Disappointed

If we pause to look back at the death of Christ, if we take ourselves back to the cross and imagine what it must have been like to view the dead body of Jesus on the cross, what a horrible sight it would have been.  Of course, it was horrible for Him to have to endure the suffering and shame of all the events leading up to His crucifixion.  But beyond that, it had to be terribly disappointing to the followers to have to view their Savior, their hope, there on the cross.  And what a gory sight.  He is dead, His body limp, draped, bloody, torn and tortured.  The followers have left, as have the crowds.  He is all alone.  It is Friday...and oh, what a sad Friday it is.

But a new day awaits, for on Sunday everything will change.  Jesus will arise from the dead and prove once and for all that our God has power over the grave.  And just as Jesus had that power, He extends it to us.  What a blessing!

But on this Friday, the followers were down, sad, disappointed.  We see this attitude in the two guys walking on the road in Luke 24.  Jesus joined them in walking and asked why they were so sad.  They said: "But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.  Indeed, besides all this, today is third day since these things happened."

They said, "We were hoping...."  A lot of people were hoping that Jesus would be their king.  The people of Israel had been oppressed for generations, and now they wanted to be free.  What a disappointment this Friday turned out to be; their Lord was crucified.  What a bummer!

But the wonderful Sunday was coming!  They couldn't see it then.  They didn't understand the power that Jesus had over death itself.  What a great God we have.  He was great then....and He is great today, always and forever.

Praise God every day for His wonderful grace.  Thanks for reading....once again.