Good News from Bad News
A friend comes to your door and gives you the news that your closest friend has suddenly died. You go numb as the news sinks into your brain. You don’t want to hear the details but a part of you needs to hear. As the facts are related to you, you start to weep. For your friend. For yourself. For the pain you know your friend suffered. For the hopelessness you and your other friends now feel.
2,000 years ago this was a very real event for a group of people. Jesus Christ died the most horrible death and His followers were devastated. His physical pain was real and immense; whipped, thorns pressed in His scalp, forced to carry His cross and then nailed to that cross. Every breath He took would have been sheer agony.
In addition to the physical pain, Jesus was also bearing the sins of the whole world. As horrible as the physical pain sounds this spiritual pain was so much worse. I cannot even begin to describe what it would have been like. Our sins caused the Father to turn His back on His Son.
As awful as this is, it is where the good news starts to come in. Jesus took YOUR sins. He died for each and every one of them.
Three days go by. Jesus’ followers were grieving and they were concerned for their own lives. Then comes the most miraculous news: Jesus had come back to life! He had conquered death!
His death for our sins would have been nothing without overcoming death. He paid the price that none of us ever could. He was our perfect sacrifice and our ultimate sacrifice. The power of the cross is a great and wonderful thing. Have a blessed Easter!