Imagine the stunned, yet grizzled faces of those brutal roman soldiers as they seize our Savior who not only offers NO resistance, but He also willingly lays down and stretches out His arms in a heretofore act they had never seen! Would you surrender to such cruel and excruciating torture or instinctively resist?

Jesus Himself made the bold statement in John 10 that no one would take His life from Him! He would lay it down! What a stunning declaration of authority. Not even Rome could kill Jesus, without His permission. Furthermore, Jesus said, because He laid down His life, He would take it up again and NO one could stop Him. The scripture tells us it was not the nails, ropes, cross, tombstone or guard that held Him on that tree of death or in that tomb, it was His scandalous love for us! He chose to suffer for the sins we should have paid for, so we could take His place in heaven where we do not deserve to be! Bow before His preeminence! Accept the lavish gift of His love in a humble prayer! Jesus and His sacrifice are your only Hope!

In solemn surrender, like the Roman centurion said: ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’