Luke 23:43-49
43 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
44 Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. 45 Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. 46 And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’ ” Having said this, He breathed His last.
47 So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying, “Certainly this was a righteous Man!”
48 And the whole crowd who came together to that sight, seeing what had been done, beat their breasts and returned. 49 But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
There are four interpretations that have been applied to the tearing of the curtain: (1) It’s a foreshadowing of the judgement that will befall Jerusalem in AD 70… (2) It’s the opening of salvation to all through fully atoning merits of God’s Son… (3) It’s the ending of the ceremonial and ritual laws of the old covenant… and (4) It’s marks the replacement of the Old Testament Temple with the temple of the body of Christ Jesus. Now those all can certainly be offered as an explanation (for they hold to the analogy of faith). But since God so ordained not to reveal the exact meaning, we must not say that any of them are certain.
As you have read earlier this week of how Jesus has fulfilled a very many Old Testament prophecies throughout His crucifixion. Not surprisingly, that continues in the events of this text. Most specifically would be Jesus’ final words from His cross.
In You, O Lord, I put my trust; Let me never be
ashamed; Deliver me in Your righteousness… Pull me
out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, For
You are my strength. Into Your hand I commit my spirit;
You have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.
(Psalm 31:1,4-5 NKJV)
Psalm 31 is a psalm of trust. Such a cry reveals how, even in His death, Jesus was in control. Reemphasizing how His life was not taken from Him, but rather, He was trusting His Father’s will and gave up His life. And He did it for you! It’s really no wonder why it shouldn’t be called anything other than Good Friday.
Let us pray: Almighty God, graciously behold this Your family for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed and delivered into the hands of sinful men to suffer death upon the cross; though the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reins with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
