I remember Tony Campolo telling the story of a preaching competition. An odd concept to a get one's head around. He talked about his contribution and then he told the story of the preacher that followed him.
His message was simple, it had to be because time was limited. He kept returning to a simple phrase as he spoke. "It's Friday," he would say, "but Sunday's coming!"
I can't think about Good Friday without thinking about Easter Sunday. And I'm not in the mood to think otherwise! with all our traditions we might just be in danger of forgetting that Friday can only make sense in the light of Sunday. Resurrection is the vindication of the message of the cross. Jesus did not die for political or religious reasons, he died for eternal reasons. Our faith is a 'both and' faith, the cross and the resurrection.
So today, I will celebrate both these things. If Jesus had not died, there would be no forgiveness of sin, if he were not raised then there would be no hope of new beginnings.
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