The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)
16Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 17Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. 19Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: jesus of nazareth, the king of the jews. 20Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. 21The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.” 22Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.” 23When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. 24“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled that said, “They divided my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.” So this is what the soldiers did. 25Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” 27and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. 28Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. (John 19:16 – 30)
On this blessed Good Friday, we turn our attention to Jesus on the cross. The significance of the cross to believers cannot be overstated. Without the death of Jesus, we are completely lost! There is also an emphatic link to our theme this year, God’s glory. Many people view the cross as a path to glory but based on all that we have discussed over almost 40 days, I would encourage us to take a deeper look. What Jesus did on the cross doesn’t just create the path to glory, it reveals glory. We have seen how God’s glory is revealed in his attributes. Well, on the cross we see God’s love personified; we understand more fully the statement, “God is love”.
Please prayerfully read the passages above and answer the question below.
Question:
How does His love amaze you?
April 19, 2019 at 8:24 am
Good Friday is both extremely deeply heartbreaking to recap all our Lord’s suffering for us. As I read the scriptures leading to ‘the end ‘ which we all know was prophesied it still does not make it easier for us not to feel the pain he accepted by his love for us, to Glory. He is the way. His last thoughts and concerns were not even his pain, but love for others. I remember too the plea from the man next to him who asked his Lord to take him with him.
Thine is the Kingdom, the power and the Glory now and forever. Amen.
April 19, 2019 at 11:40 am
This love for others likeJacQuie mentioned also amazes me at this time. To think that he was experiencing this level of pain and sufferring on the cross, and yet foremost in his mind is leaving a provision pathway for his mother and his beloved disciple helps to demonstrate to me that his love is at its deepest even through his sufferring, and indeed through this very act of sacrifice on the cross his love for us , for me is manifested at its deepest.
In applying this, im called to put other loved ones first even when my sacrifice has to be great or when i too may be in a rough patch….
Our God’s love really is difficult to fathom….. i remain eternally grateful and amazed at this sacrificial love
April 19, 2019 at 1:18 pm
If only more people would really use the significance of his crucifix action.
I am amazed being in the US again how most people don’t even say Happy Easter etc.
Cannot get used to Happy Holudays.
Here most people live in the world and it is very sad.
They will quicker recognize one of their people who died than Jesus the Lord for ALL let alone know the significance.
The sad thing is one can be pressured into same if not focused on him.
Today to me marks his total Love for us.God is Love.
April 19, 2019 at 1:35 pm
We often focus on the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. We understand that giving our life is the ultimate sacrifice and expresses the greatest love:
No one has greater love than this – that one lays down his life for his friends.
John 15:13 NET
However, Jesus’s did not lay down His life for His friends, He laid down His life for sinners:
But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8 NET
Can we really, fullu appreciate this? Jesus died for us who were at emnity with God. In other words we were enemies of God! Yet, God in flesh chose to die for us! In fact I have heard it said many that Jesus woul have died to save only you or me, one person. I.agone that the creator of everything, in the flesh, would have died for little you, alone, Wow! We often regard ourselves as insignificant, but God does not see us that way. His love is huge, more than we can ever fully comprehend.
I remember informally counselling a young man that wanted to commit suicide and talking to him about the uncertainty behind death. I explained to him that he does not know what it is like to be dead. For him ther there was no one that has come back to let him know what it is like. The world has convinced humanity that after death is nothing, a kind of peace. However, the pain that proceeds death that is feared. It is this premise that helped me to help the young man to think again about suicide. No matter the means he chose for suicide, or what he was feeling like, it was unlikely to be worse than the pain he would have to endure to die?
When we apply this to Christ we need to see that His death and resurrection, although the the ultimate and necessary sacrifice, was in a sense the easy part. The pain He had to go through prior to His death is something the majority of us, who claim we would be willing to die for, i.e. our children, would not be as willing to endure.
The ridicule and pain he went through as the Son of God is something we often overlook. God humbling Himself to live as man, being slapped in the face, mocked with a crown of thorns and scourged before being crucified is something we would not be willing to endure due to our human pride and weakness. If you watch the movie “The Passion of Christ” you will see what is a fairly accurate representation of what our Lord went through.
The Love of Christ is exemplified by His suffering and sacrifice. And I honestly do not think we can fully quantify the depth of this love.
April 19, 2019 at 4:00 pm
God’s love is the reason why I can move on, and accept things, or people that I cannot change, or be patient with annoying people or let’s say those who are not easy to love. As I mature with my faith and relationship with Christ, the more I appreciate what God has done for me. He redeemed me, and gave me new life. Whenever I reflect on that, I feel i’m so much loved and it consoles me, assures me that because I’m so special and is being loved and being taken care now, in the past and in the future by my Lord and Savior, I am lacking nothing and that I am capable to love and understand even the most difficult person on earth, because it is God’s love to me that will illuminate and I will be empowered as the Holy Spirit leads me at all times. If at times I fail, God’s love for me is the key that I can bounce back , and try to correct the mistake I made and not dwell on the past that can be very frustrating. It’s God’s amazing love that
will make the impossible , possible and the unattainable, attainable….I think about all the sacrifices of our Lord for me and that is more than enough for me to he able to love others. When I look back on how the Lord helped and rescued me from the many challenges in the past, I can’t help but just thank God for his abounding grace, mercy and love. and that the Lord just doesn’t give up on me….so with that I should have a loving and grateful heart, which is my sacrifice and way of glorifying God. Because of God’s love for me, I know my “identity” is with Him and that should be noticeable wherever I go. I always know God can see my heart. Nothing can be hidden from Him. It’s His amazing LOVE that gives me Hope and joy.