LISTEN TO COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 21 – THE QUAKE AND THE CURTAIN
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Welcome to this special Easter edition of Redeeming the Chaos with Laurie Christine!
A FAMILY DEVOTIONAL FOR EASTER
For 30 days leading up to Easter, I will be reading to you from my easter devotional book, Come and See! 30 Family Bible Stories for Easter.
Today, I am reading Come and See! Chapter 21 – THE QUAKE AND THE CURTAIN
Come and See! invites families of elementary-aged children to experience firsthand the anticipation, the sorrow, the tragedy, the fear, and the ultimate triumph of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Through the eyes of six eye witnesses, you will be led on a journey through the busyness of the streets of Jerusalem, to the despair of Golgotha, and finally to the celebration of the empty grave.
This bookincludes 30 short devotional stories, each with accompanying Scripture references and questions for discussion and imagination.
We are going to be reading one story each day leading up to Easter. You’re welcome to grab the kids and listen together for your family Bible time. Or, if you would rather read to your kids on your own, you can DOWNLOAD A FREE COPY OF THE ENTIRE EBOOK HERE.
LISTEN TO COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 21 – THE QUAKE AND THE CURTAIN
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READ COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 21 – THE QUAKE AND THE CURTAIN
THE QUAKE AND THE CURTAIN – Told by Nicodemus, a Pharisee
“I heard a loud crack, a flash of lightning filled the sky, and an incredible ripping sound filled the courtyard. I looked around, searching for the source of the sound. A blast of bright light was pouring from the entrance to the Holy Place.”
NICODEMUS, A PHARISEE
My thoughts were interrupted. The first bowl of lamb’s blood had just been poured onto the altar, when something happened that changed my life — and the world — forever. I began to feel unsteady and off-balance and my knees and legs began to shake. Feeling deprived of sleep after the events of the night before, I thought that perhaps I just needed to get some rest. I glanced over at Joseph, who appeared to be just as confused as I was. The shaking worsened, as if the whole foundation of the temple was moving. I could hear the priests muttering to each other, and the chatter from the crowd out in the courtyard grew louder. What was going on? First darkness, and now an earthquake?
And then something happened too incredible to describe. I heard a loud crack, a flash of lightning filled the sky, and an incredible ripping sound filled the courtyard. I looked around, searching for the source of the sound. A blast of bright light was pouring from the entrance to the Holy Place. (The Holy Place of the temple was the area where only priests could enter.)
I looked up to see Caiaphas (who had apparently returned to the temple after overseeing Jesus’ sentencing and crucifixion), running up the steps into the Holy Place. A moment later, he returned, his face pale and his eyes wide. As he descended the steps, Joseph and I approached him.
“Your Honor, are you alright? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
Caiaphas’ hand shook as he grabbed my arm for support. “The curtain,” was all he could mutter, his eyes glazing over.
The curtain? What was he talking about? I knew there was a thick, heavy curtain, that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.
“Sir? The curtain? What about the curtain?”
“The curtain,” Caiaphas repeated in a shaky voice. “The curtain has been torn in two.”
Torn in two? How could that be? The Holy of Holies was the place where only the high priest was permitted to enter once a year, risking his own life, in order to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people. The very presence of God dwelt behind this curtain! If the high priest wasn’t ceremonially pure, or if he didn’t follow the sacrificial procedure in just the right way, God would strike him dead.
But now, the curtain had been torn? I ran up the steps and peered into the opening of the Holy Place. Sure enough. Toward the back of the room, I could see the huge curtain, beautifully decorated in blue and purple embroidery, with its two enormous cherubim adorning the front. And indeed, there was a large chasm of frayed and ripped fabric, beginning at the top of the curtain and continuing down the middle.
I trembled at what I was seeing. Running back down the steps to Joseph, I reported what I had seen. I didn’t realize at the time the significance of what I had just witnessed, but remembering that day now, it’s quite clear to me. I learned later from one of Jesus’ disciples that the curtain had torn at the exact moment that Jesus had breathed his last breath on the cross. Jesus’ death opened up the way for everyone — not just the high priest — to enter into the very presence of God! Jesus was the perfect, spotless lamb, killed on the day of the Passover itself, at the very same time the lambs were being sacrificed in the temple. We would no longer have to sacrifice lambs year after year. Jesus was the perfect, spotless Lamb of God, who died in our place, once and for all!
WANT TO GO DEEPER?
DOWNLOAD FAMILY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND SCRIPTURE PASSAGES HERE.
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