Why would it take a life, displayed in public, beaten and tortured for what "HE claimed" was for our sins to be washed away and the perfect Lamb was slain.......Thats a high cost and the price was paid, what did the blood of Jesus save us from???
When you dig into this, it turns out to be much bigger than we think. And I suspect our fumbling attempts to explain probably don't come close to the full answer. There are even some real puzzles created by the way we commonly answer. Certainly I still have lots of questions.
But my super-short answer is "
ourselves, and the direction we were heading."
Some things that need to be juggled to fit the answer:
1. Paul confirms that we were "dead in our sins." Jesus also makes it clear we were dead when he told Nicodemus that we must be born again - spiritually. This implies that Jesus didn't die "instead of us." We were already dead. He gave up his life in order to identify with us in our death. (He lay down his life, nobody, not even Satan, took it from him!).
2. The greatest enemy of all is death (which has many symbolic meanings as well as the well-know biological and spiritual ones). Death could not be defeated by "not dying." Simply staying alive is no proof that death has been cheated or defeated. Jesus had to "descend into death" in order to defeat death by resurrection. Jesus lay down his life, and he took it up again. Satan could not hold him. So we have the evidence that death has been defeated. This is the fundamental core of the Christian faith (otherwise, says Paul, we are guilty of the worst kind of self-deception and christian belief is a farce).
3. Forgiveness doesn't exist under the law. The legalists say every sin must be paid for if God is to be just. As long as the sin has been paid for, it doesn't matter who pays for it, goes the logic. But if the sin is paid for, there is no need or place for forgiveness. Forgiveness by its very meaning says that the sin doesn't need to be paid for in the sense stated. So this again implies that Jesus didn't die to pay for our sins
in this sense. (The scriptures are clear that Christ died for us, I don't deny that, but this phrase can be understood in different ways. He couldn't reconcile us to God, nor recompense God for the consequences of our sins, or even be an acceptable mediator for us, if he hadn't become a man and shared our death. That's several reasons for dying for us and because of our sins (and specifically for their consequences to the relationship), without "dying instead of us.") The Scriptures say that when we confess our sins to God he in in fact
just and faithful in forgiving our sins (and to cleanse us from all unrightesousness).
4. Jesus came to give us life, and to give it abundantly. But abundant life is found only in relationship with God, who made us for this very purpose. Saying "I forgive you" does not in itself restore a relationship. It is fundamental to the process, but it is not enough, as everybody knows who has hurt someone else severely and wants to rebuild the relationship. Being forgiven doesn't deal with all the consequences of our wrong doing. If I have defamed someone publicly, and then am forgiven by that person, the public defamation is still out there and the damage is done. If I want to restore a close 'loving' relationship those consequences must be dealt with. So there is also an element of restitution that I must undertake.
4. When it comes to reconciliation with God and restitution, there is
absolutely nothing I can bring "to the table." Every single thing I ever had I received ultimately from him. He has already told me that all my good works are as dirty rags in comparison with what he expects of me, and has already given me. So the only hope I have is accepting Jesus' offer to
be my reconciliation, my reconcilitor, my mediator, and my restitution. In his death he identified with us, and he invites us to identify with him in his resurrection. He is our mediator, constantly going to bat for us, representing us, defending us, pleading for us, at the throne of Grace. So it is God would purefies and cleans us from all nastiness, healing, mending, and guiding us to be all he meant us to be.
God is love. In his love he forgave us. In his love for us, but also for his Son Jesus, he accepts Jesus as our mediator, as our advocate, as our representative. Jesus is the window between earth and heaven. When we want to look through the window to see God, it is Jesus we see. And when God looks through the window to see us, it is Jesus he sees because we are "in him." We have allied ourselves to him, we have identified with him. Jesus had to lay down his life to accomplish all of this. And having now identified with him it is only appropriate that I live (abundantly) as a living sacrifice for him.
What does that mean? simply, self-denial (dying to self) - putting him first. Living
in him. In this way allowing the Spirit to transform me from my innermost being out, to become the
fully human person he intended and equiped me to be, to be like him. We were created
'by and for him.' If I submit myself to him I am garanteed to live abundantly. In the here and now.
He came to save me from myself, and the wonderful irony is that I will only find myself fully by living for him and not for myself.
So... while it is always sobering to realise and think on what we are saved from, perhaps we should spend proportionately more time and effort on thinking and acting on what we are saved
for.
Thank you SP, for posing the question...I hope I haven't been too 'over the top' in trying to answer. No doubt there are readers who won't agree with some of the things I've written. That's OK. I don't have all the explanations, and may be someone else will be good enough to add to my understanding. There's a huge amount I
didn't say!
blessings! / Monna
