Carrying His own cross, He went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).
There they crucified Him… John 19:17,18

On Good Friday, it’s easy to gloss over the cross without acknowledging its full implications. But the cross made it possible for you and me to have a friendship with God. It made way for forgiveness of sin, and our guilt atoned. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross opened heaven to all who receive and believe in Him. 

As we memorialize Good Friday, may we not lose sight that the cross was not a pretty charm on a necklace but quite brutal. It was ugly, graphic, and appalling. It was worse than I can ever articulate. 

Despite my inadequacies in describing, let’s pause and think through what Jesus endured. Let’s make the cross personal. Insert your name in the place of ‘me.’

1. Jesus was despised and rejected by the very people He came to save. 
2. He was pierced for my transgressions.
3. He was crushed for my iniquities.
4. The punishment that brought me peace was upon Him. 
5. When pressed by Pilate, He made no reply to even a single charge. He could have called a legion of angels to rescue Him, but He chose not to—all out of love for me.
6. He who had never sinned became sin for me – so that in Him I might become the righteousness of God.
7. The soldiers abused him.
8. A crown of prickly, painful thorns was thrust upon his head.
9. Again and again, the soldiers struck Him with their fists, spit on Him, and mocked Him. 
10. He was stripped of His clothes except for a loincloth and was beaten on the backside using a whip made of leather thongs tipped with metal bits that would have ripped Jesus’ flesh from His back.
11. He was treated like a criminal, yet He had never done anything wrong. He lived a perfect life.
12. His hands and feet had nails pounded into the cross so that He would hang and eventually die by asphyxiation. 
13. He forgave the men who were crucifying Him. 
14. His appearance was disfigured beyond that of any man.  
15. His form was marred beyond human likeness.
16. He hung alive, enduring jeers and mocking from the very people who should have recognized Him as Messiah.
17. He endured the full force of God’s wrath for my sins.
18. His body would have been fevered and pushed to the outer limits of endurance.
19. He suffocated physically and was smothered spiritually with loneliness. The Father and the Son separated for the first time.
20. After nine hours of standing on His feet, being abused, manhandled, and after six hours of hanging on the Cross, Jesus cried out in a clear, ringing, triumphant voice, “It is finished.”

Jesus paid the price! Those who believe and receive Him as Savior will have their sins forgiven, and guilt atoned. Heaven had opened. Eternal life is now offered!

As a result,

• May we fall deeper in love with Him.
• May we grow stronger in our faith.
• May we choose to be more consistent in our walk with Him.
• May we live for His glory alone!

References: John 1:11-12, Isaiah 53, Matthew 27:14, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Isaiah 52:14, Mark 15:15-20, Matthew 26:67, John 19:1-3, 30, Luke 23:34, Psalm 22, Matthew 26:38-39, Luke 23:32, 40-41

Growing Closer to God Through Prayer

Led by Tara Furman

APRIL 21 | ZOOM
12:30pm – 1:00pm EST; 1:00 – 1:15 QUESTIONS