Good Friday: The Day of Sacrifice

Isaiah 53; Matthew 27; Luke 23; John 18-19

Good Friday stands at the heart of the Christian faith. It is the day when the weight of sin and the depth of divine love meet at the cross. This is the moment when Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God, willingly lays down His life to redeem a broken world.

“A new sort of power will be let loose upon the world, and it will be the power of self-giving love. This is the heart of the revolution that was launched on Good Friday. You cannot defeat the usual sort of power by the usual sort of means. If one force overcomes another, it is still “force” that wins. Rather, at the heart of the victory of God over all the powers of the world there lies self-giving love, which, in obedience to the ancient prophetic vocation, will give its life “as a ransom for many.”" - N.T. Wright, The Day the Revolution Began: Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus’s Crucifixion

The Trials: Condemned Though Innocent
After His arrest in Gethsemane, Jesus is taken through a series of unjust trials—before the Sanhedrin (Council of Jewish Leaders), Pilate (Roman Governor over Judaea), and Herod (Roman Jewish client king)—where He is falsely accused, mocked, and beaten (Luke 22:66-71; John 18:28-40). Though Pilate finds no guilt in Him (John 19:6), the crowd, stirred by the religious leaders, demands His crucifixion. In a chilling exchange, they choose to free Barabbas, a criminal, while condemning the Righteous One (Matthew 27:15-26).

The Exchange of Barabbas: Injustice and Grace
One of the most striking moments in the Good Friday narrative occurs when Barabbas, a known criminal and insurrectionist, is set free while Jesus—the innocent Son of God—is condemned to die. This dramatic exchange takes place in the Roman governor Pilate’s court. Pilate, having found no fault in Jesus, offers the crowd a choice: release Jesus, the King of the Jews, or release Barabbas, a man notorious for his violent rebellion against Rome (Matthew 27:15-26; Mark 15:6-15; Luke 23:13-25; John 18:39-40).

In a shocking twist, the crowd chooses Barabbas. They demand that the criminal be freed while calling for the death of the sinless Savior. Pilate, seeing the crowd’s unyielding demand, washes his hands of the decision, declaring himself innocent of the blood of Jesus (Matthew 27:24). And so, Barabbas, the insurrectionist and rebel who deserved death, walks free. Meanwhile, Jesus—the innocent One, the Lamb of God—bears the weight of all humanity’s sins and is sentenced to the cross.

A Picture of Injustice
The choice of Barabbas is a moment of profound injustice. It is the ultimate reversal of the law: the guilty are set free, and the innocent is condemned. In choosing Barabbas, the people reject God’s perfect provision for salvation in favor of a political figure who symbolizes rebellion and violence. It’s a moment that reflects the depravity of human nature—how we often choose what is worldly, rebellious, and self-serving over what is divine, holy, and sacrificial.

This moment also reveals the great paradox of the cross—Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God, takes the place of the guilty. Barabbas, a rebel against Rome and a symbol of sin, is spared, while Jesus, the embodiment of righteousness, takes the punishment for the world’s sin. The innocent died for the guilty.

The Great Exchange
This tragic exchange between Barabbas and Jesus points us to the great exchange that lies at the heart of the Gospel. Jesus takes the place of all who are guilty, including Barabbas, and offers His life as a ransom for many. In this moment, the innocent One suffers for the guilty so that those who deserve death may be given life. The apostle Paul captures this exchange powerfully when he writes:

“For our sake, He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” - 2 Corinthians 5:21

Jesus’ death on the cross is the ultimate substitutionary atonement, where He bears the punishment that we deserve. As Barabbas is set free, so too are all who believe in Christ—set free from sin and death, not because we are innocent, but because Jesus took our place.

The Cross: Suffering and Salvation
Carrying His cross, Jesus walks the road to Golgotha, the Place of the Skull (John 19:17). There, He is nailed to the cross, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy:
“He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5).

At the cross, the world sees a broken, beaten man. But in the eyes of faith, this is the greatest victory in history—God’s love poured out in its fullness. Jesus, the Innocent One, bears the full weight of humanity's sin and shame.

As He hangs in agony, Jesus speaks His final words before death, each revealing His heart of love, forgiveness, and mission. Among them:
• “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” - Luke 23:34
• “It is finished” - John 19:30

These words not only reflect His divine mission of reconciliation but also fulfill the prophetic words of the Psalms. In His final moments, Jesus quotes Psalm 22:1, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” This cry of abandonment, spoken from the cross, echoes the psalmist’s despair amid suffering. Yet, Psalm 22 transitions from this anguish to a proclamation of God's ultimate triumph over evil, foreshadowing the victory of the cross. Jesus, as the true fulfillment of this psalm, endures the darkness of separation from God so that we might never have to experience it. The psalm's declaration of future victory in God’s sovereignty points to the resurrection and the restoration of all things.

With His final breath, Jesus surrenders His spirit to the Father. The veil in the temple is torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51), signifying that the barrier between God and humanity has been forever removed. Jesus's death becomes the ultimate act of reconciliation, opening the way for all who believe to draw near to God. The suffering of the cross leads to the salvation of the world—the fullness of God's love made manifest in the person of Jesus.

The Darkest Hour: Silence and Reflection
As Jesus breathes His last, darkness covers the land (Luke 23:44). For three hours, the sun is obscured, as though creation itself is mourning the death of its Creator. This unnatural darkness signals a profound spiritual event—Jesus, the Light of the World, has entered into the deepest depths of human suffering. This is the hour when God in His Son is forsaken by His Father (Matthew 27:46). Jesus' cry of abandonment echoes in the silence, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”—a moment of anguish that marks the culmination of His atoning sacrifice.

The earth quakes (Matthew 27:51), and the veil in the temple is torn in two (Matthew 27:51). These signs point to the cosmic significance of Jesus’ death. The earth, the temple, the very fabric of the universe seems to respond to the gravity of this moment. The veil, once separating humanity from God, is torn—a symbolic act showing that access to God is now open through Christ. The barrier of sin is broken, and the way to the Holy of Holies is cleared by His sacrifice.

Yet, amidst these signs, the disciples' hearts are shattered. For them, the Messiah is dead. The one they believed would restore Israel, the one they placed their hopes in, is buried in a tomb. Holy Saturday arrives, a day of silence, a day of waiting and wondering, of disbelief and mourning. The reality of Jesus’ death sets in, and the world around them seems to hold its breath. Their hopes lie in the grave, and it seems as though all that was promised has come to an end.

However, in this silence, God’s redemptive plan is quietly unfolding. Death, though a bitter and brutal reality, is not the end. The silence we think of and that others experienced with Holy Saturday is pregnant with anticipation. Just as the earth itself quaked at the death of Jesus, so too will it quake at His resurrection. The grave, for all its finality, will not hold back the One who conquered sin and death.

The centurion who witnessed Jesus' death saw this truth in part. As the earth shook and the sky darkened, he declared, “Truly, this was the Son of God” (Matthew 27:54). This statement, though made in the midst of chaos, signals the profound reality that Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be—the Son of God. This confession foreshadows the ultimate vindication that will come on Sunday morning when the stone is rolled away, and Jesus walks out of the tomb victorious.

Questions to Ponder:

• When you reflect on Jesus’ unjust trial, how does it challenge your understanding of justice and mercy?
• Jesus remained silent before His accusers and entrusted Himself to the Father. How can we follow His example in times of suffering?
• Barabbas, a criminal, is set free while Jesus is condemned. How does this exchange reflect the nature of God's grace toward us?
• Do we often question the depth and breadth of the grace and forgiveness of God?
• “It is finished.” What does this declaration mean for your life and your faith?