Rev. Deacon Allen J. Batchelder
†
Trinity Church
Waltham, Massachusetts
March 29, 2013 – Good Friday
Isaiah 52:13-53:12, Psalm 22, Hebrews 10:16-25, John 18:1-19:42
Let us pray:
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in thy sight, O God, our Rock and our Redeemer, our Strength and our Salvation.
Amen!
The private ministry of our Lord with His disciples has now ended, and the public drama of redemption is about to begin. Man will do his worst, and God will with His very best. “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound” (Romans 5:20).
Human history began in a Garden (Gen. 2:8ff), and the first sin of man was committed in
that Garden. The first Adam disobeyed God and was cast out of the Garden, but the Last
Adam (1 Cor. 15:45) was obedient as He went into the Garden of Gethsemane. In a
Garden, the first Adam brought sin and death to mankind; but Jesus, by His obedience,
brought righteousness and life to all who will trust Him. He was “obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8).
The Apostle’s Creed states it without embellishment: “He was crucified, dead, and buried.” These three momentous events we should understand not only from the historical point of view but also from the doctrinal. What happened is important; why it happened is also important, if you hope to go to heaven.
Pilate delivered Jesus to the chief priests; and they, with the help of the Roman soldiers, took Jesus to be crucified. It was the most cruel and shameful of all punishments.
Crucifixion probably had its origin among the Persians, but it was the Romans who made special use of it. This mode of capital punishment was reserved for the lowest kind of criminals, particularly those who promoted insurrection. Today, we think of the cross as a symbol of glory and victory; but in Pilate’s day, the cross stood for the lowest kind of rejection, shame, and suffering. It was Jesus who made the difference.
Jesus knew what was going to happen; He was fully in control as He obeyed the Father’s will. He knew He was going to die! He was enduring real physical suffering, for He had a real human body. He had just emerged from three hours of darkness when He felt the wrath of God and separation from God (Matt. 27:45-49). When you combine darkness, thirst, and isolation, you have – hell!
Jesus was not murdered in the strictest sense; He willingly gave His life for us. His death was an atonement, not just an example. He actually accomplished the work of redemption on the cross.
His death was voluntary: He willingly dismissed His spirit (John 19:30); He “gave Himself” (Gal. 2:20). He offered Himself as a ransom (Mark 10:45), as a sacrifice to God (Eph. 5:2), and as a propitiation for sin (1 John 2:2).
Two groups of people were involved in our Lord’s burial: the Roman soldiers and the Jewish believers. It was not unusual for victims to remain on the cross in a lingering death, so the Jewish religious leaders did all they could to hasten the death of Jesus and the two thieves. However, our Lord was in control; Jesus spoke His last words: “It is finished!” Then He dismissed His spirit at “the ninth hour,” which was 3 pm.
It is remarkable that the Roman soldiers did not do what they were commanded to do – break the victim’s legs – but they did do what they were not supposed to do – pierce the Savior’s side. In both cases, they fulfilled the Holy Scriptures! The bones of the Passover lamb were not to be broken (Ex. 12:46). His side was to be pierced (Zech. 12:10).
When Jesus said, “It is finished,” this meant the whole debt was paid. Jesus Christ was the perfect sacrifice, in contrast to the imperfect sacrifices that were offered under the Old Covenant. Our Lord’s superior priesthood belongs to a better order – Melchizedek’s and not Aaron’s. It functions on the basis of a better covenant – the New Covenant – and in a better sanctuary, in heaven.
Sin, of course, is man’s greatest problem. No matter what kind of religion a man has, if it cannot deal with sin, it is of no value. By nature, man is a sinner; and by choice, he proves that his nature is sinful.
Because of Christ’s sacrifice, we have a gracious invitation: “Let us draw near….Let us hold fast…Let us consider one another.” This threefold invitation hinges on our boldness to enter into the holiest. And this boldness rests on the finished work of the Saviour. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest could not enter the holy of holies unless he had the blood of the sacrifice (Heb. 9:7). But our entrance into God’s presence is not because of an animal’s blood, but because of Christ’s shed blood.
This open way into God’s presence is “new” and not a part of the Old Covenant. It is “living” because Christ “ever liveth to make intercession” for us (Heb. 7:25). Christ is the new and living way! We come to God through Him, our High Priest over the house of God. When His flesh was torn on the cross, and His life sacrificed, God tore the veil in the temple. This symbolized the new and living way now opened for all who believe.
With this in mind let us pray:
Almighty God, we pray you graciously to behold this your family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed, and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer death upon the cross; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN †