Good Friday

Today is Good Friday, one of the most meaningful days of the year. It is the day that we remember Jesus' death on the cross and truly sets the stage for the Resurrection on Sunday. 

When I was younger, Good Friday seemed like a bit of a misnomer: there didn't seem to be a whole lot that was good about Jesus' brutal torture and agonizing death on the cross. As I matured and came to be aware of my own sinfulness and need for a Savior, I was able to see the importance of this day. 

Good Friday is "good," not because of what happened to Jesus, but what is made available to us: salvation through the forgiveness of sins! With Jesus' death on the cross -- and pending Resurrection -- the hold sin has on us will no longer separate us from God! While Christ was dying on the cross, he prayed for our forgiveness and declared the work of salvation complete. 

Throughout time, people have banked on their individual goodness to pave the way for salvation. I have heard many say, in justification for not attending church, "But I'm a good person." That might be true, because I've met countless good people in my life. The problem is, though, that the standard is perfection, and because of sin we just can't be perfect. If our salvation were predicated on us being good enough, then every time we fall short, we have to start over. If you have ever played a game, lost all your progress and had to start over, well, that's a debilitating proposition. In time, we get so flummoxed and fatigued that we quit trying. 

The beauty of life with God is He knows you can't be perfect, or at least not on your own. Your faithfulness will wane, you'll get tired, and you'll fall back into your self-indulgent patterns. So if the standard is being good enough, the fact is, you can never be good enough. But Jesus changes that!

Now mind you, Jesus didn't change the standard...God doesn't do that...but what God did do is prove that His goodness, His perfection, is more than enough to cover our never-quite-good-enough lives. So when you accept Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life, then Jesus promises to take your imperfection and cover you with his perfection. So friends, your salvation is granted not because you are good enough, but because Jesus is.

This is good news. Very good news. It frees us from the isolation that can come from never venturing out into the world for fear of not being good enough and allows us to be infused and empowered with God's goodness in Jesus Christ. So on this Good Friday, as we (again) gaze upon the cross, may the horror of it remind us that we cannot be good enough on our own, but the Lord's willingness to accept and love us in spite of ourselves, taking our shortcomings and covering them with Jesus' perfection, is why this is indeed a very Good Friday!

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that  everyone who believes in him will not perish
but have eternal life. 

(John 3:16)

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

(Romans 5:8)