Good Friday Service

"Responding to the Cross" - Good Friday 2022

Tonight, we will gather to worship and think about the cross of Christ. Actually, let me rephrase that....

I hope that tonight we can talk about the Christ of the cross! Do you see the difference?

It has become typical to approach the cross like we might approach an accident on the highway. We slowly approach with the rest of the traffic, rubbernecking and knowing there is a mangled mess and being oddly drawn to see what has happened, only to drive away and move on with life because we have no personal connection to people involved. We might even experience a moment of sympathy for the people and their families.

We can spend our time and conversation reviewing the horrors and pain of crucifixion. Medically we understand the dehydration, the blood loss from the whipping, the pain of the spikes driven in hands and feet, and the nasty crown of thorns. Spiritually we even understand the cross and the satisfaction for our sins. It would not be wrong to reflect on this information.

But all of this can be very depersonalized if we let it.

Tonight we will talk about the Christ. What do we think when we observe Jesus o the cross? What is He thinking? What is He feeling? I hope we can appreciate the cross, but more than ever the Christ who embraced it. If we are like Him, we will embrace the cross as He did, and follow Him. Now that is transformational.

....View and See!

Steve