Good Friday

Although many people think that Good Friday is a downer and depressing part of the church year, that is really not the case. There is good news in the violence and suffering of the cross. God became human in Jesus Christ. He wanted to know what it's like to be one of us. He wanted to feel our pain, hurt, fear, laughter, happiness and lives. He did this so he could experience the ultimate human enemy: death. By dying, Jesus was in fact building a bridge between us and God. Sin had separated us from a holy God who cannot be in sin's presence, so we had no chance of a relationship with God. But His death paid for our sin so we could again be in relationship with God.

In the Old Testament, God forgave and related to the nation of Israel through a system of sacrifices that took away God's anger and judgment and offered renewal from sin. On an altar, sacrifices of grain, drink and the blood of certain animals were made to please God. The blood represents life and the offerings were what was most valuable to shepherds and farmers: crops and flocks. By giving them up, they were giving to God the best of what they had. This showed loyalty and devotion to God.

But the death of Jesus made the sacrificial system of the Jews impotent. The ultimate sacrifice of blood had been made that no crop or livestock could rival. In the historical departure of Israel from slavery in Egypt, the passover happened to spare Jews from the angel of death that would swoop across Egypt and kill all firstborn children. To protect the Israelites, God told them to slaughter a lamb and smear its blood around and over their door posts and the angel of death would passover their dwelling.

The death of Jesus does the same thing. The wages of sin is spiritual death. We needed a lamb so that death would have hold over us no more. Jesus was the lamb given to us by God. When God sees the blood of Jesus he passes over our sin and offers us forgiveness. This once for all sacrifice allows us to again be right with God.

So the cross may seem violent and painful, it was God's way of bringing us to Himself. Without the cross we would be stuck in sin and separation. But now our redemption has been offered through the cross of Jesus Christ.