For what seemed like an eternity, the three hours before Jesus' death on the cross must have been confusing and sad for his followers. It was the middle of the day. Jesus was near death. Darkness came over the land. The Bible says that the sun stopped shining.
Luke 23:44: "It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land... until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining."
What were his followers thinking? At the beginning of the three hours they had no idea how long the darkness would last. Perhaps this was the beginning of the end of civilization. Perhaps the darkness would last for days or weeks or months. Maybe it would never end. They knew that it wasn't a coincidence that the darkness came as Jesus hung dying. But they just didn't know when it would end... or if it would end.
We've read the ending. In fact, we could easily read over that little verse and miss its significance. We know it only lasted three hours. Three short hours.
But how often are we clouded in darkness, not knowing when the end will come? Or will it end, we ask. Our darkness takes on different forms at different times. When a child runs away from home, there is darkness and uncertainty. When our spouse is several hours late coming home, there is darkness. Confusion sets in. When the money is running out before you find a job, the darkness can be overwhelming. When God just seems to be out of reach, we wonder when the darkness will end, or if it will end.
But we've read the ending. Paul Harvey would say that we know “the rest of the story.” The darkness only lasted three hours for Jesus and his followers. How long will your darkness last? Three hours? Three days? Three weeks? Take heart. Soon! Very soon, the sun will shine again.
