I am reposting this article here for two reasons – it is the most sought after post on my blog (still!) AND Easter is coming! Fine time to think about … The True Meaning of the Cross! Here we go…
I am putting a link here that I want people to visit. This website is so deep! It is Biblical teaching at its best. I’ve been reading things about House Churches and the Biblical fear of God…. but it was the teaching on THE MEANING OF THE CROSS that made me put up this blog entry. (The above link opens a new window.)
God sent his son who lived a perfect life and then, according to the plan of God, they rejected Him, whipped Him etc and God looked at all Jesus’ suffering at the hands of men and considered that to be payment for all our sins against Him.
That is heresy. The deepest form of heresy. You can be wrong about a lot of things but if you are wrong about the cross you are in trouble.
What? Our common conception of what happened on the Cross is heresy? What does the Bible teach about the Cross, then?
God‘s word says that if anyone declares the sinner to be right when he is not right is an abomination before Him. So if God declared you to be right when you were not right, If God simply forgives the wicked, He would become an abomination, according to His own word. He would become wicked. Imagine a judge sitting up there in his place on the bench, forgiving a murderer and letting him go. He would no longer be a just judge.
God is a just judge and God justice demands he throw men in hell
Therefore if God is a just God He cannot forgive… He must punish the wicked, That is the point of the whole Bible. All through the Old Testament we see animals dying.. it is symbol and type of the final and ultimate sacrifice.
More excerpts ….
Perhaps it is becoming a little more clear as to why God had to die. If he justifies the wicked person and declares the sinner to be righteous He, according to His own word, becomes an abomination. God can not simply forgive.
The law… God law demands that the sinner has to die.
Now the only way that God can forgive sinful men is if God who made the law and God who demands satisfaction .. comes down Himself and pays the penalty.
So what are we saved from?
When some one says they have been saved, the question to be asked is saved from what? Many people will say from sin. This is simply not true! Sin was an act you did. Sin isn’t going to throw you in hell. You have sinned, but sin is not a living being that going to judge you then throw you into hell.
What you have been saved from is not a what, it is a who.
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, shall we be saved from the wrath of God through him. Romans 5:9. [Emphasis Added]
You have been saved from God. God is the judge of all the universe. YOU have sinned and made yourself an enemy of God. So when you stand before Him, He will judge you and throw you into hell.
Wow…. really…. never looked at it like that…. that’s – well, that’s true! ouch.
So we realize we have to be saved from God and His punishment, but how is that punishment to be done away with? When Jesus was dying on the cross it was not the nails in His hand, or the crown of thorns or the Roman spears that save you. The suffering that men heaped upon Jesus is not that which pays for the crime. God did not look on that suffering and okay Good Enough!. What paid for your sin is written in Isaiah 53:10 and 12
Yet it pleased Jehovah to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of Jehovah shall prosper in his hand.
Usually when you hear a sermon or preaching on Isaiah 53, it usually centers around verses 3,4,5, and six, which talk about the suffering heaped on Jesus by men. Very rarely do you hear about Isaiah 53:10.
It pleased the Lord to crush Him.
Isaiah goes on to say
“…[He] was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:12)
So how is the Cross the way of salvation?
How is it that that cross saves you? Because Jesus bore on the cross all the sin that God hates. The sin of all God’s people, from the first man ever saved on the face of the earth to the last man ever saved on the face of the earth was placed on His son.. the sins of all of God’s people. Everything that should be poured out on sinful creatures through out eternity, God throws down on His only begotten Son in a matter of moments. Crushes Him under the weight of His own justice.
When Jesus said let this cup pass from me, people think it because He did not want to go to the cross. They usually imagine it was the physical agony that He did not want to go through…
No, Jesus wasn’t thinking about nails in His hand, about spears and crowns of thorns or Roman soldiers. He was thinking about the fact that He had never been out of the Father’s bosom. That He had never been separated from His Father and now the Father was about to turn His face away from His Son. The Father did not turn His face away because He did not want to see His son suffering, He turned His face away Because His son had become detestable. Which is why Matthew 27:46 tells us..
“About the ninth hour [3:00 PM] Jesus cried out [quoting Psalm 22:1] with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, Lama sabachthani?’ that is ‘My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?'”
You and I deserved to be crushed with the hammer of justice, to be crushed under God’s wrath. But in order to save us He was crushed under His own wrath. That is what the Cross is. That is what it means. If you ever fully realize what happened that day, it will affect you for the rest of your life. You will never be able to get away from it.
Wow. Lord, Jesus…..
And so, the conclusion:
And if the day comes that you stand before this Holy God who is about to pass judgment on you without having your sins paid for by His Son, then be afraid, be very afraid, as the wrath which made Jesus say ‘let this cup pass from me’ is about to descend on your shoulders.
Remember that when you hear about Jesus dying for you, you know now that it is more than just some whips. While one cannot possibly depreciate the physical suffering it was nothing compared to the Son of God being crushed by His own Father. Comparatively those whips were nothing. And when He cried out “It is Finished” that meant ‘Paid In Full’. If you are a Christian, God can never pour out His wrath on you. It is impossible because His son drank it. It does not exist anymore. There is no more punishment left for you. But if you are not a Christian you don’t even want to know what awaits you..
Why did Jesus die on a Roman cross? He died for the sins of ungodly mankind, to save us from the wrath of God, and to make peace between us and God. “Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Romans 5:1).
It was a long post… and there’s much more to that article…. but … I’m speechless.
If you are reading this right now, and you have been impacted by these excerpts, or this article, and you don’t yet know Jesus – if you would like to escape God’s wrath and become a positive son of God because Jesus paid your price in full…. say this prayer with me.
Father God, I recognize now what you have done in the Cross. I acknowledge that I have sinned and deserve your punishment. However, I recognize that Jesus has paid for my sins with his own blood… and all I have to do is receive him. I turn away from my sins now, and accept what Jesus’ blood has bought for me – my life! I repent of my sins, and say to you, “I want to be a new creature in Christ.” Thank you Jesus! Amen
If you have prayed this prayer…. respond to me by posting a comment. If you have been impacted, share the site with others.
Filed under: Bible Study, Christianity, devotional, links, Uncategorized | Tagged: Christianity, Easter, ponderings, true meaning of the cross, what is the cross, who is Jesus, why did Jesus die | 3 Comments »
The Hand of God 