Verse: John 19:28-30
28 Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A 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. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
1 Peter 2:23-25
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 25 For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Thoughts
Jesus didn't hang on the cross a a result of a corrupt government or a vendetta from the powerful religious leaders. That may have been how it played out on earth, but he hung on the cross because of a decision of love made in heaven many years before the first Good Friday.
As he hung there and said "It is finished" he was talking about you and me. He was talking about what Peter would later say: "he himself bore our sins" and "by his wounds you have been healed." Jesus hung on the cross for you and me to find freedom from the power of sin that corrupts our hearts, dilutes our passions, perverts our desires, and infiltrates our thoughts. He came to destroy the power of death that comes to claim us all. To once and for all destroy the work that the enemy wrought in the Garden of Eden, fulfilling the process prophecied by God that he would "crush" the "head" of the enemy, while the enemy would merely "strike his heel" (Genesis 3).
This is what we remember on Good Friday. It is a day of sorrow as we remember our sins. It is a day of sorrow as we remember the suffering of our Lord and Savior. It is a day of sorrow as we remember what it must have been like to be one of those first disciples. But that's not the end of the story.
Jesus didn't hang on the cross for any reason other than to say the words, "It is finished." He went to the cross deliberately, on purpose, out of love for you and me. So today is also a day of rejoicing as we stand in faith that his wounds have indeed brought about our redemption and healing. Today as we remember his Passion, let us respond afresh with grateful and humbled hearts. What work has Jesus finished in your life? What freedom has he bought you? What deliverance has he given you? What redemption have you found because of him?
Prayer
Today I stand in awe, Jesus. You are my loving savior. What can I say, except Thank You.