Good Friday

Oh, that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, "Hallelujah." Please, and all who are unto me.

See the stone is rolled away. Behold the empty tomb. Hallelujah, God be praised. He's risen from the grave. Oh, that rugged cross, my chalet. Oh, that was a revelation. Where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out. Hallelujah. Praise and honor are to Thee. Praise and honor are to Thee. Praise and honor are to Thee. Praise and honor are to Thee. Praise and honor are to Thee. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

And then zoom it in for this part because it captures the screen. It totally has the right date on it. It only will use slides by using Canva, by controlling Canva. Okay, let's make sure all our technology is working. Yep. Just a quick announcement before we begin with prayer. We'll, at the end of our service, partake of communion together. So if you would like to participate in that, just feel free to grab the communion elements. And we're going to, the way to work is all pray. We're going to sing a few songs, and then we'll spend a little bit of time in some of the Old Testament and some of the New Testament as we gather to remember Christ standing in our place and dying on the cross. So let's go ahead and go to God in prayer. Father in heaven,

I ask that you would be with us this evening as we consider the work of redemption, as we consider the death of your Son, as we consider the weight of unbrokenness of our sin. May you help us to see grace and hope and peace. I ask that you would be with those who are here now, and you would be with those who are watching as we worship this evening. May you open their eyes to see the good news of the gospel, that we would be strengthened, and we would be hopeful, and we would be joyful in the redemption that has been given to us. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let's go ahead and stand as we sing "At the Cross."

There's a place where streams of grace flow deep and wide, where all the love I've ever found comes like a flood, comes flowing down.

At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in all of you, I'm in all of you. Where your love, my friend, my sin washed white. I owe all to you, I owe all to you, Jesus. There's a place where sin and shame are powerless. Where my heart has peace with God and forgiveness. Where all the love I've ever found comes like a flood, comes flowing down. At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in awe of You. I'm in awe of You. Where Your love ran red, and my sin washed white. I owe to You. I owe to You. Here, my hope is found. Here, on holy ground. Here, I bow down. Here, I bow down. Here, arms open wide. Here, You saved my life. Here, I bow down. Here, I bow. At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life. I'm in awe of You. I'm in awe of You. Where Your love ran red, and my sin washed white. I owe to You.

I owe all to You. I owe all to You. I owe all to You. I owe all to You. Jesus. As we move into our time of worship, I want to read together the 14th Psalm. It's what is prayed and sang and shouted to Jesus, "Save us," we pray, as He enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, but it's also for Jesus on the Thursday night becoming a reality which we are remembering now. So would you read these verses with me? "Save us," we pray, O Lord. O Lord, we pray, give us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, and He has made His light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will give thanks to you. You

are my God, I will extol you. Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever. This is the word of the Lord.

I hear the Savior say, "Thy strength indeed is small." Child of weakness, watch and pray, find in me thine all in all. Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow. Lord, now indeed I find, Thy power and thine alone can change the leper's spot. And melt the heart of stone. Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow. For nothing good have I, whereby Thy grace to claim. I'll wash my garments white, in the blood of Calvary's Lamb. Jesus paid it all, all to Him. To Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. And when before the throne, I stand in Him complete.

Jesus died my soul to save. My lips shall still repeat. Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. Oh, Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow.

Man of sorrows, Lamb of God, by His own betrayed. The sin of man and broth of God, by His own betrayed. The sin of man and broth of God, has been on Jesus' name. Silent as He stood accused, beaten, mocked, and scorned. The sin of man and broth of God, has been on Jesus' name. Silent as He stood accused, beaten, mocked, and scorned. Silent as He stood accused, beaten, mocked, and scorned. Bowing to the Father's will, He took a crown of doors. Oh, that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, "Hallelujah!" Praise and honor unto Thee. Send of heaven, God's own Son, to purchase and redeem. And reconciled to the fairy hut who nailed him to that tree. Oh, that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me.

Now my soul cries out, "Hallelujah!" Praise and honor unto thee. Now my debt is paid, it is paid in full by the precious blood that my Jesus spilled. Now the curse of sin has no hold on me. The Son sets free, O is free indeed. Now my debt is paid, it is paid in full by the precious blood that my Jesus spilled. Now the curse of sin has no hold on me. The Son sets free, O is free indeed. O that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, Hallelujah! Praise and honor unto thee. O that rugged cross, my salvation, where your love poured out over me. Now my soul cries out, Hallelujah! Praise and honor unto thee. Praise and honor unto thee. Let's go ahead and have a word of prayer.

Father in heaven, we thank you for that cross. We thank you for your love and for your grace. We ask for the ability to glimpse the height and the depth and the width and the breadth of this love that passes all understanding. That in these moments, through your word and by the work of your spirit, you would direct us to the garden and to the cross. That you would help us to glimpse that love and that grace as Jesus stands, taking all of our sin, all of our shame and all of our brokenness upon himself. As he picks up the cup that he did not have to choose, and he takes our sin into himself. Be with us during this time. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

In the past, that a man named Jesus came to a very well-known family in the town of Bethany. A man by the name of Lazarus had died, and the religious leaders were all there, and Jesus, calling for the stone to be rolled away, called Lazarus from the tomb in an amazing show of God's Word. In the power, Lazarus walks out of the tomb, and everybody has heard it, and everybody knows it. And Jesus has changed, and the disciples have to feel this, because for a while he's been roaming the countryside, up and down, into Galilee, into the wilderness, teaching and preaching, and now all of a sudden he's focused and centered on Jerusalem. And then it changes even more, because on Sunday, as they print their way to Jerusalem, Jesus intentionally calls for a donkey, and enters the city in fulfillment of the prophecy made by the prophet Zechariah.

The crowds gather. They are rejoicing. They are calling out from the 118th Psalm. They're taking their cloaks and throwing them on the road. They're waving palm branches. And the crowds rejoice and the religious leaders grumble. Jesus will visit the temple and then return to Bethany. It's sort of his pattern for most of the week. Into Jerusalem, back up the mountain to Bethany, back into Jerusalem. On Monday, it's a strange scene because Jesus enters into the temple, and all of the things that had been done to separate people from their money and from their sacrifices and ultimately from their ability to worship God. Jesus comes, and He cleanses the temple. And it's a strange scene because He cleanses the temple, but there's also a group of children who are acting out the events from the day before, running around Jesus.

And I kind of imagine them with used palm branches they pick up, singing what they heard the adults say the day before. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. And the religious leaders grumble about that as well. And then back to Bethany, and Tuesday he's back in the temple, where the religious leaders are simply asking this question, "Who do you think you are?" Over and over, from different groups and different peoples and in different ways. Wednesday, for Jesus and the disciples, or for most of the disciples, it is quiet. However, the religious leaders are plotting, betraying, and they're seeking an opportunity to harass Jesus. And it's been such a strange week, not just because of the excitement of Passover, and the religious celebration, the reunion of friends and family, but because Jesus is there.

And then it comes time on Thursday to prepare for the Passover, and it's almost like some sort of covert operation. There's a man with a jar, there's a passphrase, and then there is the meal itself, and it's remarkable that this Passover meal, probably like a lot of our meals sometimes, especially with kids, begins with an argument. And Luke records the beginning of the Passover meal like this: "A dispute arose among them as to which of them was regarded as the greatest." And so as they begin this meal, and as they come into this room, and as they begin to recline around the table, they're arguing with each other, "Who's the greatest? Who's more important? Who's going to have more power? Who's going to have a better place in the kingdom?" And in that moment, Jesus takes off his robe, and he dresses like a servant,

and he begins to wash their feet. And they begin to celebrate Passover. And the question at the heart of Passover is simply this: "Why is this night different from all the other nights?" In fact, the Mishnah, which recorded the way the Passover would work as sort of an extra commentary, extra bit of religious guidance, would instruct certain questions to be asked by the children. And so as Jesus and his disciples gather around this Passover table, there are thousands of children in thousands of Jewish households asking this question: "Why is this night different from all other nights?" Because at the heart of Passover is the remembrance of how God has delivered his people from Egypt. And at the heart of Passover are these verses from the book of Exodus. "Say therefore to the people of Israel, 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burden of the Egyptians,

and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment, and I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians." There are four promises found in these verses, which at the Passover meal, as the questions are asked, "Why is the night different from all other nights?" Four promises symbolized by four cups. Beginning with this, "I will bring you out from under the burden of the Egyptians." And it pictures how God physically brings His people out from under the burdens of their slavery. And then next is this, "I will deliver you." So as the meal opens, they drink the first cup.

Remember that they are brought out from the burden of the Egyptians. And as the meal progresses, they then drink the second cup, which is, "I will deliver you from slavery to them." And so after the Exodus story represents the rescue from slavery itself, not just the physical place, but the condition of being held in bondage, of not being able to be free. And there is a first century practice at Passover, still celebrated but a little differently in Passover meals today, where at the beginning of the meal a piece of the unleavened bread is taken and set to the side to be eaten at the close of the meal. And so they take this bread and set it aside. They would eat the bread and then they would drink of the third cup. The third cup that says this, "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment."

And there is a picture of redemption, of God's covenantal relationship being restored. And in the Bible, redemption means being bought back with a price, rescuing someone from bondage or from slavery or debt, often by paying for them. And the redemption in Egypt described in the book of Exodus was God's deliverance of the Israelites from slavery under Pharaoh, and he does it through miracles. And he does it through plagues, culminating in the death of the firstborn. And he does it through the sacrifice of the Passover lamb. Do you remember the final, final plague? Egypt has been through a lot. It was turned to blood, there's been bugs, there's been boils, there's been darkness. And the final plague was this: the death of the firstborn sons. And God commands the Israelites to kill a lamb, and to place its blood around the doorposts of the house.

So I want you to hear, in this third cup, when God says, "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great acts of judgment." For the Passover meal, the great act of judgment, was the death of every firstborn male in Egypt. The redemption comes with a great judgment, and a great price. And the only hope is found under the blood of the lamb. And here at this meal, God is offering His Son as the price of redemption, and we who are saved are covered by the blood of the lamb. And so it's at this moment in this supper where Matthew says this, "Now as they were eating," Jesus took bread, that bread after supper. And after blessing it, He broke it and gave it to His disciples and said, "Take, eat. This is my body."

And He took a cup. It's the cup of redemption, the third cup of Passover. And when He had given thanks, He gave it to them saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is the blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins, the redemption that is purchased by blood." What is Jesus about to do? In a few moments, they're going to go to the garden. He's going to be arrested. He's going to be tried. He's going to be scourged. He's going to be mocked with a crown of thorns and a robe of purple. And eventually he is going to be stripped of all of those things and nailed to a cross where his blood is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. That's the third cup.

There's one more cup this evening, and it happens at the end of the meal. And it's this: "I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burden of the Egyptians." And notice that it's not just saved, not just freed, it's not just redeemed, but it's this: "There is a place for you." It's not just that God simply says, "I have saved you and I have pulled you out, and now good luck. Find your way home. I will take you to be your people." "You are coming home with me." And this fourth cup was drank as songs of praise echo through the Passover meal. We see this in Matthew 26. When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

The last hymn that Jesus sings is the one that we read this morning. Give us, O Lord, we pray. Give us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God. He has made his light to shine on us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will give thanks to you. You are my God. I will extol you. O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever." This is the hymn that they sing. These are the words that Jesus sings. His goodness, his steadfast love, nailed to the cross. The words we read at the beginning of our service this evening was the last song that our Savior sang before he went to the garden.

We've talked about four cups and four promises, but there is another cup. Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I go over there and pray." And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, that's James and John, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful even to death. Remain here and watch with me." And listen to what happens next. Next, Jesus prays these words. Going a little farther, he fell on his face and saying, "My Father, if possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but you will." And Jesus will pray this according to Matthew three times. And this is not a memorized prayer. It's not a prayer that was normally repeated. Notice what he says, "My soul is very sorrowful even to death.

Remain here and watch with me. Don't leave me by myself." And going a little farther, he doesn't just kneel down, but he falls to his face, and he begs that the cup that is set before him be taken away. And being in agony, he prayed even more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground. That the emotion and the stress and the heartbreak that Jesus is feeling in these moments has a physical impact on his body. Likely, from what we know, the capillaries in his forehead burst, and blood begins to pour down his face. And he prays this prayer again. "My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done." Matthew will say he'll pray the same prayer a third time. Every other cup on this Thursday night before Friday was remembering God's promises.

Remembering what God would do for his people, that he would bring them out, that he would deliver them, that he would redeem them, that he would bring them home to be his people. But now here is a cup that is so terrible, that's set before Jesus, that in just contemplating the cup, drops of blood. You see, this cup is different. "For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to their dregs." From Psalm 75, a picture of the cup of the wrath of God poured out upon the wicked. Or in Isaiah 51, "And up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk the dregs, the bowl, the cup of staggering."

This is the cup that is laid before Jesus. Not the cup of deliverance, or the cup of rescue, or the cup of hope, but the cup of God's wrath poured out upon sinners. The cup that Jesus is about to drink is not simply about the pain that was about to occur, as horrific and shameful as that was. It's not even the fight, the spiritual battle that is raging in that moment. It's not the dread, but it is our sin. For our sake, He made Him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. Jesus, the one without any sin, picks up our sin, our brokenness, and our shame. The one who ultimately is righteous, never sinning, never doing what is wrong, always doing what is good, picks up the cup that is our sin, and the punishment for that sin. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

So here's the question: Why? Why would Jesus pick up this cup, the cup of wrath? Why would the sinless Savior pick up the weight of our sin and shame and brokenness? Listen to what Luke says and how he describes this prayer. Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done. And I don't think those words were probably said as we read them easily and quickly, but with great suffering and emotion and emphasis. Hear those words again. Especially the end. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done. Do you know why Jesus drinks the cup? Because we've prayed a prayer very similar to Jesus. We've, in fact, prayed these same words of Jesus just in a bit of a different order. Not your will, but mine be done.

From the garden and the tree, throughout human history, every single one of us have prayed this same prayer. Maybe not with our mouths, but with our lives. Not your will, but mine be done. And I want you to see what Jesus does. Isaiah 51:22, "Thus says the Lord, the Lord your God, who pleads the cause of his people. Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering, the bowl of my wrath. You shall drink no more." Two chapters later, "Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him, and he has put him to grief. When his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring. He shall prolong his days, and the will of the Lord shall prosper his hand." You see, Jesus takes the cup that is intended for us. We have prayed, "Not your will, but mine be done."

And Jesus prays, "Not my will, but yours be done." And he takes the cup of wrath out of our hands, and he drinks it himself. And he drinks it down to the dregs. And here Jesus takes our brokenness, and for God's people, he imputes to them his righteousness. Let me show you the wonderful news. Of this reality. In one of the world's favorite Psalms, we all know how it goes, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." It talks about still waters and green pastures. It talks about walking through the valley of the shadow of death, and I will fear no evil, for you are with me. But there's a part at the end that sometimes I think we overlook. That in light of the cup that Jesus drinks in the garden, carries enormous weight.

Would you read these words together with me? You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Do you know why there's a table for you? Why there's a cup that overflows with goodness? Why goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life, and why you are able to dwell in the house of the Lord forever? It's because of this. Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering, the bowl of wrath, and you shall drink of it no more, because Jesus drinks it down to the dregs. And there remains for us a cup of blessing, and a cup of promise, a cup of hope.

And the promise starts like this. The Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, a feast of rich food full of marrow and of aged wine, well refined. There is a feast coming with food and with drink and with cups that overflow, a table that has been prepared before us. And listen to the reason why this is so joyful. He will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all people, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all the faces. And the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. As Jesus ascended that mountain, we get to drink this cup of joy without tears on that mountain.

Full plates, full cups, full of joy. This is joyful. I want to return for a moment to the Passover table. Because this is really a table for Jewish people, right? For God's people celebrating their return from Egypt, their salvation from Egypt. But there's good news about this table, too. Listen to Paul's words. Remember, you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel. He's speaking to us. And strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once far off, have been brought near by the blood of Christ. See, there is a table. And at the table is the bread of life, and at the table is a cup of redemption. A cup of remembrance. A cup of present strength.

Of present forgiveness, of present hope, and a promise of future reality. I'm going to pray. I want to take that bread and that cup together. And as we do so, there's a couple things I want you to consider. One is I want you to consider the cost of this cup. Physical terms are expensive. But for those of us who are in Christ, I don't know that there is a value that can be placed on the bread and the cup that Jesus our Savior gives to us. The cost of his body and his blood that have been broken and have been poured out. For our forgiveness. But also this is a moment for God's people of repentance and of remembrance and of focusing and of looking forward. And so we look to the cross and to the gospel and to that unimaginable price paid in this bread and this cup.

And Paul tells us we examine ourselves and we look at where we're focused. But he also says we proclaim this until Jesus comes again. So I'm going to pray and we'll partake of the bread and we'll read a verse that I think helps direct us toward that. And we'll partake of the cup and we'll look toward that future hope. Let's pray. Father in heaven, this meal contains so much depth and wonder and awe. You would send your son to stand in our place, that he would willingly pick up the cup that we deserved, so that in him we might drink the cup of redemption and partake of the bread of life. And as we look back, fill us with the deep and abiding gratefulness and joy and wonder. As we look to our lives in this moment, may you focus us

on what it is we are chasing and what it is we are pursuing. May we look to you and to the gospel. May we look forward to the future with hope. A day when our faith shall be sight. So encourage us, strengthen us, forgive us. May you bless this bread and this cup. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. If you would, take the bread with me, and before you eat, would you read with me this prayer of Jesus. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. This bread directs us to our Savior, but also to the kingdom. We are seeking to do the will of God in. Paul says as we drink this cup, we eat this bread, we proclaim Jesus till he comes again.

We read with me at the end of the book of Revelation. We'll read this last phrase from John, but Jesus says this. He who testifies to this says, "Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Father in heaven,

this is by Your grace, through the strength of Your Spirit, by the redemption of Your Son, for Your glory, that we look back to the suffering of Your Son, to see our Savior and the price that He paid in the garden, and then on this Friday on the cross. May You move our hearts in wonder. May You move us in anticipation and hope of what comes next. We pray, as John did, "Come, Lord Jesus." It's in His name we pray. Amen. We're going to stand, I think, as is our tradition, and we're going to sing, "Hallelujah, what a Savior." Man of sorrows, what a name For the Son of God to King Ruined sinners to reclaim Hallelujah, what a Savior

Bearing shame and scoffing rue In my place condemned He stood Sealed my pardon with His blood Hallelujah, what a Savior Guilty, violent, Helpless we Spotless Lamb of God was He Full atonement, can it be? Hallelujah, what a Savior Gifted up was He to die It is finished was His cry Now in heaven, exalted high Hallelujah, what a Savior When He comes, our glorious King All His ransomed torn to bring Dead are near, this song will sing Hallelujah, what a Savior Hallelujah, what a Savior I'll end our service tonight with the words of the Apostle John The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. Oh, you can turn a light. Leave that there for now, Debbie. You can turn the light on if you want. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.