Good Friday

     I wrote some of this over a year ago, but I rewrote a lot of it, and added even more. I thought now would be an appropriate time to say this here, since it is Good Friday and now more than ever I and many others are thinking of Jesus’ death on the cross.

     Several times during His ministry here on earth, people attempted to kill Jesus, but were unable to do so.  Luke 4:28-30 says this: “When they heard these things, [they] were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.”  If this had been the only situation where such a thing occurred, it would probably be passed off as unimportant.  So He escaped when people tried to kill Him.  They killed Him in the end, didn’t they?  But it happened other times as well.  John 7:30: “Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.”  John 10:39: “Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.”  It’s pretty crazy that He escaped death three times, don’t you think?  Even though they wanted to kill Him, they could not until the time had come for His crucifixion.  And even during His arrest in the garden of Gethsemane, before the soldiers took Him, He asked who they were seeking.  When told “Jesus of Nazareth,” He replied, “I am He,” and they fell to the ground.  Even right before His death, Jesus was in control.  And if He was able to stop them from killing Him all of these other times, then He was capable of saving Himself from the death that He died.  He allowed them to kill Him.  He willingly died.  Jesus did not die because they wanted Him dead; they had no power over Him and no control.  John 19:10-11 reads: “Then Pilate said to Him, ‘Are you not speaking to me?  Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?’  Jesus answered, ‘You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.’”  The only reason they were able to put Him to death was because He let them.  God was in control the whole time; none of what happened to Jesus happened without His consent.  He died not because a lot of people wanted Him dead and hated Him, but because He loved us, despite the hatred many felt toward Him. He gave Himself willingly as a sacrifice for the remission of our sins.

     So many times, people complain about things not being fair – they complain about life not being fair.  I know I do sometimes.  But when I really think about it, I’m glad life isn’t fair.  I’m glad God isn’t fair.  What would have been fair for Him to do would have been to make all of us die, for we have all sinned (Romans 3:23) and death is the punishment for sin (Romans 6:23).  And not just a physical death, but a spiritual death, and eternal separation from God.  But instead of this, He loved us so much, that Jesus died in our place (John 3:16).  It wasn’t in any way fair to Jesus for Him to die for sins He had never committed.  It isn’t fair to any of us that we shouldn’t have to pay the penalty for our sins or that we should receive grace from God for them.  And yet Jesus really did die, willingly.  And God really does offer grace and salvation and eternal life.  It’s not fair and never will be, and it makes me glad that life isn’t fair.

     Jesus paid the ultimate price, dying on the cross.  The least we can do is remember His sacrifice and live for Him.