them. And it's not that he's giving this man absolution. What he's saying is like, there is a spirit world. You know, you can go and learn more from the institute manual on this, but there's a spirit world and he can come there and he can, he'll be held accountable for what he understood and the choices he made.
ts of pain. And I think it's [:It kind of reminds me of what we said in the little testament with Joseph when he was in jail and he requests that the, is it the Butler that gets released, remember him and then he doesn't remember him for years. I just, I think there's some parallels that are just kind of fun to, to read and to study.
Then you see the sun darkening, so I think it's Elder Holland who talks about. When the, when the savior of the world is in this much pain, even the world darkens, like the sun can't shine. And so that's what happens for three hours. There is a darkening that happens in the Luke account. The veil tears first and then the crucifixion happens.
And then you have that phrase from the century. And certainly this was a righteous man. What's interesting about that is this is a gentile, this is a Roman. I actually wonder sometimes if it's the exact same centurion that we studied earlier in the year who had a son or a servant, it was hard to tell which who was sick and Jesus healed him from afar and that remember the centurion had come to the savior and said, I know you can do this.
e's better. And, and then he [:In these hard hours between when he has actually died on the cross and when they can take the body and have it put in the SEP curve. So that's what you're gonna see around 49. The acquaintances gather. But I actually love what you see at the very end of Luke. So this is where you see Joseph, the Arimathea comes and he takes down the body and then he cares for it.
He buys new linen for it and spices and he takes care of the body. What's interesting is it says in 55 at the very end that the women are watching and they see how the body was laid. So just like I talked to you about before, where I wonder sometimes if he didn't know quite what he was doing. He is doing the best he can, but they're kind of like, oh, that's not quite right.
be done in a rush before the [:Even though the leaders of the Jewish faith at this point that they know just executed the son of God, they still will follow the commandments, and I think that's remarkable. The other thing I think is remarkable is w. What is happening here? So you remember that conference talk from Elder Stanfield where he talked about the imperfect harvest and where there was grain that was falling out of the truck or the combine or whatever it was.
And he was talking to his dad about it and he said, you know, it's the best this machine can do. And then later he saw the birds come in the fall and they ate all the seeds or the grain that couldn't have been collected, and he said, the Lord perfected it. That's what I think is happening at the end of 22.
day night to Saturday night. [:And the spices that maybe he had to hurry and do they want to do right. The very fact that it was done imperfectly by Joseph Bear Mathia and later that will learn Nicodemus was there as well, means they come back on Sunday morning with spices. And guess what happens when they come back on Sunday morning with spices?
Then they're in the exact place they need to be to be able to witness, in fact, be the first witness that he's risen. That's perfect harvest. You know, I just think, there's so many times in my life where I'm like, why did you let this fall apart? Why? And then later I see, oh, that makes sense. Now I can see why I had to have that fall so I could have this high.
Right? And I just think you see a lot of that beautifully at the end of Luke.
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but there are just some key [:Bloodied Jesus and says, behold the man. Like, do you? I think he's trying to get across to the people like, isn't this enough? Have I done enough? You know, like he's trying to satisfy their blood lust. And he says, behold the man I love, there's a talk from Elder RF where he, I think that's entitled, behold The Man.
But he basically says they could see him, but they didn't have eyes to behold him, and that our job as disciples and saints is to. To really behold the man, the, the whole man, what he offered, who he is, why he offered it. We have to behold him. And the way he phrased it, I put it in the notes, but he put these beautiful phrases in of like, when you are struggling, when you are feeling dark, when you are heavy, behold the man when you, you know, like he, he uses us as this key phrase for me to keep in my mind when things are hard.
he man and then remember who [:If you want to not die, you need to convince me. You know, I have all the power. And Jesus response is, all the power you have was given you from above. I'm sure Pilate heard that and thought Rome, and I think Jesus meant something much, much higher. You know, everything that they have at this point in time comes from God in some way or another.
And Jesus is like, I, I have 12 leg legions of angels. I mean, that's not what he says here, but he's like, he, there's, there's no power that I interfere. It reminded me a lot of what we studied with Moses. And the adversary. Remember when he is, like when he encounters God and he talks with God and then Lucifer tries to come back and he's like, who are you that I should worship?
ke, I don't care how big and [:Of course. Right? So then from that point forward, pilot seeks to release him, which I thought was fascinating. What's interesting is what the Jews say to pil, they basically say he's claiming to be the son of God. What you have to understand is pilots are Roman, Romans believe in Degos and all kinds of different theories about Gods right.
And so for a man to claim that he is the son of God and has shown this remarkable power, and his wife had a dream and. All these things are starting to like coalesce in pilot's mind. And he's like, oh no. It actually says his fear increases because he hears that phrase and he, but at that point he's, he's already given up a lot of his power to the people and to the Jews, and he's not courageous enough to take a stand.
people. He is scoured. He is [:And I wondered were they're so close to Jerusalem, you know, this is supposed to be just right outside the, that the city wall. Um, if she remembers really clearly being inside the city at the temple when Simeon told her that her soul would be pierced, you remember that when he studied it in Luke two. And I just wonder, I mean, that's like a stone's throw away, I guess maybe a far stone's throw, but.
Yeah, this must have been so hard, even though she knew it had to happen and he probably had lots of talks with her about why it had to happen. You know, she's the one in my mind who, when his first miracle happens at Keena, she's the one that says, okay, Jesus, if it's time, it's time. And, and I feel like he kind of says, okay, if you're ready Mary, then here we go.
ink there is this tight bond [:And we know Jesus had brothers, but we also know that those brothers are going to go and serve. Right. A lot of them are gonna become missionaries of sorts to go out and help people come convert. And so I wonder if the reason he. He connects her with John, not just because he loves John, but also because John is the one that will never go, she'll never have to say goodbye to John.
red his father profoundly by [:And he honors his mother by caring for her at this very last minute. You know where things are at their peak, he takes care of her. Is there more profound way to honor that commandment? I, I don't know it if there is, um, and then it's finished and dirty. That's what it says. And when Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said it is finished and he bowed his head and gave up the ghost.
I love, there's a quote from Elder Hales that's in the note and he talks about how isn't it beautiful that in Nephi, so just a little bit after this, after it is finished, what the father says is, behold my beloved son and whom I am well pleased and whom I have glorified by name hear him. I think the father could not be more pleased when we know that, that he has done everything he's been asked to do.
u just have to visualize the [:We'll go into it next week, but that's my picture, that embrace that must have happened between the father and the son. And when they're finally reunited again, and I just think. There'll be so much joy and rejoicing because it is finished at this point in time. Satan is defeated. There will be spoils of war that he will gather throughout the centuries as people still turn to him and follow Satan.
But the victory is one, he will be conquered and has been conquered and that, that this is a major tipping point in the history of the world. And I just think we, you can't go too fast through it. I think you have to just enjoy it and soak it in. There is a triumph in those verses. After that, you're gonna see the same story of, of Joseph Tia purchasing the tomb and taking care of Jesus.
Or purchased, I dunno if you [:Remember he's the one that came to the savior at night and had questions about baptism and the savior was trying to teach him like, aren't you a leader of the Jews and you don't know what these things are? I think Nicodemus has been a reluctant follower to some degree, and I don't know, I don't know his story.
We, it's not written, but I wonder if he worried about what he could have done, and I love that in this moment in time, he chooses to give all he can because for all of us, when we fear that we have not done what we could have done, The answer is, do what you can. Turn to the savior and do what you can today.
something is what they write [:And so to the women. And so all of those Jews who loved him are there and they take care of him. And that's gonna set this beautiful stage for where we go next week when the women come back after the Sabbath and see the tomb empty. But I can't get there yet. So come back next week and learn even more.
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Welcome back guys. It's time for the creative side of week 25. I know there was a lot to study and to discuss, but hopefully these object lessons will help you. Get them to stay in your kids' mind. I think these are really big concepts to study and to understand. So I'm hoping by making some really memorable options for you to teach with that these key concepts and doctrines will sink just a little bit deeper.
Easter Lilly. So one of the [:And you can kind of break down what each of those phrases means, why he said them, and what it shows us about his character. So I decided to create these. Technically it's a pen. So thanks to Violet's help, we turn these into ballpoint pens, but you really could just make them as a simple Lilly as well.
But inside each of these pedals, we're gonna. Talk about each of those key phrases that the savior says on the cross. And then I also, they actually have an image of the cross within them. And that's cuz I wanna give your kids a chance to understand why so many other Christians in the world cherish the cross.
message from conference and, [:And you can do all of that with this simple object lesson. Okay? The second one is even easier. This one you just need two rubber bands, ideally two different colors of rubber bands that makes it look a little cooler. And this is to teach you about. Well, to help you teach your kids or your classes about how the savior voluntarily offered his life.
Although they're gonna read about horrific things happening to the savior at the hands of the Jewish leaders and the Romans, he did not die at their hands. He gave up his life. In fact, what you'll read over and over again is that he yielded, he, he gave up so that he could offer his life for us. And this little magic trick, basically that's what it's, it's magic trick where you, where you will show your kids something that happens that looks impossible, that will occur.
South. I'm sure you've made [:Before on Easter, I'd actually never made them before, but I decided this time I wanted to create some with a little bit of a mech mom twist. So instead of using the traditional crescent dough, although you could totally do it that way, if you're in a hurry, I gave you a recipe. It's the same dough we've used to make those pretty snow snowflakes that we made last December.
Uh, and a way to make resurrection rolls, or what I'm calling empty tomb rolls, uh, to. To learn more about what happens this week. So even though they're traditionally taught as a way to showcase what happens to the savior and how the tomb is empty, I actually loved what we saw just before it this week.
When you see people like Nicodemus, Joseph Arimathea, the women, all these people take such delicate care of his body and do the very best they can to take care of him and then do the very best they can to honor the Sabbath day still. I just think the pairing of those things is beautiful, and you can actually teach it as you create these empty tomb rolls.
e a bunch, or you can go buy [:Okay? Once you have all those supplies in order, Come back. Those of you who are in the full course, I'm gonna walk you through each and every one of these and hopefully give you a better idea how you can pull them off in your families and in your classes. All right, you guys, let's get going.
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Hey you guys.
That's it for week 25 and your first week of blue belt level training from the savior are master teacher. So I hope you get a chance to soak it all in. I know it's a lot. I know it's heavy like we had last week, but it sets a beautiful stage for the hope filled Sunday morning that's about to come.
always welcome to join me on [:I'll talk through some of the insights. I'll walk you through some of the object lessons, maybe give you some tips that I forgot to say here, and hopefully you can ask questions and I can respond and we'll be there for about an hour. If you don't get a chance to see it live, you're welcome to just watch it in my feed anytime you can find it, at least for the next week.
It's always available for you. The other thing I would tell you is you can leave. Questions for me on the discussion boards. If you're in the course, and if you're not in the course, you can reply to the weekly emails or you could just message me on Instagram and I'll try to get back to it as quick as I can.
But otherwise, enjoy your week. You guys. It's, it's a beautiful week where you'd see all four vantage points of the savior and you are seeing something truly remarkable, this pinnacle moment of triumph that we, we can't put too big of a spotlight on. So I hope you enjoy it, and then I hope you come back next week for an even bigger, brighter light on resurrection morning.
and I will see you on Monday.[: