what's so 'good' about good friday

While on our return trip from Mumbai heading for Delhi, we were sharing our berth (the name of the area in a train car with the sleeping beds) with this family - Husband, wife, daughter, and wife's brother. They were Jains and the husband was an astrologer, but both he and the brother-in-law (who was obviously the head of this family) were well educated - even in Christian things. While talking, the conversation began with what we were doing in Mumbai and made its way to what we believe, religiously speaking. The wife, mostly talking to Gretchen and I (and really only Gretchen because she was much more comfortable speaking Hindi than English ... though she did spend about an hour helping me with my Hindi alphabet and vocabulary), asked, "You are Christians, right?" Our affirmative gave her the opportunity to share what she thought were the basic aspects. And she was relatively correct. She knew about God, creator, and Jesus, died and risen; she knew that that day was called Palm Sunday; she knew Easter was coming; she even knew Good Friday was right before Easter. Gretchen (in Hindi ... amazing how God provides the words when you are willing to open your mouth) began to share the gospel with her. Her husband and daughter also listened intently. As Gretchen was explaining about Good Friday, her husband jumped in with "but he rose". So then the wife asked a very important question, "What's so good about Good Friday? Because Jesus died, didn't he?"
We spent Palm Sunday in Mumbai before getting on this train in the evening (which we almost missed - at the wrong train station; 15 minutes to get across town at 5:20pm; ran to the train platform and jumped onto the moving train that had started to depart ... but that is for another story). During our devotional time, we discovered that the palms in Palm Sunday really have very little to do with the story. So what should we call this day then? How about "Return of the King" Sunday (any Lord of the Ring fans?) I like it.
So back to Good Friday. Unlike "Return of the King" Sunday, I do not believe that we should or need to rename this pivotal day. It was indeed a "good" Friday when Christ was crucified, and it is a "good" Friday when we remember this sacrifice. The good is most definitely shrouded with the sorrow of death and of perceived failure. The good can be masked by broken hopes and dreams of the coming king that should have saved and redeemed Israel. The good can seem so dark when the light of Life went out. Good does not have to be pretty or happy or peaceful.
But how good is our Lord who was able to say, "I will do this, not because I want to, but because it is your will, Father." And all of this for us. How good is this sacrifice that salvation and redemption and freedom is bought for us all. Thank you Jesus, the sacrificial Lamb of God, for doing that which we are unable to do. Thank you Sovereign God that Christianity says, "it is done" and "there is nothing that we can do to save ourselves; it is already taken care of." Amen?