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Why the Cross ?
All the Bible's
teaching points to the death of Jesus. Neither
his perfect life nor his marvelous teaching nor
his powerful miracles are the focus of the
Bible's message. These are all
important, but above all else Jesus came into
the world to die. What makes his death so
important? The answer is that he died as a
Substitute, a Sin-bearer and a Savior.
Jesus the
Substitute. This demonstrates the love of
God. Sinners are guilty, lost and helpless in
the face of God's holy law, which demands
punishment for every sin. How can they possibly
escape God's righteous wrath? The Bible's answer
is this: God demonstrates his own love for us
in this: While we were still sinners, Christ
died for us. As part of an amazing rescue
plan God the Son volunteered to take the place
of sinners and bear the just penalty for their
sin. The sinless Son of God willingly suffered
and died for them, the righteous for the
unrighteous.
Jesus the
Sin-bearer. This demonstrates the holiness
of God. There was nothing 'faked' about Christ's
death. The penalty for the sins of others was
paid in full by the death of God's
sinless Son. As he hung on the cross he cried
out, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?' At that terrible moment God the Father
turned his back on his beloved Son, who then
endured the penalty of separation from God.
Notice how this shows God's perfect holiness.
All sin, every sin, must be punished - and when
Jesus took the place of sinners he became as
accountable for their sins as if he had been
responsible for them. The one man who lived a
perfect life suffered the double death penalty
of the guilty.
Jesus the
Savior. This demonstrates the power of God.
Three days after his death, Christ was
declared with power to be the Son of God by his
resurrection from the dead. He gave many
convincing proofs that he was alive and he
cannot die again; death no longer has mastery
over him. In raising Christ from the dead,
God powerfully demonstrated that he accepted his
death in the place of sinners as the full and
perfect payment of sin's penalty and as the
basis on which he can offer a full and free
pardon to those who would otherwise be doomed to
spend eternity in hell.
But how does all
this apply to you? How can you get right with
God? How can Christ become your Savior?
All words in italic type (other than book
titles) are quotations from the Bible.
 
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