Torn in Two

As I remember Good Friday and reflect on the events told in Scripture that day, one keeps sticking out in my mind. As Jesus hung on the cross--paying our sin debt in full--darkness filled the earth for three hours as the Father turned away from his Only Begotten. Then when Jesus cried out "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit" (Luke 23:46) and breathed his last breath, something very miraculous happened in the temple.

Matthew 27:51 says--And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom...This wasn't just any curtain. This was the curtain between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. No one was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place behind the curtain except the high priest, and then only once a year on the Day of Atonement (Hebrews 9:2-7) when sacrifices were offered to God for forgiveness of sins. The curtain itself was 60 feet high and 30 feet wide and was constructed of an elaborate weave of 72 twisted plaits of 24 threads each. Tearing this curtain was practically impossible from a physical standpoint. Yet at the very moment that Jesus' sacrificial death occurred, this seemingly indestructible curtain was torn in two.

The significance of the curtain being torn in two is the foundational benefit of our relationship with God. Through Jesus' perfect once-and-for-all sacrifice for sins, there is no need for a mediator priest to enter into the Most Holy Place for us. Jesus is our high priest. He entered the Most Holy Place and secured our redemption. There is no longer a curtain between us and the Father. The sin that broke our perfect relationship with him is forgiven. Forever. We are clean and sinless in His eyes. The separation that existed between God and his people was removed. Permanently.

Jesus Christ secured our future and our eternal destiny on Calvary on the day we remember as Good Friday. Yet because the curtain is torn in two, we have unlimited, uninterrupted access to our Heavenly Father. Right here, right now. And that makes today a very Good Friday.