Good Friday - "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

The Friday that is different from all other Fridays! No matter if we call it Good Friday, Holy Friday, Great Friday or Black Friday, it's a Friday when Christians around the world are commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

It was the Friday when Jesus hunged on the cross in his crying despair asked his Almighty Father: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

^{_{Image Source: Pixabay. Credits to raheel9630 for art-artistic-painting, used under the Pixabay license.}}

We all know how that Friday story began and ended.
Jesus has been betrayed for 30 silver coins, the amount Judas Iscariot charged for his treacherous and betraying kiss. The event happened in Gethsemane where soldiers arrested Jesus and took him to the house of Caiaphas' father in law, Annas, where he was interrogated first.

After that, he was brought to high priest Caiaphas himself where in the meantime the group of rabbis that were acting as a tribunal gathered to continue the interrogation.

There, among other things he was finally asked if he is the son of God what Jesus refused to answer at first, but when they repeated the question, he said:

"You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven."

Because of that statement, the Caiaphas and his tribunal of rabbis, who represented Jewish authorities were able to charge him for blasphemy. As according to the Roman law they couldn't condemn anyone to death, they proceeded him to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate requesting the death sentence.

Jesus arrived in front of Pilate accused of:

• subverting the state and the nation
• opposing the taxes payable to Caesar and
• representing himself as a king

Pilate questioned him, but he didn't find him guilty and didn't want to sentence him to death. As it was the time of the feast when it was customary that the governor would release any of the prisoners the crowd would want, Pilate asked them whom they want him to release.

The chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to request the release of Barabbas, well-known prisoner who was imprisoned for involvement in rioting and committed murder, and to demand Jesus' crucifixion.

In the meantime, the chief priests added a new charge against Jesus telling Pilate how he also claims to be the God's son. Filled with fear hearing this, Pilate questioned Jesus again.

Still, Pilate couldn't find any evil he has done and wanted to release Jesus finding him innocent. While he was sitting on his judgment seat, his wife warned him as well:

"Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.”

Therefore, Pilate told the crowd once again that he is not finding any guilt for which he would deserve the death sentence, and asked them again whom they want him to release. They started shouting Barabbas name again, still demanding his release.

To avoid the riot that was apparently beginning and to satisfy the crowd, Pilate decided to release Barabbas and handed them over Jesus to crucify him. He washed his hands before them saying:

“I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.”

They whipped him, placed the crown of thorns on his head and bound him to the cross he had to carry to the crucifixion place called Golgotha. On the way, under the weight of the cross, he fell three times.

^{_{Own derivative work with images from Pixabay. Credits to falco for Way of the Cross - Meeting Women and Way of the Cross - Falling down both used under the Pixabay license.}}

They took off his clothes, crucified him and then they gambled to divide his garments among themselves. On the cross, over his head, they put the inscription with his main charge that was saying: "This is Jesus from Nazareth, the King of the Jews."

^{_{Own derivative work with images from Pixabay. Credits to falco for Way of the Cross - Taking his clothes off and Way of the Cross - Crucifixion both used under the Pixabay license.}}

While he was hanging there dying slowly for next nine hours, those who were passing by mocked him with scorn saying:

“You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”

The chief priests, scribes, and elders who were there also derided him as well answering to passers-by and saying:

“He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

^{_{Photo Source: Pixabay. Credits to jingoba for jesus-christ, used under the Pixabay license.}}

Last three hours before he died darkness has fallen over all the land. At about the ninth hour "Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ..."

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

But at the end, with his last breath, before he yielded up his spirit, he said, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit!"

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Although at the time when Jesus lived crucifixion was a standard punishment, it doesn't diminish a bit such a horrifying death he had to go through like the worst criminal.

Knowing all of that and looking at it from our today perspective I'm asking myself...

If the history somehow would repeat itself, for how many coins we, the people of the Earth, would betray and crucify him again?

Always frightened of the unknown, new and different, tending to see and discover something bad and evil into a human being next to us (allegedly just for some on guard protection reasons) rather than believing in all the good that our Almighty Creator planted in all of us, I'm wondering will we even be able to recognize him?

But if we tend to nourish with a determined commitment love, peace and kindness, I believe we can gain all the blessings described through the redemption given to us through Jesus death and resurrection!

^{_{Image Source: Pixabay. Credits to geralt for christ-statue, used under the Pixabay license.}}

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For those of you who might not be Christians, not believers of any kind or are even devoted atheist, and who would take all the above said just as some history or semi-history story, I would like to remind you on Greek philosopher Seneca who lived way before Christ's time and who said,

"Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness!"

If we passionately and persistently keep implementing just that in our everyday lives, the world would become a better place every day more!

^{_{Photo Source: Pixabay. Credits to kordi_vahle for denmark-sun-summer, used under the Pixabay license.}}

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<sup>Bibliography:
- The source of all the citation (except the Seneca's): The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (with Cross-References) Kindle Edition
- Good Friday</sup>

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Posted on Friday, April 19, 2019