John 11:25-26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Have you ever wondered why Christians call Good Friday “good”? It seems a little odd since Jesus died on the cross that day. Good Friday is good because the work Jesus did on the cross paid off a debt we owe but could never pay back. Because of His actions, we are saved. Oh, and that is GREAT news, right?!
Jesus kept His word that day. The first way is what He said in Matthew 20:18-19: “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.” Also, in Matthew 26:2: “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified”. And He was crucified, as He’d said. Mocked and scorned, deserving none of it.
What incredible love He has for us. As He said later in Matthew 26:41, His spirit was willing to take the suffering for us, but the reality of it taunted His flesh. He was willing to go through all the pain and humiliation because He knew it was the only way He could be with us for eternity.
The other way Jesus kept His word is from Matthew 24:1-2 when He was telling His disciples about the temple being destroyed. Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. “You see all these, do you not? Truly I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” This came to pass in Matthew 27:51: And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
We have so many examples of Jesus keeping His word to us. A promise from Him is most certainly trustworthy. We know He did this work on the cross for us, for our eternal salvation. We know that He did it out of love, and that He, too, was fearful of the struggle. He could have come down from the cross at any moment, as He had the power. But He didn’t. He chose us. Isn’t that good? It’s more than good, it’s amazing love!
In Matthew 20:19, Jesus tells the disciples that He will die on the cross, but He will rise again on the third day. Another promise kept. Jesus defeated death for all of us in those days before He rose again. His love and power should inspire absolute awe in all of us believers. It’s up to us to be sure His time on the cross and defeating death was not wasted. Now is always the right time to repent of sin and follow Him into eternity. We simply can’t afford to have a lukewarm faith after all He’s done for us.
So, we lead by example, imitating Jesus’ love and forgiveness. We live a righteous life and walk with the Spirit. This life ends all too soon, but the next one goes on for eternity. Which one are you living for? He chose you. Will you choose Him?
