Crossroads@Kross_Roads
I usually post on stocks and the market, but I wanted to mention something of greater importance.
Why do we call it "Good Friday?"
Growing up as an atheist and never having attended church, I honestly thought it was sardonic Alaskan humor. We had a massive earthquake on Good Friday in 1964 which every Alaskan is reminded of every year.
I found the real reason years later which nearly everyone knows: its the annual mark of when Jesus died on the cross.
So why would we Christians call the death of the one we serve as Lord and Savior "good?"
It's for the same reason as we use the word gospel / good news (euangelion which literally means "good message" in Greek): it's good news for US. How is the death of one person such good news?
Jesus walked this world 2000 years ago. What can sometimes be lost among the beautiful teachings, the wise sayings, the fulfilled prophecies, and the miracles is the primary purpose of why He came. In John 10, Jesus states,
"I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."
His primary purpose always was to die. That sounds strange to us today. After all, we naturally go through great pains and expense to avoid death. But Jesus wasn't like us. According to the Bible, He was unique, fully God, and fully man. Yet unlike mankind, He did nothing wrong at a single moment in His earthly life.
Unlike the gods of most pagans of the day, who were shaped to look like us and were generally self-seeking and rarely sacrificial, Jesus laid his life down for us as the ultimate sacrifice.
This idea was reprehensible to the pagan mind of the day. The Greco-Roman world regarded it as folly to believe a god would allow themself to perish in the most demeaning way possible (which is what crucifixion was: a punishment so vile that Roman citizens were never allowed to be crucified). And to the Jewish people of the time, they regarded those killed in such a way to be accursed by God (see Isaiah 53 and note this was written ~650 years prior).
Yet we call this "good" as the sacrifice of Jesus paid for sin in full. Other religions have other rituals that must be repeated. There are many problems with this, but the most substantial is the sacrifice itself. In the case of Jesus, it was a perfect once-for-all sacrifice. And on the basis of that sacrifice, all one must do is receive this free gift from Him (John 1:12), accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior.
We further believe Jesus rose again from the dead, something that was so convincing that not only did the Apostles (many who were martyred) affirm this to their dying death, but was perceived by over 500 people including two half brothers of Jesus who were previously skeptical - see 1 Cor 15.
Good Friday is "good" for us, and as we say in the Christian world, "Sunday is coming."
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On this post, I'd like to note that I'm not looking for argument. I respect your right to believe as your conscience dictates. But I'd also love to chat with anyone interested (DM me - or let me know and I'll message you), wherever you're at, from skeptic to seeker to believer.