The Passion Week: Good Friday

This Easter season, I’ve made a series of posts addressing skeptics’ criticism surrounding the Resurrection.  As we close in on Easter, I want to do a day-by-day detail discussing the events happening during the Passion Week. 

Please keep checking back!

Good Friday

So many things happen on this day that it’s impossible to fit a thorough discussion of them into a single post.  The most important event - by far, of course - is the Crucifixion.  Yet, what do I do about the other events?  Though they may be overshadowed by the Cross, should I omit them when there is still so much to learn from them?  Of all the days of the Passion Week I’ve covered before now, I knew this day would be the most difficult to address adequately.  I just pray in advance that God will guide my thoughts and forgive my clumsy words.

Let me start by saying there is some debate on what day of the week Jesus was crucified.  Much of the disagreement centers on Matthew 12:40 where Jesus said, “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”  There are those people who insist this means Jesus must have been in the tomb for 72 hours - 3 literal days.  In order to fit 3 nights between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, they claim Jesus died on Thursday.  Others go even further, saying He died on Wednesday, just before sundown and the Passover (the ‘high day’ discussed in John 19:31) was Thursday.  

My problem with a Wednesday or Thursday crucifixion is that Paul attests that Jesus “rose again the third day according to the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:14).  If Jesus were in the tomb for the entirety of 3 days, then He would have risen on the fourth day!  I believe the “days and nights” Jesus spoke of in Matthew, is just a colloquial way of saying “day” and includes any part of the day.  Thus, part of Friday, all day Saturday, and raising on Sunday fits with both passages of Scripture.  

This is my personal belief but I do not begrudge others who may hold a different opinion.  In our western way of thinking, it’s hard to draw a defining line between the events of Thursday and the events on Friday.  The Jewish day begins at sundown, while in the west, the next day starts at midnight.  So in this case, Friday technically began on what some (including me) would call Thursday.  Since I ended my last post with the arrest of Jesus, I will consider the events that followed His arrest to be happening on Friday.  I know it’s complicated, but realize that the events are historical regardless of the day to which we assign them.

The flight of the disciples and Peter’s denial

Jesus had warned His disciples earlier that they would soon fall away, citing Zechariah 13:7.  I will remind you of that conversation:

Matthew 26:31-33, Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.

I’m amused at the pride of Peter who seemed more upset that his loyalty would be questioned rather than amazed at Jesus saying He would rise again!  It’s as though Peter was so offended, that he completely missed the remark.  Of course, Jesus was correct and, just as He had also prophesied, Peter would later deny even knowing Him.

I think we sometimes judge people of the Bible too harshly.  We have the entire revelation of Scripture so, in a sense, we know more than they.  They were living in the times the Bible was being written and probably struggled to understand what was happening.

In my life of comfort, it’s easy for me to look down on Peter and boast that I would have never denied knowing Him.  I like to think that I would stand fast if I had to face real threats of harm on account of my faith.  But I know that I’ll probably never be in that situation.  In the meanwhile, I know there are some Christians who wouldn’t take their Bibles to work because they’re afraid of what their coworkers might say.  Knowing what I know now, if I were to ever deny knowing Jesus, that would make me 100 times more a coward than Peter!

The trials of Jesus

The Bible tells us that Jesus was taken in front of multiple authorities to face the accusations being made against Him: Annas (John 18:13), Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin (Matthew 26:57-68), Pilate (Luke 23:2-5), and Herod (Luke 23:6-12).  

When Jesus stood before the Jewish authorities, He spoke nothing in His own defense just as was prophesied in Isaiah 53:7, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.”

The accusation against Him was made by 2 false witnesses who said He had said He would tear down the Temple and rebuild it in 3 days (Matthew 26:59-61).  Yet even when faced with the lies spoken against Him, Jesus remained silent until the Chief Priest asked, “I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God” (Matthew 26:63).  In response, Jesus made His only confession, (v. 64) “Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”

I see in this scene a picture of Christ as the Lamb of God.  He was examined by the Jewish priests and shown to be without blemish - worthy of being a sacrifice that would atone for sin.  In this case, it was the sin of the whole world! Praise Him!!

John 19 tells us about Jesus before Pilate.  V. 13 says, “When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha.”  The word translated as “judgment seat” here is the Greek word Bema (béma, βῆμα, Strong’s word 968).  It’s the same word used in 2 Corinthians 5:10 where the works of Christians are judged by fire.  

I thought it was interesting that Jesus Himself was once judged before the Bema seat. We know the outcome, of course; He was ultimately sentenced to be crucified. However, note carefully what Pilate said about Him. He said that Jesus was a “just person” who had done no evil. It's significant that Jesus was found to be without guilt. The Bible says the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). If Jesus had been guilty of any sin, He would have been deserving of death. If He had been deserving of death, He could not have given His life as the payment for our sins since He would have had to die for His own sins. But He was innocent.  Before we stand before the Judgment Seat, it was necessary for Him to stand before the judgment seat. It is by His obedience that we are made righteous (Romans 5:19).

Jesus or Barabbas?

While Pilate was trying to find a way to release an innocent man without raising the ire of religious leaders, he resorted to the Roman custom of freeing a condemned man on the Passover (John 18:39-40).  He offered the people a choice: Jesus, the King of the Jews or Barabbas (a murderer).  To his surprise, the people chose Barabbas.

There’s something very interesting about the name, “Barabbas.”  Bar (bar, בַּר, Strong’s word 1247) is an Aramaic word that means “son of.”  It’s used in a few other places in the Bible such as Matthew 16:17 where Jesus refers to Simon as “Simon Barjona” (Simon, son of Jonah). Many people already know that abba (ab, אָב, Strong’s word 1) means “father.”  Barabba, then, means “Son of Abba” or “Son of a father.”  

Wow.  I happen to be the son of a father.  When you think about it, everyone is the child of a father, so Barabbas could have been anyone.  That could have been my name written there!  This paints a wonderful picture of the substitutionary death of Jesus. Each one of us is a Barabbas: all guilty of many sins and all sentenced to die. But we don’t have to die. Jesus – the innocent man who knew no sin – has died in our place. He went to the cross and we were set free.

Jesus on the Cross

There is more that could be said about Good Friday: the scourging, the mocking, the purple robe of Herod, the crown of thorns, the road to Golgotha, the two thieves, the accusation posted over His head, His clothes being divided, and so much else.  However, time and space does not allow them all to be examined.  

Concerning Jesus on the cross, let us examine this passage given in John’s gospel:

John 19:30-35, When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.

The last words of Jesus recorded by John were, “It is finished.”  The ultimate goal of Jesus’ incarnation had been accomplished.  The penalty for sin had been paid.  The wrath of the Father had been satisfied.  Our debt has been settled and there is no more need for a sacrifice.  God and sinners are reconciled.  

John tells us that he saw the event with his own eyes and wrote it down for our benefit.  In his own words,  And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.  

Let John’s desire be our desire: that we tell others about Jesus so they, too, might believe!

Revelation 2:17 – What is our new name?

Revelation 2:17, He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

In spite of the many criticisms I've heard about the Bible, for the most part, reading it is fairly straightforward and it's not too difficult to understand. However, books like Revelation are admittedly a little tougher. Certainly, Revelation is full of symbolism and while it may not be difficult to understand the words, the meanings of the symbols aren't always clear. Revelation 2:17 is an example of difficult symbolism. What does it mean to eat the hidden manna? What is represented by the white stone? What is the new name given to us? I've read many commentaries that talk about these things but, as for the “new name,” I also have a few ideas of my own.

There are some family names that carry a certain impact. Think of the name, Kennedy, for example. Anyone who is called, “a Kennedy” is immediately identified as a person of wealth, power, and influence. The name, Trump, has come to have a similar ring. Anyone born into these families inherit a certain reputation simply because of their name. Furthermore, it's not always the names of wealthy families that are commonly recognized, names like the Hatfields and McCoys have their own infamy.

In Isaiah 56:5, God said, “Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.” Names like Vanderbilt or Rockefeller might impress people in this world. However, the name Jehovah surpasses them all. In eternity, we will be called His people. That's a family name worth having.

Besides family names, the names of certain individuals carry their own baggage. A person's name is often the equivalent of his character. Abraham Lincoln was renown for his honesty; “Honest Abe” they called him. Other names are notorious. Benedict Arnold was a brilliant general who led his troop to many victories over the British yet now his name is synonymous with traitor. John Wilkes Booth was a handsome man and acclaimed actor. Even though he was the Brad Pitt of his day, when people hear his name, they only remember him as an assassin.

God is the perfect Judge. When we stand before Him, our earthly reputations mean nothing. No matter how many good things I may have tried to do here on earth, when I stand in judgment, I will be known only by my sins. I will be called a liar, thief, adulterer, blasphemer, sluggard, and murderer. In Christ, though, I am justified. I won't be remembered forever as the person I am now. I will be called righteous, redeemed, ransomed, reconciled, and loved. I will be called a child of God.

Your sins don't necessarily define you. What's more important is your relationship with Jesus. No matter what your past, you can be called forgiven. We can rejoice that Revelation promises us a new name!

How did John the Baptist ‘prepare the way’ for Jesus?

Matthew 3:1-8, In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

Every gospel attests to the fiery character, John the Baptist.  Isaiah 40:3 prophesied that this greatest of prophets would come to “prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”  Obviously, John was the herald who identified Jesus as the Lamb of God (John 1:29), but is that all he did?  How exactly did John “prepare the way” for Jesus?  I’ve thought about this and have a few ideas.

THE ROLE OF THE MESSIAH

The Jews who came to hear John the Baptist, were longing for the Messiah.  Because of the prophecies of Daniel’s “Seventy Weeks” (Daniel 9), the Jews were expecting His arrival in that very generation.  Every radical preacher, including John himself, was seen as a possible candidate for the Messiah.  

They expected the Messiah to break the yoke of Roman tyranny and reestablish the throne of David.  John announced that Jesus had come to be the Lamb, not the Lion they were expecting.  Mark 1:5 says, “And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.” 

Yes, John also warned of judgment, but at the heart of his messages there was always the gospel.  He told them to repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand!

THE SCOPE OF THE MESSIAH

The Jews had thought that the Messiah would overthrow the Romans because they thought He would be the Messiah to the Jews.  The Baptizer made it clear that Christ came for the whole world.  Forgiveness was available to all who believed, not just to the Jews.

In Luke 3:6, John said, “And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”  He went on to warn the Pharisees, “Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham” (Luke 3:8).

John 1:6-9 tells us, “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.”

 Salvation is not for the Jews alone but for every one who accepts Christ.  Amen!

THE DIVINITY OF THE MESSIAH

When you read the prophecy in Isaiah 40:3, you will notice that “Lord” is spelled with all capital letters - LORD.  In the King James Bible, when the word “Lord” is spelled with all capital letters, it is actually the name of God, given to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14).  It is the four letters transliterated, YHWH, (pronounced Jehovah or Yahweh) and means, “I AM.”   

When John said, “Lord,” he didn’t mean it in the sense that Jesus was just a person of nobility or some earthly importance.  Instead, he was welcoming the Word made flesh, the one who is God with us!  John the Baptist was preparing the way for Jehovah!

THE END OF SACRIFICES

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit, they were ashamed and tried to hide themselves.  They tried to cover their nakedness with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7) but the Bible says God killed an animal and covered them with the skin of the animal.  What a sobering realization must have set in for the first couple when they looked upon that dead animal and saw the terrible consequence of their disobedience. 

That act ushered in an era of sacrifices where the shedding of blood was made to cover our sins (Hebrews 9:22).  God’s covenant with Abraham was also sealed with blood, the sign of the circumcision.  

The sacrifices continued until the appearance of Christ.  When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he told his disciples, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me” (John 1:29-30).  His was the final sacrifice and now our sins are covered by His blood and righteousness.  Praise God!!

John the Baptist had to move believers away from the Old Testament system of sacrifices.  Those were only types and shadows of The Sacrifice that was to come.  Also, the Abrahamic covenant of circumcision was passed.  Believers now identify with the death, burial, and resurrection represented by baptism. 

Jesus wasn't plan B!

Genesis 2:15-17, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

This passage has been a puzzle to many Christians and the subject of much criticism from unbelievers. The question often asked is why would an all-knowing God put the Tree in the Garden if He knew Adam would disobey and bring the Curse on all of creation? If there were no tree, Adam could not have eaten of it so would not have sinned by disobeying God. No tree means no Fall, no Curse, and no history of death in the world. In other words, if God knows everything, why didn't He just not put the tree in the garden and spare the world generations of misery?

Critics sometimes exaggerate the dilemma, hoping to raise doubt on the omniscience of God or the plausibility of the Bible. Such criticism could have a chilling effect on the gospel. It tries to make it look like God made a mistake and then had to come up with the cross as a way to fix it. Jesus was a sort of “plan B.”

There are a few bad assumptions behind this criticism. First, it's completely non sequitur as an argument for atheism. I'm not sure exactly how it follows that, because people die, there can be no God. You could try to make a case that He's not a loving God or that He's not the God of the Bible but there's no reason we must necessarily conclude that death means there's no God. It goes back to a point I made a few months back: people have a false idea of how God should act and, when they can't find a god who acts that way, they conclude there must be no god at all.

The other flaw in this criticism is the assumption that eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was the only sin Adam could have committed. Removing the tree does not necessarily mean Adam could no longer sin. Adam still had free will and so could have disobeyed God in other ways. For example, God also commanded Adam and Eve to multiply; Adam could have refused. We have to ask if it is even possible for God to create a creature with free will but not the ability to choose to disobey Him? It's sort of like asking if God could create a square circle.

I certainly can't claim to completely understand God. Indeed, if a finite, simple man like me could completely understand Him, He wouldn't be a very big God. But after having thought about this and looking into His word, I think I have an inkling of why things are the way they are.

We like to say that God can do anything. Of course, there are things even God can't do. God cannot lie, for example. He cannot even be wrong. And here is another very important thing – God cannot stop being God. He will always be the Infinite One, the Eternal One, the Perfect One. Logically speaking, it can be no other way.

Isaiah 46:9-11 says, “Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executes my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.”

Like this passage says, there cannot be anyone like God. In logic, there is an interesting paradox called the Irresistible Force Paradox. Essentially it says that irresistible force and an immovable object cannot exist simultaneously. One must yield to the other. The same is true for God. Not only must there be only one supreme power, He must also have supreme authority. You cannot have 2 beings with free will unless the will of one of them yields to the other. Think about it – what would happen if one god says, “this will be blue” and the other says, “no, this will not be blue”? One of them must yield to the other.

When God made man, He could have made us like robots who only can do what He programmed us to do. That isn't what God wanted. He wanted someone with whom He could have fellowship - someone who would have emotions and reason similar to His. So, He created us in His image. Yet, even though we are like God, we cannot be just like God. God wanted us to have fellowship with Him. He created us with free will and the ability to genuinely love Him. But by giving us free will, it was inevitable that we would disobey him. If we have free will, there will come a point that what a man wants will conflict with what God wants. Obviously, God would have known all this.

God is love (1 John 4:7-8). Because of His perfect love, He desired an object to love. However, His perfect justice would not allow Him to suffer the disobedience of His creation. So when He purposed to create us, He simultaneously would have had a plan to reconcile us to Himself again, once we disobeyed Him. His plan was the cross!

Revelation 13:8 refers to Jesus as, “The Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world.” In dutiful obedience to the Father, Jesus created the entire universe and shaped man with His own hands, knowing that the cost would be His own blood. It's overwhelming to think about it. It reminds me of a moving passage from that famous hymn:

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin!

God didn't make a mistake. He didn't create us without realizing the cost. Jesus wasn't plan B. He was always the plan!