Holy Week: Good Friday
Written by Kim Perry
Easter Weekend has arrived! I love the freshness of spring, and it’s fitting for Easter, right? New life abounds. Trees and bushes that appeared dead a month ago are now laden with green leaves and blossoms. The air is warm, I can smell the earth and birds are singing. The entire landscape already seems to be celebrating the resurrection!
But it’s not Easter morning yet. And Good Friday is not a typical Friday.
Maybe you are conflicted about today, like I am. It’s already Friday and I want to be “Easter-ready” from a logistics standpoint before the Saturday afternoon worship services. These errands and tasks are not going to happen on their own. Easter brunch/lunch/dinner is not going to just “appear.” There’s still a lot to do between now and the moment when we’ll arrive at church in time to get a seat to celebrate the Resurrection.
But ALSO, it’s FRIDAY. The day Jesus was subjected to insults and injury and hung on a cross, and punished in my place. I feel silly to be worried about my to-do list at a time like this. And, I feel uneasy – if I don’t address my task-list, who will? If I’m not careful, the preparations will keep my mind and my hands so busy that I’ll miss the very thing I need.
The emotions of Good Friday are less fresh and beautiful than the emotions we’ll feel on Resurrection Sunday. They are heavy; it would be easier to not face them. But here we are, in this moment together. Let’s invest a few moments to reflect on the holy weight of it all.
Read Luke 23 and Isaiah 53
The truth is that we have a deep need for the forgiveness, grace, and mercy that Jesus endured death and God’s wrath to make possible. Let’s open ourselves up to the possibility that all that is truly needed this weekend is even more of Jesus in our lives.
As I read the account in Luke 23 of the mocking and the insults the Lord endured, I feel defensiveness welling up in me on his behalf. (As if he needs my help – ha!) A quick look at the prophecy in Isaiah 53:7 shows us why he didn’t argue with them:
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
Because it wasn’t about how “right” Jesus was, it was about how wrong the accusers were. (Just as how far my sin would separate me from God’s embrace.) Jesus knew what Jesus knew. He didn’t need to defend or prove anything. The proof would blow their minds soon enough. He had already surrendered to the Father’s will. His surrender took him all the way to the cross for what we really needed, for what I really need.
Let’s not miss the blessing of realizing and remembering our need for Jesus, and what He has done and is doing for us.
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.
Prayer
Holy Lord, will you keep my heart and mind trained on you long enough so that when I go about all the tasks of today, I will carry with me gratitude in proportion to the depths and heights of your love and mercy? Thank you for the pain you endured at my expense. Forgive me for the times I have failed to realize my deep need for your forgiveness. Thank you for everything you did to offer me what I could not earn for myself. Amen.
