My 5/18/14AM sermon, Grace Reigns from Romans 5:12-21, is now online. This sermon helped equip us to show the glory of God through a united church on mission under grace as we walked through the progression of grace’s work in the lives of people. What began with sin carrying us off into death was fixed through Jesus and culminates in a changed people where grace reigns in eternal life. I hope it’s encouraging for you to consider this…have a blessed Sunday.
Good Friday – Mourning Over Our Sin, Triumphing Through Christ’s Victory
Good Friday is always one of those days of mixed emotion. John 19:37 says that Jesus was pierced to fulfill Scripture and that Scripture is Zechariah 12:10. Looking upon the one we’ve pierced and mourning.
Make no mistake. We pierced Him. Sure, a Roman guard was the agent doing the deed, but it was our sin that put Him there. I was meditating on this text again and read this helpful piece from the Gospel Transformation Bible on Zechariah 12:10-13:9:
“Mourning for sin comes through a pouring out of God’s grace and spirit (12:10). Repentance is a gift from God, worked by his Spirit, not an attitude that we drum up. Our sins have pierced the Lord not just metaphorically but literally, as our sin was paid for at the cross. That reality should make us weep over our personal sin, as well as the sins of others in our community. Yet the cross denotes not merely the sad reality of what we have done to God but also the triumphant reality of what he has done for us. At the cross, my sins pierced Christ, but the blood which flowed from his wounds forms a cleansing fountain that washes away all of my transgressions (13:1). As we confess our sins in true repentance, the blood of Christ purifies us from all our unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). For that reason, when we fix our eyes on the cross, we not only mourn for our sins, but we also glory in the grace of God that saved us and which will ultimately renew all creation.
“The Good Shepherd that the Lord provided would be struck down (Zech. 13:7), resulting in difficult times of testing and purification for the flock. This prophecy is fulfilled in the death of Christ and the scattering of the disciples that followed (Matt. 26:31). The Christian life is a constant experience of trials and difficulties, yet these afflictions are God’s means of refining his people and setting our hearts firmly on our heavenly home. And through it all, we know that our trials are not to punish us in anger but to train us in love. For Jesus was punished on our behalf, so that every trial can only be from a heavenly Father (not a detached Judge), for our good.
This Good Friday, let’s fix our eyes on the cross and not just mourn over our sins but glory in God’s grace that saved us and will one day make all things new.