Read: Matthew 27:1-61

Devotional

Day five in Jesus’s final week is the darkest and yet the most hopeful day in the entirety of history.

On the surface it seems as if the war had been won but the good guys lost while the bad guys reigned victorious. However, as we read the story we learn that God had not lost, rather he went to unthinkable lengths so that we could be reconciled to Him. In Matthew 27 we are drawn into Jesus’ final day before the crucifixion. He is beaten. He is mocked. He is murdered. And in his death, we are set free.  

Early into the chapter we meet Barabbas (Matthew 27:15-23) a convicted murderer who was sentenced to death. It was the custom, once a year to allow a person convicted to die the ability to go free. Pilate, in a halfhearted attempt to exonerate Jesus offers the crowd a choice: free Jesus, a man beloved by many who seems to have done nothing wrong, or free Barabbas, a notorious instigator. To his surprise the crowd shouts “free Barabbas, free Barabbas.” Barabbas goes free, and Jesus dies.

We are Barabbas.

Each one of us has sinned against God and rightly deserves His judgment. Yet because of His immense love for us, God took our place and died for us. In Jesus’ death, our sin was placed upon Him, and He bore the full weight of the judgment we deserved. When we trust in Him, His righteousness is credited to us, we receive new life, and we are reconciled to God.

As the chapter concludes, something extraordinary occurs—the barrier between humanity and God, symbolized by the temple veil, is torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51). Because Jesus took our place and died for us, we gain unfettered access to God, confident in approaching Him as our loving Father.

The late Tim Keller once said, “You are more sinful than you know, but more loved than you can ever imagine.”

Today on Good Friday, let us reflect on the gravity of our rebellion against God and revel in the grace and mercy that paid the price for our redemption.

Devotional Written by Pastor Austin Glenn