Day 70 "Good Friday" Should Be Called "Holy Friday"-And That Is Great News For Us!

I came across this article in my endeavor to find out why such a solemn day in the Christian faith is considered to be good. It lays down a valid foundation for understanding that "good" was actually meant to be "holy". And actually being meant to be "holy" and not "good," this is even greater news for us as Christians. It means that this day is not simply good, it's Great!

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Why Is Good Friday Called “Good Friday”?

By Forrest Wickman APRIL 19, 2019 4:30 PM in Brow Beat

This post was originally published in 2014. It’s reprinted below.

This Friday is Good Friday, the day on which Christians commemorate the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. The name may seem counter-intuitive to many Christians and nonbelievers, since the day is typically viewed as a solemn one, often observed with fasting and somber processions. Why is Good Friday called Good Friday? Probably because good used to mean holy. There are a few theories about why Good Friday is called Good Friday, but only one seems to be supported by linguists and by historical evidence.

The first of these theories is that Good Friday is called Good Friday because, Christians believe, there is something very good about it: It is the anniversary, they say, of Jesus suffering and dying for their sins. “That terrible Friday has been called Good Friday because it led to the Resurrection of Jesus and his victory over death and sin and the celebration of Easter, the very pinnacle of Christian celebrations." the Huffington Post suggests. Perhaps this logic has helped the name stick—it is certainly how many Christians today understand the name—but it is not where the name originally comes from.

Both the Oxford English Dictionary and every language expert I contacted support the idea that the name comes from an antiquated meaning of good. “The answer seems pretty clearly to be that it’s from good ‘holy,’ ” responded Jesse Sheidlower, the president of the American Dialect Society, when I put this question to him. Anatoly Liberman, a professor at the University of Minnesota who studies the origins of English words, agreed, noting that if you consider the other names for Good Friday—“Sacred Friday” in the Romance languages (Viernes Santo, e.g.), “Passion Friday” in Russian—“the Oxford English Dictionary's explanation makes excellent sense.”

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So, then, given that "Good Friday" had it's origin in "Holy Friday," what was so holy about it? It was holy because everything of real value and importance was taking place that day in the spiritual realm on a heavenly plane, while those who were witnessing Christ's crucifixion on the cross in the physical world only saw a man being put to death in a cruel and gruesome way upon a cross. And watched him die.

What really happened as a result of Jesus' death on the cross?

1) Through Christ's death, each of us now have direct access to God. The curtain was torn dividing the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, into which only the high priest could enter on the Day of Atonement. The tearing of that curtain, which was a type of human body of Christ, signified that a "new and living way" was opened for all believers into the very presence of God.

"At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom." Matthew 27:51

"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."

Hebrews 10:19-22

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

"In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." Galatians 3:12

2) Through Christ's death, we had been made holy. Our sins have been forgiven not only past and present, but also for all of our future sins, It means that we have been completely and fully pardoned. In Christ, we are set free from any condemnation by God!

"He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Hebrews 10:9-10

"And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin." Hebrews 10:18

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,"

Hebrews 8:1

3) Through Christ's death, Satan's work on earth is dismantled and his days are numbered. Jesus is now the authoritative king of both heaven and earth.

"Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death-that is, the devil-and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death."

Hebrews 2:14-15

"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me." Matthew 28:18

"which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realm, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come." Ephesians 1:20-21

"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 2:13

"And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming."

2 Thessalonians 2:8

4) Through Jesus' death, God's love for us is revealed. We see God, the unseen, through Jesus, who we can see.

"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being," Hebrews 1:3

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:16-17

"This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." 1 John 4:9-10

5) Through Jesus death, we have eternal life!

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." John 14:1-3

"so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." John 3:14-15

"but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14

"Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life."

John 5:24

"You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me," John 5:39

"For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:40

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23

"And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son."

1 John 5:11

It is interesting to me that we celebrate Easter Sunday the way we do and not the "Holy Friday" or "Good Friday," for the battle was won on Friday. But I can understand that for those who were living back in the days when Jesus died that the time surrounding that Friday took on a difficult and confusing aura- their Messiah and leader had just died. "Now what?" they may have struggled with. "Now, where do we place our hope? They saw life only from their view point and much of it was focus inwardly towards self. Sunday, however, they came to see everything differently, from God's control and viewpoint. The resurrection proved that Jesus was who he claimed to be. Their understanding began to transform from a worldly concept of a kingdom to come to one which is spiritual in nature and comes after we die. A great transformation was beginning to take root- one that would take the focus of the disciples off of themselves and surrender their lives to serve their Lord and master out of love. Two distinct days. Two days as seen from the viewpoint and perspective exhibited by the Apostle Peter, whom Jesus called "The Rock."

Before the resurrection: (concern for self)

After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, "Surely you are one of them, for your accent gives you away." Then he began to call down curses on himself and he swore to them, "I don't know the man!" Immediately a rooster crowed. Matthew 26:73-74

After the resurrection: (concern for others)

The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." John 21:17

The joy that must have run rampant when the news spread that Jesus was alive! Jesus, the Messiah, the one in whom the disciples had left everything for and placed all their hopes in, had risen from the dead proving who he claimed to be! Hope would spring eternal!

Today, we see it all from a viewpoint of two thousand years later, through a Bible that was written which gives us the whole picture of both days together. Much of life can be gleaned much easier through the lenses of hindsight. With that being said, this day is not just "Good," but is, indeed, "Holy" and "Great!"

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"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2

In Christ, we are now spiritual rich and forgiven! See you tomorrow...

"Carpe Momentum in Love" (Seize the moment in love)