About The Cross & Crucifixion

A medical doctor provides a physical description:

The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man

is quickly thrown backwards with his shoulders against the

wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression at the front of

the wrist. He drives a heavy, square wrought iron nail through

the wrist deep into the wood. Quickly, he moves to the other

side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms

too tightly, but to allow some flex and movement.

The cross is then lifted into place. The left foot is pressed

backward against the right foot, and with both feet extended,

toes down, a nail is driven through the arch of each, leaving the

knees flexed.

The victim is now crucified. As he slowly sags down with more

weight on the nails in the wrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots

along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain - the

nails in the wrists are putting pressure on the median nerves.

As he pushes himself upward to avoid this stretching torment,

he places the full weight on the nail through his feet.

Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through

the nerves between the bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue,

cramps sweep through his muscles, knotting them deep

relentless, throbbing pain.

With these cramps comes the inability to push himself upward

to breathe. Air can be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He

fights to raise himself in order to get even one small breath.

Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood

stream, and the cramps partially subsided. Spasmodically, he

is able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in life-giving

oxygen. Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint

wrenching cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing

pain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as he moves up

and down against rough timber.

Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the

chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to

compress the heart. It is now almost over. The loss of tissue

fluids has reached a critical level-the compressed heart is

struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues

and the tortured lungs are making frantic effort to gasp in small

gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through his

tissues...Finally, he can allow his body to die...

All this the Bible records with the simple words, "and they

crucified Him",

(Mark 15:24).

What wondrous love is this? Many people don't know that pain

and suffering our Lord, Jesus Christ went through for us...because

of the brutality, crucifixion was given a sentence to only its worst

offenders of the law. Thieves, murderers, and rapists would be the

types of creeps who got crucified. Yet, here Jesus is being crucified

between two hardened criminals...What did Jesus do? Did he murder

anyone? Did he steal anything? The answer as we all know is NO!!

Jesus did nothing to deserve this type of death, yet he went willing

to die, in between 2 thieves, so that we might be saved. And there,

in between the sinners, was our slain savior for our sins.

Passing this on to 2, 4, 6, 8, or 10 people won't get you good luck,

no free pair of Gap Jeans, no cruise, no money, but it might open

someone's eyes.

God Bless