Yep, we've arrived at this terrible day, Good Friday. A day soaked in sorrow. And yet, a day overflowing with a staggering love; a love unsurpassed in all of human history; God's love … for you!

If you've been able to join me through Fresh this week, you'll know that we've been putting the relationship between Jesus and Barrabas under the microscope – and for good reason. Both went before Pontius Pilate on that day - Jesus, the One who knew no sin, and Barabbas, who was guilty as sin. Let's recap briefly.

Who is Barabbas? A murderer, a rebel, guilty beyond dispute. And yet, at Passover, he walked free. His name, "Bar Abba", literally translated, means son of the father. In his place, Jesus, the true Son of the Father, was flogged, mocked, and crucified.

Jesus didn't just die for Barabbas. He died instead of Barabbas. And that's where it gets personal. Because you and I are Barabbas. We've all turned our backs on God. We've all missed the point.

Romans 3:22-25 For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. (NRSV)

And there it is! The heart of the Gospel! The Good News of Jesus.

We're guilty. And justice demands punishment. But God is not only just — He is love. And in His love, He faced the greatest dilemma: How to uphold justice and still save us?

There was only one way: that "Jesus gave his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28); "…that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone." (Hebrews 2:9)

On that cross, Jesus bore your sin and mine. He drank the cup of justice so we could receive mercy. "It is finished." (John 19:30)

This is the scandal of the cross: the guilty go free: that the Son of God was crucified… so that we may live. You are loved. You are forgiven. Because Jesus took your place. Put your faith in Him!

That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

God's glory still reigns today.

Judas Iscariot would have to be one of the most infamous men in all of history. The friend of Jesus who betrayed Him. The man who betrayed the Son of God. Have you ever wondered – what made him do it? What if I told you that the trigger, the straw that broke the camel's back, was a love of money?!

All of us have experienced some time in our lives the betrayal of a friend. It's a terrible thing and in fact it is quite possibly the worst thing we could ever experience. When a trust is broken. When there's an infidelity or a betrayal where there should have been faithfulness and trust. Where there's hate where there once was love. Where there's strife where once there was peace. These are the most painful of all pains.

The greater the love, the greater the trust that once was, the deeper and darker the betrayal. As I speak these words no doubt your mind turns to a betrayal in your life. Your heart remembers the darkness and the depth of the loss. That's because betrayal was never meant to be. And so when we talk about Jesus betrayal by Judas Iscariot, this man whom Jesus took to be one of His closest disciples, then this is the thing of which we speak.

It's not just a story as familiar as it may be, it's a real human and spiritual drama based on betrayal and desertion. And as it turns out Judas wasn't the only one of the disciples who betrayed Jesus. When push came to shove they all fled, they all left Him completely alone in His hour of need.

Jesus didn't just die on that cross, he was betrayed and He was deserted by His closest friends. Turns out He suffered in a whole bunch of different ways, in ways that we sometimes gloss over and miss and ignore.

Betrayal is something that begins in the heart and that is exactly what happened with Judas Iscariot. Interestingly the thing that seemed to trigger it was money. Have a listen, John chapter 12 beginning at verse 1:

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus whom He'd raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for Him. Martha served and Lazarus was one of those at the table with Him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard and anointed Jesus feet and wiped them with her hair.

The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume but Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples, the one who was about to betray Him said, 'Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?' He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief. He kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.

So there they were just six days before the Passover, less than a week before Jesus was arrested and tried, that money was playing merry hell in Judas' heart. Am I drawing too long a bow here? Well I don't think so particularly when you look at a similar thing that happened also in Bethany just four days later. Matthew chapter 26 beginning at verse 1:

When Jesus had finished saying all these things He said to His disciples, 'You know that after two days the Passover is coming and the Son of man will be handed over to be crucified?' Then the Chief Priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the High Priest who was called Caiaphas and they conspired to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill Him.

But they said, 'Not during the festival or there may be a riot among the people'. Now while Jesus was in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper a woman came to Him with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment and she poured it on His head as He sat at the table. But when the disciples saw it they were angry and they said, 'Why waste this for this ointment could have been sold for a large sum and the money given to the poor'.

But Jesus, awar

Chances are, you know something of the Easter story. An angry religious mob drags Jesus before Pontius Pilate demanding He be crucified and that the murderer, Barabbas, be set free. That's completely nuts, right?

In fact, when you stop and think about it, this is the most outrageous exchange in history. A murderer — Barabbas — goes free. And Jesus, the healer, teacher, miracle-worker is condemned in his place.

John 18:38-40 [Pontius Pilate] went out to the Jews again and told them, "I find no case against him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover. Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?" They shouted in reply, "Not this man, but Barabbas!" Now Barabbas was a bandit. (NRSV)

Jesus: innocent, beloved, sent from the Father. Barabbas: guilty, violent, known for rebellion.

Jesus: flogged, mocked, crucified. Barabbas: let off, scot-free.

But this wasn't just a political injustice — it was a divine substitution. And in that lies the true scandal of the Cross. The name Barabbas (bar-abba) means "son of the father". He walked free because Jesus, the true Son of the Father, went to the Cross.

Do you get it? You are Barabbas. I am Barabbas. We're the ones who stand guilty as charged. We're the ones who rebelled. And Jesus, the One who knew no sin, took our place.

Romans 5:8 While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (NRSV)

It's hard to grasp. We deserve judgment. Jesus offers mercy. We walk free. He hangs on a cross. This is the heartbeat of the Gospel: Jesus didn't just die. He died instead. Instead of Barabbas. Instead of me. Instead of you.

Barabbas went free because Jesus took his place. You go free because Jesus took yours.

That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

What are you turning to for refreshment and fulfillment? 

You discover a lot about someone when you see how they react under pressure. That's when you see the real man or the real woman. And one of the things that Jesus does just before He's to be crucified is that He prays. Question is – who or what does He pray for? Now that's an interesting question, because the answer tells us an awful lot about Jesus.

Prayer is something that most of us, well we don't have time for, right? I mean life's busy, we're under pressure and so we're just flat out getting through life. The idea of spending twenty minutes or half an hour or maybe even an hour praying each day, well I guess that's nice, maybe it's good for the minister to pray every day, I mean after all it's what we pay him for but me, I'm just under too much pressure, I don't have time.

And you know when we're in a difficult place if we do pray then the things that we're praying fervently about are the things that are putting us under pressure. If it's a financial thing we pray for that. If it's our children we pray for them. Whatever's affecting our little world that's where the focus of our prayer is. Imploring God, make a difference, fix this up.

Now there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, we should take our problems and our pressures to God, we should lay them at His feet and ask Him for His help, all good. That's why when Jesus prays just before He's about to be handed over and crucified, that's why this pray completely blows me out of the water. John chapter 17.

The theologians call it the "high priestly" prayer. Bit much for me. Here is Jesus, the Son of God, the Son of man, praying to His Father in heaven just before He's about to be nailed to that cross. What do we imagine He's praying about? Who or what is He praying for?

I know who I'd be praying for I have to tell you if I were in His shoes. So let's go and have a listen, it's rather a long prayer but it's a beautiful one and it's worth eavesdropping to see who or what He prayed for. Come on, let's have a listen and carefully, who's He actually praying for?

After Jesus had spoken these words He looked up to heaven and said, 'Father, the hours come, glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you. Since you have given Him authority over all people to give eternal life to all whom you have given Him. And this is eternal life that they may know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you sent.

I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now Father glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed. I have made your name known to those whom you gave to me from the beginning from the world. They were yours and you gave them to me and they have kept your word.

Now they know that everything you have given me is from you for the words that you gave to me I have given to them and they have received them and they know in truth that I came from you and they have believed that you sent me. I'm asking you on their behalf, I'm not asking on behalf of the world but on behalf of those whom you gave me because they're yours. All mine are yours and yours are mine and I have been glorified in them.

And now I'm no longer in the world but they are in the world and I'm coming to you. Holy Father protect them in your name that you have given me so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled.

But now I'm coming to you and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. I've given them your word and the world has hated them be

As we try to wrap our minds around this whole Easter thing this week, here's the question: What was Pontius Pilate thinking when he set the murderer, the insurrectionist Barabbas free, yet ordered Jesus the Son of God to be crucified? What in the blazes was going on here? 

Look, Pilate was no fool. As Roman governor, he was well-versed in judging guilt and innocence. And when Jesus stood before him, Pilate saw straight through the trumped-up accusations.

John 18:38 I find no basis for a charge against him. (NRSV)

In fact, he declared Jesus innocent three times. He knew it. He even tried to set Him free. But in the end, Pilate bowed to pressure. He allowed his fear of the surging, angry mob to override the plain truth.

That's incredibly tragic, but also rather familiar. Like Pilate, how often have we known the right thing, yet shrunk back under pressure; weighing public opinion, fearing rejection, remaining silent when we should have stood firm?

And yet, Jesus didn't flinch. His integrity, His profound decency, His commitment to the task before Him, stood in stark contrast to the hypocrisy and manipulation that surrounded Him.

John 18:37 Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice. (NRSV)

Jesus was condemned not because He was guilty but because His goodness exposed the darkness of those in power. He didn't resist. He didn't beg because He was standing in for you and me.

The only truly innocent man that the world has ever known was judged guilty not by truth, but by fear. And He allowed it… for you.

That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.

When faith feels heavy, we've forgotten how loved we are.

Back in those few days leading up to that very first Easter, the Disciples were afraid. Petrified in fact. There was a plot afoot to assassinate Jesus. That was bad enough. But were they in the firing line too? Were they going to die too? And into that little mess, Jesus spoke to them about joy and peace.

The days leading up to that first Good Friday, which incidentally at the time must have felt anything but good, they were frightening days. Not for Jesus. Of course His impending crucifixion weighed heavily upon Him but He didn't seem to be afraid since He knew where He was going and what He had to do.

But His disciples, they were very definitely afraid. Why? Not just because they felt the plot to assassinate Jesus, not just because they were aware of the under currents and the plotting and the scheming and the conniving that was afoot to rob them of this amazing Jesus but because their lives were under threat too.

I mean they were His disciples, they were widely recognised as being the inner circle of Rabbi Jesus followers. That's why Peter ended up denying Jesus three times because he feared for his own life.

So while on these days leading up to Easter you and I may well be looking forward to a long weekend and a rest and having just a bit extra chocolate that frankly our waistlines and cholesterol levels just don't need, these disciples of Jesus were living in fear.

Fear not just of losing Jesus but fear of losing their own lives, fear of their whole belief system collapsing. Everything they'd dedicated their lives to these last three and a half years and fear for their own skin. No, that Friday looked anything but good and it's into this reality, this fearful reality that Jesus speaks these words to His disciples. John chapter 16 beginning at verse 16:

'A little while and you won't see me any longer and again a little while and you will see me.' Then some of His disciples said to one another, 'What does He mean by saying "In a little while you'll see me no longer and again in a while you'll see me, because I'm going away to the Father?"' They said, 'What does He mean by this "a little while"? We do not know what He's talking about.'

Jesus knew they wanted to ask Him so He said to them, 'Are you discussing amongst yourselves what I meant when I said "A little while and you'll no longer see me and again in a little while you'll see me?" Truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn but the world will rejoice and you will have pain but your pain will turn to joy.'

When a woman's in labour she has pain because her hour has come but when her child is born she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice and no one will take your joy from you.

On that day you'll be asking nothing of me. Very truly I tell you if you ask anything of the Father in my name He will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive so that your joy may be made complete. I've said these things to you in figures of speech but the hour's coming when I'll no longer speak to you in figures but will tell you plainly of the Father.

On that day you will ask in my name and I do not say to you that I'll ask the Father on your behalf for the Father Himself loves you because you have loved me and believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into this world. Again I am leaving the world and going to the Father.'

His disciples said, 'Yes now you're speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech. Now we know that you know all things and do not need to have anyone question you. By this

As each Easter week comes and goes year in, year out, it's so easy to grow numb to the cross of Christ, bloody and brutal though it was. We know the story. Jesus died. He rose again. But have you ever really stopped to feel the injustice of it all?

The innocent man, Jesus, was condemned. The guilty man, Barabbas, went free. This is what the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, said to the angry mob about Jesus:

John 18:38 I find no basis for a charge against him. (NRSV)

In fact, Pilate declared Jesus innocent three times. Yet still, they cried, "Crucify him!"  In a shockingly ironic twist, they chose Barabbas — a criminal — over Jesus. The One who'd done no wrong was beaten, mocked, and nailed to a cross. The murderer was set free.

What should shake us to the core is this? Jesus didn't resist.

1 Peter 2:23-24 When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. (NRSV)

Jesus absorbed the cruelty, entrusted Himself to the Father, and bore your sin and mine in His body. He didn't just suffer an incredible injustice at the hands of that crowd; He suffered your judgment, your consequences, and He did it willingly.

That's the scandal of the cross. Nothing else in history compares - there's no injustice more outrageous, no love more undeserved. Let that sink in: The worst injustice in history was also the greatest act of grace.
He took your place — not because you deserved it, but because He couldn't bear eternity without you. That's love!

And that's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.