Good Friday: The Beautiful Sacrifice

When Good Doesn’t Feel Good

Have you ever stopped to think about why we call this Good Friday? What could be good about what happened today? Sometimes I feel it’s ironic if we have a sunny and beautiful day on a good Friday. It feels like it should be gloomy and overcast, especially considering what we remember on this day.

Mark 15:22–24 ESV

22 And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take.

Maybe we misunderstand the brutality of this day. Indeed, none of us fully grasp the horribleness of a Roman crucifixion.

Or maybe this day marks something more.

1 Corinthians 1:18 ESV

18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

For people that don’t know Jesus, the cross looks like foolishness. It seems like foolishness for us to call something that was terrible good. But God is actually very good at making something good happen even when things seem very bad.

When there is a big burden.

Luke 23:26 ESV

26 And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus.

The weight of that old rugged cross caused Jesus to collapse on Good Friday. At that moment, the Roman soldiers grabbed a man named Simon and forced him to carry the cross for Jesus. So, Simon followed Jesus, carrying his cross up the hill called Golgotha. Then Jesus was crucified on it.

Carrying the cross while following Jesus: Simon’s act on the way to Golgotha was a living picture of Jesus’ call to his disciples, including us, from Luke 9.

Luke 9:23 ESV

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

God calls us to carry our crosses as we follow Jesus, just like on Good Friday. We won’t be crucified on the cross. Jesus did that, but that doesn’t mean that carrying a cross is easy.

Many of us carry burdens today.

We have sicknesses or diagnoses that exhaust us

We have loved ones whose relationships and needs burden us.

We’re concerned about the state of the world, and that weighs us down

We struggle financially.

Maybe not all of these burdens are exactly the cross that Jesus was referring to here for an East this situation, as we can take comfort in this passage that Jesus spoke.

Matthew 11:28–30 ESV

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

We can’t miss the beginning of this statement. If we want to grapple with our burdens, we must come to him. We need to go to Him and bring Him our burdens. As some of you know, we’ve been battling stomach aches for Isabel. The tempting thing is to turn to the things that bring stress relief, like eating chocolate or exercising, or just encouraging each other. But I’ve been committed. I must take more time to turn my daughter and her health over to God. I need to take more time to just come to Jesus. As I do that, I have found more peace.

When The Ridicule Is Real

Mark 15:29–31 ESV

29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself.

Amazingly, these people passed by the person dying for them. They passed by the man who had spent years teaching and healing. They assumed, and they ridiculed something that they did not understand. It’s sad how often we have a herd mentality. It is sad how often we knock out what we don’t understand. We have people like that in our lives. We are people who don’t take the time to understand what we are going through. People don’t want to understand us, but they are just ridiculous. It hurts. There’s nothing good about being ridiculed.

But have you ever thought that the words that they used to ridicule Jesus came true? Little did they know that in three days, Jesus would save himself and save others. Wow.

God knows how to redeem ridicule. It’s never easy, but there’s always a way to take something terrible and make something good out of it. Even when you are being ridiculed, God has a way of making something good out of it.

Matthew 5:44–45 ESV

44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

How can we love our enemies? We love because Jesus loved and forgave us. But how can we love and forgive? First, we can do it because Jesus requires us to do it. But then also, we need to remember that if we follow Jesus' instruction to love and forgive, it’s good for our soul and our health. The Mayo Clinic says this about forgiveness and its effect on our health.

“Letting go of grudges and bitterness can make way for improved health. Forgiveness can lead to: ● Healthier relationships and improved mental health. ● Less anxiety, stress, hostility, and fewer symptoms of depression. ● Lower blood pressure and a stronger immune system. ● Improved heart health and self-esteem.” The Mayo Clinic Staff. “Forgiveness: Letting go of grudges and bitterness.” 22 Nov, 2022. mayoclinic.org

Sometimes when we find ourselves being mistreated or ridiculed, responding may be as straightforward or complex as this passage in Proverbs.

Proverbs 3:5–8 ESV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. 7 Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. 8 It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.

When Loneliness Is Real

Mark 15:33–34 ESV

33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Have you ever thought about how Jesus experienced loneliness on the cross? He cried out to God because, for the first time in his existence, he felt distance from God as he carried the world's sins. Jesus experienced loneliness on the cross, and we also experienced loneliness. It’s a genuine and heavy feeling. I love that we can look and see that Paul also experienced loneliness; one of the great authors and writers of the New Testament knew what it was like to be lonely.

2 Timothy 4:11–13 ESV

11 Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. 12 Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. 13 When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.

Call, need, companionship, not isolation. He required his physical and spiritual needs. He needed a clock to stay warm. He asks his friends to provide him with fellowship. He asked for scriptures to warm and comfort his soul when loneliness is literal, pay attention to your physical needs. Seek out connection with others and draw near to God.

It’s a Good Friday Because He Has Made it Good

That was the tag at the close of the earlier video. What makes Good Friday Good? Jesus. He makes it good!

Romans 5:6–8 ESV

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

That very bad day was quite possibly the most beautiful picture of God’s love for you. That is what makes it so good. In fact, Good Friday may be the goodest day of all the days.

Oh wait...there is one, even more gooder days to come in just a few hours.