What's So Good About Good Friday?

For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
-First Peter 3:18 (KJV)


What's so good about Good Friday? When you stop and think about it, we usually don't celebrate the death of someone. Yet, in this case, we do. Why? Because Jesus is the Savior of the world, it is because of His death on the cross, and resurrection from the dead, that you and I can be saved. Apart from Him, there is no other way.


Peter writes in First Peter 3:18, "For Christ hath once suffered for the sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit." There are several things that you and I can learn as we study this single verse of Scripture. First, Jesus died once our sins. Jesus only needed to die one time on the cross, there is no further actions are necessary, His death is all sufficient. Remember, in the Old Testament times, people had to sacrifice two lambs daily to pay the penalty for their sins. With Jesus, this one time death on the cross is enough, for today, for yesterday, for all time. Hebrews 9:12 says, "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." By His own shed blood on the cross, Jesus obtained eternal redemption for us. This means that through His sacrifice, those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, now have everlasting life, through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. 


Second, Jesus was sinless, yet He became sin for you and me. Jesus died in your place. The punishment for sin is death. Jesus is sinless, yet He paid for your sins and mine. Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" We all have sinned; you, me and everyone else. Because of sin, we fall short of the standards of God. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." The payment, or wages, for our life of sin is death. A spiritual death and a physical death. But God has given us a gift of eternal life, and that is through Jesus Christ. Thirdly, Jesus died so that He can bring us to God. He died so that we can be made right. Since sin has caused us to fall short of the standards of God, then the blood of Jesus brings us up to God's standards. What we could never do on our own, Jesus did on the cross. 


Friends, Good Friday is good because Jesus willingly laid down His life for you and for me. Have you accepted Him, made Him Lord and Savior of your life? If not, then what are you waiting for? Think About It.