Reflection
On that first “Good” Friday, there was nothing good happening. At least not from an earthly perspective.
The Son of God was falsely accused and tried in the middle of night. Those who should have defended him fled for their lives. And all who wanted him dead were doing all in their power to see it happen.
But if this is all you could see, then a dark picture was taking shape.
We look back with a different vantage point. What we see, is filtered through the completed text of the New Testament and the collective wisdom of a church 2,000 years removed from those difficult event.
As the Holy Spirit began to work in and through those first Christians, the overwhelming sadness of that first Good Friday would give way to an incomparable joy. The light of God’s grace in the sacrifice of his Son would change everything we ever thought we knew about God.
All of the questions that were lingering in the mind of those disciples would eventually find their answer in the resurrection of Sunday morning. The darkness on Golgotha as Jesus entrusted his spirit to the Father would be replaced by the shining brilliance of a risen savior.
The reality of Good Friday is not that Sunday is coming. Even though it is.
The most helpful thing to remember about that first Good Friday is that in spite of what we know or think we know, if God is involved we need to wait and see what God has in store.
The call to a holy patience is not easy to tolerate. But it is the price we pay to see how God fulfills his promises.
Let us give thanks to God for Good Friday. It is the first step toward a resurrection on Sunday.
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