He Himself bore our sins in His body on
the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness;
by His wounds you have been healed (1 Peter 2:24).
Here are 2 concepts that occupy my mind as I
meditate with wonder, the cross of Christ this Easter weekend:
Q#1) Why did Jesus allow Himself to be crucified?
The One hanging on the Cross was He who spoke the entire cosmos
into being by the power of His voice. The creative work of the Triune God was
accomplished through the Son. Of Christ the Apostle John declares in the
prologue to his gospel: All things were
made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made (John 1:3).
So, here’s the thing: the Voice that from nothing created mass, energy, design, function, purpose, time and motion – that same Voice in a single word could have annihilated those nailing Him to the cross. But although the temptation in the face of that angry, sneering, contemptuous, and violent provocation must have been maximally extreme – with every slash of the whip, every blow of the mallet – He chose to meekly and patiently submit to that ignominious suffering and death by crucifixion for our salvation.
That Voice triumphantly declared, “It is finished!”
We could have been liberated no other way.
Q#2) Why did my sin demand
such an exorbitant price?
Even the word sin seems archaic, a term we don’t hear outside of church or biblical conversations.
However, it is spiritually healthy for me – I have a growing need – to comprehend how abhorrent, loathsome, and odious is my moral failure to the One who is the personification of justice, goodness, beauty, and righteous light.
Too often, God is thought of as the angry neighbor down the
street.
Years ago, we had a someone like that living next door. He appeared to always be watching for opportunities to express his indignation – to physically display his wrath – with the neighborhood kids.
But the more we understand the absolute wonder of who God is,
the better we understand His absolute righteousness (justice + truth + beauty),
and by contrast, how perversely evil we are.
Sin is described in the Bible as polluting, corrupting,
defacing, desecrating and rendering ugly that which was originally beautiful.
It is a horrendous debt that can never be paid.
It causes me to damage most those I love best.
So how could – why would – Christ, the perfect Lamb of God who had never once succumbed even momentarily to temptation of any kind, bear my sin, let alone the sin of the world?
The Lord Jesus achieved what, in many ways, was parallel to a
cosmic prisoner swap; we were transferred from darkness to light.
For He has rescued us from
the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son
He loves in whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:13,14).
In His execution, He appeared to be passive, a victim; but he
was actively achieving eternal victory as Christus
Victor!
He proclaimed death to what destroys us. He introduced a fresh,
transformative start.
Our bent to breaching God’s law is replaced by a hunger for justice.
His wounds bring my healing.
His death brought me life, eternally.
The Perfect One who personified absolute purity became sin for
us, our Substitute.
And the salvation transaction to any individual is triggered by
repentant faith.
That is the Gospel: Christ in my place.
Takeaway: My sin is sufficiently
grievous as to necessitate the Sacrifice of infinite worth.
We who personified hypocrisy and failure and were characterized
by absolute brokenness, are now recognized by God as being in Christ: forgiven,
liberated, redeemed, whole and righteous.
Do you live in the glow of that truth this Easter weekend?
graphic by ChatGPT
this post last appeared in April 2022
