— Good Friday —

Good Friday

Luke 23:26-38 (Crucifixion)

            We gather this day—a day traditionally called Good or Black Friday—to remember Jesus Christ.

            We remember how Jesus was betrayed and beaten. We remember Christ’s scars and his brutal crucifixion. Today as we walk, as we pray, and as we hammer nails into a cross—we admit our own frailty and participation in His Death and Sacrifice.

            Today is an awkward day.

            Today is a day we often want to simply skip over and forget. We usually want to move so fast that we skip this day. We might celebrate the season of Lent by giving up chocolate, shopping or caffeine, but then we skip over the death of Christ; The Death of Christ, the Crucifixion of Christ.

            Because really, death is not something we often want to celebrate or think about. So often, we want to move from Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem (which we celebrated this past Sunday) and skip over the week’s events and go directly to Easter.

            But when we do that, when we move so quickly and we fog over Good Friday, we short-circuit something crucial. For how can we look to the Resurrection if there hasn’t been any death?

            We gather this day—to remember Jesus Christ. We remember how he was betrayed and beaten. We remember his scars, and his crucifixion. As we walk, as we sing, as we pray, and as we hammer nails into a cross—we admit our own frailty and participation in His Death and Sacrifice.

            As awkward as it is, today we give great significance to one of the most brutal forms of capital punishment the world has ever known!

            Crucifixion was intended to provide a death that was particularly slow. It could take hours or days for the crucified to die. It was particularly painful. Hence our current term excruciating, which literally is "out of crucifying" because it is so painful. It was gruesome, humiliating, and very public!

            Crucifixion was often performed to terrorize the crucified, but also to terrorize and dissuade the onlookers, those walking by, the gawkers. It was a public tool to enforce power and keep the people from perpetrating and participating in the actions of the crucified.

            Within a week, Jesus was condemned to die. He was forced to carry the crossbeam of his death penalty on his shoulders to the place of execution. A whole cross weighing up to 300 pounds, and the crossbeam around 75–125 pounds; after being beaten, stripped, and abused, our Lord was forced to carry his burden. He was expected to carry the cross he was to die upon.

            As awkward as it is, today we give great significance to one of the most brutal forms of capital punishment the world has ever known!

            While a crucifixion was an execution, it was also a humiliation. As Jesus experienced, He was forced to carry his cross through town, he was beaten. He was spit upon, and he was stripped of his clothes – and he was stripped of his dignity. He was made as vulnerable as humanly possible.

            Today is a day we often want to skip over and forget. We usually want to move so fast through our lives that we skip over this day. Really, death is not something we want to think about or celebrate. But we must! We must pause and remember. We must recognize the pain and suffering Jesus endured. We must not glaze over it. We must remember.

            We gather this day—to remember Jesus Christ. We remember how he was betrayed and beaten. We remember his scars. We remember his crucifixion. As we walk, as we pray, and as we hammer nails into a cross—we admit our own frailty and participation in His Death and Sacrifice.

            Today, we remember the real Life, Blood, and Body that was pierced and placed upon a cross and died.

            Today, we remember Jesus Christ of Nazareth!