John
In the name of the One who died so that we might live, dear friends:
TGIF. Four little letters that don’t mean much by themselves, but when you put them together they convey a clear and simple message. You can see those letters printed on bumper stickers and key chains. There is even a national restaurant chain that has incorporated the letters into its name.
TGIF stands for “Thank God It’s Friday.” TGIF is the motto of the worker who anticipates the end of a long week. TGIF is a reminder that rest and relaxation are only a few hours away. TGIF holds out the promise of a least some time away from the daily grind.
For fifty-one weeks out of the year, this sounds pretty good to us. Most of us don’t like to work seven days a week. Most of us enjoy our free time. Most of us look forward to the weekend. Most of us are thankful when Friday rolls around.
But not this Friday, not Good Friday. The somber music and stark setting create a mood that is anything but happy. Today is a day for repentance. Today is the day when we remember Jesus’ death on the cross. TGIF? Thank God it’s Friday? Not today.
Jesus came into contact with many different people on Good Friday: Jewish leaders, high-ranking officials, Roman soldiers, angry crowds, unlikely supporters and disillusioned followers. Some of them were thankful. Some were thankful for the right reasons. Some were thankful for the wrong reasons.
As we examine the words and actions and motives of these people, as we see how Jesus interacted with these people, it will become clear that Good Friday is not just a day of doom and gloom and sadness. Even today, Christians can be thankful. Even today, Christians can say…
TGIF: Thank God It’s Friday
I. Thank God It Is Finished
II. Thank God It’s For You
“Thank God that Jesus is finally dead.” That’s what the Jewish leaders were thinking to themselves on Good Friday. Months of plotting and planning had finally paid off. Sure it took false witnesses and false testimony and all the political pressure they could muster, but in this case the end justified the means.
“Thank God that life can finally get back to normal.” That’s what the chief priests and the teachers of the law were thinking to themselves on Good Friday. Jesus posed a threat to their power and authority. Jesus was a threat to steal the hearts of the people. But no one can follow a dead man. And that’s all that Jesus was to them, a dead man.
“Thank God that this horrible nightmare is finally over.” That’s what Pontius Pilate was probably thinking to himself on Good Friday. “I’m not happy about how things played out, but I had no other choice. I believe that Jesus was innocent. I know that Jesus didn’t deserve to die. But there is nothing I can do about it now because the order has been given. And you know what. Maybe it’s for the best. Maybe now things will begin to settle down.”
“Thank God that I am a free man.” That’s what Barabbas was probably thinking to himself on Good Friday. “I’m a rebel. I’m guilty of murder. And I’m free. I still can’t believe it happened. If I had to pick between Jesus and myself, even I would have chosen to release him. But the people kept shouting my name: ‘Barabbas, Barabbas. Release Barabbas.’ And the Romans were forced to let me go.
“Thank God that we were not the targets of all this
hostility.” That’s what the Roman soldiers might have been thinking
to themselves on Good Friday. “Usually
the Jews direct their hatred in our direction.
It was refreshing to watch them go after each other for a change. Jesus was supposed to be their king, but when
we led he out of the city to be crucified the people cheered.”
“Thank God that my life has been spared.” That might be what the centurion was thinking to himself on Good Friday. “I’ve seen my share of crucifixions, so many
that I am numb to the anguish on their faces, so many that I can barely hear
their cries of pain. But I have never witnessed
anything like this before: the darkness, the earthquake, the temple curtain
torn in two. I am convinced that this
man was not a common criminal. ‘Surely he was the Son of God’ (Matthew
27:54).”
“Thank God for sending Jesus to me in the nick of time.” That’s what the thief on the cross was thinking to himself on Good Friday. “I knew that I deserved to die, but I wasn’t
ready to die. I was afraid. I was alone.
But then I looked to the man hanging on the cross next to me. I asked him to remember me when he came into
his kingdom. And all my doubts and fears
disappeared when Jesus told me: ‘I tell
you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise’ (Luke
“Thank God that the Lord hasn’t changed.” That’s probably what Mary and John were thinking to themselves as they stood at the foot
of the cross on Good Friday. Even in his
final hours, Jesus was thinking of others.
Even as he was dying, Jesus saw to it that his mother was cared for
after he was gone. He looked at Mary and
said: “Dear woman, here is your Son”
(John
“Thank God that we’re still alive.” It’s possible this is what the other disciples were thinking to themselves on Good Friday. Jesus’ faithful followers are conspicuous by their absence in the gospel accounts of the crucifixion. Maybe they were in hiding in the shadows. Maybe they were watching from a distance. It is likely that they were depressed. It is likely that they felt defeated. Jesus was dead, so it was small consolation to them that they had been spared.
“Thank God that Jesus opened my eyes to understand the
Scriptures.” That’s what Nicodemus was thinking when he and Joseph
of Arimathea took Jesus down from the cross on Good Friday. As they placed his lifeless body in the tomb,
the words from a previous conversation with Jesus were still ringing in his
ears: “For God so loved the world that
he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish but
have eternal life” (John
On this Good Friday, do have reasons to be thankful? Are you thankful because Jesus surrendered to his enemies to defeat our greatest enemy? Are you thankful because God didn’t put you in Pilate’s difficult position? Are you thankful because you didn’t have to watch Jesus suffer and die? Are you thankful because you have God’s promise to be with him in paradise? Are you thankful because God takes care of all of your needs? Are you thankful because God forgives you whenever you desert him? Are you thankful because God has opened your heart to believe in him as your Savior?
Before we can bow our heads and say a prayer of thanks to God for all of these blessings we must get down on our hands and knees and beg for his forgiveness.
Maybe the members of the Sanhedrin were the ones who condemned Jesus to death, but it was our sin that made him enter that courtroom in the first place.
Maybe Pilate is the one who knowingly sentenced an innocent man to die, but we are the ones who know what is right and do what is wrong every day.
Maybe the Roman soldiers were the ones who carried out the actual execution, but our defiance and decadence and disobedience hurt him just as much as the nails that pierced his hands and feet.
Maybe Jesus’ disciples were the ones who deserted him when he needed them the most, but how many of us have done the exact same thing under much less threatening circumstances?
Good Friday is a day for us to admit what we have done. We have sinned. We have sinned against God. We have sinned against others. We have sinned with our hands. We have sinned with our lips. We have sinned with our hearts.
Good Friday is also a day when we acknowledge what we
deserve: death, physical death, eternal death, never ending pain and torment in
hell. Because of the eternal
consequences, sin can be a very depressing subject and Good Friday can be a
very depressing day. But it doesn’t have to be. Jesus’ death gives us reason to be thankful, even
today, especially today. Thank God it’s
Friday. Thank God because “It is finished.”
Jesus spoke seven times from the cross on Good Friday, but nothing he said was more important than those three little words, “It is finished” (John 19:30). In the Greek it is only one word, tetelestai.
The form of that verb is very important. Without getting too technical, it is a perfect tense. The perfect tense describes an action that has been completed with the results of that action extending to the present time. When Jesus said, “It is finished,” his work was completed. When we say, “It is finished,” we remember that the results of Jesus’ death carry forward to today.
But our eternal salvation doesn’t depend on the perfect tense of a verb. Our salvation depends on the perfect life of our Savior. He resisted every temptation. He obeyed every commandment. He did everything God the Father asked him to do, even if it meant that he would have to die.
With legions of angels at his disposal, Jesus willingly surrendered to the authorities. When false accusation after false accusation was brought against him, Jesus did not open his mouth. With his beaten and bloodied body hanging from the cross, with the sins of the world hanging around his shoulders, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance, Jesus died, but not before he let the Jewish leaders and the Roman soldiers and his faithful followers and the whole world know that “It is finished.”
Thank God. Thank God
because it is finished. Thank God
because it’s for you. How can I make such
a bold claim? How can I stand up here
and declare that Jesus died on the cross to take away your sins? Because God said it first: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for
us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (II Corinthians
Jesus wasn’t born because he was curious and wanted to see what life on earth would be like. Jesus didn’t come into our world to simply show us how to live good lives. Jesus didn’t sacrifice his life to become a martyr for a cause.
Jesus lived a perfect life and died a perfect death for you, to make up for your many imperfections, to wipe away your glaring weaknesses. Jesus took your sinfulness and gave you his holiness. That world-changing event took place on Good Friday. That life-giving exchange took place on the cross.
The bad news is that there is absolutely nothing you can do
to save yourself from sin. The good news
is that there is nothing left to do because Jesus has done it all. And he has
done it all for you.
It is not unusual for a pastor to talk about the meaning of four letters on Good Friday, but the letters are not TGIF. When Jesus was crucified, Pilate attached a notice to his cross that read: “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” That sign has been abbreviated into the Latin letters, INRI.
The sets of letters may be very different, but the thoughts behind them are not. The King of the Jews is our King. The King of the Jews has conquered sin and death. The King of the Jews rules in our hearts. If Jesus is ruling in our hearts today, that means he is alive. And that is why we give thanks to God, even on a day like today, even on Good Friday. Thank God it’s Friday. Thank God because it is finished. Thank God because it’s for you. Amen.