Good Friday 2022 Messages

Good Friday 2022 Intro: Brian ● Welcome to our Good Friday service at the Vineyard. This is always a special time to remember Jesus' death on the cross, and to consider all that means for us. Thanks for being here this evening. ● In this season of Lent, we've been doing a weekend series titled "The King's Journey to the Cross." In tonight's service, we have the opportunity to reflect on what took place as Jesus hung on the cross... specifically, focusing on the final statements Jesus made as he neared his death. ● Traditionally, these are called the "7 Last Words of Christ." For hundreds of years, portions of the Christian church have used this as a framework for Good Friday services. We're looking forward to doing a "Vineyard" version of that this evening. Intro: Steph ● Tonight's service is going to include a mix of worship, Scripture reading, and short reflections from Brian and I on these 7 statements from Jesus. ● We have some candles lit up front here, and after we share about each of the 7 Last Words, we'll extinguish a candle... signifying the increasing weight of darkness that descended on Jesus. ● At the end of the service, we'll also be taking communion together - as another way to remember and respond to Jesus' death on the cross. ● We encourage you to open up your heart to see Jesus in new ways this evening, and to respond to his sacrificial love. ● Let's begin with an opening song of worship. If you're able, please stand, and let's worship together. Move WORSHIP: THE LOVE OF GOD The first of the "Last words of Jesus" on the cross was this: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. ● Luke 23:32-34 reads: Two men, both criminals, were also led out with Jesus to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified Jesus there, along with the criminals - one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." On his way to the cross, Jesus suffered many things. He was beaten and whipped. He was mocked, ridiculed and taunted. And yet, the first words that came from his lips on the cross were about forgiveness. If anyone had the right NOT to forgive, it was Jesus. If anyone had the right to lash out in anger, it was Jesus. If anyone had the right to feel unjustly persecuted it was Jesus. But, even though the people crucifying Jesus did not express remorse, he somehow forgives. ● It is here that we see the full expression of what Jesus taught his disciples: "Love your enemies and pray for those that persecute you." With supernatural love and power... Jesus expressed forgiveness to those that put him on that cross: the soldiers, the religious leaders, Pilate... and in a very real way... every one of us. ● Isaiah 53 says: He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. The Lord laid on him the sins of us all. ● The book of Romans describes that... once we were God's enemies, but now through Christ, we have been welcomed as his friends. ● This unthinkable exchange took place through Jesus on the cross. And because Jesus prayed, "Father, forgive them." ● We can pray, "Father, forgive us." We extinguish the first candle. Last Word #2 (Steph) Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise. ● One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!" But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." ● Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise." Luke 23:39-43 The words of Jesus to a criminal being punished for his crimes. Guilty of the charges this man was sentenced to die. He had no background in the Bible, no hours of volunteering. His time on earth was possibly without purpose. He was unable to even try and put his life together before finding himself next to the king. As he inched toward death, knowing that unlike Jesus, he deserved the punishment he was enduring, he found himself in a moment of absolute surrender of the soul. Jesus didn't take away his pain, heal his body or smite the scoffers. In a full expression of love He extended grace and forgiveness which allowed a thief to walk into heaven the same hour as Jesus, simply by believing. Believing that Jesus was who he said he was. The son of God. Jesus's response highlights the same invitation, the same extension of love, grace and forgiveness that are offered to us, just as we are. In the hour of his death he is revealing the very thing that God has in store for all of us. By receiving the free gift of grace and forgiveness, we too can be with him in paradise. This paradise is not just after death but also experienced in our lives today. Where we can find a depth of joy in our deepest sorrows. We have access to hope in the darkest of despair. Where our current life begins to sing a new song, one that allows us to share a life following Christ with others. And as we see Jesus' response to a guilty criminal, this example of Christ challenges us to extend mercy to those around us, whether or not they are deserving. Move WORSHIP: Before You; Kyrie Eleison Last word #3 (Steph) Here is your son... here is your mother. ● Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, "Woman, here is your son," and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. John 19:25-27 "Before this moment in Jesus's life, before his time on the cross, when was he the most helpless and vulnerable? When he was an infant. Moreover, God chose to come among us in the most helpless form imaginable - a child utterly dependent on others. God was dependent on us. And who cared for God in his helplessness? Mary. Now helpless again, he helps her. We don't have to be strong to help other people. We don't have to have money. We don't have to have professional training. We don't have to have academic degrees. We don't even have to be healthy. We only have to love and want to help." -James Martin of Seven Last Words In agonizing physical pain, every breath a struggle, Jesus' focus and concern was about those he had relationships with. Who would care for his mother after he was gone? The woman who gave her existence to foster the son of God. He chose John. A friend and follower. The man standing committed at the foot of the cross. In our own times of suffering and struggle we too often get lost in our own misery. Frozen by circumstance, dazed by pain. God's intentional choice to come to us helpless, is our invitation to partner with him and his mission for the world. "We only have to love and want to help." Until his last breath, Jesus was a man deeply devoted to relationships and the well being of those around him. If we want to know what God is like, we only need to look at the life and intentions of Jesus. A man driven by his love for others. (Statement #4 Brian) My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? ● Next we read in Mark 15:33-34 At noon, darkness came over the whole land. And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "E-loy, E-loy, la-ma sa-bach-TA-ny?" (which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"). As darkness came upon the land, the dark weight of sin came upon Jesus. And Jesus cried out with the words of Psalm 22:1: "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" ● Much like Isaiah 53 does, Psalm 22 is a prophetic foreshadowing of what Jesus would experience on the cross. It describes the scorn and mocking that Jesus would endure, as well as the physical agony of being poured out like water, with his emaciated body on full display. But, as awful as those elements of suffering were, the deepest suffering Jesus experienced was being separated from his Father. This is the "cup" that Jesus was praying about in Gethsemane the night before... asking "Father, is there any way for this cup to pass? Yet, not my will, but yours be done." ● Beginning in the garden, all the way through the experience of the cross, we see that... Jesus was willing to be separated from the Father's presence, so that we would never have to be. God's presence began to lift from Jesus, not because of anything Jesus had done. No. It was because of us. Jesus willingly embraced the rejection we deserved, so that we could be reconciled to God. He took our place, and he welcomed us into the experience that He had always known. In this moment, we see the truth of Jesus being both fully human and fully God. ● As a man, Jesus died a very real death, and experienced the separation from God that sin causes. By absorbing our sin, he represented us to God, taking on the judgment that was rightfully ours. ● And as fully divine, Jesus represented God to us, showing the length to which the Father was willing to go to bring us back to Himself. As John 3:16 famously states... For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him would have eternal life. Let's continue by singing in worship. ● WORSHIP: This is Love; How Deep The Father's Love For Us Last word #5 (Steph) I am thirsty. ● Knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. John 19:28-29 Crucifixion was intentionally designed to be the most excruciating way to die. In fact, the word excruciating means, "From the cross." Death on a cross was a slow process that led its victim to either slowly bleed out or eventually suffocate. Small ledges were often placed on the cross for sitting or standing. Creating a painful way to take in a deeper breath but ultimately prolonged death. Jesus was fully God and fully human. As he calls out for a drink in his agony we see that even in his divine nature he is still fully human. As he suffers, his body continues to cry out for its practical needs revealing to us the humanity of Jesus. As we make deeper connections with God. As we talk with him and live life with him, he not only understands us because of his loving, compassionate and omnipresent character but because he has suffered. In the same way that a shared experience with someone builds connection and friendship, Jesus knows the pain we suffer. He has been where we have been. That's the love of the Father. A God who so desperately wants to know you, that he was willing to experience intense physical pain that he might have a meaningful relationship with each of us. A God so loving that he would give it all, experience it all, so that we would be able to come to him with every need, every situation, every hope and dream even every sorrow. The blood and tears that were shed. The screams of pain that rang out. The humanity of Jesus reveals to us a God that wants to be a part of every aspect of our lives. Last word #6 (Brian) It is finished. ● John 19:30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said "It is finished." This short statement declares immensely good news to us. ● The Greek word that John uses in v. 30, describes an action that happened in the past, but with results continuing into the present & future. ● So, when Jesus cried out "It is finished," he meant "It has been and will forever remain finished. Our past, our present and our future were all taken care of by Jesus' death on the cross. Similarly, Jesus did not say, "I am finished... somehow signifying that the men that had finished their brutal deed of crucifixion. ● No! Jesus cried out "It is finished," meaning "I have successfully completed the work I came to do." Jesus had come into the world to bear our sins; to secure salvation for us; and to establish a new kind of relationship for us with God. ● As 2 Corinthians 5 tells us: "God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself." All of this is tremendously good news. Last word #7 (Steph) Father, into your hands I commit my spirit ● At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last. Luke 23:44-46 The temple was a place of worship intentionally built for the dwelling of God. In the temple a curtain hung separating the space between God's presence and the rest of humanity. The only person allowed to enter into the most holy place being the high priest. In the final moment, the temple curtain tore in two - signifying that God had opened his presence to the world, granting access through the cross of Jesus. As Jesus says, "into your hands I commit my spirit" He is offering up, undoubtedly the greatest sacrifice the world has ever seen; the entirety of who Jesus is, body, mind and soul given over to the will of God. This is the same call that is given to us as followers of Jesus. Living our lives no longer for ourselves and our own desires but a life that holds nothing back from God. Allowing him into every aspect, every relationship, every decision, habit and passion. Ultimately, a life in full surrender to the future that God has for us. It's in the tearing of the curtain that God has removed every obstacle that would keep us from him. Showing us, that in our total surrender we can trust God and that he is welcoming us into his presence. It's in the giving of ourselves that we truly find who we are, living lives to the fullest. It was in Jesus' last breaths that he handed himself over to the density of God. The curtain tore, the job was finished and darkness settled over the land. Communion (Brian) Communion, like Good Friday, is about remembering - remembering the suffering and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But for the Christ-follower - it's also a celebration of the access granted, and the dawning of resurrection life. In Communion, we remember what God has done. ● And we look forward to what God will yet do. I referenced 2 Corinthians 5 a few moments ago... here is another of my favorite verses from that chapter, that is a great framework for participating in communion. ● 2 Corinthians 5:21 - God made him (Jesus) who had no sin to become sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. WORSHIP: Surrender songs... Hector prays and closes the service.