In my childhood, I never knew what Good Friday was all about. Overshadowed by Easter Bunny anticipation, I knew it had something to do with Jesus dying, but I sure didn’t know why He died.
Now, the death of Jesus Christ has become more significant to me. Speaking to a group of teens at Teen Ranch’s horse camp last summer, I used this analogy…

As competitors, we’ve got to play by the rules. Let’s say I got caught breaking the prohibited drug rules – whether by accident or intentionally, no doubt about it, I was guilty. What if the president of the association gave me a pardon, going so far as to pay my fine and take my suspension for me? Mercy!

Good Friday is a remembrance that Jesus Christ died, paying the penalty of my imperfections, which separate me from a perfect holy God, so that I can have a relationship with Him.