The worst became the best. No act of cruelty was ever more undeserved. Kindness met utter brutality.
Good Friday marks the crucifixion and death of Jesus. This same death was predicted 700 years by the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah tells of the unexpected, and humble nature of His coming and the greatest act of love known to man.
The Death Fortold
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
9 And they made his grave with the wicked
and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him;
Isaiah 53:3-10
he has put him to grief;
when his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
Have you ever had a bad situation that later you became grateful for? At the moment, it seemed terrible and unimaginable, however, utimately, we can thank God for this awful event that gave way to life. This situation was bad as it gets. He did not deserve what He got. Jesus did not fight when brought before the courts. He didn’t raise his fists and say, “I don’t deserve this.” He went willingly. Fully God, come down to earth. Jesus deserved all glory and adoration. Instead He was yelled at, beat up, put into jail, and fully humiliated on a Roman torture device.
At this moment you would think, “This has got to be rock bottom.” You can’t get any lower. But it was at that precise moment of his humiliation that the greatest victory was won. Jesus became a servant and performed the greatest act of love – sacrifice. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” Sin and death was defeated. The worst became the best. What Satan used for evil, God used for good.
Ultimately, we have a second chance on life because of how Jesus flipped the script. We can claim good Friday as good not because of the torture and death but because of what that death led to- victory in Jesus. Have a blessed day.
