In our place, for our sins

By Matt Watson

Good Friday is a day of mourning. It is the mocking, execution, and funeral service of an innocent man. He was arrested under false charges, tried illegally, and sentenced to death. A mother watched her son be tortured and then nailed to a wooden beam. Others saw their best friend and brother treated as a criminal and be spit on as he hung next to a robber and thief. The Gospel of Matthew tells us that it grew dark during midday, and when Jesus breathed his last breath there were earthquakes and rocks split apart as if the earth itself mourned its creator. 

Jesus didn’t deserve this. Jesus didn’t deserve the beatings, his beard being ripped off his face, the mocking from the Roman soldiers, or hatred from the authorities. Jesus didn’t deserve to die because there was no sin in him (2 Cor 5:21).

Jesus didn’t deserve any of it, but we did. Every little lie, every tantrum, every prideful and selfish thought, every time we disrespect our parents, every time we drink too much, every time we run to Netflix and food for comfort, every time we stop trusting in God to be in control, every time we are tempted and think “just this one time …” is sin and deserves to be punished by death (Rom 6:23). 

On Good Friday sin was punished by death. There should be an awareness of the sin that still dwells in us that causes us to mourn the fact that because of our sin, we killed an innocent man. 

Good Friday is also a day of celebration, because we know what is coming on Sunday. It looks like defeat, because a King died a lowly and humiliating death. To the disciples, it looked like Jesus had failed. But it’s not a defeat, it’s a victory. We rejoice that God was never out of control of the situation. We celebrate that Jesus willingly took all of our sins, the ones we did yesterday, the ones we committed today, and the ones we will commit tomorrow, and he died for them instead of us.

Colossians 2:13-14 says, “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.” We were dead in our trespasses, but God forgave those trespasses. He canceled our criminal record that stood against us. He didn’t just ignore it or sweep it under the rug, he canceled it and wiped it clean; it doesn’t exist anymore, because it was nailed to the cross and died with Jesus. 

Good Friday is a day of victory because Jesus took our place in the execution chamber, for our sins, and he put them to death. We have died with him, and now we will be raised with him. At the cross he took our place for our sins, and he then gave us his righteousness. We no longer have to mourn, and now we can truly celebrate, because though Jesus stood before us in front of God the righteous judge, he now takes us by the hand and leads us to God our Father. Now, when believers look to God, instead of seeing judges’ robes we see a loving father who feels great compassion and runs toward us, embracing us as his sons and daughters (Luke 15:20). Because of Christ’s goodness given to us, God is our Dad and King Jesus is our big brother. We now have a seat at the table and get to party with the one who loves us most of all.

Scottish pastor Robert Murray McCheyne said, “For every look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ. … Let your soul be filled with a heart-ravishing sense of the sweetness and excellency of Christ and all that is in Him. Let the Holy Spirit fill every chamber of your heart; and so there will be no room for folly, or the world, or Satan, or the flesh.” 

This Good Friday is an opportunity for us to remember that God has not failed you because of everything that is happening right now. Christ’s victory over sin gives us hope in the age of COVID-19. May we fix our eyes not on our sins, our guilt, or our shame but up and see them nailed on the cross. 

Look at Jesus’s victory over all things. Let the Holy Spirit fill your heart with peace. Run to the Father as he is running towards you.