In the midst of contemplating what Jesus does for us today and how it changes our world forever, we can keep one idea in mind: God takes what Satan meant for our peril and turns it around to be used for our good. As it is said in Genesis 50:20, God uses these moments to give life to His people.
Jesus dies for us on the Cross today. Be still and know that this is not a bad thing. There is a reason today is called “Good” Friday; while the enemy meant death to be a deeply evil thing, God made it good in this great sacrifice. Jesus dies for us today so that we can die with Him and live in eternal life.
God sees all that He makes and knows it to be good; God therefore made our lives good. Through His Passion, Jesus gives us the ability to live in eternal goodness.
The account of Christ’s Passion today begins with Jesus and His disciples being in a garden, and just a few moments later, He is betrayed by Judas. When those who were to seize Him said they were looking for Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus willingly replies “I am he.” (John 18:5). The setting of the betrayal of Christ is significant; our first parents lived in the bliss of the garden of Eden, and man’s fall from grace happened in that same garden. The Passion of Christ, the brutal suffering of our Savior, begins in a garden, signifying another fracture to our relationship with the Lord, caused by man. We see significantly how our sins cause death. Sin does not just affect us as individuals; it more often than not has a ripple effect, and in this instance, sin leads to the suffering of the Son of God.
And yet, when Simon Peter slices off the ear of the slave of the high priest in an attempt to stop this, the response of Jesus isn’t one of support; He tells Peter to put his sword back and states the following: “Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?” (v. 18:11). Jesus didn’t try to fight what was happening; He surrendered, because He knew that surrender would bring about the plan of God.
During His questioning by the high priest, Jesus explains that He has always spoken openly to the world, never saying anything in secret. He then says to the high priest, “Why do you ask me? Ask those who heard what I said to them; they know what I said.” (v. 18:21). Jesus fearlessly preached so that we would be able to know who He is; He is telling us here that it is up to us to fearlessly and openly love Him the way He loves us. We are called to love everyone in this world with that same Christlike love: a love filled with fearlessness.
Before Pilate, Jesus is asked “Are you the King of the Jews?” (v. 18:33). Christ explains that His kingdom is not from this world; if it was, fighting would ensue to keep Him from being handed over (v. 18:36). The reason His followers are not getting sucked into worldly ways is because they are not following a worldly way; they are following Christ’s way. And, it is highly significant that Pilate asks Jesus if He is the King of the Jews. In this time period, saying someone was “King” meant that they held power; that being said, when Pilate asks Jesus if He is King, he is essentially questioning if Jesus is challenging the worldly powers of the time with what would be a worldly weapon: violence. Jesus responds by saying “My kingdom is not from this world” (v. 18:36), stating that this way is not one perpetuated by hate and violence; it is radically other from that.
When Jesus is being crucified, His mother, the Virgin Mary, stands at the foot of the Cross among others. In the midst of immense pain, He gives the disciple whom he loved, John, into the hands of His mother; in turn, He gives His mother into the hands of John. As we are all disciples of Christ, He gives all of us into His mother’s care just as He does for John in this Gospel. Mary, being at the foot of the Cross, experienced immense pain as she watched her son be crucified; she knows what great sorrow feels like. Jesus gives us His mother for guidance, to carry us back to Her son during these difficult moments. She brought us Jesus in the Incarnation, and she will continue to guide us back to Him whenever we invoke her intercession.
Knowing that all was finished, Jesus bows His head and gives up His spirit (v. 19:30), completely surrendering to the Father’s will. There was no fighting; there was only love in this immensely gracious act. Allow time for yourself to slow down from the busyness of life today and meditate on the goodness of our God in this moment. He came into the human condition knowing He would die a brutal death for our sake, but as we will see in just a couple of days, nothing can stop Him from defeating what seems impossible to the human mind. Through His death, He shows us as humans that we have the chance to live in eternal life. That is why today is truly a Good Friday.
Lovely reflection, Grace!
Wonderful reflection, thank you Grace