Good Friday, part 1

Tonight we had the traditional “Seven Last Words of Christ” Good Friday service.

Reading 1 – Luke 23:33-34 “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.” Jesus was doing – and asking the Father to do – exactly what He had taught His disciples to do – to live in an attitude of forgiveness and to keep relationships paramount – Relationship between man and God, and relationship with each other. This is what the Great Commandment (Luke 10:27) is about.

Reading 2 – Luke 23:39-43 “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Jesus was showing that no matter how bad a person behaved, they were not beyond Christ’s saving and redeeming power. Even though civil law called for punishment, God offers us eternal life – He’s no longer holding our sins against is if we have faith in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).

Reading 3 – John 19:25-27 to His mother Mary “Dear woman, here is your son.” and to John, the beloved disciple “Here is your mother.” Even in death, Jesus was honoring his mother. We’re not told what happened to Joseph, but a normal life span in that day was typically 40 years. So Joseph may have been deceased, and Mary would’ve been considered an elderly woman. Mary had a part in the early church, including being present in the upper room on the days leading up to Pentecost (Acts 1:14)

To be continued… Doug