Dear Hope Family and Friends,
My Good Friday meditation this morning was on a short passage from Mark 15, which details the final moments of Jesus’s life, and one particular quote stood out to me. As Jesus is being crucified, Mark tells us that the chief priests and teachers of the law are mocking him: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself! Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down from the cross, that we may see and believe.”
Of course, their words are full of irony, but it was that last phrase that caught my attention: that we may see and believe. Now, even if Jesus had pulled the nails from his hands and feet and climbed down from the cross, there is no guarantee that they would have believed. After all, Jesus had already performed many miracles, and yet their hearts remained hard. But what’s even more profound is Jesus choosing not to come down from the cross. He knew his death was necessary to pay our debt in full. He knew his body was necessary to ransom us from the grave. He knew his hanging on a tree was necessary to bear the curse in our place. He knew his nakedness was necessary to cover our shame. Look (at the cross), the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
I hope you will join us for our Good Friday worship service this evening at 7pm in the worship hall. The service will take us on a journey through the last seven “words” of Jesus’s crucifixion, enabling us to gaze upon and wonder at the Son of God, who was raised up on a cross and refused to come down—that you and I may see and believe that he is the Messiah, our King. (Quick note for parents: there is no childcare available, but we welcome squeals, giggles, and even screams from our little ones.)
The peace of our crucified Christ be with you all!
Ethan