The Lord of life and glory was nailed to the accursed tree. He died by the act of guilty men. We, by our sins, crucified the Son of God.
Charles Spurgeon
We might have expected that, in remembrance of his death, we should have been called to a long, sad, rigorous fast. Do not many men think so even today? See how they observe Good Friday, a sad, sad day to many; yet our Lord has never enjoined our keeping such a day, or bidden us to look back upon his death under such a melancholy aspect.
Instead of that, having passed out from under the old covenant into the new, and resting in our risen Lord, who once was slain, we commemorate his death by a festival most joyous. It came over the Passover, which was a feast of the Jews; but unlike that feast, which was kept by unleavened bread, this feast is brimful of joy and gladness. It is composed of bread and of wine, without a trace of bitter herbs, or anything that suggests sorrow and grief. …
The memorial of Christ’s death is a festival, not a funeral; and we are to come to the table with gladsome hearts and go away from it with praises, for “after supper they sang a hymn”
As I write on this Good Friday, the sky looks very dark. I’ve been worried about some stuff regarding school, my family, money, you name it. And yet I feel peace. I’m sitting in the library watching the almost dead campus that is Liberty right now, contemplating Christ’s death. My heart feels like the sky right now. Dark, gloomy, melancholy. But, when Christ died on the cross the sky went dark on that day.
Jesus faced all of our sin, shame, and sorrow on the cross. He took our guilt, and made us white as snow. Sometimes, I like to think that Jesus’ heart felt like mine does now. In fact, he was human, and he had emotions. His own people had turned him over to die. “The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.” (John 1:9-11) As the people shouted “Crucify him! Crucify him!” I can’t help but contemplate what Jesus was thinking. He knew his Father’s will and he followed it. He could have looked forward to returning to Heaven. In John 17:4-5 he did pray, “I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.”
Truly, whatever Christ was thinking as he suffered for us, we can be thankful. He is worthy of the highest praise and exaltation. “The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself. ” (2 Timothy 2:11-13) Finally, remain faithful beloved. We must wait patiently for the LORD Jesus to return. But we must praise him while we wait.
“O Lord , you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord ; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” (Isaiah 25:1,8-9)
Soli Deo Gloria