Please join me in prayer.
Lord, what a remarkable account this is.
Lord, we pray tonight that as we meditate upon it
for a few minutes, Lord, that you would help us.
We pray that you would help us to understand
the depth of your love for us,
the greatness of what we are reading about
in this account.
God, we pray that you would help us to see clearly
as the centurion did,
the significance of all that we think about today,
this Good Friday,
as we remember Jesus dying on the cross.
Lord, I ask for your help tonight.
You would help me to speak your words.
And for all of us, that we would hear your voice
speaking to us.
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
It's not fair.
All right, all you kids out there, I see you.
How many of you have said that in the last week?
Hands up.
It's not fair.
All right, adults, you don't have to raise your hand.
It's not fair.
One of the most common things,
it springs from our human hearts, isn't it?
It's not fair when my brother gets more ice cream than I do.
It's not fair that he's six foot and I'm five foot
and we're playing basketball.
It's not fair when the referee misses the call
and the other team wins.
It's not fair.
It's not fair in all sorts of trivial,
little, everyday parts of our lives.
But it's not fair in a much more profound way too.
It's not fair when cancer and heart disease
steal life from a healthy loved one.
It's not fair when we're mistreated
because of the color of our skin, our gender.
It's not fair when children are killed by chemical weapons.
It's not fair.
It's not just an everyday experience of our human condition,
but it is a very profound reality of our world
that the world we live in is not fair.
And we do wonder where is God?
And does he care?
And what will he do about it?
Well, friends, this is what Good Friday is all about.
What he did do about it is Good Friday.
As you have heard, as we've read through the account
in the Gospel of Matthew,
of the last day of Jesus' life
and him going to the cross and being crucified there,
we see what God did.
Tonight I'm simply going to give us
what I hope will be a two-point message,
something clear that you can remember.
It's coming actually from something that sprung up in my brain
as I was reading this over and over again.
It actually comes from the Old King James Version of the Bible.
But 1 Peter 3.18 says this,
For Christ also hath once suffered for sins,
the just for the unjust,
that he might bring us to God.
And friends, this is the question of fairness
that rises up in our heart.
Where is the justice in the world?
And the story of Good Friday is the story of the just
coming to the unjust
so that we might be brought to God.
So let's look at this.
First, let us see how Jesus enters into injustice for us.
As we look at this Matthew account,
remember all that we've learned.
Let me remind you of what happened to Jesus
and the injustice he faced.
He was betrayed by his disciple.
He was abandoned by his friends.
He was denied by one in his inner circle.
He was savagely beaten and mocked
by the soldiers who imprisoned him.
He was handed over by jealous Jewish leaders
to the Roman government for execution.
Though they found no evidence of wrongdoing,
the Roman governor sent him to execution
and freed instead a terrorist.
He was condemned though he was innocent.
And he was sentenced to a death
that was more humiliating
than we would ever allow in our culture today.
to be stripped,
to be paraded through the streets
and then to be publicly hung
like a common criminal
between two other common criminals.
Jesus on Good Friday
understood injustice.
So profoundly does Matthew tell this story
that even creation itself knows
how wrong this was.
Darkness covers the sky
in the middle of the day
for no good reason.
In case you're wondering,
this was no solar eclipse.
It doesn't match with the Passover.
This was creation itself
showing the injustice of what Jesus did
and endured.
So friends, he goes before us
into injustice with compassion,
with courage and comfort for us.
Maybe some of you tonight
have faced injustice
of very various kinds.
Maybe you tonight
have a deep heart cry
of it's not fair.
Jesus understands.
He's walked that road already
for you.
But friends,
Jesus entering into our justice
is more than that.
If you have your Bibles
still open to the Matthew 27 passage,
as we look at verses 45 and following,
we see two remarkable things
about what Jesus did
as he entered into.
He didn't just enter into injustice
by walking this road.
He bore the injustice
of our own sin.
That may sound strange to you.
Let me explain to you
what I mean by that.
See, the Bible talks about sin
as an offense to God.
Why would that be?
Because he is our creator
and because he created us
to know him.
And as a good and perfect creator,
he created us to honor him
and to follow his directions
on how we ought to live
rightly and good.
And yet,
as you well know,
if you would simply think
over your last week,
how easily in our hearts
selfishness rises up.
I don't want to do it
any other way.
I want to do it
my own way.
How easily disdain
fills our hearts.
I think I might be better
than that person.
They're not worth my time.
How easily fear
grips our hearts.
I can't do the right thing
in this circumstance.
It would cost me
too much.
I don't want that.
How easily
our disregard for others,
our lack of love,
shows
how little
we regard God
and how little
we actually
know him,
follow him,
obey him,
or honor him.
And in this rejection
of God
as creator
and king,
it is an injustice
of profound
proportions.
It is being a traitor
to your own country.
It is being an unfaithful
husband
to your faithful wife.
It is a child
disavowing
and disowning
the parents
who have laid down
their lives
for their welfare
and well-being.
It is a friend.
It is like being a friend
who has stabbed you
in the back.
This is what our sin
is before God.
And the consequences
are great.
It devastates
our relationship
with God.
It puts us
under his
right wrath
and anger
against our sin.
And Jesus
enters into that
for us.
He takes it
upon his own shoulders.
He who never
did anything wrong.
He whose life
was marked
by constant
love,
compassion,
gentleness,
kindness,
standing forth
for righteousness.
He who did not
deserve it
entered into it
for us.
Look with me
in verse 46.
The cry
of desolation.
My God,
my God,
why have you
forsaken me?
Somehow,
in the mystery
of the Godhead,
Jesus Christ
was abandoned
in that moment.
Somehow,
in that way,
God turned
his face
away.
His regard
towards Jesus
could not be
that of
a loving
father
to a son
because that
son had taken
on our sin.
John Calvin
says it this way.
This is what we
are saying.
He bore
the weight
of divine
severity
since he
was stricken
and afflicted
by God's
hand and
experienced
all the signs
of a wrathful
and avenging
God.
What does
it mean?
Another pastor
says this
spiritual
forsakenness
occurs deep
down in the
very Godhead
itself.
We dare
not speculate
lest we
blaspheme,
but something
was torn
in the very
fabric of the
relationship
between the
father and
the son.
Jesus who
had always
known the
father in
perfect
fellowship,
in perfect
love,
now experienced
some break
in that
relationship,
some
estrangement,
some
separation,
and he did
that for us.
And then you
see with
Matthew's
remarkable
understatedness
that Jesus
entered into
it even
more than
the
desolation.
He entered
into it
by his
death.
Look with
me again,
verse 50.
Those who
are around
him are
mocking him
saying,
why doesn't
he save
himself?
Jesus,
of course,
had the
power to
do that
if he
had wanted
to.
He could
have jumped
down.
He could
have called
the angels
to free
him.
Yet he
stayed there
because of
his great
love for
us.
Matthew
shows that
he was in
his full
command of
his faculties
even to
the end.
His life
was not
taken from
him.
He gave
it up.
He yielded
it.
He said,
I do
this for
you.
It is a
remarkable
thing that
he would
take on
death for
us.
As the
Apostle Paul
writes in
Romans,
God shows
his love
for us
in this
while we
were still
sinners.
Christ died
for us.
Paul goes
on,
since therefore
we have now
been justified
by his
blood,
much more
shall we
be saved
by him
from the
wrath of
God.
For while
we were
enemies,
we were
reconciled
to God
by the
death of
his son,
much more
now that
we are
reconciled
shall we
be saved
by his
life.
Jesus
Christ,
the
righteous
one,
endured
suffering
the
just
for
the
unjust.
And he
did this
to bring
us to
God.
And
remarkably
Matthew
tacks on
51
through
54.
I don't
know if
it struck
you when
Elizabeth
read it
how odd
this passage
is.
It feels
very strange
doesn't it?
What is
this about?
the
curtain
in the
temple
being
torn
from
top
to
bottom?
The
earthquake?
People
walking
around
in
Jerusalem
coming
out
of
tombs?
What
is this
about?
Well,
it's what
1 Peter
tells us.
The
unjust,
the
just for
the
unjust
to bring
us
to
God.
For
this
is what
all of
these
things
symbolize.
The
temple
itself,
the
curtain.
If you
had been
in the
first
century
temple,
you
would
have
seen
courtyard
after
courtyard
and
the
closer
you
got
to
the
center
of
the
temple
to
the
very
place
where
God
himself
would
manifest
his
glory
among
his
people
in
a
place
called
the
holy
of
holies.
You
have
courtyard
and
courtyard
and
barrier
after
barrier
to
demonstrate
to
show
that
our
sin
keeps
us
from
God.
And
inside
that
temple
in
the
very
inner
sanctum
there
was
a
temple
a
veil
between
a
place
called
the
holy
place
and
the
most
holy
place
or
the
holy
of
holies
and
no
human
being
entered
in
except
one
the
high
priest
and
he
would
only
go
in
there
once
a
year
on
the
day
of
atonement
and
only
having
offered
up
sacrifices
for
both
his
sin
and
the
sin
of
the
people
and
it
was
a
curtain
that
was
about
60
feet
high
and
30
feet
wide
no
one
could
have
easily
walked
through
it
let
alone
climbed
to
the
top
and
torn
it
part
of
what
Matthew
is
saying
is
that
as
Jesus
died
the
just
for
the
unjust
what
he
was
doing
was
accomplishing
this
salvation
from
sin
for
us
where
now
there
is
this
new
way
where
we
can
actually
have
access
to
God
himself
suddenly
we
are
no
longer
afraid
to
approach
a
holy
God
we
are
no
longer
fearful
of
his
judgment
because
Jesus
has
taken
our
penalty
the
injustice
means
the
injustice
of
Jesus
death
on
our
behalf
means
that
you
and
I
can
now
approach
God
by
faith
in
Jesus
as
we
trust
in
him
and
take
upon
him
take
upon
ourselves
his
righteousness
and
his
role
in
our
lives
as
our
savior
we
can
now
approach
God
himself
and
he
extends
an
invitation
to
all
of
us
come
in
Jesus
come
to
me
and
it's
not
just
come
so
that
you
can
be
close
to
me
but
it's
come
to
me
and
live
and
I
think
this
is
the
meaning
of
this
what
feels
like
really
bizarre
story
about
people
walking
around
Jerusalem
who
had
been
dead
the
way
Matthew
tells
it
seems
there
was
an
earthquake
and
the
earthquake
shook
the
tombs
open
tombs
were
often
the
tomb
that
Jesus
was
laid
in
there
were
caves
with
a
rock
in
front
of
it
and
so
the
earthquake
shook
those
rocks
and
so
the
tombs
were
opened
again
and
after
Jesus
rose
from
the
dead
that
Sunday
morning
people
too
were
raised
with
him
and
remarkably
he
says
many
of them
were
raised
and
they
walked
around
Jerusalem
and
many
people
saw
them
it's
hard
to put
on
a
cinematographer's
cap
and see
what this
would have
looked like
isn't it
this is
way
beyond
our
normal
this
is
not
what
we
would
have
expected
and
yet
Matthew
tells
us
this
to
say
do
you
understand
the
significance
of
Jesus
death
not
only
has
he
created
the
doorway
that's
now
wide
open
for
us
to
come
to
God
but
as
we
come
to
God
we
come
from
death
into
life
again
we
who
are
spiritually
dead
are
now
brought
to
life
in
him
and
friends
those
around
who
saw
Jesus
die
those
who
were
standing
there
and
looked
up
at
his
body
broken
on
the
cross
hanging
there
lifeless
they
knew
that
this
was
not
a
normal
death
they
knew
that
this
was
not
a
usual
thing
verse
54
the
centurion
and
those
with
him
looked
up
and
they
said
surely
truly
this
was
the
son
of
God
they
saw
how
he
died
they
saw
how
the
world
responded
to
his
death
with
earthquake
and
darkness
and
shaking
and
rending
and
somehow
they
knew
Christ
also
has
once
suffered
for
sin
the
just
for
the
unjust
that
he
might
bring
us
to
God
and
so
let me
close
with
this
Jesus
willingly
offers
this
so
sinners
may
escape
it
Jesus
abandonment
means
that
the
sinner's
adoption
he
takes
our
place
on
the
cross
so
that
we
can
take
his
place
in
the
kingdom
because
he
was
abandoned
socially
we
may
be
children
in
the
household
of
God
because
he
was
deserted
emotionally
we
become
whole
again
renewed
in
the
image
of
God
because
he
suffered
spiritual
separation
we
may
be
spiritually
united
to
him
through
faith
so
that
we
will
never
be
separated
from
God's
love
because
he
was
forsaken
we
are
forgiven
and
now
he
says
to
us
I
will
never
leave
you
nor
forsake
you
it
is
finished
Jesus
our
salvation
has
been
completed
we
need
only
turn
to
him
from
sin
and
trust
in
him
and
friends
as we
meditate
on
good
Friday
we
ought
to
be
crying
in
the
depth
of
our
heart
it's
not
fair
but
it's
not
fair
it's
far
better
than
fair
it's
the
grace
and
the
love
of
God
for
us
that
Jesus
would
come
and
do
this
for
us
so
that
we
might
know
him
let's
pray
oh
lord
we
are
humbled
by
the
reality
of how
great
how
great
the
cost
of
our
sin
is
that
we
would
need
to
die
for
it
but
lord
we
are
even
more
humbled
at
how
great
the
love
of
Jesus
is
that
he
would
come
and
say
I
will
do
that
for
you
that
he
would
offer
himself
up
in
our
place
lord
tonight
may
you
fill
us
with
awe
and
wonder
at
this
truth
lord
I
pray
for
those
tonight
who
maybe
have
seen
this
or
understood
this
for
the
first
time
that
they
would
hear
the
call
and
the
invitation
to
come
and
believe
and
put
their
trust
in
this
Jesus
and
lord
as
we
look
forward
to
celebrating
not
only
his
death
but
his
resurrection
on
Sunday
lord
that
we
would
be
filled
with
joy
and
awe
and
what
a
great
savior
we
have
in
Jesus
name
we
pray
amen
.
実
it
me
an