12.00 Good Friday Liturgy. All Saints Oakham
Isaiah 52.13-53 end, Matthew 27.27-50
Not everything that we experience in life is pleasant. I’m sure that statement does not come as a shock to you, but it’s true isn’t it.
There are many experiences in our lives that we don’t particularly enjoy, or that we find painful, – and it is not always possible to avoid them.
Sometimes we have to accept that pain and struggle is necessary in order to achieve a better outcome.
Sometimes we do things that we don’t really want to do – and in doing so we think that we have made a huge sacrifice.
The story of the crucifixion is familiar to most people, even to those who have no contact with the church, or those who are actively opposed to the church,
and the story of the crucifixion is so familiar that many people either forget or dismiss its significance.
This is a story that so many people know, but so many still remain unchanged and unmoved by it.
Today, Good Friday we must put aside all our personal suffering, and consider the ultimate example – suffering not by us – but suffering for us,
Today, as we stand helpless at the foot of the cross, we see God incarnate, the Creator, allowing himself to be humiliated, beaten and ultimately killed by that which He created.
It all seems so senseless. It’s a great tragedy. And yet, Jesus endured all of this willingly,
because He knew what it would accomplish, and He believed that his death would made it all worthwhile.
Pilate had handed Jesus over to be beaten and whipped, before he was led away to be crucified.
This scourging alone would have left Jesus near death.
It was not uncommon for those who had been whipped and beaten like Jesus to have their flesh torn so badly that exposed bone and cartilage were visible.
Jesus was now standing before them, close to death, beaten beyond recognition, mocked and humiliated by men who had never even met him.
Already bleeding and barely recognisable, the Roman soldiers dressed him as a king, and then pretended to worship him.
“Hail King of the Jews” they shouted, mocking him because they didn’t believe him to be the Messiah.
Kneeling before him, they taunted him, spat on him, struck him on the head, and when they were finally tired of doing that, they dressed him in his own clothes again, and led him away to be crucified.
Crucifixion was the cruelest and most brutal form of execution in the Roman world. It was intended to be a spectacle, but it was a spectacle so horrific that it did not take place inside the city limits.
In Jerusalem, there was a place reserved beyond the city boundary where these executions were held, – a place called Golgotha (which means skull).
The condemned were led through the city to Golgotha on the longest route possible to ensure that as many people as possible were able to see the spectacle.
This was intended to be maximum humiliation, and to make an example of the condemned prisoner as a deterrent to other criminals.
The condemned criminals were made to carry their own cross, which was probably the heavy beam to which their arms would be fastened. A large, rough-hewn, solid piece of wood. Very heavy and very unwieldy, they were forced to carry it the whole way to the site of execution.
Jesus, badly beaten, covered in sweat and blood, on the verge of death, was so weak that he couldn’t continue to carry his cross, maybe the Roman soldiers thought he would’t even make it to Golgotha, and they pulled Simon of Cyrene from the crowd to carry the cross for him.
Simon surely would not have expected that to happen. Forced to carry a heavy piece of wood on a long journey, out of the city and up the hill.
His clothes stained with the blood of Jesus, taunted and ridiculed with the same insults.
Simon of Cyrene’s story is recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Was he just an innocent bystander, or was his appearance significant? certainly he was sufficiently significant for his place of residence to be recorded.
Was Simon of Cyrene perhaps reflecting the earlier words of Jesus:-
“If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves, and take up their cross, and follow me.” (Matt 16:24).
Was Simon painting a picture of what Christian life may be like?
Compared to the crucifixion, the appearance of Simon may seem to be an insignificant detail, but it does remind us of the meaning of picking up your cross to follow Jesus.
Following Jesus can be hard work, the cross is a heavy burden, People may mock us, scorn us and yes, even hate us. But if we fix our gaze on Jesus, and follow him as Simon of Cyrene did, we will one day find that the struggle was worth it.
When they finally got to Golgotha, Jesus was crucified between two criminals. The implication was clear — Jesus was just as guilty as they were.
Crucifixion was a slow, painful and agonising way to die. the excruciating pain of nails driven through your hands and feet, raw flesh shredded to the bone, gasping for air every few seconds, Every breath agonisingly painful.
And as Jesus was struggling to take his last breath, the crowd continued to ridicule and scorn him. The guards mocked him, and gambled to see who would get his clothes, The Jewish leaders continued to heap insults upon him.
And yet, all the gospel accounts of the crucifixion leave us with a truly remarkable image of Jesus.
Even as he was abandoned by everyone around him, even as he was suffering unimaginable pain, he asked for his Father’s forgiveness, because they didn’t know what they were doing.
As he hung there in agony, John’s gospel tells us that as he died,Jesus asked John to take care of his mother.
He was not angry or bitter, he was full of grace and trust in God.
But the greatest pain of His crucifixion was yet to come.
We hear the agony of those words from the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
Jesus knew what was happening. But his greatest pain didn’t come from his torture on the cross.
It wasn’t the pain of ridicule and rejection. His greatest pain came from his fear of being forsaken by God.
The earth grew dark, the Son was forsaken, and at 3 o’clock that afternoon, Jesus yielded, and gave up his life to his Father.
The curtain of the temple was torn apart, the earth shook, rocks were split and saints who had long awaited their Saviour, rose from the dead.
His last words from the cross were, “It is finished” and “Into your hands I commit my spirit.”
Jesus died knowing that he had accomplished his purpose— forgiveness for you and for me.
The Roman centurion and the soldiers who had earlier mocked, beaten, and crucified Jesus realised, rather too late, what they had done – and they admitted “Truly this was the Son of God!!!!”
That evening, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus, which he placed in a tomb that he had prepared for himself, he sealed the entrance with a large stone, and leaving Mary Magdalene and the other Mary there, he went away.
When we return to that tomb on Sunday we will find it empty, and celebrate that empty tomb.
But today, we cannot stand at the foot cross and not be moved.
As we look at the cross, we should certainly see our sin, but we should also see that our sin is overshadowed by Jesus’ love for us.
But for a few moments now, let us remain at the foot of the cross, Embrace the darkness of the cross, and the smell of death in the cold air of the tomb, and allow that image to remind us of our chosen Christian lifestyle, living in Christ who died so that we may live.
The foot of the cross evokes many different emotions, guilt, shame, and sorrow, –
but there is also joy, wonder, gratitude, and a greater love than we can adequately describe.
That is the awful and awesome power of the cross, A stark reminder of what true love and forgiveness really looks like.
Today, Jesus reminds us that true love is costly. To overlook a fault in someone else, to extend forgiveness rather than retribution, to care for another when they don’t care for you – it is difficult.
It will is a hard path to follow, it may cause us to be ridiculed and to feel utterly alone at times, but we must remember why we follow Jesus.
When we are tempted to give up on our faith, when we feel that we just can’t carry, remember where the road of Jesus leads: to the cross, where forgiveness and love is found.
As we stand at the foot of cross, we stand in awe of God’s love for us, challenged to die to ourselves,
to turn from our sinful ways, to take up our own cross, and follow Christ’s humble example.
The Christian life isn’t easy, but we should be willing to endure whatever comes, because we know the end result is worth it.
We must take up our cross and follow Jesus each day, and it begins all over again this Good Friday.
Amen.