Good Friday Service 2026
Sermon: Ironies of the Cross
🗣️ Speaker: Pastor Tom Van Kempen
This Good Friday message explores four powerful ironies of the cross, showing how what appeared to be humanity's darkest moment became the source of our greatest hope. The instrument of pain and humiliation that Jesus endured on Good Friday was transformed into the means of healing, exaltation, and victory over sin and death. Through the cross, Jesus took on the curse of sin so that believers could receive forgiveness, healing for body and soul, and the blessings of a new covenant with God.
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(Keep in mind this is done by an AI using an audio recording, and it includes singing which is particularly difficult for AI transcription engines. This transcript should be taken with a grain of salt. 😏)
I want to say thank you for being here for our Good Friday service.
Today, sometimes Good Friday is my favorite service.
And the reason I say that is because there's so much attention given to the cross.
But in The older church and I'm going back to the old Catholic Church even before uh the Catholic Church today back in the 15, 1600, 1700s, they had another service that was typically done on Thursday.
And it was called Tanabre.
Is that word on the screen?
Can I get that word on the screen?
Ah, you just got yourself fifty bucks just for that Tanabre is Latin for shadows or darkness.
And it's an ancient Holy Week service.
It served as a As a somber reflection on Christ's arrest primarily, but also the crucifixion and the burial.
What was interesting about this service is they created a special 15-to- Candle, candle obra.
And the way the service me went is they would put it in a prominent place in the sanctuary, and someone would come up and read a psalm or uh a passage from Jeremiah or Lamentations. prophetic about Jesus and then they would blow one of the candles out.
Now remember this is in the ancient church so there's Very few lights or lighting in the sanctuary.
And by the time they got to the fifteenth one, they blew it out, and darkness was across the entire sanctuary at that time.
You might say, Well, why would they do Something like that.
The darkness symbolized the abandonment of Jesus by his disciples And it anticipates the tragedy of Good Friday.
So for you and I today, it's really hard to understand what Jesus and what the disciples were going through.
It's hard for us to imagine that the disciples actually believed they were next.
They thought they were going to be crucified.
They were sure that for supporting this rebellious Jesus, that the Romans were going to come looking for them the same way.
But today, Good Friday is called good because we know the end of the story.
You know, we have services.
Twelve states have declared Good Friday an official holiday, and we anticipate what we know.
Is two days away.
Here's a story for you.
A family sat down to watch the story of the Passion Week of Jesus Christ.
And as Jesus was being crucified on the cross, the entire family, mom, dad, and Three kids, they all started crying.
And then all of a sudden, the youngest of the three kids, a little five-year-old girl, she looked at her family and she said, It's okay, the good part is coming.
The good part is coming.
The little girl knew the end of the story But the disciples didn't, okay?
And sometimes I see Christians who act like they don't know the end of the story.
So today I want to encourage you with four ironies of the cross.
And you can apply these ironies to your own life because a lot of times God takes pain and tragedy.
And turns it into something good, who can say amen?
So irony number one is on Friday the cross was an instrument Of pain.
The cross was the most feared form of execution known to man.
It was excruciating From the cross.
It was drawn out.
It was brutal.
It was ugly.
Now, before Jesus got to the cross, do you remember all the things that happened to him He was arrested unjustly.
He was slapped.
He was spit on.
He was blindfolded.
Did you know the scripture says that his beard was plucked out?
This was a specific pain that they wanted to inflict on him.
This is Isaiah chapter 50, verse 6 I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who plucked out the beard How painful.
I I mean I I've had an ingrown uh facial hair before and and Robin plucked it out.
I didn't even like her for about 48 hours.
I don't know how much of Jesus' beard was plucked out, but it had to have been very painful.
He was flogged.
He was forced to carry his cross.
He was nailed to that cross.
Thorns placed on his head, a spear thrust into his side, one thing after another.
Isaiah 52, 14 says, many will be shocked by him.
His looks will be so disfigured that he will hardly look like a human.
Think of that.
Think of the swelling of his face, the puffiness of his eyes, the blood running down his head and his back.
It had to be one of the most gruesome sights anyone had ever seen.
But say but but on Sunday the cross became the means for yours and my healing.
Who can say amen?
That instrument of death.
I mean look at this.
I'm wearing a cross us right now.
Isn't it ironic that this instrument of death is now jewelry in the Christian faith?
We are proudly Display this cross on a regular basis because we love our Savior Jesus Christ.
First Corinthians chapter 1, verse 18, for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.
Have you met people out there who just don't get it?
Have you met people out there who who who are are just like, wait a minute, that makes no sense to me.
How can how can a God die on a cross?
How can that be?
There are other faith.
That say God would never be on a cross.
The Jews themselves rejected that whole idea because it it says in the Old Testament, cursed is anyone who hangs on a tree.
But that's the whole point.
Jesus was cursed so you and I could be blessed.
Who can say amen?
And the healing, I mean, this word here it says, but to us who are being saved, it is the power. power of God.
That Greek word for saved is sozo, and it means to be rescued.
I get that one.
But it also means To be healed, I get that one, and it means to be made totally and completely whole, body, soul, and spirit We will all be perfected someday in heaven.
Who can say amen?
We're going to be there with God, but but on this planet, our heart can still be healed.
It can be transformed from a heart of stone to something that is soft and pliable and in the hands of our mighty God.
We're saved.
We have a new destiny, a new future, and it begins right now.
Not when we get up there someday.
Our minds can be healed.
And I'm here to tell you, this is something that the church is lacking greatly.
The Bible communicates plainly that our thinking processes are supposed to be totally and completely transformed.
And that renewing process can start.
You hear I say can start because it's up to you to read your word because that's the only way the mind gets renewed It's through the Word of God.
God offers healing for emotional pain, perverted thinking. wrong priorities.
We can begin uh letting go of the emotional baggage as the Holy Spirit Spirit leads us on a journey through God's inspired word as he transforms our renewed minds.
Who can say amen?
That's what he wants to do with us, and then healing of the body.
First feet, anybody need healing of the body today If you do, we're going to be taking communion in just a few moments.
And I believe God wants to heal some people today.
Who can say amen?
You might say, Pastor, you sound sick yourself.
Well, he can heal me too today.
Amen.
Amen.
First Peter 2. 24 by his wounds you have been healed.
Do you know what that communicates?
That the actual healing took place on the cross.
That's when it happened Our job is to appropriate what it is that God has done for us in Jesus' name.
Irony number two, on Friday, the cross was a place of humiliation.
I want you to understand this one, okay?
Because sometimes we feel like we're being humiliated at a workplace or at school and And we feel you know condemnation, we feel shame, we feel all of these different things.
But but the cross was reserved for the very worst of the worst.
If you were a Roman citizen, you were not even allowed to be crucified on a cross.
That was too humiliating.
This was for barbarians and slaves and rebels One thing you could be sure of, and that was that a crucifixion was a public spectacle.
Everybody in the city came out to watch.
They lined the roads.
They went to where the crosses were and all of those things.
And they would make fun of the people being crucified.
Think about this, the indignity of dying on a cross coupled with the entire city laughing and mocking you.
As Jesus drug his cross with him, they were spitting on him.
They were mocking him, saying, if you're the Son of God, you know, save yourself.
Get out of this.
What what's your problem?
You're not as strong as you think you are.
Earlier on they put a purple robe on Jesus and and a staff in his hand and and then they blindfolded him and they would smack him upside the head and say Hey, hey, Prophet, who just hit you?
They took that staff back from him and started clubbing him upside the head.
He was forced.
This is what most people don't know.
It's back then people were crucified naked.
Are you hearing me?
What can be more humiliating than being crucified on a cross for everybody to see everything about you?
He was even taunted and mocked by the two thieves that were on the cross next to him.
But, say, but But on Sunday the cross became a sign of exaltation.
Jesus was raised from death to life.
He went from hell to the right hand of God.
Jesus died as a criminal, but he Rose as a king.
Matthew later wrote to the Jews, and he said, Not only is he king, he is king of kings and lord of lords.
Revelation repeats that and says it's actually written on the side of his leg, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Philippians 2 9 says, God highly exalted him and gave him a name that is above every name. that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow.
Everyone is going to eventually bow to Jesus Christ.
I guarantee you On Friday, irony number three, the cross was a reminder of death and defeat.
It happened so quickly.
The arrest, the trial, the crucifixion.
Within less than a day, Jesus was dead and the disciples were hiding in fear.
Not knowing what to do.
In their minds, the battle had been lost.
Jesus, their leader, was dead.
The one who walked on water unexplainably was now weak. unable to even take care of himself.
It appeared at times like he didn't even try.
The one who was held in such high esteem just a week earlier when they were they were bringing him into Jerusalem as a new king.
Now all of a sudden he was completely helpless, betrayed by one very, very close to him.
The one who blessed others was now himself cursed.
Scripture says also in Galatians, cursed is anyone that hangs on a tree.
And you know what it says in Galatians?
So that the blessings of Abraham might come upon you.
Jesus died so that the blessings of Abraham might come upon you.
As the end drew near, he no doubt could see the nauseating effects of sin itself.
Can can you imagine a God who is completely sinless The sensitivity that he has in regards to sin, and all of a sudden it's being placed on his shoulders On his back, the pollution of all the ugliness of humanity for 4,000 years dumped upon Jesus instantaneously.
It must have been Nauseating and disgusting and vile.
And he did that all for you and for me.
And in the very end, he looks up to the heavens and he says, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
For a moment in time, Jesus experienced the hell that each and every one of us were supposed to experience for ourselves But he made a way because, say, but but on Sunday the cross memorialized new life and victory.
For anyone who puts their trust in Jesus Christ, yes, Jesus was dragged through the city, stripped naked, held up to contempt, and the charges against him were nailed to the cross beside him.
But while he hung on the cross in humiliation and shame, he was powerfully bringing about a triumphant victory.
Do you know what it says in Colossians chapter 2?
It says that That Jesus was humiliating the devil and all of his legions by the cross In First Corinthians chapter 2, it actually says that had the devil known what was going to happen, he never would have had Jesus crucified.
So if you ever think the devil knows everything, he doesn't.
He's not even smart enough to stop his own demise because Jesus completely was victorious over him by and through the cross.
Because when Jesus was crucified, he went down to the very pits of hell and showed the devil who the real boss was.
Amen.
The imagery in Colossians chapter 2, I don't know if you know this, but back in in Roman times when they would defeat a king and an army, they would take the army and the king and strip them completely naked And then they would march through the city with a parade honoring them and dishonoring the king who just lost.
Could you imagine if after the next Super Bowl we did something like that?
And the losing team had to walk through the city uh humiliated in some way, shape or form.
Things were a lot worse back then, I think, so be careful.
I want you to get out your communion.
If you do not have one, would you raise your hand so that we can get you some communion?
We've got uh a bunch right here.
And when you pull it out, make sure and remove the bottom strip there so that piece of bread can land into your hand.
While they're serving those of you who who uh don't have one, when I came on up to my platform here today, or up to this pulpit Uh I found a green.
Oh, I I don't know if I can get it off.
I'm gonna try.
Because I want you to know something special happened on on Wednesday night.
You see this right here?
So we had the youth with us on Wednesday night, and at one point in the service, we prayed over every single chair. in this sanctuary and we put a green dot on those chairs so so you're staying sitting in holy ground right now just so you know because we were praying you should have seen it We had junior high boys in the front row here kneeling and praying that God would get save the person who sits in that chair.
We had young ladies walking throughout the entire sanctuary praying over over numerous chairs.
We had people, you know, my age and older doing the same thing.
Hand in hand and we were singing a song that uses the term generations over and over and over again.
And all I could think of was wow.
We are living what this song is communicating.
Generations are making a difference in the name of Jesus Christ.
Why does that happen?
Because Jesus died on a cross 2,000 years ago.
The scripture tells us that there's some things that are available to us.
The most important thing is forgiveness And so whenever I'm getting ready to take communion, one of the things that I always do is I say, God, would you just forgive me?
Even if there's not a sin that is apparent in my mind, I know that sin still invades me.
I know that this human body is incapable of doing anything good in and of itself.
And it it probably sins at times that I am not even aware of.
That human nature that we all have has to be subdued again and again and again and again.
So I always say, God, forgive me.
Forgive me for this and this and this.
And then Lord, forgive me for what I'm not even aware of.
But in this moment, maybe By your Holy Spirit, you can speak to me.
Maybe you can open my eyes to another area of my life that needs to be surrendered to you because you are a holy God.
And the only reason I can even stand in your presence right now is because of the blood of Jesus Christ.
Who can say amen?
I don't stand in my own goodness, in my own righteousness, in my own holiness.
I stand in this position.
Because Jesus died on that cross and took the curse for me.
And that's why forgiveness is available, healing is available So if you need healing in your body, would you just stand up for a moment and let me pray for you?
Wow.
Would you bow your heads, please?
Heavenly Father You already knew this before I saw it.
But it weighs on my heart.
It makes me sad that so many of your people are hurting physically.
Father God, if it hurts my heart, it breaks your heart.
So Lord, in the name of Jesus Christ, as we Eat this bread and drink this cup.
I pray that you would do something miraculous in our lives.
I pray that you'd restore bones, that you'd restore the mass.
That you'd restore the strength of bones right now in Jesus' name.
I pray, Father God, that the markers that are too high will come down.
I pray, Father God, that blood pressure will be healed, that it won't be high any longer.
I pray that cholesterol will come down in Jesus' mighty name.
I pray that blood sugar levels will be completely controlled, not by medicine, but by You in the name of Jesus Christ.
I pray, Father God, for diseases that have inflicted our bodies, that they would be miraculously healed in this moment in Jesus' name.
Remove pain and aches.
I restore joints, Father God, that that are not operating appropriately.
Father God, where there's bone on bone, I pray that you do a a physical miracle and put something in between.
Absorbers, Father God, that only you can do.
I pray that joints that are filled with our right as Father God would be healed in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, that your kingdom will come on earth.
As it's already done in heaven today, we pray in Jesus' holy and precious name.
And together everyone says, Amen.
The night Jesus was betrayed, he took bread and he blessed it and he broke it.
And he said to his disciples, Eat this in remembrance of me.
Would you eat the bread together?
Those of you who are standing, you may be seated.
The second thing that we do during these special services is we drink uh a cup some grape juice fruit of the vine and there's so much in the scripture in regards to vines Branches, the fruit.
There's so many stories here.
But what Jesus said on that last night Is that he's issuing in a new covenant.
And remember I said that Jesus became a curse so that the blessings of Abraham could come upon you?
Well, the New Testament covenant's better than that one.
I want you to think about that for a second.
There were a lot of great blessings in the Abrahamic curse or the Abrahamic blessing And the devil didn't want the Israelites to really understand it.
That's why he kept deviating them away from the word, especially.
Well, in the New Testament, the curse is so much better because the agreement between God and man has been fulfilled through Jesus Christ.
See, the Jews were never able to even hold up their end of the bargain.
That's why things went astray all the time.
But the bargain has been upheld by Jesus Christ.
And you and I are joint heirs with Jesus.
On the night Jesus was betrayed, he took the cup, he blessed it, and he encouraged his disciples by talking about this new and better covenant.
Let's drink the cup together.
