'Holy Week'
John 19:28,30 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst!".. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Jesus died at about 3pm as the sacrificial Lamb of God at the time of the evening sacrifice. He died very contented for He had accomplished His work as given by God the Father. Though He appeared to be suffering from the crucifixion, He was rejoicing for He knew that men would now be passed from death to life. He knew that His success was mainly due to His perfect love for the salvation of men.
His death destroyed the devil who had the power over death and set Christians free from the bondage of the fear of death.
Heb 2:14-15 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.
Our Lord willingly suffered the taste of His death, godly Christians who keep His word will not suffer the taste of death being martyred or at their beds.
Painless at Martyrdom
Mat 16:27-28 For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works. "Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."
Stephen saw our Lord Jesus in heaven and the Lord protected him before the first stone hit his body. Because Stephen was not in pain but was rejoicing for being with the Lord, he was able to pray to God to forgive them
Acts 7:55-56 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, "Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!".
The New Covenant
Mat 26:27-28 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins."
Our Lord Jesus was a devout Jew and He kept the Law till death. At His death Jesus, having fulfilled the Law and the Prophets, replaced the Old Covenant of the Law with the New Covenant of Grace by His blood.
Heb 9:16-17 For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives.
Paradise for Believers
Luke 23:42-43 Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."
Christians (believers) whose sins are cleansed by the precious blood of Jesus will go straight to Paradise instead of being sent into the depths of the earth (1 Sam 28).
Resurrection of the Saints of the OT
Mat 27:52-53 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.
Jesus at His death, immediately, became the sacrificial lambs offered by the saints of old, who had kept the Mosaic Law (Moses, David, Daniel, etc.) and the Prophets (Abel, Enoch, Noah, etc.) so that their sins were also cleansed by Jesus' blood, and just as the repented and faithful Christians, they too were made righteous and holy by His blood. Only then, they were worthy to be raised from the depths of the earth and follow our resurrected Lord back to heaven.
