What makes a Good Friday?

I love chocolate bunnies.  I even love Peeps.  I am also known to love a new item of clothing! I love the anticipation of spring (I live in IL that season is truly up for debate as to whether it truly does exist.).  Easter seems to be the 'holiday' that marks all of these external things in our lives. It is fun, it is festive it seems to embrace all things fresh and new.
 

You can run with the Easter 'stuff' but a Good Friday?  If you come from a Christian tradition you know that Good Friday is the day that Jesus Christ  was crucified!   Killed with the intent that He would be forever removed from the religious scene.  He was such a threat that Rome had guards watching every excruciating moment from the trial to the burial. They even took seriously  His words that He would rise again seriously and placed guards at his tomb.   He was a real live human being.    Even if you do not come from a Christian tradition the television programs and movies continue to focus on this point in history.   His death was a bloody, barbaric and inhumane, torturous event.  HE still just does not go away!

How could such a bloody brutal day be 'good'?  We cringe as we see ISIS inflict crucifixions.  It is told, that of all deaths it is the most horrific and barbaric. 

Why did Jesus die like this?   Because I sinned, you sinned, we all do stuff that keep us from knowing a Holy God.  As humans we feel the need for justice when life has wronged us.  God was wronged and justice must be paid to Him for us to be right with Him.   He understood that apart from Him this could not happen.  The justice payment was so high that He alone could make the payment.   The payment was the death of Jesus (God in human form) to pay the penalty for our sin.  His creation, our sins, His terms of payment.

He created us.  He makes the rules.  He loves us and for some crazy reason desires a relationship with us.  We messed up and He decided to fix the mess.  We call it Good Friday. 

Each of us has to decide what we are going to do with Him.  What are we going to do with this day called Good Friday when the payment was made for all of the horrible, bad things that transpire in this world?  Our horrible bad things are included.  If not Him then who will exact justice and payment?

Christianity is anything but popular these days. Jesus is still a threat to religious groups and atheists.  He is a threat to those who disdain any deity or power higher than man himself. His very name evokes hate.  If He he is not God and does not still exist then why such a visceral reaction?  He just won't go away!  He can't be forced out or away!  He is God!

On Good Friday the Jesus factor was an attempt by evil man to eliminate a Holy man.  On Easter we discovered that God made known to mankind that evil would be over come. 

Do not take my word for it. Do not just go with the Easter flow of a holiday to eat your peeps and chocolate.   Seek out the truth, study who Jesus really is/was and then decide what you are going to do with Him.  IF HE truly is God and you walk away then you have left a lot on the line, your eternity with out Him.  

Jesus's words to us.    "The thief  (satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." John (Bible 10:10)