Apr 06 2007
Good Friday?
Here are some pictures of the funeral of one of the fallen Charlotte Police Officers. Gene our music minister and I walked about a mile down from our church to the cemetery. I don’t know if I have ever seen so many police cars. There were police cars from all over North and South Carolina and all over the country. We saw cars from Florida, Arkansas and the Highway Patrol from New York!
We talked to several police officers and expressed our gratitude for their service. There were so many cars that they some had to park outside the cemetery and walk in. One police woman thanked us for coming. We thanked her for her service to us. The mayor thanked us for coming too. One of our church members said that we were on the 6 o’clock news.
Following the funeral procession I went to see a wonderful lady who very ill. It was sad to see her so ill and the pain in the eyes of her adult children.
Then we had a Maundy Thursday Service at our church. It was very moving. It was depressing on purpose. We tried to make the mood as somber as possible. It was eerie seeing Jesus on the cross following communion. We left the service in dark and silence.
Today is “Good Friday.” I realize it is good for us but how good was it for Jesus to die on a cross to pay for the sins of the world. I don’t pretend to understand why people hurt and die. I don’t understand why people suffer. I have yet to figure out why parents abandon their children. I don’t understand how a husband could beat his wife and children. I don’t understand how a person could kill another just because. I may be good for us, but it must not have been good as Jesus cried out to God. I can’t imagine how good it was for God to watch His Son suffer? I would have jumped in.
As bad as it was for God the Father and Jesus, the sacrifice made was “good” for us. I’m learning to become more Christlike every day. I wish I could say I’ve made it. I know I won’t this side of Heaven. I pray you have a “Good Friday” and remember what He did for us. For those of you who haven’t experienced God’s grace and love I pray you find mercy, grace and love here. Today is good for us because Sunday is coming.
What do you think?
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5 responses so far
This is Kelly’s wife, Vicky
Kevin,
This past Sunday my Sunday School class talked about Good Friday in a way that I had never done before. I found it to be an enlightening study. We are currently discussing the life of Jesus and are on the Sermon on the Mount. We were on the part where Jesus discusses giving to the needy, prayer, and fasting. We stayed right there last Sunday instead of breaking from that and going only to the Triumphal Entry. We then went to Isaiah 58 and saw how each one of those things were in that chapter on true fasting. We then took a look at the one day in the law where God calls for a day of fasting or denying oneself. It was the day of Atonement, the fulfillment of that is, of course, Good Friday.
We as Christians often live more in arrogance than in humility. This day is just one example. We still live it as any other day. We work, we eat, we are about the business of building our own kingdoms. We often think that because He forgave us our sins we should not mourn over our sins any longer. Yet James tells us to turn our laughter into mourning and we are called to deny ourselves and be about building HIS Kingdom. What better day than today to remind us that we and our sins sent Him to the cross, that is why it was necessary. To deny ourselves and mourn for our sins, to be about building His kingdom on this day and not our own. It is the perfect opportunity to remind ourselves of His true sacrifice and why He made it. As I said to my ladies this past Sunday, God knows we have to work to put food on the table and a roof over our heads, but He wants us to be more about His kingdom than our own. To put His first and not our own. If we cannot do that for just one day a year are we doing it at all. We all must choose how we reflect upon this day.
Vicky
I think quite a bit lately about praying and supporting the authorities including the police. What a great example. CBB
Vicky,
Thanks for sharing what ya’ll did. That is great.
Retro,
Yes we need to support our civil servants. They do so much for us without any thanks.
Up from the grave HE arose…..with a mighty victory o’er His foes!!!!!!
Brother Kevin,
My wife viewed the news footage and told me she cried. I understand it was a powerful service and reveled a deep and abiding faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Have a wonderful Easter Service. I pray God gives fruit from your labor.
Blessings,
Tim