This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24 NASB)

What greater day could there be in all of humanity than the day the Lord defeated all our enemies, and the last of them…death. May this day mark anew the celebration that Jesus wanted and seeks to give to you.

The cross is the place of victory over our sin.  We have much to be thankful for to Jesus because of His death on the cross.

 And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. (Colossian 2:13-14 NASB)

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21 NASB)

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us– for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”–(Galatians 3:13 NASB)

But the cross is not the final place of celebration for the Christian.  For all that He accomplished there is reflected in His final words regarding our sin, His mission and His work…

When Jesus therefore had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head, and gave up His spirit. (John 19:30 NASB)

It is the emptiness of tomb where the greatest of celebrations takes place for there Jesus defeated our last and most dreaded enemy… 

  “O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” (1 Corinthians 15:55 NASB)

  And the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.” He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see … (Matthew 28:5-6 NASB) 

And now we can have that victory in life. 

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Romans6:8-11 NASB)

May Easter’s celebration be your life’s possession.  No matter your defeats, no matter your personal victories, no matter your blessings, no matter you depravations…remember because of the victorious risen Lord Jesus Christ…

This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

(Luke 23:56b NASB)

Death had won again. It’s hard to concede defeat, even harder if it has been suffered by the death of your hope.  Jesus had become the earthly hope of a lot of people, and when He was crucified and died on the cross, earth bound hope just folded. That’s the tragic disappointment of not having the right belief in Jesus even today. He was not sent here as an earthly life enhancing manager.

It’s Saturday the Sabbath Day, the day of rest. Folks were by Mosaic Law, to be resting in adherence of the Third Commandment, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. (Exodus 20:8 NASB)  Many may have been resting physically perhaps, but today, not emotionally.  Minds were racing trying to catch up with the events of the day before. Even the Pharisees were still worried after His death. Scriptures only mention of Saturday is the meeting that took place between the Pharisees and Pilate. They are asking that a guard be placed at the tomb of Jesus to keep overzealous followers of Him from pulling some kind of shenanigans to falsely validate His previous ridiculous boast that He would rise again on the third day.

It’s quiet in Jerusalem. We have to assume that there are homes of people quietly mourning the death of Jesus. There are people with a lot of questions going through their minds; questions that don’t seem to have any answers today.

How could someone who was so kind to so many, even to one of those arresting Him be so cruelly treated and murdered on a cross?

How could that twelve year old boy who knew so much of Scripture in the temple with the elders, be so repulsed by them as a 30+ year old? What or who changed?

How could someone promise to be our king one day the next and be dead?

How could one who claimed to be our Savior, our Messiah be such if He Himself was killed by Roman soldiers?

How come this one who called us to, “Come follow Me”, expect us to follow after a dead man? Where’s the sense in that?

How could a man who had the power to raise people like Lazarus from the dead allow Himself to enter death? Where’s the consistency?

How could a man promise another dying man, “Truly, I say to you, today you shall be with Me in paradise.”?  Was He just trying to comfort that thief in his pain or was it a cruel joke or something else?

How are we going to be able to prepare an already decomposing body for proper burial so long after death?

The answers to these questions and more would have to wait for another day which was not far away. The questions would be lost in His glory. Sort of like our earthly questions we have planned for heaven will, I suspect, be lost in His glory.  This Saturday was a day of grief. Rest would not be a good word to describe Jerusalem.

The world is an unhappy place to be without a living Jesus in it, so too human life. Life without a living Jesus isn’t life at all.  It’s just an existence, often filled with grief, missing meaning, empty of purpose, and filled with questions.  Our hearts when apart from Christ feel this at times.  We don’t know what it is, but we just know life seems dead and meaningless. We wish we could do something about it. We don’t have to – God already has.

Tomorrow literally will be a better day, it couldn’t get any worse than this…Jesus is gone.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us– for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”– in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.  (Galatians 3:13-14 NASB)

There are three key elements to this passage we need to appreciate in order to  grasp what took place on Good Friday and what makes it so good for us. 

Christ – Curse – Cancelled

Christ. Glory to His name that the name Christ has been written here. It is not your name, my name, or the name of any organization or authority. Just the fact that is says Christ should evoke a sense of expectation, confidence and assurance to read on. Christ means Messiah which is more than a name, it is His title describing the work for which He came to do. We would yet be a pitiful humanity if anything else were to be substituted for the name Christ. Sadly, some still have their own name and work there as the means of establishing a relationship with God.

Curse. Christ’s name is at the beginning of this verse but each of our names is written under this curse. Prior to the cross of Calvary we were under a curse.  This is not a curse cast upon humanity as from some dark element in a Harry Potter novel.  This is the curse of the Law…this is serious business. It describes our relationship with God and what stands in the way. The Lord is the Law Giver. This curse is powerful and all encompassing.  No one is exempt from it, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. No one can escape it for the wages of sin is death. No one should entertain to satisfy it because without faith it is impossible to please God. Even those who deny the Law Giver’s existence and those ignorant of this curse are under its shadow.  It hangs over humanity with its full force at death.  This curse is horrible.  So horrible that it would crush Jesus Christ.

Cancelled. Jesus Christ redeemed us from the curse.  This is why He did sweat drops as of blood in Gethsemane’s Garden. This is the bitter cup for which He prayed removal of if there could be any other way. To be redeemed is to be purchased back. Jesus would buy us back from the curse on the cross. The purchase price He agreed upon to pay was Himself. He set us free from the curse by becoming a curse for us.  Meditate on this for a moment this Good Friday. Notice this is written in the past tense. It has happened already. Notice too He did not merely take our curse to the cross; indeed Jesus became our curse. This is a substitutionary work that has taken place. Paul refers back to Deuteronomy 21:23, to show to all that Jesus actually became a curse for us who are Gentiles, as well as for the Jew. We are all now covered, not by the curse, but by the blood of Christ. Jesus is over us.

Oh dear unbelieving reader or you who cower under the guilt of your sin, this is Good Friday: the day your curse was cancelled.  Jesus took it. Instead, we get the promise of the Holy Spirit to abide with in when we believe in Jesus.

And one of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!”  But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  “And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.”  And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43 NASB)

Sinning which should never be trivialized is not the greatest tragedy to occur in a person’s life. No, the real tragedy happens when someone does not accept by faith what God has done about our sin. Many people are living that way and tragically too many will die that way.  That’s a tragedy.

We return to Calvary this Maundy Thursday to look at the two other men who are crucified on either side of Jesus.  Through them, the Lord teaches us the differences of living and dying so close to the Lord’s compassion. Even though Jesus paid the price for the sins of all, still people will die and enter into a Christ-less eternity. They wanted Christ to leave them alone on earth – it will be granted to them in eternity.

One thief believed the Lord’s compassion to be a human right, thinking that God owed it to him to be merciful.  This thief had no interest in the salvation of his soul. He only wanted to be saved from the consequences of his sin. He didn’t want to die, but his mind wasn’t set on eternity either.  The thing he truly regretted was getting caught.  Many folk are like this, mistaking this as repentance when it is not.  They also think themselves to be Christians. They are not because they have not been converted. They foolishly also think that they can escape sin’s final consequences. They can no more escape them than the two thieves could escape the crosses upon which they hung.  Even if they could, their guilt remained.

The other thief is different. What’s the difference?  Repentance.

The second thief is a repentant sinner.  He knows he too is going to die.  He’s more concerned about what will come after his death than the dying itself.  He confesses his sin and readily admits that what is happening to him is just.  His heart is contrite. He looks over at Christ and what does he see?  He sees the Gospel hanging there beside him. He sees hope hanging on a beam. A repentant heart sees hope in Jesus and places its trust in Him. His final request was not to be freed from his cross, but to be remembered sometime in the future.

He looks to Jesus and what does he hear?  He didn’t hear accusations, or blame, or condemnation, or vengeance. He hears the voice of compassion and the Good News of Calvary’s Servant. Every heart hears this that turns to Him (John 6:37). He didn’t hear about some future hope.  He heard the word, “today”. For a man who lived right up to the end of his life in sin, he heard the ever compassionate heart of God, “today you shall be with Me in paradise.”  Now that’s compassion.

Remember friend that Jesus gives us back our “today”. Eternal life is not a future hope; it is something we have in Christ “today”. It is fully realized in the tomorrow of our lives, but its promise and possession is for “today”. We press on in joyful hope because of what we own “today”. We move forward in assurance because our confidence is in His compassion.  Because of Christ we of the faith own “today”.

The tragedy of this thief’s live is that he lived it apart from the blessedness of intimate fellowship with Jesus as his Rock and Helper. Yet he became a man of the assured hope, even if but for his few moments left here on earth.  His last earthly day would be his best.

Dear reader, this man is waiting to see you in heaven. He was brought there by Jesus, and so will you who believe and receive God’s compassion in Christ…“today”.

There is coursing through this passage the theme of one and unity.  This is because of the provision that gives peace opportunity within humanity.  God has done this through His Son Jesus Christ. 

Man searches for peace with his surroundings.  He wants peace because the life lacking it is characterized by unrest, distress, and tension, whether it is missing with his relationship with God, his neighbor or the world around him.  Peace on man’s terms is often elusive or short-lived. How our troubled world needs peace and unity.  Yet it will never come, sad to say. It is naive to expect total peace in our world.  Such a utopia will not take place this side of heaven. Why? Because of what we have already learned of the two groups into which humanity is divided…the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. And…we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness… (1 Corinthians 1:18 & 23 NASB).

Lack of peace is not something that can be blamed at God. He has reconciled both Jew and Gentile in one body to God. He has done so through the cross. He has brought us all near by the blood of Christ.  The cross of Calvary was the instrument of healing and reconciliation with God. True and complete peace (shalom) is only through the Lord Jesus Christ and His cross.

What about we who are believers though? Can we have peace with God? Yes!  We are told in Romans 5:1 Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Can we have peace with our neighbor?  It is possible and we should make every effort to do so (Romans 12:18).  We have the power of God in the Gospel to extend peace to our neighbor. Acceptance is his responsibility.

Dear reader: is there still one or more to whom you have not yet applied the victory of Jesus and the power of the Gospel? Would it not be to your own peace to let Jesus be their peace through you as well?  What do you have to lose? God did not seek revenge with us; He sought peace and reconciliation so that we could all by faith meet together in His household. Is yours a household needing peace? Jesus is the answer.  Look to His cross and there you will see the wonder of peace.

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called ‘Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision” which is performed in the flesh by human hands –  remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.  But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:11-13 NASB)

It sometimes a good exercise for appreciating today to reflect back on what life was yesterday. When I remember that time when my wife and I were told we would never have children of our own, I recall the hollow feeling of a lifetime without children and the helpless frustration of not being able to change that.  I even wondered (aka worried) what my senior years yet some 50 years away would be like without children.  We struggled to continue in our circle of dear friends because the dominant topic always seemed to be their children.  We would sit in silent pain wishing for a child to keep us up at night or mess up the house. Years later, the Lord proved doctors wrong and blessed us with four children, now adults who know Jesus.  Strolls down memory lane can be so sweet.

When Paul instructs us to remember what life was like when we were unbelieving Gentiles, He speaks of five realities: separated from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth, strangers to God’s covenantal promise, having no hope, and without God in our lives. Uh. I have to say, this is not a sweet trip down memory lane to go back that far.  The point that is being made however is to underscore our total disconnect from God.

Sadly, we did not know these truths about ourselves. Tragically, even if we did, we could not do nothing about it.  Yet that was not to be our permanent existence. Something would change all that.  What? Christ came!

Dear reader.  Think of your life right now please.  Are you still in the past before Christ came? Do these short phrases describe your life: separate from Christ – excluded – stranger – having no hope – without God? If so, then this is a life yet in sin and its deadly consequences.  Do you really want to continue on in that shadow? Would you surrender to the Gospel, believing in Jesus and His life giving blood so that it may be said that you too have been brought near by the blood of Chris.

Or perhaps you are one who has been brought near by the blood of Christ by faith in His saving grace.  Today is a celebration for you.  Remembering back invigorates you to thank the Lord Jesus Christ and causes you to breathe with the breath of life knowing that once you were dead but now are alive in the family of God.

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called ‘Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision” which is performed in the flesh by human hands – remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and stranger to the covenants of promise…(Ephesians 2:11-12 NASB)

Humanity likes to divide itself into little subgroups.  In general we tend to see one another according to skin color, ethnic heritage, language, age, sex, religious denomination, or anything else that might distinguish us.  On the other hand, most of us, while liking to be distinct from one another also want to associate with others of similarity.  So the rich find commonality with the rich, neighborhoods of ethnic similarity are established in cities, friendships are made with people of the same occupation, etc. Even in our churches there are those disdainful little clubs we know as cliques. Having a commonality with others is not the error. The wrong is that many cliques exist to the exclusion of others.

It has been said as a commentary on the eating habits of most men, that there are only two basic food groups…salt and meat. Our text would tell us that the world’s people are divided into only two basic groups: The “Uncircumcision” or the “Circumcision’. Birth has determined which group you fall into.  Grace offers which group you shall live in.  It is not skin color, ethnicity, occupation, sex, age, or any other determinant that distinguishes these two groups of people. The dividing factor is found in the word “covenant”.

Circumcision was instituted by God with Abraham as an act of faith of the covenant relationship the Lord offered to the Hebrews.  As He would point out on occasion, there was nothing special about them nor did they have some redeeming quality that God choose the Hebrew people.  Solely by His grace were they brought into covenant with God, out of whom He would bring the Messiah of all people.

God’s desire and His design have always been to bring humanity back into one again.  What He intentionally began with the confusion He brought upon the people at the Tower of Babel, He has sought to restore as one, except now the people of one would be united not under the authority of their own rebellious will, but under the lordship of His Son.

We are asked to do something this morning as we enter into the second day of Holy Week of His Passion.  We are to remember that we were at one time separate from Christ.  There is wisdom to take a few moments today to recall your life without Christ.  Would you do so please, for tomorrow we’re going to look at this in more detail?

When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him. (Colossians 2:15 NASB)

Do you hear it – the echo of the ringing of metal against metal and the muffled thud of the nails going into the wood of the cross?  What a horrible sound.  What a discouraging sound since it’s happening to the one you’re supposed to follow as your winning Savior.  Do you hear the jeers – the jeers of the people walking by and stopping in front of the cross to vocalize their disdain for the middle cross’ occupant?

Did you hear the cheers – the cheers of the masses as He rode into Jerusalem just five days earlier?  Even though they had mistaken the nature of His kingship, still they welcomed Him and cheered Him on (Zechariah 9:9-10, Matthew 21:6-11.)

Shortest reign ever to occur.  The long awaited king lasted about five days, not even enough time to set up office and establish His kingdom.  To have your Messiah beaten by your foe and nailed to a cross is far worse than your or my favored sports team losing scoreless in the championship game. At least that’s how it appeared to the eye of unbelief.

We’re reminded today that both scenes, the ride into Jerusalem that we know as Palm Sunday and the Cross of Good Friday are events of victory. His entry into Jerusalem with jubilant fanfare by the crowds was truly a victory.  Jesus came in in spite of Roman rule and against the grain of the Jewish religious hierarchy.  The crowds ate it up. He was here – their king. Their misunderstanding of this king would lead to a lot of disappointment and disbelief because of what would happen five days later.

To the eye darkened in sin, Jesus was the loser on the cross.  Nothing could be further from the truth. God defeated every wicked foe with His Son nailed to the cross.  There was nothing they could do. They had played with the master chess player and lost horribly.  The cross of Jesus Christ was the great display of God Himself defeating evil.

As He hung there naked, Jesus wasn’t the spectacle.  No, the real exposure was of the rulers and authorities of evil.  God “undressed” them on the cross.  They were exposed and defeated.  Our human eye can’t see this either, but it happened and we each live our life in the victory of this event. This is the courage that the church goes out into the lost world and does its work of the Gospel.  Jesus won.  The victory is ours.  The battle with the spiritual darkness has been fought and won.

As awful as it sounded and as painful as it was, the sound of the nails hammered into His body was the sound of victory.

Oh victory in Jesus, my Savior for ever. He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood.  He loved me ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him, He plunged me in victory beneath the cleansing flood.

Victory in Jesus by Eugene M. Bartlett

…having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  (Colossians 2:14 NASB)

In the earlier years of our marriage, like most couples, my wife and I assumed some debt.  Some of this accumulation of debt was done out of necessity and with more wisdom than others. Regrettably, none of these decisions were bathed in prayer because I wasn’t a Christian at the time.  I remember however a strange behavior on my part.  Rather than be appreciative of those who financed these debts, I held a spirit of resentment toward them.  Isn’t that odd?  To hold ill feelings toward the one(s) who would help me when I needed financial help.  The source of my resentment was that someone held something over me. I owed them. (That’s pride and envy by the way.)  The ill feeling was rekindled every month when the premium was due and so little of the actual debt was removed.

This is the underlying feeling we all had toward God at the time when He made us alive together with Christ.  While we may not have been aware of this certificate of debt spoken of by Paul, we, while still in our unredeemed sin, hold a grudge toward God. Yes it’s true, even if now alive in Christ we don’t want to admit it. We resented God and just about everything about Him. We were also unaware and unappreciative of what He was doing for us even while dead in our trespasses and sins.  He tells us so though Paul because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so (Romans 8:7 NASB).

We resented and were even hostile toward the Lord because we owed Him this debt. We were angry with Him over the guilt He would stir whenever some sin was revealed by the Spirit.  We felt deprived by Him because His joy-killing Law restricted the lusts of our flesh.  We held animosity against Him for how demanding His Law is and yet no matter how hard we tried, He was never satisfied. Aggravating all of this was the reality that our payments were not satisfying the mortgage against our souls.

For those of us who were once under the shadow of a home mortgage, there was that joyful day of celebration when the last of the monthly payments was made.  Do you remember the relief, the joy, and the sense of freedom that day? What about when Jesus became your Redeemer-Savior who cancelled your certificate of debt on the cross?  Do you recall the day when you became aware of your sin and your need for a Savior and Jesus pulled you in? Are the rigors of everyday life or the gravity of unconfessed sin pushing aside the memory and the sweet reality that your certificate of debt has been paid? If so, hear the Gospel’s Good news: He has made you alive together with Him having cancelled out the certificate of debt.

 He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  (Colossians 2:13-14 NASB)

I can’t seem to get enough of this truth…He made you alive together with Him -Jesus, the victorious living Savior, still true man and true God. How it does my heart good to hear this every day, to be reminded of my state of being with Jesus. To share life together with Jesus on earth while waiting my eternal abode in heaven.  This certainly helps keep life’s struggles, disappointments and set backs in the right perspective.  This phrase catches the essence of the Lenten season and the aim of our 40 days of reflection otherwise overshadowed the rest of the year.

By the time a person comes to the end of this brief passage, he or she ought to be convinced of the extent and assuredness of the Lord’s making us alive. We see how He has made us alive.  Yesterday we noted that it was having forgiven us all our transgressions. Today we see further confirmation of how He has made us alive with Him…having canceled out the certificate of debt.

You might be saying, “What certificate? I didn’t know there was one held against me.  While the English term certificate is used what is literally expressed by Paul is the handwriting that is held against us in decrees speaking up from this paper. 

Think of it this way, there is a mortgage on your soul for your sins.  The same is true of me. This is not a friendly accounting document.  Like the servant in Jesus’ parable owing ten thousand talents to his master, there is absolutely no way any of us can pay off this certificate of debt. But Jesus did.  He cancelled it…totally wiped it out…paid it off…obliterated it…removed it out of our lives. How? He nailed it to the cross!

Think about that.  As sure as Jesus was nailed to the cross, so too has the debt owed for your sins, my sins been nailed there as well.  When those Romans soldiers nailed Him to the cross, they were unsuspecting servants of God who unknowingly were nailing their own certificates of debt, the Jewish leaders’, mine, and yours to the cross with Him. Do you believe Jesus was nailed to the cross of Calvary? Then you should also believe He nailed the total price you owe to God for your sin there as well. Now that is something to rejoice.

Are the sins of your past and even today getting in your way? You might wonder; “Where is that certificate now?  Can it ever be held up against me again?”  Friend, it’s been cancelled.  You could spend the rest of your life looking for it as some kind of Indiana Jones character searching after some lost artifact.  The difference is, this certificate of debt will never be found because it is not lost, it has been cancelled. This we know and receive by faith.

We live in a world of technology yet fearing we might lose something we may want to reference later on. So we are constantly “backing up” our files, programs and other documents using various memory devices.  Not so your transgressions.  God hasn’t backed up this certificate so that He might print off a copy in the future and wave it in front of your face the next time you sin. No not at all.  He doesn’t want to dig it out, because He has chosen a different route:

“FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE.“ (Hebrews 8:12 NASB)