Good Friday here today. Jesus was tortured and brutally crucified on a cross of wood. He was an innocent man. He had not threatened the rulers. He had not committed any crimes.
To add to that, he had demonstrated the ability to do miracles. So why didn’t he just stop what his persecutors were doing to him? Why didn’t he fight back? Should he have?
This is what Christians believe. There was something vastly bigger going on than the abuse and death of one man.
In Old Testament times, God had made a promise to Abraham, during a sacrifice ceremony. Before that ceremony he had asked Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. Unbelievably, Abraham made preparations to do so. (What a bad God, you say. What a bad Dad. Bad stuff all round. In the historical context, human sacrifice to other gods was not rare in those very ancient days.
Nedesem USA, from Memecentre.
Abraham would have heard of it in some cultures he passed through. ) He made all the preparations , but at the last moment...
It’s quite gripping reading, have a look yourself, link at the end of this post. Afterward, God said to Abraham:
“15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
-The Bible , NIV .
In Law, one contract on the exact same subject supersedes another. If I make a new will and testament today, it will wipe out the previous one I made after my current marriage, (unless it is irretrievably lost. ) God made a bunch of contracts in the Old Testament, along the lines of ancient King/subject relationships, of fealty and sacrifice from the subjects, rewarded by promises of protection and largesse from the God. These are called covenants.
The contract He made in Easter Week is believed by Christians to supersede all previous. (That’s not to say we can’t use them as a guide). He turned the King/subject fealty contract on its head, a complete reversal . He provided the sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus, killed on Good Friday. We get to love Him and each other in return.
What evidence do we have that the old covenants were superseded, that there was a momentous break?
I tell you , God is so good at the visuals, he should have been a movie director. He even threw in an earthquake, and a pitch black sky mid afternoon.
Good Friday we had nice herb and spice steamed fish burgers to eat, because traditionally Christians don’t eat meat on that day. We have been having hot cross buns too. It’s still nice in the backyard of an evening this time of year (Autumn.)
Lemon squash (soda) goes well with fish.
Burgers with garlic steamed fish with tartare sauce, salad and homegrown tomatoes. Underneath the candleholder it says this : Handmade for Magill Ceramics 08-8332 1286 . However I have had it many years.
It’s hard to see the flowers as it was low light. iPad doesn’t do flash:
Protea:
Leukodendrons:
Grainy photo because the iPad doesn’t like low light. Homegrown tomatoes get beautifully ripe and taste good. Fresh tomatoes don’t agree with my tummy but my family eat them off the plants:
Bohemia crystal glasses:
Bible verse of Abraham and Isaac:
Last Year’s Good Friday post (one of them):
