In the Shadow of Death (What to Say About Good Friday?)

 

 

It is one of the worst feelings a preacher can have; stepping up to the pulpit with that disconcerting sense that the sermon you have spent hours preparing is not the one you can honestly speak, at least with integrity.  That happened to me one Good Friday.   I suddenly realized the moment, the subject, the day was greater than any words I could say about it.  I gave a very short message that day and tried to be honest about the restless stirring in my soul.

 

I am not sure how anyone can speak meaningfully about Good Friday and the death of Jesus without at least a nod to mystery and that deep sense of, “I just don’t know!”  There are many theories of atonement (explanations for why the death of Jesus was both good and necessary) and they all have part of the story, but none are “THE” answer.  Sometimes they leave more questions than answers.  

 

I suppose what I do know from the story is that death is real (physical and metaphorical) and that not even Jesus was exempt from its shadow.  Still, from Good Friday we know that death is always held in a story greater than itself.  In the very real fragility, vulnerability, fear, and grief there is a love that holds us and will lead to new experiences of life.  

 

That is about the simplest and perhaps truest thing that I can say of Good Friday.  In the shadow of death, we are not alone, and the story is not yet finished.  In whatever way that claim speaks to you today, I hope it is a blessing.