In this short series, we’ll spend a few minutes every day meditating on Jesus’ journey to the Cross. From Palm Sunday to Resurrection Day, this is a sacred week in the Christian calendar—a week that changed everything. 

A Good Friday Reflection: It’s Only By His Blood

 

Read: Matthew 27:1-50

 

That very first Good Friday began with a man who probably had a sleepless night, wracked with guilt.

I’m speaking of Judas, the man who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

In the early hours of the morning, he went to those who bribed him—the chief priests—and said:

“I have sinned…for I have betrayed innocent blood.” (Matthew 27:4)

He tried to find redemption through his actions. It didn’t work.

The chief priests responded with snark and aloofness. They then discussed the money among themselves. 

“It’s against the law to put [the silver coins] in the treasury since this is blood money.” (Matthew 27:6). They redirected the “blood money” to purchase a plot of land.

They tried to find redemption through following the law. It didn’t work.

We move to Jesus’ trial before Pilate. When Pilate’s feeble attempts to convince the people to release Jesus failed, he washed his hands off the matter. He says:

“I am innocent of this man’s blood…It is your responsibility.” (Matthew 27:24)

He tried to find redemption through mere lip service. It didn’t work. 

The angry mob still wants Jesus crucified. They will take responsibility for his death, they say.

“His blood is on us and on our children.” (Matthew 27:25).

They tried to find redemption through their collective demands and disorder. It didn’t work. 

In each of these instances, the blood of Jesus is referenced. But in each of these instances, it is dismissed. Yet, because there was no other way for the world to be redeemed from sin, guilt, and shame, Jesus still chose to shed His blood.

Ephesians 1:7 says that “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.”

This Good Friday, as we meditate on the Cross, can we praise Him for the redemption through His blood?

He was

Betrayed,

Disowned,

Isolated,

Arrested,

Bound,

Whipped, 

Flogged,

Stripped,

Mocked,

Spat upon,

Insulted, 

Struck on His head,

Nailed,

Crucified

So that through His death, we might have life.

That first Good Friday, a guilty man, a manipulative group of chief priests, a waffling, weak governor, and a mob of angry people could have claimed the blood of Jesus over their lives. They chose, instead, to find their own ways to justify themselves.

May we today remember and rest in the truth that we have been justified and made right by His blood. 

Our self-justification, our rule-following, our outward religion, our mob mentality of following the majority, our self-righteous efforts—none of it secures our redemption. It’s only by the blood of Jesus that the broken are made whole. May we bow before the cross in absolute awe of the One who gave His life that we might live.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, In our world today, even in churches, we don’t talk much about the blood that You shed for us. But we honor and exalt You today for there is no other way for us to enter the Most Holy Place. It’s Your blood that cleanses me, it’s Your blood that justifies me, it’s Your blood that gives me eternal hope. Thank You for the Cross. Amen

 

 

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