The Friday Necessity: Why Sunday Needs the Cross

I’ve been sitting with Holy Week lately. This time last year, I was focused on the "grandeur of His grace"—the sweeping joy of liberation and the victory of an empty tomb.

But this year feels different.

While I’m eager for the "Hallelujah" of Resurrection Sunday, I feel a deep conviction to first count the cost. Sacrifice is never clean; it is rarely achieved without real discomfort, emotional expense, or physical agony.

In Luke 23, we see a striking irony. Pilate and Herod—men of the world—found no basis for the charges against Jesus. Yet, the very people who should have recognized the King of Kings were the ones demanding His blood. Despite the betrayal, and despite having twelve legions of angels at His beck and call (Matt 26:53), Jesus didn’t flinch. He was not operating on His own will but on the will of His Father. 

So, he sacrificed. He endured being denied, spat on, wrongly accused, and eventually murdered. Read that sentence seven times. Consider what He did on our behalf.

I know Sunday is coming, but I’ve realized I need Friday. I need to sit at the foot of the cross and lament. That sorrow is what gives the Sunday victory its shape.

This week, I invite you to meditate on Luke 23. Don't rush to the empty tomb just yet. Consider the cost. I believe it will lead us into deeper worship—one purely for His Name and His Renown (Isaiah 26:8).

May His Grace be continually on you,

Jeff Dumo, Worship Minister

Questions for Reflection & Meditation

• The Cost of Silence: In Luke 23, we see Jesus remain largely silent in the face of false accusations. Is there an area of your life where you are struggling to "surrender your rights" or your reputation to God’s will?

  
  

• The "Friday" Necessity: We often want the joy of the Resurrection without the grief of the Crucifixion. Why is it difficult for you to "sit at the Cross and lament"? What do you fear you might find in that silence?

  
  

• The Substitute: Read Luke 23:24-25. Pilate released Barabbas—a murderer and rebel—and handed Jesus over to be executed. In what ways does seeing yourself as "Barabbas" change how you view Jesus’ sacrifice this week?

  
  

• Worship for His Renown: How does meditating on the physical and emotional price Jesus paid shift your focus from "what God can do for me" to "what can I do for God"?