Why Is Good Friday Called Good?
Why is Good Friday called good? Wendy ponders this question, and comes to the conclusion that “without Good Friday’s chanted dirge there’s no Sunday singing of our sins purged.”
Why Is Good Friday Called Good?
Why on earth is Good Friday called good? Recently I was intrigued by something I noticed about the Christmas story, and it helped answer the question: What’s so good about a day when the only good enough man in the eyes of a Holy God was flogged beyond recognition and flagged as a sinner by those who didn’t recognize His sinlessness? How can we call a day good when somber songs are sung in remembrance of the One who was crucified on a cross?
The Amazing Grace of God
The amazing grace of God arrived in a humble nativity. Jesus, as a newborn of a young virgin and the only begotten Son of God, was placed in an animal feed trough. Feed trough. Spelling it out this way is a lot less romantic than calling it a manger. The One who would miraculously feed crowds of thousands began His walk in a stable crowded with smelly animals. A feed trough is a far cry from a throne. But our King of kings didn’t come to be served; He came to serve all the way from a feed trough to a criminal’s cross.
The Bread of Life
Jesus not only fed bread to multitudes in the gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, He still—to this day—feeds the Bread of Life to multitudes of repentant people so they can have new life—now. His body was broken so believers can break bread in remembrance of the One whose body was given as the once-for-all sacrifice for sin.
His blood was bled so we could be fed communion wine in remembrance of the One who brings us into communion with the Holy Father. The flesh of our perfect Saviour was beaten and torn beyond recognition so the veil between God and us could be torn in half, so that born-again believers could be recognized as clean before God.
Shed Blood For The Forgiveness of Sins
According to the Scriptures, sin stains of the soul can only be removed by the shedding of blood. Before Christ bled for a lost world, animal sacrifices were regularly required for the forgiveness of sins.
From the cross of His suffering, Jesus cried out, “It is finished.”
After this proclamation, God’s people no longer needed to make animals bleed for mankind’s sins.
Without Good Friday’s chanted dirge there’s no Sunday singing of our sins purged.
Jesus took the judgement for our sins upon His sinless frame so justice is satisfied in God’s eyes, and believers are delivered from shame.
2 Corinthians 5: 21 KJV puts it this way:
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
And John 3:16 KJV adds to this by saying:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Why Is Good Friday Called Good? – Here’s Why!
So why is Good Friday Called Good? It’s good because Jesus Christ was slain so we could be born again. And on Easter Sunday, He rose from the dead so we, also, can rise again to live in our Father’s eternal kingdom where we will cast crowns before Christ’s throne. And that’s a far cry from a feed trough.
I’d like to close with a short poem I wrote:
“Christ’s broken body paid the price
So we no longer need to sacrifice
And the blood of Jesus removes all sin
From each believer who trusts in Him.”
How do you celebrate Easter? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Wendy Macdonald
Wendy L. Macdonald is a Canadian, inspirational writer/blogger who also loves to photograph nature. When she’s not writing, drawing, gardening, or sewing, she enjoys hiking, with her husband, in the beautiful parks of the Comox Valley. She home-schooled her children and believes all those years of reading wonderful classics aloud helped develop her love of storytelling and writing.
Wendy’s show, “Walking With Hope” airs on HopeStreamRadio, providing observations and insights from both her life experience, and her knowledge of God.
Read and hear more from Wendy L. Macdonald on the contributor’s page or on her personal website.
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Image Credits:
Easter Lily – eyeImage
Christ on Cross – MichaelGaida
Resurrection – Luca Giordano
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