[0:00] We are tonight staying in Matthew 27, but we're going through different parts of it. And Trent's going to come up and read the verses that follow what I'm going to explore here.
[0:12] And I'm only touching on two particular verses. You know, part of Good Friday service is watching, recognizing the crucifixion of Christ.
[0:24] We can sometimes condense it so that it's all in one message. And this is a bit of a preacher's hack to make Sunday morning not be two hours of a message. So I'm sure it's more meaningful than that.
[0:35] But Good Friday, the heart of it is to look at the fact that Jesus died. And he died and he had to die. And at Christmas time, we see this beautiful baby being born.
[0:47] We talk about the warmth of all of that and the miracle around it. And we still have to accept the fact that that baby was born to die. And so Good Friday is reflecting upon the aspect of the cross.
[1:01] Because what happens in the rest of this weekend, we're going to have an early morning sunrise prayer at about 730 a.m. on Sunday to celebrate that dawn of a new day.
[1:12] And then our Easter service or Resurrection Sunday, as I like to call it, is all about our King alive again. Because on this day, he died.
[1:24] So let's explore why. Matthew chapter 27, verses 45-46. Now from the sixth hour, there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.
[1:37] And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani? That is my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
[1:49] This unusual darkness lasted about three hours. Some critics will say that it was an eclipse. But it couldn't have been because Passover happens at a full moon.
[2:00] And this was Passover. So this darkness happened. But there was also light. And the light allowed people to see Jesus on the cross.
[2:11] He wasn't an imposter. He wasn't a stand-in for Jesus. This was the real Jesus died on this cross. It was unmistakable. And it was something important for the world to see.
[2:22] He hung on this cross roughly between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The first hours were normal daylight, like I said. But he quoted Psalm 22 here.
[2:35] As Jesus declared the fulfillment of this prophecy. So I'm going to read this passage from Psalm 22, verses 1 to 8. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me?
[2:46] From the words of my groaning. Oh, my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer. And by night, but I find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.
[2:59] In you our fathers trusted. They trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried and were rescued. In you they trusted and were not put to shame. But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
[3:14] All who see me mock me. They make mouths of me. They wag their heads, and he trusts in the Lord. Let him deliver him. Let him rescue him, for he delights in him. It shows the great agony of the cross.
[3:26] But also the great victory of the cross. And in all of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Jesus doesn't call God, God.
[3:37] He calls him Father. But in this instance, he does say, God. Why have you forsaken me? It's because there's something different happening here.
[3:49] There was a distance that was now happening between the Father and the Son. It was a necessary distance. Why have you forsaken me? You know, Jesus had known pain and suffering.
[4:02] He grew up in a backwater town. He worked hard. The family knew way more money. The family knew way more money. They were not rich by any means.
[4:15] Jesus knew human suffering. Fully man, fully God. He knew what we go through. But he had never known separation from his heavenly father.
[4:28] Until now. This was the first time he felt separation from his heavenly father. And at this moment, Jesus experienced that new thing as he hung on the cross.
[4:40] Forsaken. For us. Because at that moment, a holy transaction was taking place. One that defeated death forever. One that gave us victory.
[4:50] One that gave us new life. Removed all weapons and schemes of our enemy. God the Father regarded God the Son as the ultimate sinner in our place.
[5:04] All of God's wrath was heaped upon him for all of the sin of the world. Then and now. Gathered into one person.
[5:16] 2 Corinthians 5 verse 21 says, For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin. So that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Jesus not only endured the withdrawal of the father's fellowship.
[5:31] But he also didn't feel close to his father as he did before. There was a precious unity. And you can see that so much in the gospels. Of this precious relationship.
[5:42] This unity that the father and son had. Now was separate. And now was divided. Because of our sin. As bad as that was.
[5:54] It wasn't as bad. As he experienced. With the outpouring of the father's wrath. One suffering he experienced was this separation.
[6:05] But another suffering. Sorry. Suffering that was upon him. His spirit. His body. His whole being. Was placed in this righteous wrath of God the Father. For us. Sin throughout.
[6:16] All humanity. Was laid upon his shoulders. To pay this price. For you and me. Sin was judged there. In that moment. On the cross. We can comprehend the words.
[6:31] But we can't fully understand. How this was God's good plan. I often wonder. Being a parent. I wonder what it would have been like for his mom. Watching this go down.
[6:42] My baby boy. Knowing full well. She knew who he was. As the son of God. God himself. But a mother's heart would tug on that.
[6:54] My baby boy. She saw the pain. She saw the wrath. For us. This was a good thing. Despite being a terrible thing.
[7:05] It's why we call it Good Friday. Because something good. Came of this. Even amid this wrongful conviction. This unjust and inhuman display.
[7:16] Of evil and cruelty. God did the most loving thing imaginable. For you. For me. He took our place in that judgment. So we could be free.
[7:29] And at some point. Before Jesus died. He cried out. It is finished. And at that moment. We were free.
[7:41] Isaiah 53 verses 1 to 5 says this. Who has believed what he has heard from us. And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed. For he grew up before him like a young plant.
[7:53] And like a root out of dry ground. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him. And no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men.
[8:04] 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. Surely he has borne our griefs.
[8:15] And carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed him stricken. Smitten by God. And afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities.
[8:27] And upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. And with his wounds we are healed. All judgment was poured out on Jesus Christ.
[8:38] Why have you forsaken me? He said. And in that moment he felt a silence from heaven. I imagine for Jesus that must have been a deafening silence.
[8:51] Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice because of God's great love. His plan to save you and me. And as I was dwelling on this this week.
[9:02] I kept on coming up with these different questions. Do you know what gave Jesus hope as he died on the cross? Do you know what precious reward was coming to him for this mission?
[9:18] Do you know what went through his mind the moment he died? You. You. You.
[9:46] We'll pick back up. This one. Yeah. We'll pick back up here. Verse 47. When some of those standing there heard this they said he's calling Elijah.
[9:59] Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar. Putting it on a staff and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him.
[10:10] And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook. The rocks split. And the tombs broke open.
[10:21] The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus' resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened they were terrified and exclaimed, Surely he was the son of God.
[10:39] The first team can make their way back.
[11:00] He died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden died of a sudden Try to get through it, because you know me, I cry through everything, but it's probably not going to be any different.
[11:36] It's Friday, good Friday, the darkest kind. The kind where heaven feels silent and suffering feels loud. Jesus stands trial, falsely accused, mocked, beaten.
[11:52] The same voices that shouted for manna now cry, crucify him. The crowd turns, the world rejects, and still he says he stays.
[12:03] The cross is heavy, unbearable, wood pressed against wounded skin, steps taken in agony. Every moment, he could have stopped it, but he didn't.
[12:16] Because this wasn't taken from him, it was given. Really, willingly, for you. The cross is filled.
[12:27] The cross is pierced. Hands that are healed, now held in place. Feet that walked on water, now sticks to a cross. And still, he speaks, Father, forgive them.
[12:40] In the middle of pain, he chooses mercy. Darkness covers the land. The earth trembles. People watch as the weight of sand falls on him. It is finished.
[12:51] Not will be, but it is. Not a cry of defeat, but a completion. The price paid.
[13:01] Our ransom, we do not deserve. The work done, the way made, is righty. The day love was proven in blood. The day grace was written as sacrifice.
[13:14] The day Jesus didn't just say he loved you. He showed it. He proved it in the most unimaginable way. Fully. So when you wonder if you're too far gone, look at the cross.
[13:29] When you question if you're worth saving, look at the cross. Look at the cross. When shame tries to speak a lot of the truth, look at the cross.
[13:39] Because that's where your sin met his mercy. Your brokenness met his grave. Your story met redemption.
[13:50] You're a sin met his grave. Good, Brian. My precious Lord Jesus, for sinners you die.
[14:30] For there you redeemed your love, and you laid down your life. This is the message of the cross, that we can be free.
[14:44] To lay our burdens here, at the foot of the tree. The cross was the shame of the world, but the glory of God.
[15:02] For Jesus, you conquered sin, and you gave us the life. You set me free when I came to the cross.
[15:14] For out your love, for out was broken and lost. There I was healed, and you covered my sin. It's there you saved me.
[15:25] This is the message of the cross. This is the message of the cross. This is the message of the cross.
[16:02] You set us free when we come to the cross. For out your love, for we are broken and lost. Here we are healed, and you covered our sin.
[16:13] It's there you saved me. You set us free when we come to the cross. For out your love, for we are broken and lost.
[16:25] Here we are healed, and you covered our sin. It's there you saved me. This is the message of the cross.
[16:36] This is the message of the cross. This is the message of the cross. This is the message of the cross. I got it.
[17:12] I got it. I'm going to use my voice. We're going to pray again. Everybody will join me. All right.
[17:23] Heavenly Father, we just thank you this day. We thank you for the wonderful message that we've had, the wonderful songs, the times of worship, God. The only thing good about this Friday is you. And Father God, we thank you so much for the sacrifice that you gave because you desired a relationship with us.
[17:42] And I just pray that we remember this as we go into the rest of this week and that Sunday we remember that our King is risen. And we just, I thank you for each and every person here.
[17:54] And just God direct us and watch over us, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, yeah.
[18:32] Well, it's a story. Well, of course. any Thank you.
[19:39] Thank you.
[20:09] Thank you.