Christ died – this is the wonder of Calvary Crucifixion was common in the first century There was nothing unusual about it The wonder of this crucifixion was not the act but the person. Christ died.
What’s more, He left this world as He entered it – holy, harmless, sinless, undefiled.
Christ’s death was for sins and it was for the unrighteous.
“He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities…” (Isaiah 53:5).
“…Christ died for the ungodly…” (Romans 5:6).
These verses declare the great Biblical doctrine of the substitutional death of Jesus atoning for sin. But what does it all mean at a personal level?
It means that my deceit, pride, envy, jealousy, and the rest of my sins, all of which condemn me to hell, Jesus takes upon Himself. He takes my guilt and He is punished for me. This is what the Bible teaches.
“If the death of Jesus Christ sanctifies all them for whom it was a sacrifice; does purge away their sin; redeem them from wrath, curse, and guilt; does work for them peace and reconciliation with God; procure for them life and immortality; bearing their iniquities and healing all their diseases; – then died he only for those that are in the end sanctified, purged, redeemed, justified, freed from wrath, delivered from death, made alive and saved.”
John Owen, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ.
Christ died for sins once and for all. It was a once and for all act. It was not repeatable because it was 100% successful.
This man made one sacrifice for sin forever.
The success was assured because it was planned by the Omnipotent, Sovereign God. When Jesus said on the Cross ” It is finished,” He meant that everything necessary for the fulfilment of God’s loving purpose was accomplished in His death.
By His death on the Cross Jesus dealt with:
- The guilt of our sin because He took it upon Himself.
The wrath of God because He became the object of God’s holy wrath for us appeasing divine justice.
The sinful nature of man because the cross makes it possible for God to remain just and yet exonerate sinners.
Faith in what Jesus has done credits us in spite of our sin with the righteousness of Jesus.
All this is not only possible but certain for those who believe because Christ died and that death has reconciled us with God.
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