In many ways there is nothing good about it.
In one life-changing way, everything about it is good.
At this point in His week, Jesus had been betrayed and taken into custody. All night long, He’d been shuttled from one place to another for various questionings where His captors felt free to strike Him at will, I doubt he slept very much. Then He had been taken to Pilate, then to Herod then back to Pilate. After receiving a death sentence, He was whipped with 40 lashes of a cat-o-nine-tails style scourge that flayed the skin from His body. The soldiers mocked Him and put a crown of thorns on His head and beat it into his scalp with a rod. Then they put the cross on His shredded back and made Him carry it to the execution site.
At this point Jesus body failed. He fell and could not get up. So a bystander was forced to carry it the rest of the way for Him.
Jesus had spikes driven through His wrists and ankles to affix Him to the cross then it was dropped into a hole in the ground and He hung there. For hours. In the sun. In full view of everyone walking by.
Until about 3:00 in the afternoon. Then He took on our sin and was separated from God the Father.
“My God, My God! Why have you forsaken me?”
And then the price was paid.
“It is finished!”
And at that moment the curtain that hung in the temple, the heavy barrier between God and Man was torn in half – starting at the top and ending at the bottom. Not a human action. A divine statement.
The system of covering sins had ended. True forgiveness of sins was available.
That’s a lot to pack into one day.
The process was horrible. The result magnificent.
Because of this day, we witness this song in Revelation chapter 5 when Jesus appears in Heaven as a lamb who had been slain:
“Worthy are you to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on the earth.
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!
To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
It’s Good Friday and we look beyond the blood and pain to see redemption and glory.
Celebrate it well.
Dennis
PS. There are only a few more days to get I Will Sing of My Redeemer for 99c. It’s 52 devotionals celebrating the words of the greatest hymns of the faith. You’ll be amazed at how often these goodies-but-oldies go back to the cross (The Old Rugged Cross, At Calvary), the shed blood (Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed, There is Power in the Blood), the price paid for our sins (Jesus Paid It All).
The old hymns celebrate the truth of our faith. And you can too with this devotional. The sale is on through Resurrection Sunday. Get you copy now!
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Blessings in this Holy Season.
Dennis
