Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit. (Matthew 27:50)
Lots of chaos surrounds the cross event. For example, Jesus has cried out for Eli, “my God”, and some thought he was calling for Eli-jah, the prophet. Those standing around the cross said, “Let’s watch! Leave him alone. Elijah may be coming to save him!” He was offered antiseptic, a kind of anesthesia to dull the pain, but he refused. (Were some standing there wondering, why did he do that? Everyone takes relief that’s offered, especially in an extreme circumstance like this one!) From the cross, he addresses his disciple John to make arrangements for the future care of his mother. So, a lot was swirling in these final moments of his life: crying out to his father to take him home; refusing anesthesia; giving instructions for family care.
Then the Scripture simply says he cried out with a loud voice and gave up, or released, his spirit. It was over. All the speculation and hubbub about what was happening or might be next suddenly ceased.
On first inspection, when I chose this passage, I thought it was more about him having control over his spirit and releasing it. Now that I look closer, I’m not so sure. As I look at one of the major Greek lexicons, they refer to this expression of spirit release as an idiom, which simply means “to die.” This is different from what Augustine said about this cry from the cross, which is probably how it’s commonly understood: “He willed it, when he willed it.”
The point is, while everyone was bustling around doing all kinds of things beneath the cross, and suggesting and offering and exclaiming and confessing, Jesus simply died.
God proved his humanity, his total humanity, by dying. From birth as a baby, on his life journey from the cradle [er, manger] to the cross, he demonstrated and modeled life as a human being. And he experienced what all humans experience in dying (except for the odd few for whom God had other plans). A British writer called dying the long, necessary journey. And apart from the spiritual significance, and theological depth of meaning and extraction of meaning, he simply died. As people die. No doubt as the two criminals died who were beside him. Though I know his death was supremely different than any other in history, one of the interesting parts is that he shared that common denominator with us—a time came when his earthly life ended.
And we can never thank him enough for “releasing his spirit”, for dying, on our behalf.
“Father, we pause to reflect now on what it meant for Jesus to actually die—that the One who proved he could do anything, refused to do anything other than accept death as your will for him.”
Freddy Boswell 