Because a Sinless Savior Died...

Yesterday marked the beginning of Passion week leading up to Easter. This also happens to coincide with the Jewish holiday of Passover. If you are interested, watch this sermon on Jesus, the Passover Lamb, from church a couple of weeks ago. Dave did a great job of explaining the Passover and how Jesus, the Lamb of God, fulfills this Old Testament feast.

At LateChurch yesterday the pastor encouraged us all to really try to understand and think on the crucifixion of Christ. What does the cross mean? We wear crosses around our necks and decorate with them, but in the 1st century, it was a symbol of an excruciatingly painful death, that only criminals suffered. Why did Jesus have to die? Why did Jesus have to suffer, not only physically but spiritually and emotionally? What does it mean that he bore my sins, my sorrow, my guilt and my shame?What does it mean that he bore the wrath of God?

These are all questions I am pondering this week. I know the answers to many of them, but I have devoted this week to really think on them. I want to grasp the full extent of the love that God has given me through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's because of his blood that was shed as the passover lamb, that I can live freely and eternally. I have peace because Christ bore God's wrath. Because God is a holy, just and righteous God, he can not tolerate sin. Therefore someone had to pay. Because of his unfathomable love for me and this broken sinful world, he destined his Son to suffer and bear the sins of everyone. My debt to sin was paid in full when Jesus said, "It is finished." I will never ever ever understand why he loves me this much, but I will forever praise him for it!

"This is love: not that [I] loved God, but that He loved [me] and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for [my] sins." - 1 John 4:10

I'll leave you with this, "Because a sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free. For God the just is satisfied, to look on Him and pardon me!"