“When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished’. With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” (John 19:30)
Next Friday is Good Friday. Have you ever thought about the irony of that name? We call it, “Good” Friday, even though it commemorates the darkest day in history. In fact, the Bible records that when Jesus died, “darkness came over the whole land”. (Luke 23:44) I guess that’s God’s reminder to us all about what sin does in our world. It separates us from God’s light.
The irony of what happened that Friday is that God can create goodness from the darkest of circumstances. Let’s face it, it was wrong to put an innocent man to death. Yet, I’m so glad God let Jesus hang on that Cross because as Paul said, “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them”. (2 Corinthians 5:19) God’s redemptive plan was at work that day. Jesus offered his righteousness to us in exchange for our sins. That’s why we call it Good Friday.
There are other things that happened that day for which Christians should also be grateful.
It’s particularly important to note that while Pontius Pilate sentenced Jesus to death in order to save his own hide, he knew that Jesus was God. “As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him,” he told the Pharisees, who were asking that Jesus be put to death for claiming that he was God. (John 19:6) And get this: After Jesus died, one of centurions who had been guarding him said “Surely he was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54) That Roman Centurion, as far as I can tell, was the first gentile that came to a saving knowledge of Jesus. God didn’t waste a moment in putting his plan into action.
Have you ever noticed what Jesus said to his mother and John just before he died? “When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, ‘Dear woman, here is your son,’ and to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother’.” (John 19:26-27)
The timing of that remark was no accident. Jesus was communicating an important Christian quality to which we all should pay close attention. Obviously, we should never overlook our responsibility to our families even when the circumstances are frightening. Christianity has no room for selfishness. However, because we are Christians, we are, therefore, family, and God expects us to care for one another. Jesus had just told his disciples the night before, “A new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) I’m glad I serve a God who doesn’t just talk about Christian character, but shows a great example of it at a most unexpected time.
Finally, the Bible never talks about what was behind the Cross. All the events that day took place in front of the Cross. Remember, Isaiah told us, “Our righteous acts are like filthy rags…and like the wind, our sins sweep us away.” (Isaiah 64:6) In other words, when we come to Cross, we can’t bring anything of value with us. What’s important is that God allows us to stand in front of it, where the ground is level.
There are a lot of lessons taught in the Good Friday story, but it has only one message: Jesus died on the Cross to save us from our own sins. Just like John the Baptist said, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29)
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