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Among some Christians a favorite question for speculation and discussion is the activity and whereabouts of the devil. The answer that is useful to me is this one: "If you want to catch the devil, I am going to tell you where you will most surely find him - seated in your own arm chair if in it you are alone!"

Such is the reason and realism of Good Friday. Jesus died on the cross because his life was on a collision course with the powers that be. He antagonized the religious establishment. This created the possibility of civil unrest which prompted fear in the heart of the government. One can hear the justifying process: "What should we do? If we let him go on in this way, everyone will believe in him and the Roman authorities will take action and destroy our Temple and our nation." Such is the realism of this tragic event. And it is scary! For the powers that be were made up of well-meaning people; people who honored age-old traditions; people who respected their institutions; people who wanted to protect their own way of life. The cross of our Lord clearly but uncomfortably demonstrates the evil that is alive in the heart of what we call goodness or respectability.

Even this very Gospel is evidence of what we are talking about. For here the Jewish leaders bear more responsibiiity for Jesus' death than the Roman Government. Consequently, down through history it has been the source of vicious and unbelieveable persecution of Jews, much of its ugly head revealed on Good Friday.

And in various ways we conveniently rationalize our decisions. We are sincere when we say, "It is too bad that in the economic readjustment that needs to happen, the poor have to suffer." We contemplate the fate of the refugees in similar fashion. "It's not their fault, but we just don't have any more room, nor any more jobs." And that is how Mr. Evil does his work - not in other people, but in me.

"If Russia would just be a Christian nation ..."

"If people wouldn't be so greedy ..."

"I don't want that people should suffer ..."

"It's too bad." "It is unfortunate." "I wish the world were not like this." "But since it is, this is probably the best way in the long run."

"It is expedient ..."

The Good Friday tragedy is the eternal reminder that evil is real, that Pilate is every person, and that the religious establishment is every person. The words in John 10:33 shed significant light on the Good Friday event: "We do not want to stone you because of any good deeds, but because of your blasphemy."

But the lesson of realism is not one of pessimism. John does not minimize the power of evil that put Jesus on the cross. Still, for him this is not the most important word and certainly not the last word from the cross.

For in John's description of thae crucifixion, evil did not win the day. Jesus did not die as victim, but as victor, not as a helpless sufferer, but as king. It is in this insight that John's carefully crafted Gospel and account of Jesus' death is so strikingly different from the other evangelists.

At each step of the way Jesus is in charge. His arrest is described in this fashion: "Jesus knew everything that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward and asked them, 'Who is it you are looking for?' 'Jesus of Nazareth,' they answered. 'I am he,' he said." That is not the response of a frightened person being dragged to the sacrifice!

Or again, consider how he responded to the charges by the high priest: "If I have said anything wrong, tell everyone here what it was. But if I am right in what I have said, why do you hit me?" One wonders who is really being questioned!

Once more, notice the direct words to Pilate: "You have authority over me only because it was given you by God." Not exactly the words of a helpless victim, would you say?

From John's perspective of the cross, Jesus is in charge. Each step of the way it is he who takes the initiative. He carries his own cross to the place of crucifixion. And there is no mention of any help or any stumbling along the way.

Friends, there is something more happening here than just an unfortunate accident. There is something more involved here than just bad timing by the forces of history. Nor is the cross of Christ simply the focusing point of demonic sin. That something more Jesus made very plain when he announced to his disciples, "No one takes my life from me, but I give it up of my own free will."

So the cross was not forced upon him. He willingly accepted it. He did not lose his life. He gave it. He was not killed. He chose to die.

But is that all that is going on here? A good person who is perhaps a deluded fanatic going willingly, knowingly and bravely to an agonizing death?

Early in the Gospel, John the Baptizer points up the purpose of it all when he points out the Christ and says, "There is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

And there you have the reason for the crucifixion.

But John is not content just to say it. In characteristic fashion he calls attention to our struggle with evil by highlighting it through such motifs as darkness versus light; seeing versus believing; judgment versus eternal life. In all these descriptive and helpful comparisons he never loses sight of the Cross. In John's Gospel the Cross has the center stage. The Cross is the hour that has "yet not come" but for which Jesus was preparing. This was the hour about which Jesus could say, "Father, save me from this hour," and yet in the same breath say, "For this cause I came to this hour."

This "hour" language vividly dramatizes the sense of divine purpose that had been the reason for Jesus' coming, and for his life. "I am telling you the truth," he says, "a grain of wheat remains no more than a single grain unless it is dropped into the ground and dies."

No, Jesus' death did not come about by chance or bad luck. Rather his death was the aim of his life. It is in this death that the real purpose of his life is revealed.

"The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

It is good news that John's Gospel builds this truth carefully and plainly. But it is also a central biblical truth. We can look to the Christmas story, where we hear the news, "You shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save the people from their sins;" or to the Apostle Paul, who preached to the Corinthians, "I delivered to you first of all that which I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures."

Here is the purpose of the Cross: the Good Shepherd giving his life for the sin of his people.

And that is why this Friday can be called "good." Here is the redeeming sacrifice. Here is the sacrificial Lamb. Here is the Good Shepherd who did not leave his flock, even in the face of death. This is what the cross is all about.

In these tragic events our God is at work. Against the dark background of evil the light of unbelieveable love shines forth. Yes, the enemies of God become the means by which his purpose is fulfilled.

"It is finished."

These are Jesus' last words before he died. They are a quiet statement of victory; Jesus is not just saying that his life is about to end, but with the ending of his life, his work is completed. Here is the announcement of the fulfillment of the purpose of this one called Jesus Christ. This is the Christ about whom John said, "Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to go to the Father. He had always loved those in the world who were his own, and he loved them to the very end."

My friends, this news is for you. It is for me. John, more than any other Gospel, wants to drive this point home. This is the tone and tenor of his entire Gospel, expressed most pointedly in his view of Jesus' death. The Cross is the focus of John's Gospel. And he, more than any other Evangelist, helps us to see the Cross through the mind and heart of God.

When you have doubts as to whether or not you are saved, open your Bible to John's account of the crucifixion and read the words, "It is finished." Everything has been done that needs to be done. When some well-meaning but misguided brother or sister hits you with the question, "Are you certain you are saved? Are you really sure?" here is your answer! It is not based on our faith, or feelings which can go up and down like a yo-yo, but on the certainty of Jesus Christ.

Many of us have trouble with this mysterious doctrine of atonement. That may be one reason too many of us are more comfortable with "cross slogans" than we are in trying to understand the various theories of why Jesus had to die. But there is clarity and simplicity in this announcement, "It is finished." Even I can understand that. So can you. This is not a theory. Nor an explanation. It is not a definition.

Here is the announcement, that a task has been completed, and a purpose fulfilled. "Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to go to the Father. He had always loved those in the world who were his own, and he loved them to the very end."

"It is finished."

One thing more. I know you are thinking about it, asking the question that started it all. What about the evil in our hearts? What about the hurts that eat away at us and the fears that overwhelm us and the pervading sense of futility that surrounds us? Is not this Good Friday message just another nice pep talk for Jesus?

We are here on this Good Friday not just because something has gone wrong, but because something has gone eternally right. The Cross of Christ was not an accident of history and its victim a helpless pawn. The Cross is the result of God's plan to do battle with the evil of the world and within us. At the cross he tells us that his Son won this war. Yes, we still have to fight some battles. But there is power here to do battle with the evil within us. There is love here that prompts us to question and change our self-serving solutions. Between this hour and the hour when we die, we can live by faith in his declared victory, "It is finished."

1.Durwood L. Buchheim, Augsburg Sermons 2 (Minneapolis, Augsburg Publishing House,1982), pp. 113-117.