“He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.” — Isaiah 53:9 (NIV)
Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made Him who had no sin, to be sin on our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God.” When we think of Good Friday, we must always remind ourselves that Jesus was innocent. He is the only human being ever born who did not need to die because of His sinful condition. His death was purely voluntary. Jesus went to the cross as our substitute. He died in our place. He died the death we deserve. He was innocent! But when He took our sinfulness upon Himself, He became our sin on that day. On that Good Friday, it was as if Jesus had thought, done and said the sinful things we have done. Hence, He faced the eternal consequences (punishment) for those sins. In the darkness of that Friday afternoon, Jesus bore a depth of suffering we can’t even imagine. At this moment, remember, He did it because He loves you!
One other thing, look at the specific prophecies about Jesus’ death. He died with thieves and was buried in a rich man’s tomb. When we look at the 90+ prophecies of the Messiah, it is important to know that Jesus fulfilled all of them. But many of them He fulfilled passively. They were not under His control to fulfill. For instance, He could control teaching in parables by making sure He did so in His ministry. But it was impossible for Him to control the location of His birth and that it would be to a virgin. It was impossible for Him to control the the events of Good Friday. How could He control who it was He was crucified with and in whose tomb He would be buried? How could He? Unless He was God.
Food for thought!
Peace!
Pastor Tom
www.firmlyrooted.church