Good Friday Service 7:00pm “Journey To the Cross” April 18th 2014
Journey To The Cross is a time to remember Jesus’ sacrifice by recounting various events in the final hours of Jesus’ life as a structure for prayer and meditation. Tonight we will focus on 7 of the key moments in the final hours of Jesus’ life on earth. We will look at Christ’s journey to the cross. It is a journey that was grueling and powerful all at once. It’s a journey of pain and sacrifice that every Christ follower needs to feel and understand because this journey changed the landscape of history forever. And as we remember this journey, it changes our lives for eternity.
In our culture today we seem so concerned with current events. We are anxious to hear what happened, where it happened and when it happened but not so concerned about why it happened. And yet that question of why, the question of the enduring significance of events, is usually far more    important, especially when it comes to remembering events and stories in terms of our faith and understanding the role these events play in the     context of the broader HIS-story of God’s love for His people.
Throughout Scripture, in both Old and New Testaments, God’s people are called to remember Psalm 105:1-5 O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. … 5Remember his     marvelous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;
In our eagerness to celebrate Easter and the resurrection, we often rush too quickly through Holy Week, the week between Palm Sunday and Easter  Sunday. Too much of the week, is much too messy for Christians accustomed to the language of triumph and praise to give much attention. In doing so, we miss the tremendous significance of the Cross. As Jesus Himself taught His disciples, the Cross symbolizes something far more profound than suffering and death. It is about servant-hood, the cross is about the power of love, the commitment of God to humanity, the faithfulness and grace of God that knows no limits and will yield to no boundary, that will risk even death itself for the sake of new life. The journey that Jesus makes to the cross is not easy. Most journeys of faithfulness and servant-hood are burdened with great risk. There is suffering, and the death is real. It is not the end of the story. But it is part of the journey. If we are to remember the cross honestly, we must remember the entire journey, honestly. There will be a Sunday morning, and we cannot forget that part of the story. But not yet.