Entering into the Sufferings of the Lord

As we move into Good Friday, we enter into a time of reflection upon the suffering of Christ.

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Jesus was very clear at the Last Supper that we were to be people who did not forget what was done for us; we are to eat the bread and drink the cup of Thanksgiving and do what Jesus told us to do, which was to partake of these elements “in remembrance of Me,” (Lk 22.19).

We refresh ourselves in the truth that we are not our own; we were bought at a price (1Clor 6.19-20).

On Good Friday, we carve out time and set ourselves apart and we reflect on the price that was paid for our healing.

When we had wandered far from God, God came down to win us back.

When we had chosen sin instead of Him, nonetheless, He took action to wipe out the sin that we had chosen.

When the consequences of our sin led to death, He personally entered into death itself, submitting Himself to the weight of it, out of His deep love for us.

We have been made right with God, in the will of God, by an act of God, because of the love of God, to the glory of God.

We also remember that we who follow Christ will also follow Him in His sufferings:

³ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. ⁵ For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. (2Cor 1.3-5)

But the promise is that even if we experience persecution, betrayal, slander, pain, etc. for the cause of Christ, that there will always be grace and comfort for us in Him.

He knows what we are struggling through in this life, because He has personally lived this life alongside us.

As we come into our annual time of remembrance, reflection, worship, and thanksgiving tomorrow, may we draw near to the Cross of Christ, honouring Him for His suffering, and finding grace in our own struggles as well.

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