Good Friday.
A perfect man would have to die for all of humanity to be made right with God. Only Jesus was qualified. We couldn’t save ourselves. Barabbas, a murderer, was released in place of Jesus. WE are all Barabbas. Jesus took our life sentence on death row. The people that beat Him, mocked Him, and spit upon Him… it was FOR THEM. In the midst of His great pain, He followed the will of His Father. For this was the purpose for which He came into the world. He saw the mission to the very end. The redemption of mankind was His “why.” The physical agony was great, but oh how much more the spiritual weight was to carry upon His shoulders. He bore our sins. It crushed Him. We can barely handle any pressure applied, yet in His humanity, He endured the sins of the world. “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” He was already interceding for us, while we were killing Him as He hung there innocently. He continued to suffer so that one day He could save you, sanctify you, and suffice God’s wrath in your place. It was all for YOU. And it was for me. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” A holy God cannot look upon sin. The presence of His father was gone from Him. He became our sin, the very one who knew no sin. I have access to the kingdom because the man on the middle cross said to me, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.” The curtain tore from top to bottom. The sky darkened. The earth began to shake. Rocks split wide open. Jesus cried as He took his last breath declaring, “It is finished.” Forevermore. We now can be in relationship with Him. His last breath gave me my first. Friday’s “good” because Sunday’s coming…
