COMPLAINING ? ABOUT WHAT ?
WHAT IS 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 of 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 on the wrist, excruciating fiery pain shoots along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain-the nails in the wrist 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, up the body, and to the brain. As the arms and legs fatigue, cramps sweep through his muscles, knotting them with deep, relentless, and throbbing pain. With these cramps come the inability to push himself upward to breathe. Air 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, just enough to keep him alive. Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending 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 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. The tortured lungs are making frantic efforts to gasp in small, inadequate gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through his tissues. Finally, he allows his body to die. All this the Bible records with the simple words,..."and they crucified him..." But they knew what it meant to be crucified back in His day. Now, so do you.
Our Lord and Savior willingly gave up his life so that we might have eternal life. It cost him everything and costs us nothing. As we pursue the adoption of children with the yearning to teach them about the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ; let us not forget to keep a spiritual perspective of thanksgiving and humility for all that we have already received.
For more information please read Standing and Believers. We encourage you to prayerfully consider registering with our service, and/or writing to us.
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