Homily for Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion

The readings for Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion may be found at:  

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/040723.cfm

Today, the prophet Isaiah tells of a savior, 

and when Jesus finally arrived 700 years later, 

He was not what people expected. 

People envisioned a powerful king to free them from their enemies. 

Not realizing it was our sins that were the real enemies. 

Isaiah wrote this savior  “shall be raised high and greatly exalted.” 

And raised He was - not as a king - but on a cross to die.

Greatly exalted, not because of His earthly success, 

but because of His love, that led him to die for us. 

Tortured and crucified, He suffered horribly.

And to those watching, it looked like God was punishing him. 

Do we think any differently?

We believe God is just.  

So we trust that He punishes evil and rewards the good. 

But Jesus wasn’t punished for His sins.  He had none.

He suffered for our sins. 

He took our punishment. 

God deserved and demanded obedience from us.

We refused.  

So Jesus offered His own spotless life, perfect obedience in our place.

Do we truly appreciate that?

We don’t when we don’t confess that we are sinners that don’t deserve heaven. 

Or when we don’t confess and repent and fight against our sins.

Or when we trust this broken world instead of trusting in the Lamb of God.

Or when we ask God for justice. 

Because justice means getting exactly what is deserved. 

And by that definition, Justice is not what we want.

We need to be asking for God’s mercy.

Mercy that we don’t deserve.

And why would God go beyond justice and give mercy? 

Why would He give up His own beloved Son to take our place so that we could take His?

Why would the prison chaplain choose to go to the electric chair in place of the convicted murderer? 

Because God is love.   And that’s what love does. 

Christians throughout the world profess they believe that. 

Do we? Do we believe that?

And if we do - does it make any difference in how we live our lives?

Look at a crucifix.  Jesus is “the Word of God”.

What word is Jesus saying to us from his cross? 

This Good Friday I ask you to consider that He is saying,

“This is what I did for you.  Now what will you do for me?”