Tag Archives: Good Friday

Stepping Back (Guest Post)

Pink blossoms on a tree, in front of a white house.
Photo credit: Steph Beth Nickel

Stepping Back

by Steph Beth Nickel

Good Friday … the perfect day to step back from the everyday.

Not simply a day off work, but a day to focus once again on what the Lord did for us approximately 2,000 years ago.

As Christians, this reality is the basis for all we believe. For all we do. At least it should be.

While attending a Good Friday service and fellowshipping at a church potluck may be on our agenda, more importantly, this is the perfect day to practice some less common Christian disciplines. Not that potlucks are a Christian discipline, but you know what I mean.

It’s a perfect day to explore silence.

Excuse me for a few moments while I “preach” to myself.

Between my To-Do lists, social media, audiobooks, podcasts, TV shows, etc., etc., etc., I rarely experience silence / stillness of any kind. And most of that is my own doing.

Today, I may do one or more of the following. Perhaps you’d like to do the same.

1. Set aside my To-Do lists. Those everyday tasks can wait.

2. Go for a walk on my own and listen to the sounds of creation. No earbuds allowed.

3. Take my camera along on my walk and snap pics of the beauty all around me, evidence of God’s creativity and so many other aspects of His character.

4. Ramble until I stumble upon truth in my journal. I haven’t done this in a very long time.

5. Meditate on God’s Word by leaning back, opening the One-Minute Pause app, closing my eyes, and drinking in the recorded truths.

6. Read a chapter in Emily P. Freeman’s How to Walk into a Room and listen to one or more corresponding blessings available on the Quiet Collection app.

7. Memorize one of more Bible verses that pertain to this pivotal weekend.

8. Fill our home with praise and worship music. Thank you, Prime Music.

Which of these inspire you to step back from your everyday?

Which ideas would you add to the list?


Photo credit: Jaime Mellor Photography

Steph Beth Nickel is a freelance editor and writer and an author. If you would like more information about her services, you can contact her at stephbethnickelediting@gmail.com.

You’re invited to visit her website: http://stephbethnickeleditor.com/.

You can join her Editing Tips Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/418423519384351.

The Light Shines Through (Good Friday guest post)

Light streaming through trees. "Even on this, the darkest day, the Light shines through."

Image source: Pixabay

The Light Shines Through

by Steph Beth Nickel

Today, Christians around the globe will gather to solemnly commemorate Jesus Christ’s crucifixion. Whenever it is overcast and rainy, we think, “How appropriate.” It is truly “the darkest day” of the year—no matter what the weather.

The sinless Saviour was humiliated, beaten, and then nailed to a Roman cross. While we won’t go into detail, suffice it to say it was one of the cruelest forms of execution ever devised.

As busy people, we rarely stop to consider the implications of this fact in any more than a fleeting manner. How often do we take the time to contemplate what the Lord did and allow ourselves to be overcome with reverence and gratitude? This day—or any day—is a good one to do just that.

But as we consider the darkness, we must also focus on those cracks of light. Even as the Saviour went to His death and suffered more than we can imagine, the Light shone through—and continues to shine to this day.

The Light Shines Through

Jesus prayed for those who put Him to death. In Luke 23:34, we read, “And Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do’” (ESV).

Knowing Jesus prayed for those who crucified Him should amaze us. Though He was fully God, He was also fully man and suffered as any other individual who had been put to death in this way. And more than that, He actually became sin for us, as it says in 2 Corinthians 5:21. Talk about suffering! And Jesus knew all this would happen before it did. Still He prayed, “Father, forgive them.”

He was not only thinking of these individuals, when He was dying, the Son of God was thinking of His mother, Mary. In the midst of that kind of suffering, few—if any—of us would be thinking of anyone or anything besides ourselves. But Jesus knew His mother would need someone to care for her after He was gone, and He assigned this task to His beloved disciple, John. What an expression of selflessness and love! The Light was shining brightly.

Yet another of Jesus’s final declarations is found in John 19:30. Many a sermon has been preached on this verse. It says, “It is finished!” (ESV). We know it wasn’t only the fact that His suffering would soon be over. Jesus knew all along that, to make the way for us to be right with the Father, He had to take our sin upon Himself and suffer the punishment we deserved. This is yet another truth that should cause us to stop and marvel at what He did for us.

Let’s go on to consider not only the cracks of Light we can see as the Saviour was crucified but also what happened when He expelled His last breath and “gave up his spirit,” as it says in John 19:30.

Invited into the Light

One of my favourite verses in all of Scripture is Matthew 27:51. In the ESV, the first part of the verse reads like this: “And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.”

It’s a brief verse and easy to skim over, but it is truly awesome. The fact that this curtain (or veil) was torn in this way is miraculous. The fabric was 60 feet long, 30 feet high, and as thick as the palm of one’s hand. It would have been virtually impossible to rip from bottom to top, let alone from top to bottom. This was no act of man.

And most awesome is what this act of God represents. No longer are believers denied access to the Holy of Holies. We are invited into the Throne Room of Heaven because of Jesus’s death. Now that’s something to marvel at—especially since His presence was reserved for the High Priest, who could only enter the Holy of Holies once a year.

Now, because of what Jesus accomplished on Calvary, we are invited to come before God any time of any day. Of course, we must do so in reverence and awe. But if we have asked Jesus to be our Lord and Saviour, the way is open to us. In fact, Jesus is the Way, as we read in John 14:6.

So, while we will celebrate the Light bursting from the grave on Sunday, we can see that even on this, the darkest day, that same Light shines through.

Our meditation on these truths should not be restricted to one weekend a year. Will you consider setting aside time to do so on a regular basis?

And when your life seems shrouded in darkness and you can’t see the way out, will you turn your eyes toward the One who is the Light of the World (John 8:12)?

Tweetables

Even on this, the darkest day, the Light shines through. (Click to tweet)

When life seems shrouded in darkness, turn your eyes toward the one who is the Light of the World.  (Click to tweet)

Steph Beth Nickel

Steph Beth Nickel
(Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)

Stephanie (Steph Beth) Nickel is an award-winning co-author, a freelance editor and writer, a labour doula, and a former personal trainer. She also loves to speak, teach, and take slice-of-life photos. She would love to connect with you on Facebook or Twitter, on her website or blog.

Review: The Soldier Who Killed a King, by David Kitz

The Soldier Who Killed a King, by David KitzThe Soldier Who Killed a King, by David Kitz (Kregel Publications, 2017)

Remember in the account of the Crucifixion of Christ, the soldier at the foot of the Cross who declared, “Surely this man was the Son of God”? (Mark 15:39, NIV)

The Soldier Who Killed a King is this soldier’s story, told first-person, beginning on Palm Sunday and ending on Resurrection Sunday. One week in the life of an ordinary Roman centurion who was caught in the tumultuous events of Holy Week.

Well-written and with as little brutality as possible, this is a thought-provoking novel worthy to be part of a Christian’s reading each year before Easter. It’s powerful any time of the year.

Sometimes seeing a familiar story through a fresh lens helps us find new insights. This time, I was struck by an aspect of Barabbas’ release that I’d never considered before. (I’ve read the previous version of this book, The Soldier, the Terrorist, and the Donkey King, but somehow this snippet didn’t stick with me.)

The language is fresh and approachable, with just a hint of formality to remind us this is a man from an earlier time. The centurion, Marcus Longinus, is an impartial observer of both Jesus and Herod as each arrives in Jerusalem through the Messiah Gate and proclaims kingship in his own way. Marcus’ language in describing them matches the opinions he forms.

My favourite lines:

The news of Herod’s arrival spread like flies on a rotting corpse. [page 64]

He [Jesus] was the donkey king. A horse would have put him above the crowd. A horse would have meant elevating himself like all the other egotistical men who led in this upside-down world. [page 119]

As a Bible dramatist, David Kitz presents the one-man, four-act play, The Centurion’s Report. He’s also the author of the devotional book, Psalms Alive! and the children’s book Little Froggy Explores the BIG World. And he posts regular reflections on the Psalms on his blog, complete with photos. See davidkitz.wordpress.com.

[Review copy provided by the publisher.]

Good Friday

Crucifixion was shameful, degrading, and cruel beyond measure. It made a spectacle of the victim’s suffering and death.

The Lord Jesus endured this for us – by choice, a willing victim in our place, bearing what we could not in order to win the ultimate victory.

The New International Version* describes “…Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

At the Last Supper, John says that “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God” (John 13:3. NIV*).

Jesus knew Who He was. And Whose He was. He could do what He did because He knew that none of the pain, none of the shame – none of it changed His identity.

As sons and daughters of our Father, our identity in Christ is equally secure and unaffected by shame, pain, fear, etc. Those things are very real, and they may distract us from remembering our true identity, but they don’t change the truth of who we are. Whose we are.

This takes the teeth out of fear for the future, and it changes how we look at yesterday, today, and tomorrow. No matter how much it hurts, no matter what happens… even if we lose our lives in this world (and everybody dies)… as the Apostle Paul wrote, “… I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39, NIV*)

Nothing can separate us from the strong love of Jesus. Nothing can take away all we are in Him.

We’re more than the temporal bodies we inhabit. If we’re alive in Christ, we’re spiritual beings who’ve been given eternal life. Treasured and beloved by the Creator of all.

God the Father invites us into His Word to discover who He says we are. The New Testament tells us who we are “in Christ.” Typing those words as a search at Biblegateway.com or another Bible site provides plenty to think about.

Then we have the choice: will we believe our Maker’s opinion of us, or stick with our own? Knowing how often I’m wrong about things, I choose to believe God. May we grow and keep grounded in the truth of who we are in God our heavenly Father.

Let Third Day’s song, “Carry My Cross,” help us remember.

 

*New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Guest Post: Cracks of Light in the Darkness

Cracks of Light in the Darkness

by Steph Beth Nickel

Today Christians around the globe will gather to solemnly commemorate Jesus Christ’s crucifixion. Whenever it is overcast and rainy, we think, “How appropriate.” It is truly “the darkest day” of the year—no matter what the weather.

The sinless Saviour was humiliated, beaten, and then nailed to a Roman cross. While we won’t go into detail, suffice it to say it was one of the cruelest forms of execution ever devised.

As believers, we may rarely stop to consider the implications in any more than a fleeting manner. How often do we take the time to contemplate what the Lord did and allow ourselves to be overcome with reverence and gratitude? This day—or any day—is a good one to do just that.

But as we consider the darkness, we must also focus on those cracks of light.

Jesus the Light

The Light Shines Through

Jesus prayed for those who would put Him to death. In Luke 23:34 we read, “And Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do’” (ESV).

That should truly amaze us. Though He was fully God, He was also fully man and would suffer as any other individual who had been put to death in this way.

As He was dying, the Son of God was thinking of His mother, Mary. He knew she would need someone to care for her after He was gone and He assigned this task to His trusted disciple John. What an expression of selflessness and love!

And many a sermon has been preached on the Lord’s words as recorded in John 19:30: “It is finished!” We know it wasn’t only the fact that His suffering would soon be over. Jesus knew all along that to make the way for us to be right with the Father He had to take our sin upon Himself and suffer the punishment we deserved.

Invited into the Light

And one of my favourite verses in all of Scripture is Matthew 27:51. In the ESV, the first part of the verse reads like this: “And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.”

The fact that this curtain (or veil) was torn in this way is miraculous. It was 60 feet long, 30 feet high, and as thick as the palm of one’s hand. This was no act of man.

And most awesome was what this act of God represented. No longer are believers in the Lord denied access to the Holy of Holies. We are invited into the Throne Room of Heaven because of Jesus’ death. Now that’s something to marvel at!

While we will celebrate Jesus Christ’s resurrection on Sunday, we can see that even on this, the darkest day, the Light shines through.

Our meditation on these truths should not be restricted to one weekend a year. Will you consider setting aside time to do so on a regular basis?

And when your life seems shrouded in darkness and you can’t see the way out, will you turn your eyes toward the One who is the Light of the World (John 8:12)?

Tweetable: Jesus Christ is the Light who shines in the darkness.

Steph Beth Nickel

Steph Beth Nickel
(Photo by Stephen G. Woo Photography)

Stephanie (Steph Beth) Nickel is an award-winning co-author, a freelance editor and writer, a labour doula, and a former personal trainer. She also loves to speak, teach, and take slice-of-life photos. She would love to connect with you on Facebook or Twitter, on her website or blog.

A Song for Good Friday

Here we are again in the Christian calendar, in the middle of the Holy Week observances. It would be easier to gloss over the pain Jesus bore to buy our salvation, but we need to know the cost of this gift. It was a price we could never pay, for a rescue we could never earn.

Of the many songs that celebrate Jesus’ willing sacrifice and victory, here’s the one I’ve chosen to share this year: “Too Small a Price,” by Don Francisco. Don’t be alarmed by the 16+ minutes it shows in the YouTube pane. This is a clip from a live event, and after “Too Small a Price,” they sing “Here I Am to Worship.” If you have the time to listen to the end, Don Francisco shares a few words. I wish they hadn’t cut the recording there. You’ll need about 10 minutes to hear the full effect of “Too Small a Price.” Don’t tune out when the Cross part ends, or you’ll miss the wonder of the song.

 

Proof that Jesus Loves Me

Good Friday is a difficult day. How do you balance the ultimate, willing sacrifice of Jesus Christ to save us all: His pain against our rich benefit?

One thing I know: Good Friday proves His love for me. For you. For us all.

Let this song from the David Crowder*Band bless you: Shadows. Take in the words: “When all seems lost, remember the cost. Rest in the shadow of the Cross.” [paraphrased]

 

A Song on Good Friday

Without the Cross, there’s no salvation. No hope. But it’s hard to think about what the Son of God endured for you and me that day.

Jesus Christ. God’s Son. Our Saviour.

Not a victim. The fulfillment of prophecy. A daring Rescuer.

This song from Todd Agnew helps me process what Good Friday means to me: “Blood on My Hands.”