Good Friday: Did Jesus Really Have to Die?

It is hard to understand what is so "Good" about Good Friday.

I mean it was HORRIBLE!

Jesus is Tried and Punished to Death.     The Roman Soldiers "Scourge" Him.

Scourging is whipping some one with a whip that has many strands with nails and glass and rock embedded in it.  It tears at the flesh sometimes to the point of exposing organs!   Then he had to carry his cross, which is said to have weighed 300 lbs (136 kg)!!    Then they nailed him to it, driving spikes into his wrists and feet. 

And they wrapped a crown of thorns around his head, pushing the thorns into his scalp.  

I can't imagine the pain.   Crucifixion is said to be the most painful way to die.  You are hanging there, sagging in a position that will allow you to breathe in, but not out.  To breathe out, you would have to push yourself upward against the nails in your feet which causes excruciating pain.    You could suffer for up to 3 or 4 days before finally dying.    Sometimes, to make you die faster the soldiers would break your legs so you can't hold yourself up to exhale.  

Because the next day is the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders ask the Roman soldiers to break the legs of those who were crucified, so they would die and could be removed before the Sabbath began.   When the Soldiers came to Jesus, he was already dead, so they did not break his bones.  This fulfilled a prophecy:  (Psalm 34:20--He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.)   Then a soldier pierced his chest with a spear and blood gushed out. 

Another amazing note is that during the Passover Meal which consists of Lamb, the lamb's bones are NOT to be broken.......and Jesus is called "The Lamb of God"....and he died during Passover. 

Did Jesus Really Have to Die?

I found a site that does a great job in answering this question:

Delve Into Jesus

The author asks:  If I cry out to God to be forgiven of my sins, why can that not simply be done and over with? Why did Jesus have to suffer and die? On the surface, it seems horribly unfair. Jesus was the most perfect person who ever lived, yet he suffered unimaginable pain and agony for my sins. Why did God allow this? Why not just make my sin vanish away?

He then gives this example:  Imagine ...you have young children. Every time your child does something wrong, let's pretend you will simply forgive them, clean up the mess and say nothing.  If they hurt you then say sorry, you must forgive and say nothing else. You must not hurt them or upset them in any way. If they destroy something but then apologize, you must replace it without saying another word. There will be no punishment or judgment for this child so long as they ask for your forgiveness. 

You will still have to teach them right and wrong, but there will never be a consequence for bad behavior. Without consequence and punishment, they will become ultimately selfish because it is impossible for them to know what it feels like to hurt another person -this child will become a terror and a monster, because a sense of right and wrong can never fully develop. You can love a child all you want but  your love will not be able to save them.

And he goes on to say:  And so it is with sin in our lives. If there is no consequence for sin, then how can we truly repent? Like the child who utters a quick, "sorry" with no thought or feeling, our cries for forgiveness will be hollow and automatic. We know that God will forgive us no matter what, so why bother getting all upset and emotional about it?  We will not just do evil, we will be evil.

No, the consequences for sin must be real.  As hard and potentially unfair as it may seem, the debt we incur for sin is death. If we have sinned, we can never be with God in Heaven. We will be eternally separated from Him unless the debt is paid.

And he finishes with:  And here we find yet another dilemma. We cannot pay the debt, for it is too much and we are not good enough. Yet no matter how much God loves us, He cannot simply ignore the debt, otherwise there will not be any justice in the universe.  

So how can you pay this debt of your sins?  

You can't.  

But Jesus could, and he did.

Jesus Took Your Place.

And that is why Good Friday is "Good".

*****

And another prophecy if fulfilled: 

 Isaiah: 53:5

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities (sins); the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

**WARNING:  GRAPHIC**

And with this I pray:  May the depths of God's Love wash over you and may you be new in him, Amen.