LENT: "Good" Friday

Today is Good Friday, which is not really good because "good" is too neutral a term. The events of Good Friday are at once atrocious and wonderful, the worst kind of hate and the best kind of love.

On this day we were convicted and pardoned, condemned and freed, cursed and blessed. The cross of Jesus is the watershed moment of history - ours and the world’s.

I came across an article that captures the glory of the cross, and will make for good reading on Good Friday. You can get to the article by clikcing here. Below are some excerpts (bait):

Adam fell at a tree, and by a tree he was saved. At a tree Eve was seduced, and through a tree the bride was restored to her husband. At a tree, Satan defeated Adam; on a tree Jesus destroyed the works of the devil. At a tree man died, but by Jesus' death we live. At a tree God cursed, and through a tree that curse gave way to blessing. God exiled Adam from the tree of life; on a tree the Last Adam endured exile so that we might inherit the earth ...

The cross is the wooden ark of Noah, the refuge for all the creatures of the earth, the guarantee of a new covenant of peace and the restoration of Adam. The cross is the ark that carries Jesus, the greater Noah, with all His house, through the deluge and baptism of death to the safety of a new creation ...

The cross is the staff of Moses, which divides the sea and leads Israel dry through it. The cross is the wood thrown into the waters of Marah to turn the bitter waters sweet. The cross is the pole on which Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, as Jesus is lifted up to draw all men to Himself (taken from "Good Friday Homily" by Peter Leithart).

If you are in Omaha, hope to see you tonight at our Good Friday Service (Lane Freemyer's house, call or e-mail the office if you need directions).

SCRIPTURE READING: MARK 14-15