Christ's Death Penalty
by C. Truman Davis, M.D.,M.S
In this paper, I shall discuss some of the physical aspects of the passion or suffering of Jesus Christ. We shall follow Him from Gethsemane, through His trial, the scourging, His path along the Via Dolorosa, to His last dying hours on the cross.
I became interested in this when I read an account of the crucifixion in Jim Bishop's book, The Day Christ Died. I suddenly realized that I had taken the crucifixion more or less for granted all these years ... that I had grown callous to its horror by a too easy familiarity with the grim details ... and a too distant friendship with Him. It finally occurred to me that as a physician I didn't even know the actual immediate cause of His death. The Gospel writers don't help us very much on this point, because crucifixion and scourging were so common during their lifetime that they undoubtedly considered a detailed description totally superfluous ... so that we have the concise words of the evangelist: "Pilate, having scourged Jesus, delivered Him to them to be crucified... and they crucified Him."
Stinky thinking causes emotional pain. Rather than doing something about our thought life, we choose the lazy way to deal with our pain, by medicating it with drugs, including alcohol. In other words, we choose death instead of LIFE.
"For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)
A few years ago, a young boy brought the concept of "pay it forward" to the movie screen. He showed by example how the world could be changed if every person who experienced something good would "pay it forward." God had this principle in mind before He even created man by paying His provision forward. He knew that even though Adam & Eve would sin, their seed would eventually change if they could experience His goodness, mercy and unconditional love.
Several years ago, I was asked to write a chapter in Larry King's new book "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt." The following thoughts are my observations and suggestions for an improved penal system.
It was late and I was tired, wanting to go to sleep, but God wanted to talk. It was about midnight, but it dawned on me that God does not sleep. His question made me restless: "Where on earth does man keep his most priceless treasures and valuables?"
On June 13, 1983, Karla and her boyfriend, Daniel Garrett, broke into a Houston apartment and murdered the two occupants with a pick ax. At her brief trial, Karla admitted her guilt outright and told the jury that no punishment was severe enough for her crime. But while Karla requested a life sentence, the jury recommended the death sentence, after a mere 70 minutes of deliberation.
Happy Mother's Day! When my mom heard that I had received Christ fifty (50) years ago on May 23, 1975, she rejoiced along with the angels. According to her, I was the black sheep of the family; the prodigal son turning from his sins and returning home to the blessings of his Heavenly Father. Jesus said:
Happy Father's Day! I encourage you to reach out to your dad this Father's Day. Remember the good times, and if there are none, forgive and make new memories before he's gone. If he isn't available, enjoy your Heavenly Father, Who is always present with His love and acceptance for meaning and purpose in life. In the prodigal son parable, Jesus said:
Our mission is to enlighten others to the need for prison outreach. We believe we will help build the church behind prison walls that will not only effect the way prisoners see God, but their families as well.
A family is a group of persons related by marriage and blood ties and generally living together in the same household. In our case, most of the families we reach out to are not living together, because of separation by prison walls. One of the exception would be our outreach to victims and their families.