What Happened?
Good Friday is the day that Jesus died on the cross.
His death was slow. It was terrifying and humiliating and it was agonizing.
Why was it so horrible?
Because it was supposed to be. The purpose of crucifixion wasn't merely to kill. The purpose of crucifixion was to terrorize, to degrade and dehumanize and ultimately to destroy the very soul of an individual. The goal was for the individual to die a death filled with terror and humiliation. The goal of a crucifixion was to break the spirit of its victim and terrorize anyone who dared to follow in his footsteps.
So why then is Good Friday "good"?
How can a day filled with so much sorrow and so much pain possibly be "good"?
Jesus did this willingly. He made himself a sacrifice for all of us. Jesus refused to turn inward, refused to think about self. Instead Jesus, to the end, embraced others and forgave. His refusal to surrender to fear and to hatred was his victory. His victory was a victory over human selfishness, a victory over fear, a victory over hatred.
"Forgive them father. For they know not what they do."
His love persevered to the very end.
Of course, without Easter Sunday, any good on Friday would be irrelevant. Easter Sunday makes Friday good. Jesus rose from the dead and walked out of the tomb. In doing so, he demonstrated that love can even overcome death.
He was supposed to be dead, and more importantly, so was his church. His crucifixion was at least as much about killing his church as it was about killing him.
But, when he walked out of that grave, he resurrected his church every bit as surely as his father had resurrected him. If Friday was his victory, then Sunday was ours -- not a victory that we earned, but one that we were given through his undefeated love.
Easter Sunday was when these victories were announced and his resurrection was their announcement.
But Why was Jesus Crucified?
Why was a sacrifice needed and why Jesus?
We are all sinners, and the wages of sin are death. Expressed another way, death is a consequence of sin.
By offering himself up as a sacrifice of atonement for our sins, Jesus took on the consequences of our actions. He took our sins upon himself, bearing the punishment we deserved.
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we are reminded that Jesus willingly chose to take this burden upon himself. It was his act of love, placing us before himself.
This wasn’t merely God offering up an alternative sacrifice. This was Jesus, in the ultimate act of selfless love, willingly taking this burden upon himself.
Isaiah 53:5-6
But 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. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Philippians 2:5-8
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
