Were There 3 Persons On One Cross?

/ Good Friday and Easter / By /

Have you ever thought that there were three (3) persons, but not just one person on the same cross during the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ? If so, who were those 3 persons on one cross? If so, why 3 persons were involved in the Crucifixion, but only one person died? What about the other two (2) persons?

On Good Friday, I was asked by one of our community churches to give a message on the last word or statement of Jesus Christ on the cross. I was contemplating as to whether or not to accept this request, since I’m not a preacher or theologian, but finally, my wife suggested I give this message.

How can an ordinary or common person give a message on the last word of Jesus Christ on the cross? With the fear of God, I started praying and meditating on the last word of Jesus on the cross. Thank God, under His guidance on Good Friday I was able to give the message, and thought of sharing it with my regular blog post readers.

I don’t know about you, but by nature, I’m a doubtful person, and without the proof of evidence it will be very difficult for me to believe anything. I’m like “doubting Thomas” in the New Testament, one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, who was also known as Didymus.

I think Jesus Christ’s last statement on the cross is not easy for an ordinary person to comprehend or understand it clearly. When we read his last word or statement in different translations of the Bible, like me, you may come across with few questions or doubts the way it happened to me. I’m going to state those questions later, but first let us read Jesus Christ’s last word or statement in different versions of the Bible so that you will understand why it is not easy for an ordinary person to comprehend.

  1. “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit; and having said thus, he gave up the ghost (Luke 23:46 King James Version). 
  1. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last (Luke 23:46 New International Version). 
  1. And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last (Luke 23:46 New King James Version).

The difficulties that I faced for a clear understanding of Jesus Christ’s last statement on the cross were as follows:

First I noticed that this statement has three (3) nouns. Those are as follows:

  1. Father;
  2. I (Jesus); and
  3. Spirit (Ghost).

In addition, I noticed more action words or verbs than any other six (6) words that Jesus spoke on the cross. In fact, I was able to identify 4 action words or verbs, and those are:

  1. Cried;
  2. Commend or commit; (according to Webster’s dictionary commend means “to entrust for care or preservation”)
  3. Having or have; and
  4. Gave up or give up

Following are a few questions that crossed my mind as I meditated on each person or noun in this sentence, which is Father, I, and the Spirit (Ghost):

“And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, into Your hands, I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last (Luke 23:46 NKJV).”

  1. Who is this Father? Was not this father close to hear his son’s cry, or reachable to help him? How can any father ignore or neglect his own son’s or daughter’s cry? As a father, I can’t, and I’m sure most of us can’t. As we know it is hard to see or witness when our child goes through pain and suffering (i.e., physically, emotionally, or spiritually);
  1. Why did Jesus (i.e., I) call him His Father? What kind of relationship this Father and Son (Jesus) had? Was it biological or spiritual, temporary or permanent, or worldly or heavenly?
  1. Who is the Spirit or Ghost (KJV)? Is this the same Spirit that we have read and heard about at Jesus Christ’s birth in the New Testament, which says “His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the “Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18 NIV);
  1. If this is the same “Holy Spirit” that came down from the heavenly Father, then He (Jesus)) must be the Son of God the Father; and
  1. How did Jesus Christ, Son of God hand over His Spirit to God the Father? Was God the Father very close to Him at the cross to hand over His Spirit?

If our answer is yes! Then three (3) persons that are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were on the cross, which is, “one God in three Divine Persons, or one Godhead, but only Son died on the cross, “which is the “Trinity” of the Christian faith.

As soon as the meaning of the “Trinity” concept was conceived in my mind, I immediately started asking a question as to whether or not any other major religions in the world have the notion of the Trinity.

To know this concept, I did some quick research online, and to my surprise, I noticed that it is in the Hindu religion or Hinduism, known as the “Trimurti.” The Triple deity of supreme divinity, which is, Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the preserver), and Shiva (the destroyer).

When I read the summary of these three Hindu deities and with my own curiosity compared the Trimurti of Hinduism and the Trinity of the Christian faith. I could not find any one of the person died for our sins and were resurrected. This made me think and believe that it is the only one Godhead showed love for His people on the cross, and rose again on the third day showing us also that one day we will be resurrected.

As I indicated in the beginning that along with the 3 nouns, I also had questions on 4 action words or verbs.

For example:

  1. What made one of the Divine Persons (e.g., Son) to cry in a loud voice? Was there any physical, emotional, or spiritual pain involved?
  1. Did the Son of God cry when the soldiers tortured him before the Crucifixion (as recorded in Matthew 27: 27-31 and Mark 15:16-20)?
  1. How many times did Jesus Christ cry loudly while he was on the earth?
  1. Is there any difference between the 1st (“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Or My God, why did you abandon Me?), and the 2nd or final loud cry on the cross that we’re meditating now, which is (And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last?) If so, what is the difference?

In short, answers to my above questions are at the conclusion, and after sharing my own experience as a doubtful person who does not believe without proof of evidence. I’m sure there are a few people like me who may need the facts or signs rather than the doctrine to believe in Jesus Christ’s (Son of God’s) sacrifice on the cross for our sins.

So, what are the real facts that led me to believe that the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit are “one God in three Divine Persons,” who showed His love for us on the cross?

Let us see the facts or signs, which should make sense to a doubtful person to believe that there were 3 persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit present during the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

To make this point clear, I have selected a few important facts or signs from the Holy Bible as supporting pieces of evidence.

  • The Temptation and Fall of Man: And I will put enmity Between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel (Genesis 3:15 NKJV);
  • The Lamb of God:  The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29 NKJV);
  • Christ’s Death Perfects the Sanctified: Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin (Hebrews 10:18 NKJV); and
  • The antecedent of (i.e., events before and during ) Crucifixion: 
    • Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King (Palm Sunday): Hosanna to the Son of David (Mt. 21:7-9 NKJV)! 
    • Passover celebration: The Plot to Kill Jesus:
      • “Jesus said to His disciples, “You know that after two days in the Passover, the Son of Man will be delivered to be crucified (Mt. 26:2 NKJV);
    • Betrayal and Arrest in Gethsemane:
      • “Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled (Mt.26:55-56 NKJV); 
    • Crowd Insults Jesus:
      • Waiting for the signs and miracles just like you and me during the Crucifixion so that they can believe that He is really the Son God (Mt. 27:39-40 NKJV)!
  • Almost six (6) hours Crucifixion of Jesus: Who can survive and live almost 6 hours on the nailed cross with a lot of pain?
    • According to the Gospel of Mark (15:25-26 NIV), It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. The written notice of the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS (Mark 15:25-26 NIV). 
  • Aftereffect of Crucifixion: Immediate signs or facts that support when Jesus Christ commended or handed over His spirit to the Father and died on the cross. 
  • Darkness Came Over the Land or Earth (according to few other versions): From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land (Mt. 27: 45 NIV); 
  • Three (3) Gospel writers, Matthew (27:45), Mark (15:33), and Luke (23:44 recorded this event. Means must be true! 

We may ask the question as to what was the sign of darkness. Based on the Old Testament readings and meditations, I noticed that God and His spirit appear in the darkness. I think it is also a sign of “repentance.”

Examples:

  1. God’s Covenant with Abram (Genesis 15) – God revealed Himself in darkness.
  2. The Ninth plague in Egypt was 3 days of darkness (Exodus 10:21). Read it.
  3. The Red Sea Crossing (Exodus 14) –We all know the story of the Red Sea Crossing. But read how the darkness sign played a huge role in it!
  4. The Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:21 NKJV): The People Afraid of God’s Presence: And Moses said to the people, Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.” So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness where God was.

Meaning, that God the Father’s presence was there during the Crucifixion especially, when He revealed through the sign of darkness to the world so that people can know that He is His Only Son, who provides the Light. 

          God Appeared In The Most Holy Place
  1. The Curtain or Veil of the Temple Torn: The first 3 Gospel writers, which is Matthew (27:51), Mark (15:38), and Luke (23:45) noted this event. Means it is true!
  2. What is the importance of this sign? To understand the temple curtain or veil, one must first read the Old Testament books on the Tabernacle (Exodus 26) through Leviticus (16): The curtain separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (Exodus 26: 31-35 NIV); 
  3. The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16 NIV): The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear in the cloud over the atonement cover.
  4. The Blood of Christ: For this reason, Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant (Hebrew 9: 15 NKJV).

Few more facts and incidents that took place soon after Jesus Christ handed over His Spirit to the Father, but I’ll let you read about it yourself to know more about it.

  • Earthquake ((Only Matthew records it).
  • Rocks split (Only Matthew records it): God’s Kindness to Rebellious Israel (Psalm 78:15).
  • Tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life (Only Matthew records it): A sign of Jesus Christ’s resurrection (Matthew 27:53).
  • Skeptics Acceptance of God’s Son Sacrifice on the Cross: What made a centurion at the cross believe that Jesus was the “Son of God’?

This is very interesting to note that 3 Gospel writers Matthew (27:24), Mark (15:39), and Luke (23:47) recorded this event.

  • Matthew (27:54) stated “So when the centurion and those with  him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God” (Mt. 27:54 NKJV);
  • Mark (15:39) stated:“ So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, He said,” Truly this Man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39 NKJV); and
  • Luke (23:47) stated, “So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying, certainly this was a righteous Man!” (Luke 23:47 NKJV).

Are these facts or signs not enough for us to believe that He is the Son of God, and sacrificed Himself on the cross for our sins in order to fulfill the Scripture (John 19:28).

Finally, how about my own questions that I indicated at the beginning? Did I get answers to those questions? The answer is yes! Are my doubts clear? The answer is yes!

Yes, Jesus did cry before. We find it in the Gospel of John. Read the following Chapters to know more about it:

1)  Could This Be the Christ? John 7:28-31(NKJV);

2) Walk in the Light (John 12:44 NKJV);

3) The Promise of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39 NKJV); and

4) Lazarus Raised from the Dead (John 11:43 NKJV)

Finally, proof of the Holy Spirit with Jesus Christ (Son of God): How do we know whether or not Jesus had the Spirit, which He entrusted for care or preservation (commended) to the Father? I think the first supporting evidence is when “He breathed on them and said to them “Receive the Holy Spirit”–The Apostles Commissioned (John 20:19 NKJV). And the second evidence would be “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen. (Matthew 28: 19-20 NKJV).

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21NIV)

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son (John 3: 16-18 NIV).”

I hope this message can help those who have difficulties comprehending the concept of the Trinity and believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God sacrificed himself for our sins once and for all so that we can have eternal life.

Yes, “He is no more on the cross, He has risen from the dead”

“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:55-57 KJV).”

Disclaimer: 

The views and interpretations presented in this blog post, reposted under the heading “Were There 3 Persons On One Cross,” are entirely the author’s own, and represent his unique perspective on the subject.

This article’s immense impact and outstanding rating on Pinterest, where it received 2.1k monthly reviews and a 4.9k active audience since its first publication on April 20, 2019, proved to be an inspiration for the decision to republish it.

It is important to make it clear that this blog or article is not intended to offend or discredit any religions or groups; rather, its intent is to share thoughts that foster thoughtful reflection.

It is advised that readers accept the various interpretations and points of view held by members of the religious community, conduct their own research, and approach the material with an open mind.