Crucifixion Thorns

Last week as I was walking along a hiking trail in Arizona, I passed a sign indicating the type of vegetation that was growing, on the hillside, it read “Crucifixion Thorn”. My husband was already ahead of me, so I didn’t stop.

As I continued on this trail, both Dave and I were lost in the beauty all around us, so we we were sharing little to no conversation.  This gave me time to reflect and ponder within my own heart and mind. That sign I passed earlier kept reverberating in my mind…”Crucifixion Thorns”... With Easter only a short time away Dave and I had been going through the last days of Christ in our morning Bible readings while we were on vacation together.

Whenever I read this account, “And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand; and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.” my eyes fill with tears, and the pain and humiliation that my Savior endured, for me, becomes so personal and heart painful. I am overwhelmed by the unconditional love Christ showered on me so many years ago, and continues each day of my life.

Have you ever gotten stabbed by a thorn? Or worse yet, have a thorn lodged in your hand or foot? If this thorn remains lodged for even a small amount of time, it begins to fester, and the pain spreads quickly. You become consumed with the motivation to remove it as quickly and painlessly as possible.  Once removed, the area usually remains tender and bruised, taking a few days to heal and feel whole again.

So, when I think of Christ having a “crown of thorns” placed upon His head, I am convinced that it wasn’t placed gently, but most likely with a crude roughness as His accusers tried to justify their unfeeling behavior.  But, they didn’t stop there, next they spit upon Him!

Have you ever been spit at? I remember once as a child shopping with my aunt at a mall, where the food court was on the lower level and other shoppers could look down over the railings to the food court below.  While we were eating our lunch that day, an adolescent who was observing from above decided to spit, and it landed on my arm and on the piece of pizza I was about to eat. I was probably only 4 or 5 at the time, but I can still remember and feel the repulsion I felt in having someone spit upon me and my food.  This unkind act I received, yes, was gross, but it wasn’t directed at ME with the intent of humiliating ME, I just happened to be the unlucky recipient. Christ, on the other hand, was purposefully, spit on with the direct intent of hurt and humiliation.

Next, Christ’s accusers took the reed from His hand, and smote Him upon His head. They hit our Savior’s thorn laden crown again and again with the intent to cause Him both physical and emotional pain. They wished to strip Him of everything He had to offer as man.  As He was brutally accused, Christ quietly endured. There was no retribution towards His accusers, no, for only a few moments later Christ would cry out, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” There is no greater love!

I related to Dave some of the thoughts that were whirling through my mind as a continued to hike and asked him that on our way back, please help me find the sign “Crucifixion Thorns” so I might see the actual plant that bore this name.  

We found it, and I snapped a few pictures of the plant and the sign and continued our hike to the end of the trail.

Today when I sat down to write this post, I pulled up my pics and I read the “sign” completely.  What stuck out to me most was in the details of this plant it read “Bittersweet Family”. Could there be any more perfect of a description of this plant that bore the name Crucifixion Thorns? The completely man, completely God, Christ, bore the bitter, so that we may receive the sweet...the blessing, the gift, of becoming a child of God, through Christ our Redeemer.  

If you look at the pictures closely, you can see the long woody thorns that adorn this desert plant.  As you prepare for Easter, take a mental picture of this. While you are making your Easter ham, or putting out your chocolate eggs, or adorning your table with the beauty of the springtime flowers, think about that crown of sharp wooden thorns that Christ was mockingly adorned with so many years ago. May it somehow cause you to be just a little more thankful and a little more mindful, of all that transpired there on Calvary’s Hill. Christ’s perfectness set us free from the thorns and briars of our own imperfect lives. Praise God for this sacrificial gift.

If this post has inspired you, pass it on!

Wishing each of you a blessed Easter!

Kim