Good Friday Service (2026): “It’s Friday, but Sunday is Coming…”

Good Friday (or Holy Friday) Service

Friday, April 3^rd, 2026 @6:00PM

Dogwood Prairie United Methodist Church

 

IT’S FRIDAY, BUT SUNDAY IS COMING by Lockridge

It’s Friday – Jesus is praying – Peter’s sleeping – Judas is betraying – But Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday – Pilate’s struggling – The council is conspiring – The crowd is vilifying – They don’t even know that Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday – The disciples are running like sheep without a shepherd – Mary’s crying – Peter is denying – but they don’t know that Sunday is coming.

It’s Friday – The Romans beat my Jesus – They robe Him in scarlet – They crown Him with thorns – But they don’t know that Sunday is coming.

It’s Friday – See Jesus walking to Calvary – His blood dripping – His body stumbling – And His spirit’s burdened – But you see, it’s only Friday – Sunday is coming.

It’s Friday – The world’s winning – People are sinning – And evil’s grinning.

It’s Friday – The soldiers nail my Savior’s hands to the cross – They nail my Savior’s feet to the cross – And then they raise him up next to two criminals. But Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday – The disciples are questioning what has happened to their King – And the Pharisees are celebrating that their scheming has been achieved. But they don’t know it’s only Friday and Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday – He’s hanging on the cross – Feeling forsaken by His Father – “May God, My God why have you forsaken me?”- Left alone and dying – Can nobody save Him? It’s Friday – But Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday – The earth trembles – The sky grows dark – My King yields His spirit.

It’s Friday – Hope is lost – Death has won – Sin has conquered – and Satan’s just a laughing.

It’s Friday – Jesus is buried – A soldier stands guard – And a rock is rolled into place. But it’s Friday – It is only Friday.

Sunday is a coming…

 

GREETINGS:

We are gathered here this evening, just hours away from celebrating and giving praise for the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. We gather on a day that many either call “Good Friday” or “Holy Friday.”

Today is a holy day, meaning being set aside for a specific reason to draw us closer to Jesus Christ as we remember what he experienced, embraced, and embodied so that we can be here today—continually being forgiven, blessed by grace, and loved unconditionally from a sacrifice that both changed and saved the world. Today, is holy, meaningful and important to our faith; but for many of us, we struggle to comprehend how a day of darkness, torture, betrayal, and death can be associated with being “good.” How can love exist within the hate and evil of such a tragic day?

How can an innocent person being tortured be good? How can the betrayal of someone willing to feed the multitude, heal the sick, recover sight to the blind, set free the oppressed, allow the lame to walk, invite all to his table, and forgive sins be good? How can embracing the death of someone who wanted to make this world a better place be good? How can darkness be good? How can suffering be good? How can the cross, the tomb, and the weeping of so many be good?

We call this day “Good Friday”,  not because of all the horrible things that took place leading up to the death of Jesus Christ, but because of what his death leads to: his resurrection and promise that death does not have the last word, that in three days he will rise again and the stone will be rolled away from the entrance of the tomb, and he will soon appear to his disciples and us on the road to Emmaus or in the upper room or on the shore of Galilee. However, before we experience the true “goodness” of Good Friday, we must encounter the darkness before the light shines. And we do so through a service known as Tenebrae.

 

LAYOUT OF SERVICE:

A Service of Tenebrae, or “Darkness,” is based on a twelfth-century late night or early morning service by which offers an extended meditation on the passion of Christ. The passion of Christ, as we will embrace, is heard through the words of the beloved disciple John in his Gospel, specifically in chapters eighteen and nineteen. As we read through these two chapters together, there will be moments in which I will pause to distinguish a candle to remind us of the darkness, grief, pain, sacrifice, and suffering that Jesus endured in the span of less than twenty-four hours. After each candle is extinguished, I invite you to simply whisper to yourself, “Lord, thank you.” Once the readings have concluded, I will share a brief reflection on what Good Friday reveals to us through the cross.

As you entered this space, you may have noticed that things have been stripped down and that the light is minimum. This evening, the Lord doesn’t want us to be distracted by what we see; rather, he wants us to do everything we can to focus on him and him alone.

At the end of service, in silence, you will be invited, if you would like, to be anointed and sealed with the sign of the cross as a reminder of God’s love in your life; at this point, you are invited to place your note card in the basket.

Let us begin our Service of Tenebrae by praying…

 

OPENING PRAYER:

Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. Let Us Pray, Almighty God, your Son Jesus Christ was lifted high upon the cross so that he might draw the whole world to himself. Grant that we, who glory in this death for our salvation, may also glory in his call to take up our cross and follow him: Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

OPENING HYMN: Hymn: “Were You There?” (#561, vs. 1-5)

 

THE PASSION OF JESUS CHRIST ACCORDING TO JOHN (pgs. 1517-22)

John 18:1-11: Jesus… went forth with his disciples across the Kidron valley,
where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered. Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place; for Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas, procuring a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to befall him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When he said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he; so, if you seek me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill the word which he had spoken, “I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me.” Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus. Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given me?”

A reader extinguishes the first candle.

 

John 18:12-14: So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Judean authorities seized Jesus and bound him. First they led him to Annas; for he was the father–in–law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had given counsel to the religious authorities that it was expedient that one man should die for the people.

The second candle is extinguished.

 

John 18:15-18: Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple.
As this disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest along with Jesus, while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the woman who guarded the gate, and brought Peter in. The woman who guarded the gate said to Peter, “Are not you also one of this man’s disciples?” He said, “I am not.” Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.

The third candle is extinguished.

 

John 18:19-24:  The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jewish people come together; I have said nothing secretly. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I said.” When he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?” Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, bear witness to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why you strike me?” Annas then sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

The fourth candle is extinguished.

 

John 18:25-27:  Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, “Are not you also one of his disciples?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.

The fifth candle is extinguished.

 

John 18:28-32: Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to Pilate’s headquarters. It was early. They themselves did not enter the headquarters, so that they might not be defiled, but might eat the Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” They answered him, “If this man were not an evildoer, we would not have handed him over.”
Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The religious authorities said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put any man to death.” This was to fulfill the word which Jesus had spoken to show by what death he was to die.

The sixth candle is extinguished.

 

 John 18:33-38:  Pilate entered the headquarters again and called Jesus, and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me; what have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the religious authorities; but my kingship is not from the world.” Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

The seventh candle is extinguished.

 

 John 18:39-40: After Pilate had said this, he went to the religious authorities again, and told them, “I find no crime in him. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover; will you have me release for you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

The eighth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:1-11: Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged him. And the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and arrayed him in a purple robe; they came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. Pilate went out again, and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him.” So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in him.” The religious authorities answered him, “We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God.” When Pilate heard these words, he was the more afraid; he entered the headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave no answer. Pilate therefore said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?” Jesus answered him, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin.”

The ninth candle is extinguished.

 

 John 19:12-16: Upon this Pilate sought to release him, but the religious authorities cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend; everyone who makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar.” When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, and in Hebrew, Gab’ · ba· tha . Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. He said to the religious authorities, “Behold your King!” They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” They handed him over to them to be crucified.

The tenth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:17-22: So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called the place of a skull, which is called in Hebrew, Gol’ ·go·tha . There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the cross; it read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” Many of the Judeans read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. The Jewish chief priests then said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.'” Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

The eleventh candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:23-24: When the soldiers had crucified Jesus they took his garments and made four parts, one for each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was without seam, woven from top to bottom; so they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” This was to fulfill the scripture, “They parted my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.”

The twelfth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:25-27: So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

The thirteenth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:28-30: After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the scripture), “I thirst.” A bowl full of vinegar stood there; so they put a sponge full of the vinegar on hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, “It is finished”; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

The fourteenth candle is extinguished.

 

 John 19:31: Since it was the day of Preparation, in order to prevent the bodies from remaining on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the religious authorities asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

The fifteenth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:32-37 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him; but when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth—that you also may believe. For these things took place that the scripture might be fulfilled, “Not a bone of him shall be broken.” And again another scripture says, “They shall look on him whom they have pierced.”

The sixteenth candle is extinguished.

 

John 19:38-42: After this, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the religious authorities, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him leave. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who had at first come to him by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds’ weight. They took the body of Jesus, and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb where no one had ever been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, as the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there. [And a large stone was rolled in front of the entrance (Matthew 27:60).]

 

REFLECTION: From John’s Hands to Our Heart

Introduction

[i]Good Friday was an awful day for Jesus. He was tried, declared innocent, but condemned anyway. He was whipped and tortured and beaten almost to death: receiving thirty-nine lashes—“wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5). A crown of thorns was pressed, with force, upon his head and a purple robe draped over his bloody and bruised body. Then led to his crucifixion along the Via Dolorosa—the Way of Sorrow and Suffering—as excruciating pain radiated through his body with each step and breath he took as people mocked him, spat on him, and repeatedly humiliated him by shouting “King? You are not a King. Crucify him, crucify him.” Good Friday was an awful day for Jesus.

John paints a fascinating picture of wonderment for us through his words, but what from this painting can we extract on this Good Friday that gives us hope that Sunday is coming? Through John we witness pain, insults, loneliness, death, and burial.

 

Pain

Jesus didn’t sleep the night before his crucifixion. On Thursday night, in the Garden of Gethsemane, after sharing a meal with his confused disciples, he almost died from the spiritual and psychological depression of bearing human sin. Jesus prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me, yet not my will but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Jesus prayed, with tears in his eyes and worry in his words, to the Father to remove this cup of pain and agony from him. Jesus was human: he didn’t want to suffer. But yet, he did to fulfill the will of God. In the Garden he prayed for himself, for his disciples, and for us all before he was betrayed by Judas with a kiss. Then early Friday morning he was whipped raw and bloodied. It wasn’t yet 9 a.m. and the soldiers were prodding him to his crucifixion.

Typically, the condemned prisoner was taken on the longest possible route through the city so people could see them: a parade of death. Their crimes were written on a board and hung around their  neck or carried ahead by a soldier. When they arrived at the cross the sign was nailed over the victim’s head for passersby to read. Some of the signs simply read, “thief, criminal, murderer, treason, or in the case of Jesus, which was not technically a crime but rather a true statement, ‘Jesus of Nazareth,  King of The Jews.’”

Along the walk, Jesus collapsed under the weight of the cross—most likely the horizontal beam, the patibulum—as he was forced to carry it. The soldiers knew there was no point in beating him to get up and go on, so they drafted a pedestrian along the road. The Romans occupied the land of Israel and compelled civilians into service whenever they pleased. A soldier simply touched his spear to the shoulder of whomever he wanted, and that person became a temporary slave. The choice-of-the-moment turned out to be a tourist from North Africa. His name was Simon of Cyrene, and he was probably in Jerusalem on a pilgrimage to see the holy city, traveling some 850 miles. He never imagined he would be humiliated into carrying a cross for someone he really didn’t know.

The death march reached a place called Golgotha outside the city wall, where the local crucifixions were held. Everybody could see them.[1] I shudder to think about what they did next. Jesus was laid on the cross on the ground. They bent his arms and drove spikes through the base of his hands. They bent his legs and nailed his feet to the vertical wood. Then the soldiers raised the cross and dropped it into a hole in the ground so it would stand up straight: the sound of the cross probably echoed as it forcibly settled into the dugout hole. Was this cross perfect, probably not. Was this cross made brand new for Jesus, probably not. Were there stains and nail holes from previous victims, probably. The Son of God, the perfect Son of God, was nailed to something imperfect all while pain filled his body and emotions. All while he looked out into the crowd. Were you there?

Imagine the pain. Hanging by nails. Striving to alleviate the agony. Rubbing his raw back against the cross. Fighting to get a breath. Bleeding. There was a group of Jerusalem women who regularly brought spiked wine to give to the victims of crucifixion so some of the pain could be dulled by drugs. Jesus declined. He chose to take the agony of crucifixion full force, until he cried out, “I thirst.”

On Good Friday, we remember the pain that Jesus endured so that we can be set free from our own pain and suffering. Jesus bore our pain on the cross so that we wouldn’t have to live in constant suffering and sorrow and grief. Jesus took our pain so that we could experience life not worrying about our wants but focused on the needs of those around us. Jesus took the cup so that his believers would no longer be thirsty. Jesus bore excruciating pain for you.  Sunday is coming…

 

Insults

Those nearby mocked and insulted him. We read in Matthew 27 that people passing by shook their heads and hurled insults at Jesus: “You were going to tear down the Temple and build it back up in three days! Save yourself if you are God’s Son!” (Matthew 27:40). Then all the High Priests, teachers of the law, and the elders chimed in, “He saved others, but he can’t save himself! He’s the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God’” (Matthew 27:42-43).

The soldiers divided up his personal clothes, after shouting “Hail, King of the Jews!” (Matthew 27:29) and spitting on him, figuring the crucified man wouldn’t need them. Getting the clothes was one of the perks of an executioner’s job. Then they sat down to get comfortable and wait until death. Imagine being so used to watching and waiting as men died horrible and humiliating deaths and having to live with that: taking it home, bearing the weight, not being able to let go, and possibly doing the same thing the next day.

Golgotha was along a busy road with many passersby. The cross was low so people could see and talk to Jesus. Mary, his mother, could have reached up and touched her son; and she could have said “I love you” and Jesus would have heard her. The people laughed and mocked him, saying that if he was really the Son of God, he should be able to free himself from the nails and come off that cross. The religious leaders who were behind Jesus’ crucifixion came to see for themselves. They taunted him, asking why God wouldn’t help him. Even the criminals being crucified on either side of Jesus joined in the verbal attacks. Tortured and dying, they mustered the strength to add to Jesus’ insult and humiliation.

Jesus did not defend himself. God did not speak on behalf of his son, which is probably why Jesus felt the strong urge to cry the words of the Psalmist, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34). Jesus felt alone, although he wasn’t and was never been alone during this journey. The Psalmist continues with these words, “Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning. O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest” (Psalm 22:1-2). Can you imagine being there hearing those insults and then hearing Jesus cry out to his God, wanting to know if God was still there? Were you there?

It looked like the critics were right. Cynics today have the same posture towards God: Why doesn’t God perform a miracle when He could? How can a good God let innocent people suffer and die? On Good Friday, we hear those insults and remember Jesus’ cry (of dereliction) to his God because we have experienced the same thing in our life: we have cried out to God while others mocked us. We have felt abandoned but weren’t. We have felt as if God is too distant to see us and hear us: “Why are you so far from saving me?” It seems as if the insults are louder than the comforting and healing voice of God: so we say, “O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer…” It seems as if our worries, our anxieties, our uncertainties, and our doubts become the noise in our life so much so that we can’t hear God calling out, “Return to me” (Malachi 3:7) and “Do not be afraid…for I am with you” (Acts 18:9-10). The insults in our life have left us feeling broken and hurt, leading us to say, “I didn’t sign up for this.” But Sunday is coming…

 

Loneliness

The first nail was driven into Jesus at 9 a.m. He did not die until 3 p.m. Those had to be the six loneliest hours of his life. Like you, I have sometimes wondered how and when I will die. I know I will. We all have a day to be born and a day to die, a day to laugh and a day to weep, and a day to love and day to hate (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8). I’ve wondered if I will die from a disease or an accident, if it will be sudden or prolonged, if it will be painful or easy. I have a fear of dying in water trapped in car. I realize that the choice will not be mine, but there is one thing I have always hoped for regarding my own death—I don’t want to die alone. I want those who love me most to be by my side. It has been recorded that on his death bed, the last words that John Wesley shared with those around him were, “The best of all is, God is with us.”

God is certainly with us in times of laughing and weeping, in times of building up and tearing down, in times of seeking and losing, in times of peace and war, in times of loudness and silence, and in times of birth and death. The best of all is, that God is with us. But sometimes, we can’t and don’t feel God’s presence. So we allow the loneliness to take control.

Returning to Jesus’ painful and mournful cry, we hear a man who is lonely. The most awful moment of Jesus’ crucifixion came when he cried out, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” Those words are in Jesus’ native tongue of Aramaic and mean, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Why God are you no longer with me? Did God forsake Jesus at this most awful moment, at his greatest hour of need? I don’t think he did. Second Corinthians 5:21 says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” On the cross Jesus was stained with our human sin. We were the ones on trial. We were the ones who committed the crimes. We were the ones who made Jesus feel alone. He had never personally experienced sin before in his life, and now he was overwhelmed with sin in his death. God dumped on him the concentrated sum total of every murder, every lust, every envy, every rape, every theft, every profanity, every act of racism, every act of injustice against the poor, every sin of every person from every generation. It’s no wonder people say Jesus carried the weight of the world while he was on the cross. He was on the cross for all of us. But he fell alone.

Jesus, who had never sinned, was made sin for us. God the Father loved his son but could barely look at him out of disdain for our sin. Something happened between the Father and Son in those awful hours on the cross that we will never know or understand. It was so deep, so awful, that Jesus felt totally forsaken and alone. He cried out in desperation: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus was so weighed down by sin, our sin, that he felt as if God could not see him, as if God wanted nothing to do with him, as if God had truly forsaken him. Maybe Jesus struggled to breath, not because of the nails and his position on the cross and his lack of physical strength, but because of our sin bearing down on him. At that moment, Jesus may have forgotten the words of Deuteronomy 31:8, “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Jesus was afraid. Jesus was discouraged. He felt alone. Remember, back in the Garden he prayed for this not to happen. But throughout Jesus’ life, he was never alone: the disciples were there, the crowds formed, the women followed him, and God always heard him. But at this moment, the feeling of loneliness was stronger than the feeling of being loved.

In the smallest comparison, we have sometimes tasted a little bit of Jesus’ horror. We have felt abandoned by God. We’ve felt overwhelmed by sin and circumstances, desperately alone and completely hopeless. We, too, have asked God why He has abandoned us—but He hasn’t. God never gave up on Jesus, and God never gives up on us. On Good Friday, we hear Jesus’ cry, and we remember our times of being lonely, and we reflect on those moments when we were afraid and discouraged; but we must keep in mind that we are not alone because the “best of all, God is with us.” God is with us. He tells Paul, “Do not be afraid…for I am with you.” God tells Joshua, the aid to Moses, “Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). And Jesus tells his disciples, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). Jesus feels lonely but isn’t to remind us that we will feel the same way in our greatest hour of need. We feel alone when we are scared, when we are terrified, when we are weak, when we are lost, when we are in the dark, and when we feel as if nothing is going our way. But, truth be told, we are not alone because on the cross Jesus reminds us that no matter what we go through, he is with us. Were you there? Sunday is coming…

 

Death

When Matthew reported Jesus’ death, he did not emotionalize or sensationalize it. He simply explained “when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.” John was there, and he tells us exactly what Jesus cried out loud: “It is finished.” Then, John writes, Jesus “bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30).

In the end it was Jesus who chose his moment to die. He voluntarily gave up his life as a sacrifice for human sin. When Jesus cried out that he felt forsaken, I sense that there was desperation in his voice. When he cried out “It is finished,” there was victory in his voice. Jesus was like a marathon runner breaking through the tape at the finish line. Exhausted, weak, and totally drained he said: I made it. I did it. It’s over. The race is won. The battle fought. It is finished!

The Bible says that Jesus was born to save his people from their sins, that he came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). He was the suffering Savior, the sacrificial Lamb, the only way to God, to salvation, and to eternal life. Jesus told his disciples, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).  He left heaven to do this. He became human to do this. He was born in Bethlehem to do this. He suffered and died to save sinners like us. He gave everything. There was nothing left he could do.

The author of Philippians tells us, “He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:7-8). At that final moment, all heaven watched in awe as the Son of God himself died. He did it. He completed what he came to do: “It is finished!”

At that moment everything changed forever. The earth quaked and turned dark. The temple curtain that kept everyone away from the holiest place, “The Holy of Holies”, where God’s special presence abided, was ripped apart—from top to bottom. Tombs burst open. Dead people came back to life again. Hearts were changed. The veteran Roman centurion, who was initially against Jesus, knew that something amazing had happened, was terrified, and blurted out, “Surely he was the Son of God” (Matthew 27:54; Mark 15:39; Luke 23:47). In the words of Kevin De Young, “Even in death he was victorious…” “It is finished.”

On Good Friday, we sit in awe and wonder of those words, “It is finished”, praying that Jesus is not done with us: that we emerge from the dark, remain firm as the earth quakes below our feet, as the world is turned upside down, and as wait to experience the victory found in Jesus. Good Friday is not the end: it is only the beginning. Were you there? Sunday is coming…

 

Burial

It was over—or so the people thought. Unable to imagine that something bigger, better, and more amazing was less than three days away, the family and friends of Jesus scrambled to bury his body.

Jesus died at 3 p.m. The law required burial before sunset. His family was too poor and too far from home to make the necessary burial arrangements, so a rich stranger offered his grave. Ironically, he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the group of Jerusalem leaders who called for Jesus’ crucifixion in the first place. His name was Joseph and he was from Arimathea . He had believed in Jesus and did not conspire with others to kill him. Joseph approached Pilate, secured Jesus’ body, and had him buried in a rock-hewn tomb he had recently bought for himself. Then, Joseph, with the help of Nicodemus, another member of the Sanhedrin, sealed the tomb with a stone door. It appeared that death won, that the Devil was off in the distance laughing, and that the stone was never going to be moved. The burial seemed to be the last chapter of Jesus’ life. Were you there? Sunday is coming…

 

The Cross

As the tomb was sealed, off in the distance stood an old rugged cross, made by human hands from a tree cut down in God’s creation. This cross could have been specifically made for Jesus that day—almost appearing perfect from a distance—or it could have been a cross already stained with blood, multiple holes from previous nails, rough bark smoothed down but yet jagged, casting a lingering shadow under the sky that went dark. The bible doesn’t give us much about this cross, but we know the cross of Jesus, although an instrument for torture, is a symbol of what Jesus was willing to go through for us: pain, insults, loneliness, death, burial, defeat. On this Good Friday, what does the cross mean to you?

 Before we get to the meaning of the cross, I want to take a few minutes to answer a few popular questions regarding the cross. First, does the Bible mention the dimensions of the cross? No, the Bible does not mention the specific dimensions, height, weight, or type of wood used for the cross upon which Jesus was crucified. The Gospel accounts (Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19) describe the events of the crucifixion but do not provide technical specifications for the instrument of death. Other research suggests that the entire cross is estimated to have weighed over 300 pounds, while the crossbeam itself probably weighed between 75 and 125 pounds. The cross was likely high enough to raise the victim’s feet off the ground, perhaps with a total height of 8 to 10 feet.[2]

Second, did Jesus carry just the cross beam or the entire cross?[3] While some interpretations exist that he carried the whole structure, it is widely believed that Jesus carried only the horizontal crossbeam (called the patibulum), not the entire cross. The vertical beam of the cross (often called the stipes or stake) most likely would have already been at the location of the crucifixion. While art often depicts Jesus carrying the full structure, Roman practice involved the condemned carrying only the beam to a pre-fixed vertical stake. Some research suggests that the vertical beam was already in place when the victim got there which means the victim’s body (already “attached” to the crossbeam) was then lifted up to its final position.

Third, where was Jesus’s cross in location to the other crosses? Based on traditional, artistic, and theological interpretations, Jesus’s cross is often depicted as being positioned farther forward (or slightly higher) than the crosses of the two thieves. Jesus is typically placed in the middle, representing his role as the mediator between the two thieves, and often elevated or placed in a more prominent position to signify his role as “King of the Jews.” While the Gospels confirm he was crucified in the middle, the exact forward/backward, upward/downward positioning is not explicitly detailed in the biblical text but is supported by early Christian tradition and artistic interpretation.

As I stated earlier, the bible doesn’t give a lot of detail about the cross of Jesus, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t still extract a meaning of the cross that changes our life. In thinking about the meaning of the cross, Paul wrote to the people in Corinth in his opening letter, “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). The word “preaching” in Greek is often translated to mean “logos” which is “message or word.” So the preaching of the cross is the message of Jesus Christ and the word of God; and the two things come together to form the gospel which in verse seventeen, Paul has come to proclaim. So, the meaning of the cross is the gospel: the life of Jesus Christ, the teachings of Jesus Christ, the message of Jesus Christ, and the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. The message of the cross is goodness for us today because of what it does in our life: it redeems us, it saves us, it forgives us, it bears our wounds, it carries our sins, and it loves us no matter what so that we can live a good life through Christ. The message of the cross is the power of God sent forth to guide us out of the empty tomb. And if you are willing to walk out of the empty tomb, then you are seeking to be saved.

If you think about it, the message of the cross is a story of our salvation: it is connected to our ability to be saved. Jesus didn’t ask be crucified on the cross, Jesus didn’t ask to carry the cross, and Jesus certainly didn’t go out and physically make his own cross, although he was a carpenter. Jesus at one point didn’t want to die. He prays in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Father, if it’s your will, take this cup of suffering away from me. However, not my will but your will must be done” (Luke 22:42). Jesus doesn’t want to die, but he knows that in order to save us, it’s the will of the Father that must be fulfilled, he must be sacrificed on a cross. Through his sacrifice we have been saved…and we must believe that. When we come to believe in the salvation of the cross, we will understand the power of God.

Paul wrote in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes…” The cross is a symbol of God’s power. This power is what saves you. This power is what sets you free from your past. This power is what allows you to say “my chains are gone.” This power is what draws you to Christ. This power is what guides you out of the darkness and into the light. This power is what walks with you in and through the unknown. This power is greater than the “valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23). This power sees you and hears when no one else does. This power can split your Red Seas and get you to the other side. This power can calm the storms in your life and prevent your boat from sinking. This power can draw you back to the surface. This power can heal you, make you walk again, give you rest when you are tired, and give you the faith to move mountains. This power is the blood of Christ that makes you clean. This power is what was breathed into your lungs when you entered this world. This power was born in a manger for you because there was no room in the Inn. There is power in the cross and through this power you are saved. You can leave everything at the foot of the cross today and know that by the power of the cross you can live a new life in Christ.

Now, the message of the cross is not just a seasonal thing. It is something that we are invited to experience every day of our life. The old rugged cross on Calvary is a sign to us that death doesn’t have the last word. On that the cross hung a message of hope, a message of love, a message of salvation, a message of redemption, a message of courage and strength and bravery, a message of transformation, a message of grace, a message of suffering, a message of pain, a message of scars and tears, and a message of sacrifice. The message of the cross is the message of Christ, the power of God, and our own personal stories. The cross is more than a tree cut down from God’s creation, put together by human hands, an instrument of torture: it is a symbol of what Christ was willing to do for you. He died on the cross, proclaimed that “it is finished,” for you because he loves you. What does the cross mean to you?

On Good Friday, we witness the pain, the insults, the loneliness, the death, the burial, and the cross of Jesus Christ. He went through all this for you and for me.

 

Conclusion:

We call this day “Good Friday”,  not because of all the horrible things that took place leading up to the death of Jesus Christ, but because of what his death leads to: his resurrection and promise that death does not have the last word, that in three days he will rise again and the stone will be rolled away from the entrance of the tomb, and he will soon appear to his disciples and us on the road to Emmaus or in the upper room or on the shore of Galilee.

There is hope on Good Friday; but there is also darkness, pain, insults, loneliness, death, and burial and a cross. As we take time to prepare our heart, mind, body, and soul for what it is to take place just three days from now, may we remember what Jesus went through, the agonizing pain that cloaked his body, and the cries of defeat that caused the earth to tremble and the cross he carried. We were there when Jesus was crucified on that old rugged across, on a hill far away. And we will be there when the tomb is found empty. Until that day comes, however, may we embrace, embody, and experience the holiness and sacrificial love found looking down upon us from the cross before we hear those words of “It is finished.”

Jesus did all this for you and for me. Leave everything at the cross this evening, don’t take the pain, the insults, the loneliness with you to Easter. There is hope on this Good Friday; and soon the tomb will be emptied and the light of Christ will shine brightly once again because Sunday is coming. Amen.

Light the Christ Candle

 

AN OFFERING TO CHRIST:

For those that would like to be sealed with the sign of the cross through anointing, I invite you to come forward when you are ready. As you do so, feel free to sing “The Old Rugged Cross”, number 429 in your hymnals.

Closing Hymn: “The Old Rugged Cross” (#429)

 

BENEDICTIN:

Today is Friday, tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday is coming. May Jesus Christ, Who for our sake became obedient unto death, even death on a cross,  Keep you and strengthen you, now and forever. Amen.

 

 

[1] Apparently, the topography was such that the hill looked like a human skull, and that’s how the place got its name: “The Place of the Skull.”

[2] With the feet of the victim just a few feet above the ground, the people near the victim could reach out and touch the person on the cross. Just imagine, Mary, the mother of Jesus standing near the cross, wanting to touch her son, wanting to save her son, but couldn’t.

[3] According to the Gospels (Matthew 27:32, Mark 15:21, Luke 23:26), Simon of Cyrene was compelled to carry the cross for Jesus, implying Jesus did not carry it the whole way alone. According to Catholic tradition, specifically during the Stations of the Cross, it is said that Simon of Cyrene was compelled to carry the cross after Jesus fell for the third time.

 

[i] A.D. abbreviates the Latin words “Anno Domini,” which means “Year of Our Lord.” Our calendars are all dated by the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. Every time we sign a check, send an email, write a letter, or tell what year we were born we are counting up from the birth of Jesus Christ. While I fully understand and celebrate this calendar system, there is a sense in which our calendars should have started 33 years later.

As important and central as the birth of Jesus Christ was and is, the events of Holy Week, what we are experiencing now, were and are greater. Easter week is a Holy Week, a different kind of week. Remember, “holy” means to be set aside, dedicated or consecrated to God. This is the anniversary of the events that determine our eternity, that grants us eternal salvation and the day our sins were forgiven—washed by the blood of the Lamb. One week before Easter Sunday we celebrate Palm Sunday, the day Jesus led a triumphant parade into Jerusalem, with palm branches waving high in the air and people shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven” (Matthew 21:9). On that day, people simply praised the arrival of Jesus but didn’t commit to follow him. The following Thursday we commemorate the Last Supper when Jesus instituted Holy Communion with those assembled in the upper room: this is the bread of my body, the blood of the new covenant, take and eat and drink in remembrance of me. Next comes Good Friday—“good” because of what Jesus did for us when he died on the cross. Then comes Easter Sunday, the day death was defeated and Jesus rose to life. Sunday is coming, but today is Friday.