3.27.2015 Friday of Lent 5 Mark 15:33-47 Death and burial of Jesus
Jesus is buried
Jesus pays for the sins of the world on
the cross, opening the way to God through faith in Him. As God and man in one person, He dies under
the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:14-15). The penalty for sin is death. (see
Romans 6:23a)
Friends bury the body of Jesus quickly.
The approaching Sabbath Day was holy to the Lord, and no work could be done
(Exodus 20:8-11). Even in the tomb, death does not conquer Jesus – His body
does not decay (see Acts 2:31). Jesus completes His mission with this last step
in His state of humiliation> He has fully paid for the sins of the entire
world![2]
Mel Gibson’s movie the “Passion of the
Christ” is a vivid portrayal of the Roman style of execution called
crucifixion. It is a rendering of what took place in Jerusalem during those
short three hours on Good Friday. This movie is an apt depiction of what
crucifixion was really like. No wonder the world feared the Romans! No wonder
some still today cannot bear to see this film. No wonder the Romans had a law,
which read: Roman citizens may not be crucified. The scourging, whippings and
beatings Christ endured was pure violence.
And yet, Gibson’s film is not “gratuitous
violence.” To the contrary - there is a higher good, which comes from the
sufferings and the passion of the Christ.
Your sins, oh man, are gone. Your sins are buried in the tomb of Christ
never to be seen again. The Father now separates them as far as the east is
from the west and He remembers your sin no more.
There is now no more condemnation for
those who are in Christ who was crucified. This is why we call that day “Good
Friday”, for on a Friday - in time - the Son of God suffered to set you free.
And this is good.
O
Lord, you relieve our necessity out of the abundance of your great riches:
Grant that we may accept with joy the salvation you bestow, and manifest it to
all the world by the quality of our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who
lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen[3]
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