One of the more perplexing things to explain about     Christianity is why we call this Friday Good. It is, after all, the day that Christians remember Jesus was arrested, tried, unjustly condemned and crucified on a cross.

Why would we want to remember that? I find myself often shying away from narratives, stories, news that tell me of horrific events. I’d rather just not know. But knowing the part of the Holy Week story that involves such cruelty, such suffering, such unfairness and pain is part of knowing and understanding the love of God.

One might think, “If that is how God shows love–to allow Jesus, God’s son, to be crucified–I don’t want to know that kind of a God.”

Fair enough. But consider for a few moments what kind of love it might be that God shows forth through the Crucifixion.

Atonement theology explains the crucifixion in this way: Jesus becomes the perfect lamb without blemish who willingly sacrifices himself so that, for those who believe, animal or other sacrifices will no longer be necessary to make amends with God. It is all done through the ultimate act of God in Jesus willingly laying down his own life. Jesus becomes the bridge between our sinful, flawed nature and the forgiveness and acceptance of God.

Complete forgiveness

There is the rational part of me that always thinks,”if God is as big as I believe or I can even dare to image, God can forgive and be reconciled to whomever God chooses without all of that.”

But what is so hard for we human beings to accept is complete forgiveness. God can say it is done and over with in an instant, but we hang onto to our mistakes…we get mired down in our guilt and shame…we cannot forgive ourselves or find a way within our religious narratives and practices to give and to receive complete forgiveness.

So God steps in–the Creator becomes the Created, walks with us, hears us, teaches us, heals us, and takes upon himself all of our flaws, all of the ways in which we turn away from him, taunt him, doubt him, scorn him, reject him…and he offers us forgiveness.

This is one aspect of what makes this Friday Good–that through Jesus, God does for us we cannot do for ourselves. And through that act, we find abundant life in this life and beyond.

Power through weakness

The other aspect of what makes this Friday Good is that God models for us through Christ what power is and is not in this world. I think we often long for the Divine power to be like that of a super hero–saving us from all wrong and even from physical harm and death.  We especially long for God to show forth this kind of power when we  see and experience the tyranny of power–when people abuse the power they have for selfish gain and in the process harm others or the world in which we live. But God gives us what we don’t expect, or maybe even desire.

Through Jesus, God shows us that “power is made perfect through weakness ” (2 Corinthians 12:9)…that the power shown forth through Christ is made real not through retaliation, force, abuse, torture, or getting the upper hand in a tricky situation. Through Christ, God shows us that the greatest power is in peace…and because of this Friday, we know that even in our darkest hours, Jesus is with us.

I pray that today you might take at least a few moments to ponder the cross of Christ and his suffering. Here is a video I came across that really helped me reflect on this Friday…this Good Friday.