Outside the wall of the ancient city of Jerusalem, just to the east, there sits a garden. The ground has been manicured today, but it’s still rocky and covered with gnarled olive trees. Here at the “olive press”—Gethsemane—two thousand years ago the stench of death hung in the air, though no one had died . . . yet. Here, Jesus came to pray. Three times He asked the Father to remove the cup, and three times He submitted to the Father’s will so that we might not have to drink the cup ourselves (see Matthew 26:36–56).
Today, Gethsemane is noisy from the traffic passing by. And a church sits on the traditional spot where Jesus is believed to have prayed. But if you close your eyes and concentrate, you can almost feel the coolness of the night and hear a lone voice crying out in agony.
Tormented in the garden of suffering, Jesus could see a cohort of torch-carrying soldiers coming from the Golden Gate across the Kidron Valley marching His way. Arrested, tried, and convicted, Jesus struggled to find His footing as He carried the heavy cross beam through the narrow and steep cobblestone streets of Jerusalem. It was on the Via Dolorosa that Jesus lost His footing and fell. Simon the Cyrene was made to carry the beam (Luke 23:26) and on the long procession went. Women followed mourning and weeping. Turning, Jesus said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children” (23:27–28). Taking Him to the place called the Skull, they crucified Jesus and laid Him in a barren tomb.
Today, the Via Dolorosa is crowded with shops and shopkeepers pushing their wares. One can almost imagine the crowds that must have lined the narrow streets to witness the spectacle of a public humiliation and execution. Jeers and taunts, laughter and tears must have filled the ears of the condemned men, just as prices and negotiations echo through the ancient street today.
If you pilgrim to Jerusalem today and walk the path of suffering, your journey will end where Jesus’s did—Golgotha. Tradition holds that Jesus was crucified and buried on the very spot where The Church of the Holy Sepulchre now stands. Upon entering the church you will immediately be struck by the ornate, almost gaudy religious symbols and icons. Faithful Armenians, Catholics, Copts, Ethiopians, Greek Orthodox, and Syrians will kiss the place where Jesus was crucified, or prepared for burial, or the open tomb. They will touch these places and rub their hands or legs in hopes of healing. But if you can look past the golden icons and the hope in religious objects, you can picture the death and resurrection of a Savior who came to set us free from the trappings of religion and the bondage of our sin. Jesus is that Savior—the One who suffered in the garden and on the street and on the cross, and the One who rose victoriously from the tomb.
