Dear Brethren,
When is Good Friday?
Good Friday is the Friday immediately before Easter Sunday which is the day of the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Good Friday is remembered as the day the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross for our sins. The Lord Jesus was crucified and died on Friday. This is the first day of His death, and Saturday is the 2nd day and on the 3rd day which is Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead. Hence, Easter Sunday is also called the Resurrection Sunday.
Do we honour the day itself on Good Friday?
The Bible does not instruct Christians to remember Christ’s death by honouring a certain day. In fact, we do not think that today 18 April Friday is the exact day that Jesus died on the cross. You will notice that Good Friday date changes every year. The dates are based on observing Easter on the first Sunday after the first full moon which is after the vernal equinox.
We do not honour a certain day but the Bible instructs us to remember Christ’s death for us. We remember Christ’s death by observing the Lord’s Supper.
“For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.’’ 1 Corinthians 11:26
In observing the Lord’s Supper, we ought to show our gratefulness to the Lord Jesus Christ for His divine unconditional love for us. Rom 5:8 ‘’But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’’
What is the right attitude to observe on Good Friday?
Many Christian churches observe Good Friday with a subdued service, in which Christ’s death is remembered with solemn hymns, prayers of thanksgiving, a message centered on Christ’s suffering for our sakes, and observance of the Lord’s Supper. What is most important is not to go through the Good Friday worship service as a ritual or a duty. We do not come to Church today because all my fellow Church members are here.
The right attitude is one that is thankful to God for His great salvation and we want to praise Him for saving us. We must not stop at thanking God only on Good Friday. It ought to be our entire life and every day and at all times. This is the only way not to stray away from God. On Good Friday worship service, may we renew our love for our Saviour Jesus Christ. We may have left our first love or gone cold spiritually. May the love of Christ warm and constrain our hearts to love our Saviour with all our heart and soul and mind and strength.
Elder John Leong