As God's people, we should always be reminded of the meaning of the cross. The right moment to re-live this is through Good Friday. The death of Christ is remembered, lived, reflected upon and celebrated. We do not quickly pass to the moment of His resurrection on Sunday, but can digest well the sorrow of Christ and His passion that led to death. Good Friday wants to teach us that without His death there can be no resurrection.
The Solidarity of God in the Cross
Our readings this time are very long. It is an episode-by-episode unfolding of the story from Jesus' arrest to His death. Many things can be extracted from these events. But one meaning that stands out is that Jesus' humanity was being severely tested. He had to experience a variety of unpleasant feelings and sensory experiences. Fear, sadness, anxiety, and physical suffering due to the various persecutions He received. As if to emphasize that His bodily experience was a reality that made Him the same as human beings. In the body that was about to be wounded, we find a sense of fellowship with the reality of human life throughout the ages that often also encounters a variety of wounds and suffering.
Even so, Jesus did not pawn His value and identity to obtain relief. He remains the Source of Love who proclaims His love in gentleness but also does not hesitate to declare divine justice in situations that require firmness. See when He was about to be arrested in the garden across the Kidron River, it was still the safety of the disciples that was the main concern, not Himself. Jesus firmly declared His identity to emphasize that He never felt cornered because indeed all the processes leading to the cross were what He wanted. But one thing He asked was that His disciples not be arrested and experience the same thing as Him (John 18:8).
Began His round of suffering. He was confronted by the high council that had planned all the intrigues to trap Him. It was at this very moment that Peter, who had been so reactive in opposing Jesus' arrest, loudly denied the Master. How ironic and sad. It reveals the sinful nature of humanity. We run away from the truth and the right thing to do.
Jesus was brought before Pilate for a trial that was full of intrigue and injustice and even violated various Roman imperial trial procedures. The outcome of the trial was predictable as the decisions were not made based on facts but on the demands of the crowd. Jesus stood up to Pilate's rhetoric and turned it around to reveal the Christ's identity even when Pilate asked if Jesus was a king. This was followed by humiliation, torture and finally His crucifixion. The Gospel of John describes this sequence of events dramatically. The mockery of Jesus is shown and the Gospel of John even adds information about Jesus' stomach being pierced with a spear by a soldier (John 19:34).The piercing of the stomach is to underline that Jesus really died on the cross. The reaction of His body to being stabbed was the natural reaction of the human body in general. He really died on the cross.
People at the time might have asked what the crucifixion of Jesus meant? Was He really finished? But in the continuing reality of faith, it is evident that the cross was, in God's will through Christ, transformed into victory. He proved His love through sacrifice on the cross. He suffered so that mankind would have a new choice of life and not have to endure the penalty of death as a consequence of sin. The act of humiliation that Jesus received until His death, became the entrance for the affirmation of our faith that the new stage and space of God's story through Christ showed his solidarity with us.
That means behind all the suffering and the swift flow of life, God is with us and understands every struggle. He provides the hope of life through death which He defeated through resurrection. Crucifixion is not the end for believers but the beginning of hope and the revelation of God's glory over the universe. No power can withstand His love. Not even death can stop God's love language to the universe. This must happen so that everyone who believes in Him may be saved and have eternal life (John 3:16).
Reflective Questions
Have we lived His death and sacrifice truly, living our best life according to the example of the Christ?
