(Read John 19 First)
Woman, behold your son . . . (v.26b)
I thirst . . . (v.28b)
As our Lord ushers in the most important event in history, we see an amazing illustration of who Jesus is. The humanity of Christ is made apparent in his interaction with Mary and his need for drink. While many philosophies and religions extol the divine characteristics of specefic men and beings, our Lord appears to triumph in his humanity. A God who has came, lived, hungered and wept like us, is now facing the death that we will all embrace. We can have confidence then that no matter our life experience – the triumphs and the heartbreaks – our Lord can relate. Perfectly human, yet perfectly God.
“It is finished”, and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit (v.30b)
Jesus is the only man who was able to call his shot in regards to his ending. Make no mistake, his life was not taken from him through the scheme of man, but laid down for the glory of God. In the ending of Christ, we see a glorious beginning. This is the start of our faith and the foundation of Christian victory. Our Lord conquered death on his terms. This Good Friday event made away for Easter Sunday.
Pray: I am so thankful that we don’t have a God who fails in being able to relate to our day to day temptations and trials. Thank you for coming down as a man to save us. On paper, Good Friday seems like a great tragedy, yet we know it is the start of the greatest love story. Be lifted up in our lives today. Help us to surrender to you and the power of your cross. Thank you for loving us so radically. Amen
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