Good Friday

He was obedient to death because He loves us.

If there’s one reality none of us can escape, it’s death.

Literal death. Metaphorical death. Tangential death.

Death of loved ones. Death of dreams. Death of seasons. Death of our own selves.

It’s a reality that our culture doesn’t have much of a framework for. We tend to avoid thoughts of it, talk of it, and feelings around it – even in the face of it. When we feel threatened by death, we turn to control. We look for pieces, patterns, and power to grab hold of. We build walls, close fists, and look away. We become desperate for some way to secure our lives as we want them to be.

But in the end, we all come to the realization that we do not have power over death.

We cannot control it, avoid it, or overcome it.

Death will happen in its own time, despite whatever we may think, say, feel, or do.

Any control we conceive of is an illusion when it comes to death. We are all bound to this reality.

Except one.

Jesus.

The one person to live on this earth with the actual power and control to avoid death — and He didn’t.

Instead, He submitted Himself to the point of death.

And this upside-down way of living – and dying – His death is what we remember today.

In a world full of death and people who are fighting against it, there once was a man who had the power of God to shape His own fate, and yet He chose (or at the very least allowed) death.

And for today, this is where we sit. At the foot of the cross. With swirling unanswered questions and confusion about what’s real. Let the remembrance of Good Friday be an invitation to stay here. Even for just a moment.

We know Sunday is coming. But today is here now and it has something to offer us.