“Truly This Was The Son of God!” - Morning by Morning, April 18, 2025

“Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

‘They divided My garments among them,
 And for My clothing they cast lots.’

“Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there. And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

“Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.

“And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, ‘You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross!’

“Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, ‘He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

“Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

“ Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’

“Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, ‘This Man is calling for Elijah!’ Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.

“The rest said, ‘Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.’

“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

“Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

“So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’” (Matthew 27:35-54).

Written and sent out from the morning prayer time of Tommy Hays each day.

God bless you and may you have a great day!
—Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

http://messiah-ministries.org

Transcript

Morning by Morning, April 18, 2025 - “Truly This Was The Son of God!”

Good morning, Lord Jesus. On this Good Friday, I thank You for being such a Good God—full of mercy and love, sacrificing Your Blood, so we could be forgiven and free to live eternal life with You because of all You’ve done for us. ...

“Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

‘They divided My garments among them,
 And for My clothing they cast lots.’

“Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there. And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

“Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.

“And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, ‘You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross!’

“Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, ‘He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

“Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

“ Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’

“Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, ‘This Man is calling for Elijah!’ Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.

“The rest said, ‘Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.’

“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

“Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

“So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’” (Matthew 27:35-54).

Yes. “Truly this was the Son of God!”

This was the One sent from God, setting aside the glory of heaven to humble Himself in the likeness of human flesh and blood. This was the One who “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the Cross” (Philippians 2:5-8).

In their mockery, You were merciful. In Your misery, You were majestic—not only “King of the Jews,” but “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:16). You were “Lord of all” (Acts 10:36).

Even those who wagged their tongues against You will one day bow their knees before You. For “God (the Father) has highly exalted (You) and given (You) the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).

Even the earth responded in the moment of Your Sacrifice. The earth quaked, the rocks were split, the graves were opened, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom! Heaven and earth gasped at this moment—this hell-shaking, eternity-changing moment when You willingly chose, as the Son of God, to offer up Your life for all who put their hope and trust in You alone as Savior of all:

“For it pleased the Father that in (You) all the fullness should dwell, and by (You) to reconcile all things to Himself, by (You), whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of (Your) Cross” (Colossians 1:19-20).

“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation!” (Romans 5:6-11).

Truly You are the Son of God. Truly You are the Savior of the World.

And on this Good Friday when we remember all You’ve done for us through Your life, death, and resurrection, I praise You and thank You. I worship and adore You. And I surrender all that I am and all that I have to You—my King of Kings, my Lord of Lords, my Lord and Savior, Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.