What caused the darkness

[Grafted In]

This website is amazingly difficult to carry on dialog with others. If I post there I'm not qualified. If I post over there I don't believe every aspect of that particular denomination. The Body of Christ is divided into a bzillion pieces.
So, I'm bringing a point here that I posted in a thread that was closed because the op was not qualified to start a thread in that forum. Isn't it a sad commentary of the condition of Christ's followers today ?
In above noted thread there arose a discussion as to what may have been the cause of the darkness from the 6th to the 9th hour. By the very wording in Scripture it seems to indicate an unusual darkness because dawn does not take us from total darkness to total daylight. Agreed?
I had written that the answer may be that since Jesus became sin for us and God cannot look upon sin, perhaps The Father looked away as He laid our sins upon His Son thus removing all light for that 3 hours leading up to Christ's death.
I'd be interested in hearing the opinions of others on this subject.

 

[mmksparbud]

Agree.

 

[Grafted In]

To all Orthodox Christians, Messianic Jews and others who's forums are not to be posted on, I cordially invite you to post on this thread. I'm a firm believer that each member of The Body Of Christ deserves a chance to be heard.
This subject, or more correctly, the direction the thread on the Orthodox Christians forum was headed was closed because the op was not of your faith.
Please feel free to add your opinions on the subject of this thread.
It seems so sad to me that 36 years ago Jesus Christ filled my heart with a warm love for the Jewish people, yet I'm forbidden to comment on your forum. How I do love the Jewish people and that love has grown stronger every day since Christ placed it in my heart. Please at least consider what I've posted. But whether you do or don't that love for you will abide.

 

[miamited]

Hi grafted in,

It has, for some time, been my understanding that God caused the twilight. If we read back in Exodus the command of the passover, we find that God commanded that the lambs be slaughtered at twilight. Since Jesus' slaughter was happening in the mid afternoon, God made it twilight. He just turned off the sun. God can do that.

Many try to come up with natural causes to explain the work of God. There are several variations of how nature made the sea to part and how nature would have caused a global flood. There are some who try to pinpoint the time of Jesus' crucifixion based on the regular natural event of a solar eclipse. I don't hold to any of these 'natural' explanations to explain the work of God.

I believe that He caused in a most unnatural way the plagues against Egypt. I believe that merely by the power of His command the sea parted for His people. I believe that God caused the sun at one point to go backward in relation to the earth and at another held it stock still in the midday sky over Israel. I believe that when Jesus was being slaughtered that God said, "This is the passover Lamb for all the people of the earth and I am making it twilight so that you will look back at the command of the passover and realize that I have done this. I have made my Son to conform to the law of the passover in all aspects. Look and see if this event isn't exactly what I have commanded for the passover Lamb. Let him who has an ear to hear, hear what the Lord says."

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[Grafted In]

Interesting point, Ted. That very thinking led me to spend a lot of time trying to understand that portion of Scripture. I agree with you that the darkness was supernatural. By what means your theory has as much merit as mine. Perhaps it's both. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Steve Petersen]

The sixth hour as reckoned from sunrise is about noon.

Also, there could not have been a natural solar eclipse because at Passover (a full moon), the moon is not between the earth and the sun.

 

[miamited]

The sixth hour as reckoned from sunrise is about noon.

Also, there could not have been a natural solar eclipse because at Passover (a full moon), the moon is not between the earth and the sun.

Hi steve,

I agree with you and that's one of the reasons I am always a bit perplexed by those who try to determine the year of my Lord's crucifixion based on some solar calendar of eclipses.

God bless you,
In Christ, Ted

 

[joshuanazar]

Hi grafted in,

It has, for some time, been my understanding that God caused the twilight. If we read back in Exodus the command of the passover, we find that God commanded that the lambs be slaughtered at twilight. Since Jesus' slaughter was happening in the mid afternoon, God made it twilight. He just turned off the sun. God can do that.

Many try to come up with natural causes to explain the work of God. There are several variations of how nature made the sea to part and how nature would have caused a global flood. There are some who try to pinpoint the time of Jesus' crucifixion based on the regular natural event of a solar eclipse. I don't hold to any of these 'natural' explanations to explain the work of God.

I believe that He caused in a most unnatural way the plagues against Egypt. I believe that merely by the power of His command the sea parted for His people. I believe that God caused the sun at one point to go backward in relation to the earth and at another held it stock still in the midday sky over Israel. I believe that when Jesus was being slaughtered that God said, "This is the passover Lamb for all the people of the earth and I am making it twilight so that you will look back at the command of the passover and realize that I have done this. I have made my Son to conform to the law of the passover in all aspects. Look and see if this event isn't exactly what I have commanded for the passover Lamb. Let him who has an ear to hear, hear what the Lord says."

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

I agree with both you and Graftedin. But I believe that fulfilling the pass over law was not the only reason for the darkness. Simply put, God forsook Jesus while he was dying on the cross. Let me explain.

Sin brings separation from God, that is the true form of his wrath. Jesus took all last bit of God's wrath while dying. That includes being forsaken so that we will never be left or forsaken.

Imagine, the Son was always with the Father from eternity. He never was left him. Until it was time to redeem us from spiritual darkness. Can you as a christian imagine being separated from God? No wonder Jesus asked for the cup to be removed. But thank Jesus he still did it.