Why do we say “Good” Friday?

I PRAY THAT EACH OF YOU

HAVE A BLESSED GOOD FRIDAY

AND 

A JOYFUL EASTER!

My dear friend Pat of 

GROWING OLD WITH GRACE

has graciously agreed to

Guest Host for me today.

Pat has written a beautiful tribute

to one of the 

HOLIEST DAYS OF CELEBRATION

in CHRISTENDOM!

Good Friday...the Friday before Easter Sunday... marks the day on which Jesus Christ the Son of God was crucified on the cross for the sins of the world.  Yes, for you, for me, for the entire world! 

Luke 23:44 - Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. 45 Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. 46 And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, "Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’" Having said this, He breathed His last.

So just what is Good Friday, anyway?

It is "celebrated" traditionally as the day on which Jesus was crucified.   There are some who say Christ died on Wednesday, others claim it was Thursday, and still others are sure it was Friday.  Is it really that important to know what day of the week Christ was crucified?  If it were so important, then God's Word would have clearly communicated which day and at what specific time. What is important is that He did die and that He physically, bodily rose from the dead.  Just as important is the reason He died—to take upon Himself the punishment that all sinners deserve.  

John 3:16 and John 3:36 both proclaim that if we put our trust in Him we will have eternal life! This is true no matter which day He was crucified.  The Bible does not tell us as Christians to remember Christ’s death on a particular day.  The Bible gives us a choice in these matters.   So, instead of remembering Jesus’ death on a certain day annually, the Bible tells us to remember Christ’s death by observing the Lord’s Supper.   In First Corinthians 11:24-26 He declares, “...do this in remembrance of me...for whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.”

Many Christians spend this day in fasting, prayer, repentance, and meditation on the agony and suffering of Christ on the cross. 

So, as I asked in the title to this post, why do we say Good Friday when it was such a somber day?   What the Jewish authorities and Romans did to Jesus was certainly not good (see Matthew chapters 26-27).   However, Christ’s death resulted in the ultimate good!  Romans 5:8; “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  In First Peter 3:18  we are told, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.  He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit.”

There isn’t just one answer to my question.  There were several possible origins for the name "Good Friday" to be found on the Internet.   One thought is that it may have come from the Gallican Church in Gaul (modern-day France and Germany).  The name "Gute Freitag" is Germanic in origin and literally means "good" or "holy" Friday.  Another possibility is the substitution of “good” for “God” in "God's Friday," since at that time is was thought God’s name was too Holy to say aloud. 

The explanation or possibility that I prefer to believe is that is was the day (or evening) Christ Jesus died for the sins of all mankind - which is by far the greatest "good" anyone has ever done (or ever could do) for anyone else.  It is when God's covenant was fulfilled, and all people could repent and have the hope of everlasting life if they would chose to accept Jesus' sacrifice, imitate his ways, and obey his Word. 

We can thank Him for dying for us and taking on our sin and know that Good Friday truly was good.  Hallelujah!

*Guest post written by Pat Mallett, aka GraceinAZ  - Growing Old With Grace blog.  My thanks to Ginger for allowing me to share this with all of you on her blog!

Pat, Thank you so much for writing this beautiful post. I know all of us are touched, inspired and learned a lot through your skillful guidence through the day's meaning and importance.
Please go by and visit Pat at Growing Old With Grace. She is a great wordsmith with the ability to take us back into history, look at today's world with wonder and has an awesome sense of humor.


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