Ninth Station: Jesus Falls the Third Time
HEBREWS 4:15-16
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The procession is about to enter Golgotha, the Place of the Skull. This unused quarry was turned by Herod the Great into a large avenue for crucifixions. It is not easy to see the suffering upon the cross. But it is easy to become indifferent as so many people pass by all the crucified. There is a lot to be done in the city for the coming Passover. Is there time to stop and consider the three men being crucified today?
PSALM 119:81-82
My soul has longed for your salvation;
I have put my hope in your word.
My eyes have failed from watching for your promise,
And I say, “When will you comfort me?”
Pray for—
- • those who experience indifference and moral weakness.
- • those who have lost their faith, and hope.
- • those at the limits of their moral, mental, or physical endurance.
- • those who notice the suffering of those around them.
- • those who counsel, for the psychologists and social workers and chaplains who step in to help those suffering in the darkness.
- • yourself, for your own moments of moral weakness, that you might remember Jesus patience, presence, and resolve.