They put Jesus in chains, led him away and handed him over to Pilate. Pilate asked him,
“Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “You say so.” As the chief priests
accused Jesus of many things, Pilate asked him again, “Have you no answer at all? See
how many charges they bring against you.” But Jesus gave no further answers, much to
Pilate’s surprise. At every Passover festival, Pilate used to free any prisoner the people
asked for. Now there was a man called Barabbas, jailed with the rioters who had
committed murder in the uprising. When the crowd went up to ask Pilate the usual favor,
he said to them, “Do you want me to set free the King of the Jews?” for he realized that
the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him out of envy. But the chief priests stirred up
the crowd to ask, instead, for the release of Barabbas. Pilate replied, “And what shall I do
with the man you call King of the Jews?” The crowd shouted back, “Crucify him!” Pilate
asked, “What evil has he done?” But they shouted the louder, “Crucify him!” As Pilate
wanted to please the people, he freed Barabbas; and, having had Jesus flogged, Pilate
handed him over to be crucified. (...) The soldiers led him out of the city to crucify him.
On the way, they met Simon of Cyrene, father of Alexander and Rufus, who was coming
in from the country; and forced him to carry the cross of Jesus. When they had led him
to the place called Golgotha, which means the Skull, they offered him wine mixed with
myrrh, but he would not take it. Then they nailed him to the cross, and divided his clothes
among themselves, casting lots to decide what every man should take. It was about nine
o’clock in the morning when they crucified him. The statement of his offense was displayed
above his head, and it read, “The King of the Jews.” They also crucified two robbers with
him, one on his right and one on his left. And the Scripture was fulfilled which says: And
with lawless ones he was numbered. (...) When noon came, darkness fell over the whole
land and lasted until three o’clock; and at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
“Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you
deserted me?” As soon as they heard these words, some of the bystanders said,
“Listen! He is calling for Elijah.” And one of them went quickly to fill a sponge with bitter
wine, and putting it on a reed, gave it to him to drink, saying, “Now let’s see whether
Elijah comes to take him down.” But Jesus uttered a loud cry and gave up his spirit.
And immediately, the curtain that enclosed the temple Sanctuary was torn in two, from
top to bottom. The captain, who was standing in front of him, saw how Jesus died and
heard the cry he gave; and he said, “Truly, this man was the Son of God.”

READ: Jesus ate the Passover meal. After the meal, Jesus prayed in Gethsemane. Jesus
was arrested through the betrayal of Judas Iscariot. He was first brought to the High Priest.
Peter denied Jesus three times. Jesus was brought to Pilate. While releasing Barabbas,
Jesus was sentenced to death. Jesus was crowned with thorns and then carried his cross to
Golgotha where he was crucified. By three o’clock in the afternoon Jesus cried out loudly.
Afterwards, Jesus gave up his spirit. The curtain that enclosed the temple sanctuary was torn
from top to bottom. The captain professed that Jesus is the Son of God. There were some
women watching from a distance. In the evening Joseph of Arimathea took and laid
Jesus’ body in a tomb.

REFLECT: Today is Palm Sunday. The palm symbolizes ramification. Today’s celebration
invites us to reflect on Jesus’ offering of his life, which paved the way for the birth of
Christianity. The community of disciples he formed would, afterwards, spread through all
the world to proclaim the Good News. Through his sacrifice, the mission of Jesus of bringing
the fullness of life, began to branch out. As Christians, we should be aware that there is no
true sacrifice that is wasted. The good effects of our sacrifices for others can always
go a long way.

PRAY: Let us pray that we may truly learn the value of sacrifice.

ACT: Let us do one sacrificial act today and offer it for the wellbeing of a person we love.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2024