Luke 23:44-56

The Death of Jesus 44 By this time it was noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o‘clock. 45 The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. 46 Then Jesus shouted, "Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!" And with those words he breathed his last.
47 When the Roman officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said, "Surely this man was innocent." 48 And when all the crowd that came to see the crucifixion saw what had happened, they went home in deep sorrow. 49 But Jesus’ friends, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance watching. The Burial of Jesus 50 Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph. He was a member of the Jewish high council, 51 but he had not agreed with the decision and actions of the other religious leaders. He was from the town of Arimathea in Judea, and he was waiting for the Kingdom of God to come. 52 He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. 53 Then he took the body down from the cross and wrapped it in a long sheet of linen cloth and laid it in a new tomb that had been carved out of rock. 54 This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation, as the Sabbath was about to begin. 55 As his body was taken away, the women from Galilee followed and saw the tomb where his body was placed. 56 Then they went home and prepared spices and ointments to anoint his body. But by the time they were finished the Sabbath had begun, so they rested as required by the law.
Devotion (by Greg Gahl)
Reading through the above passage several things really stand out. The first is that 3 hours of night occur during the middle of the day; wow, the power of God. The next is that the curtain in the middle of the sanctuary tore in half. This might not seem like much, but what a powerful statement! The area the curtain was in was only accessible to the highest priest alone and not any other priests, definitely not the public. The tearing of the curtain represent this barrier between humans and God — with Christ‘s death it is torn and we now are able to connect with God. Again, wow, the power of God!
Finally Jesus states "Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!" What a powerful statement with so few words. For me this is the beginning of faith. Jesus hands his spirit over to God and trusts that everything will be ok. Jesus is looking into the eye of death and his faith stands strong.

Prayer:
Lord please be with each and every one of us as we go out into our day to help us have the faith that everything will be ok no matter how big or how small the situation might be. Help us to have faith as your son Jesus Christ had as he looked death in the face. Amen.