(Matthew 27: 45-54)

Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?  Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.  And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.  The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.  Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.  And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;  And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,  And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.  Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.

Two robbers appeared by the cross of Jesus. The two robbers are the figures of sinners who represent humanity. Romans 5:12 says that all human beings are sinners without exception. In the case of the two robbers, it is to say that the price of sin is death. If these two robbers signify the sins of mankind, it shows that there can never be a righteousness in us. These two robbers tell of the fact that mankind was divided into two ways by Jesus Christ.

We don't know about these two robbers, who was standing on the left or the right. However, the Bible says that the robber who was saved was on the right, and the robber who was destroyed was on the left. The robber on the left shows those who are condemned by the law and will be judged by God. The law does not condemn those in Christ, but those who are not in Christ will be judged by the law.

The robber on the right at first condemned and criticized Jesus, but he repented and was saved. We are like robbers who will be condemned forever, but we can repent and be saved from God when we are crucified with Jesus. All mankind must look at these three crosses on the Golgotha Hills and choose the way of death or the way of life as to which way they will go. However, you have to choose a narrow road.

The two robbers sinned. And it was the same as being sentenced to death by crucifixion. The same was true of their first accusation of Jesus on the cross. However, these two robbers split their way at the last moment of fate. The robber on the left did not repent of being a sinner. This robbery continued until the slander and ridicule against Jesus died. "Are you not the Christ? Save you and us."
The robber on the left was given a good chance to believe in Jesus Christ, but he refused himself and took the path of destruction. There are so many people in this world who are going on the path of death by refusing themselves to believe in Jesus like this robber.

The robber on the right repented that he was a sinner, and turned to Christ for his life. This robber was the same as the robber on the left and was a mocker of Jesus, but after a while he heard the word of salvation from Jesus.
He said to the robber on the left, “Are you not afraid of God even after you have been condemned? "We are being rewarded for what we have done." He looked at his sin and repented.

The robber on the right became afraid of God. Repentance begins with a fear of God. And you must realize why you are in this world, repent like the prodigal son's parable, and return to the kingdom of God. The right robber said, "Jesus, think of me when you come into your country." Jesus said to him, "Today you will be with me in paradise." Faith does not need a long time.

Jesus was crucified on the cross of Golgotha ​​Hill and the pain was getting worse. However, in the midst of such suffering, Jesus looked at the groups that had harmed him and offered his father a prayer of mercy. Suddenly the world became dark. People were so surprised that they didn't know what to do. But when the time came when the darkness would end, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? It was the cry of the Lord's suffering, forsaken by God. Has there been a cry of sorrowful pain since the history of mankind? This cry of pain is still echoing all over the world.
People must hear the cry of the Lord's suffering coming from the cross, repent, and return to the Lord. Repentance is a life of self-denial. It is to be crucified with Jesus.

 Jesus was crucified at the third hour. This is today's time at 9 am. And after three hours, darkness came to the world at six o'clock (pointing to 12:00). And this darkness lasted three hours. At 9 o'clock the darkness disappeared (around 3 o'clock) and then the Lord died. This darkness indicates God's wrath. God was furiously angry at his son. This wrath of God is God's judgment of justice against sinners.

God anointed the sinners' sins on Jesus on the cross of Golgotha. He was now suffering this wrath, not as the Son of God, but as the representative of the sins of all rejuvenated mankind instead of the sins of all sinners. God did this to save sinners by pouring this judgment of wrath on his Son. God saves those who sinners repent and die on the cross with Jesus.

At the time when the darkness continued from 6:00 to 9:00, Jesus cried out loud.“Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? ” God has forsaken his son. So why did God forsake his Son, who suffered on the cross? It was because he saw the Son on the cross as a sinner, not as a son. Jesus was the wrath of God on the cross as a sinner. Thus, we were judged with Jesus in Christ. It is love for those who repent and return that God has been able to forsake even his Son.

God does not show love to anyone. Only repents and gives love to those who die with Jesus. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. ”

With the death of Jesus, the veil of sanctuary was wiped from top to bottom. "The shrine of the sanctuary is torn" is God's declaration that there is no need for the Old Testament sacrifice. The veil is a partition between the Holy of Holies and the Holy of Holies. But this partition is of great significance to us. The high priest of Israel entered the sanctuary once a year to receive the sins of God's people, and offered sacrifices to God for atonement. At this time, the high priest killed the calf for himself and carried it with the blood, and for the people he killed the goat and entered the place with the blood and atoned. Now, with Jesus' death, the sanctuary badge was torn, and the distinction between the Most Holy and the Most Holy was no longer.

Now the high priest no longer had to enter there, and no need to take the blood of the goats for the sins of the people. The reason is that Christ, as the Lamb of God, became the eternal atoning offering of the people in Christ.

The shredding of the sanctuary badge means that the sanctuary on the earth has been moved to heaven. The Most Holy of Earth is a model of the Most Holy of Heaven. In Hebrews 8: 5-6『 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.  But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 』 The Most Holy Place on Earth was only needed until Jesus came and became the high priest of the Most Holy Place in Heaven.

The high priest on the earth who entered and worked at the Holy of Holies disappeared as Jesus appeared as the high priest who pursued the order of Melchizedek because their high priests were a model of Jesus Christ to come, the model disappears after the reality comes. Jesus himself entered the Most Holy of Heaven as the high priest. This high priest will never change, and the atoning offering that he has brought in also has his blood, so that there is no need to offer anything again as an eternal atonement.

The shredding of the shrine's veil means that the way to Heavenly Father is open. In Hebrews 10:20, “By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; I said. The Lord said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Jesus tore the veil of the Most Holy by tearing His body off the cross and offering it as a peace offering to God, and He Himself became the way to God. There is absolutely no other way to God. It is false to say that there is salvation in other religions. Only Jesus is the true way. To go in the middle of the veil means that you can only go through Jesus who tore the veil.

The shrapnel of the sanctuary has made it possible for anyone, through Jesus Christ, to go before the throne of grace. In Hebrews 4:16, he said, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Where only the high priest could enter once a year, we were able to enter at any time by the blood of Christ. And it is not the Holy Place of the earth, but the sinner who repents by the power of the Holy Spirit can go to the throne of grace that God himself and the high priest have.

The events that occurred shortly after Jesus' death not only caused the shrine to be shattered, but also had an earthquake that caused the earth to vibrate, bursting rocks, and many of the saints who were sleeping to open the graves. It is surprising that many of the Saints' bodies who had been trying to open the tomb had happened. Jesus is the first fruit of the resurrection, and the next resurrection is one who is born again with water and the Holy Spirit.