“It pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”

Isaiah 53:10-12

It pleased God to bruise the Son.

Have you ever thought about that? I mean, really, have you spent time pondering the truth of what Jesus did for us?

Today, millions of people around the world recognize “Good Friday,” the day we celebrate the death of Christ on the cross. What is “good” about it?

Christ’s body was bruised, beaten and battered.

His flesh was whipped, bloodied and torn.

His side was pierced.

His deity was mocked.

He was cursed.

Spat upon.

Rejected.

Good? How is this good?

It is good because he did it for me.

It should have been me there. My sins deserved the full blow of God’s wrath. As the book of Nahum says, his fury is reserved for his enemies, and being an enemy of God, dead in my sins, I deserved that.

But God is good. He cannot let sin go unpunished. He can’t just pretend it didn’t happen. If so, he wouldn’t be just. No, instead, he came himself. He paid my price.

He paid it all.

Jesus paid it all!!

He has now made me clean! Accepted! Saved! Forgiven! Justified! Redeemed! Regenerated! Blessed beyond all measure, born again, blood bought and free. I’m his and he is mine. He has paid it all! He paid my debt! Glory to God!

That is why we celebrate Good Friday. Because, God, in his Goodness, paid it all. But guess what… Sunday, it gets better!

Have you thanked God today for what he’s done for you?