No wonder they call it Good Friday
By: Seth Gogo Egoeh

 Have you ever wondered why the day on which our Lord Jesus Christ died is called good? I will not bore you with details of exactly when Jesus died in terms of time, but we know He died on Friday. We know this because, Scripture tells us that on “the first day of the week [Sunday], very early in the morning, they came into the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. He [Jesus] is not here, but is risen”, (Luke 24:1, 6, Emphasis mine). Jesus had already said He would die and resurrect on the third day: “Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. But he spake of the temple of his body”, (John 2:19, 21, KJV). Since He resurrected on Sunday, it meant His death occurred on Friday.

Death is associated with evil and rightly so. It is in our human nature to mourn when someone dear to us dies – this is the norm. At the time of Jesus’s death, because the disciples did not understand the prophecy he gave in John 2:19 and Matthew 14:58 concerning building another temple in three days, they cried and were very sad at His death. The disciples and many others did not understand many of the prophecies Jesus gave during his life time, (Mark 9:32, Luke 2:50, 9:45, 18:34, John 8:27, 10:6). It was during His resurrection that they understood what He said concerning building a new temple. “When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them”, (John 2:22, KJV).

The Jews were expecting a saviour that would save them from political oppression. But He did not come for them only, but for the whole world. To save humanity from the law of sin and death and give them eternal life, He had to die. The Creator had to come to the level of the creature since the creature couldn’t get to His level. Sin and death must be defeated. God had to come down to our level and the only way to deliver us is through death and resurrection.

Jesus’s death on Friday signalled victory over death. Paul exclaimed in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” Because of His victory over death, which is through His resurrection from the dead on Sunday, we can all exclaim together with Paul, “Where is thy victory, death?!

To claim this victory over sin and death, one must accept the finished work of Jesus on the Cross of Calvary by giving his or her life to Him. All it takes is faith. The Grace is already given, but salvation must be received in faith by believing in the Son of God who came, died and resurrected and is living at the right hand of God, (1 Peter 3:22, KJV).

If it were to be a novel, His death and resurrection would have been a classic Volume II, His birth being Volume 1. But this isn’t a novel or fable; this is the real thing – a real life story of Jesus. The Scripture tells us that, “If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain”, (1 Corinthians 15:17, KJV). The victory over sin and death started on that Friday He was crucified on the cross of Calvary. No wonder that Friday is called, Good Friday!

Happy Easter to you!