Christ's Physical Suffering

I've had many a person inquire as to what exactly happened the day that Jesus died.  What did he suffer?  What were the physical things that were happening to Him and His body.  I hope that you will be amazed at what Jesus suffered for our sin that Friday.

The Beating

-Jesus' robe was removed to expose bare skin and He is tied to a pole.

-He is beaten with a leather whip with metal, rock, and bone in it designed to shred skin and muscles, open huge wounds on His back, chest and legs.

-Jesus is swollen, bruised, and losing blood.

-His body is going into shock from pain and blood loss

-Jesus is nearing the hospital classification of critical condition

Dead Man Walking

-Jesus is forced to carry the 75-100 lb. crossbeam of the cross through the streets of Jerusalem to the execution site.

-He is too weak to finish the journey.

-Jesus watches as the crossbeam is nailed to the vertical pole.

Nailed

-Nails 5 to 7 inches long are driven through Jesus' wrists and feet into the cross, putting pressure on the median nerves.

-Every breath is now excruciating as Jesus pushes up to get some air.

-Raw, bleeding tissue on His back rubs against the rough wood of the cross.

-Carbon dioxide builds up in Jesus' lungs and bloodstream as He struggles to breathe.

-Jesus' muscles cramp from fatigue and lack of oxygen.

Breath of Life

-Jesus' tortured lungs struggle to get small gulps of air.

-Every time He pushes up to exhale, deep, crushing pain radiates from Jesus' chest.

-The sack around Jesus' heart, the pericardium, slowly fills with serum from damaged tissues and begins to crush His heart.

-Jesus' heart struggles to pump heavy, thick blood to the tissues.

-Loss of fluids reaches a critical level.

-After 3 hours on the cross, already weak from blood loss and shock, Jesus allows His body to die.

-Cause of death: a heart wall ruptured from severe heart attack or a combination of blood loss and respiratory failure.

Speared

-Soldiers drive a spear into Jesus' side to confirm His death.

-By this time, shock has separated the blood into cell clusters and amber-colored serum.

-"Water" seems to pour out of Jesus' side when He is speared, but it is actually serum from inside and around His heart.

Remember that everything He suffered He did for us.  We are the ones that deserve this punishment for our sins.  But Jesus took it on for us freely because of His great love for us, even though He never sinned.  Praise the Lord for His great love!