The Friday We Call "Good"

As I've been attempting to reflect on this special week of the Christian calendar, my thoughts have drifted to Friday. I trust that this meditation will cause some reflection of your own. Let's be in awe together as we seek to honor our Savior this weekend.

The Friday We Call "Good"

When we wish someone a "good day," we don't wish for their death.
How then dare we call this Friday, "good"?
If we had lived in Jerusalem that Friday, we would have only called this a good day
if we had been Christ's enemies.
The protectors of the status quo, the fickle mob, the demonic forces and Satan himself,
they thought it a very good day indeed.
But those who followed Him, those who loved Him, those who knew who He really was,
thought it the worst day of history.

Good Friday is good only if God Himself is truly good.

After all, what is good about betrayal, mockery, abuse, beatings, torment and blood-thirsty violence?
All of these were suffered by Jesus.
What good do we possibly see as evil is victorious, injustice rules and hatred overpowers love?
What good do we find in death?
Death is our enemy. Death is feared. Death is avoided at all costs. Death is a tragedy,
especially for someone so young.
How do we have the audacity to look upon something so tragic, so heinous and horrific
and declare it "good"?

Good Friday is good only if God Himself is truly good.

Everyone in our culture today wants to believe that if there is a God, He is good.
No one wants a "bad" God.
But the great weakness of our culture--Christian or not--is that we want to be the ones
who define "goodness."
Health, prosperity, long life, harmony with others and the world…these are all good.
Anything less is not.
We will define the term, we will act as judge, we will determine good and evil.
We shall be as God.

But Good Friday is only good, if the God of Good Friday is good.

Our reasoning continues: since we know what is good, we know that a good God would only give us
what we consider to be good.
Certainly if suffering or hardship enters our lives, it comes from the hand of another,
but never His.
But what if we're short-sighted? What if His definition of "good" looks to a farther horizon than ours?
What if we're blind?
Could it be that God is indeed very good--that He, in fact, is the definition of goodness--
but He is utterly different than we expect?

Good Friday is indeed good because the God of Good Friday is good.

On that day when the sky became a shroud, the earth trembled and the righteous wept,
God knew what we could not:
Suffering was necessary, bloodshed mandatory, evil temporary
and death the entry to life.
The Definition and Definer of Good revealed that His power is so great, his authority so complete,
that even the cruelest of this world is redeemable.
The worst day of all of human history became good because God is good...
good beyond our imagination.

May His goodness bring new hope to your suffering today.

Comments

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Pastor John,
I don't know if you wrote this, but it's excellent. In this world, we use words so flipantly (good, great, awesome, love, hate, etc). It is truly only God who is good. Thanks for the Thursday morning thoughts.
From across the street,
Matt

#1 Matt Anderson on 2010-04-01 03:14 (Reply)

John,

Sleeping boys have provided me the gift of beginning my day with this post.

Yes, our God is good. He set a perfect standard, and He exceeded it! My God didn't just give me "Neutral Friday" or "Not so Bad Friday" but He triumphed over my grave, over my damned future . . . To grant me truly what is "good". Not what is but "good enough" or "that will do". But truly what is good!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for suggesting the pause to ponder what He has done!

I'm forever grateful to Him.

Susan G.

#2 Anonymous on 2010-04-01 07:42 (Reply)

Good morning John,

Struggling to really wake up this morning, dragging a bit, kind of discouraged with some news received lately, and being honest I was not even thinking of tomorrow, being Good Friday. In fact, I have somehow allowed the events of work, family, weather, kind of drag me down and distract my focus.

This morning, coming here, this has brought me back a bit and I so appreciate this blog. I have often wondered why we called this Good Friday. Thank you for this reminder and for this teaching moment. I just pray that my mind and heart will be open to all that He has for me today, tomorrow, and throughout this weekend.

As Susan states above, thanks for the "pause to ponder what HE has done!"

Randall

#3 Randall Goree on 2010-04-01 08:25 (Reply)

Those are powerful thoughts John!! thanks for sharing them with us.

#4 Grace on 2010-04-01 09:25 (Reply)

PTL because "Good Friday is indeed good because the God of Good Friday is good." I so appreciate all these thoughts on the goodness of God . . . and Good Friday!

Thanks, John, and may God bless you richly with His loving goodness, grace and mercy!

#5 Anonymous on 2010-04-01 10:40 (Reply)

John, my heart grieves for my extended family to know these words. My 27-year-old nephew is waiting on news of the mass in his stomach. You see, he is a bone cancer survivor, with the loss of a leg at age 12. A "good God" would never bring a second bout of cancer to Matt . . . this is my family's logic. Please pray. I'm printing your words to read and pray daily to myself, with the hope of sharing these words at some point with my family. After all, what do we have if God is not good?

Thanks, John.

Sharon de L

#6 Sharon de Laveaga on 2010-04-01 14:15 (Reply)

Thank you John for these words. Your statement "Good Friday is good only if God Himself is truly good" is profound. I've been thinking about when Moses asked God in Ex. 33 to show him His glory and God said, "I will cause all my GOODNESS to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name...". Then in Exodus 34 we see how God described Himself as He passed by Moses: "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin...". He IS good!

#7 Bryan Schaap on 2010-04-01 15:01 (Reply)

John,

Is He good? Is this a trick question? Of course He is good. The Easter story is not pretty, but it is good. "Good" Friday? "Great" Friday? "Mediocre" Friday? Look up the words in Roget, there aren't any great substitutes. I am pretty sure that us being able to articulate "it" is not the lesson we are supposed to glean from it.
Thank you doesn't seem enough. It isn't enough. I am not worthy of the gift I've been given. I stand in awe of you Jesus. I cannot thank you enough for saving me. Thank you.

Dudster

#8 Annie Dudley on 2010-04-01 21:59 (Reply)

Good Father, open the eyes of our heart to see Your goodness reaching beyond our current circumstances. Give us faith to believe Your goodness is covering what we face today. Teach us to look to You in the midst of confusion and pain so that we can define good based on Your truth, not our own understanding or emotions. Give us hope that we will see Your goodness in fresh, new insights because Christ trampled death, the tomb is empty and He lives today. Give us wisdom and courage to communicate this truth to a dying world.

Good Father, continue your good work on your servant John as he pours out fresh insights for others. Continue to bless him with articulating what You have revealed to him during his dark night of the soul. As his ministry to others strengthens, we ask for continued healing and strength in his body, especially with his condition of dysphagia. For Your glory, for Your goodness.

AMEN

#9 Carrie on 2010-04-02 08:04 (Reply)

Good Friday is good because it was finally finished...33 years as a mere man on planet earth...over. Jesus was headed home, to His rightful place...the right hand of the throne of God. After the agony of waiting for this horrific day to come...it was finally over. He was headed home. Mission acomplished. Purposes fullfilled. Job well done. To me, during this Holy week, Good friday couldn't come soon enough. Yes, I mourn the painful death of my Savior, I reflect about the depth of meaning for us but I also rejoice FOR Him that it was finally Finished! Welcome back Home Jesus!!!!!

#10 Amers on 2010-04-03 19:05 (Reply)

"we want to be the ones who define what is good" oh that is so true for me. may God "renew our minds" so that our definitions are not from this world's dictionary; not read with eyes so blinded by the temporal, the comfortable, the pleasurable!
thanks for the necessary reminder!

#11 nece on 2010-04-03 21:21 (Reply)

Father, teach me to know "good" from Your perspective. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

#12 OKC Fred on 2010-04-06 08:54 (Reply)

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The Friday We Call "Good"

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