Why is Good Friday….Good?
We arrived at Stephanie’s home in the early morning hours. Nathan made the trip to the airport to pick us up. We have enjoyed getting acquainted with their new home. They have already made some significant improvements and are planning on painting the outside next.
Today, I hung around the house with Mason and Carter, while Debbie, Stephanie and Linda (Nathan’s mom) took a tour of some flower gardens. The boys have been helpful in my navigating the stairs between the downstairs and main level of the house.
Tonight we attend the Good Friday service at Revolution Church, where Stephanie and Nathan attend.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY…. “…the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” Luke 23:45-47
Jesus’ crucifixion reveals some interesting personal circumstances. We can observe Jesus’ agony in the Garden; the betrayal of Judas; Peter’s cutting off the servant’s ear and then his denial of Christ; Pilot as the political official caught between his conscience and the crowd and many more.
I’m not sure what a sacrificial Passover lamb cost in Jesus day, but we know that Judas put the price on Jesus’ head at 30 pieces of silver; the price of a common slave. Later we would see the crowd trade Jesus for Barabbas, a murderer and one who was proven guilty of insurrection; the very charge of which Jesus was falsely accused.
I was recently visiting with the President of CSU and he mentioned someone he knows who has the job of determining the value of someone’s life for insurance purposes. That is an ominous task, but Judas never gave it a second thought.
What about you? Does your value of Jesus reflect the approach of Judas or that which we see in the parable of the “Pearl of Great Price”? (Matt. 13:46,46) Good Friday is good when…we understand the value of Christ and His sacrifice for us and respond accordingly in devotion and worship.
The crucifixion of Jesus was brutal and gruesome. What He endured, He did for us, dying for us, for our sin. The prophet said it well, “…he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)
Good Friday is good…when we understand that Jesus suffered the consequences and punishment of our sin. We have true wholeness through Him.
Paul the Apostles also referred to the sacrifice of Christ for us when he said, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
On the cross a grand and Holy exchange takes place. Christ takes our sin, we receive His righteousness. Although we are not perfect as human beings who are prone to sin, in Christ, God see us as right in His eyes. Good Friday is good when… we understand the position we have been afforded through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.
Finally consider the assessment of others on Jesus life. Pilate said, “I find no fault in Him.” The thief on the cross said, “…we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:41) The centurion at the foot of cross said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” (Luke 23:47) Good Friday is good when…we declare, worship and affirm Jesus for who He is, not what we want Him to be. There were those who said, “prove your are the Son of God by saving yourself.” But if Jesus saved Himself, He could not save us. In laying down His life, He calls us to adjust our lives to Him instead of us demanding that He adjust His life to ours.
The suffering and crucifixion was not something, “good.” But out of this day something good and life changing comes to us today. The darkest day for Jesus, becomes the brightest day for us when we allow why He died to become the reason we live.