Easter is now behind us, but the meaning and memory of what happened will always be with us! Adam’s sin separated us from God, yet in God’s goodness and love for us, He restored us through giving up His one and only Son! Easter has never been about colorful Easter eggs. It’s always been about hope, renewal,
and the triumph over sin, death, and evil!
How often do we, as men, consider the significance of what Christ went through before the Resurrection so that we, the children of God, may spend eternity in Heaven with our Father?
Jesus didn’t just die on the cross for our sins, He had to pay the penalty for the sins of ALL men. God, in His infinite love for us, sent His Son to pay the penalty for every sin ever committed by you, me, and every other human being. Seldom do we consider the extent of His love for us and the events leading up to the actual nailing of Him on the cross!
The sacrifice of Jesus, God’s sin offering, accomplished two crucial things for us as believers: First, it cleansed us of the penalty of sin, which is death, and secondly, it cleared us of any wrongdoing in the eyes of God. Essentially, Christ took our place and bore the penalty for our sins, which would have otherwise resulted in our separation from God. Furthermore, His sacrifice opened the door for believers to spend eternity with Him. The penalty that had to be paid by our Savior was enormous. It included all sins committed by people, from murder and lying to lust, drug abuse, gambling, pornography, adultery, and any other sin imaginable. Our Savior, Who had no sin, needed to take on every act so that His children may be made righteous in His eyes.
2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Consider both His sacrifice and the consequences of what He did in taking our place! Christ, as our sin-bearer, walked through ten things which led up to the cross, and shed light on how significant the sin payment was.
- He was shackled!
- He was whipped! The whip wasn’t your ordinary whip. It contained metal nails. He was beaten with 39 stripes. Many believe that whipping alone may kill a man.
- He carried or dragged His cross for a third of a mile, which some say weighed 165 pounds. The wood’s splinters would have created bloody, worn shoulders.
- Despite being a King, Jesus wore a crown of thorns, with 60 to 70 thorns an inch long pressing against His head and entering His forehead. Blood and sweat streamed into His eyes as He carried the cross.
- He was spat upon, struck on the head repeatedly, and mocked!
- He carried a cross not downhill, but on rocky streets of different elevations. If He dropped to His knees, it was only to stone, which would have created open sores on His knees and legs.
- His hands and feet, which were nailed to the cross before being propped up, would have torn His flesh as the cross was dropped into the hole.
- For about six hours, He hung on the cross, subjected to scorn, insults, soldiers drawing lots for His clothes, and the anguish of blood, sweat, and heat.
- As He hung on the cross, every breath would have been a challenge, often forcing Him to push up with His nailed feet to take a breath.
- Soldiers repeatedly struck Him.
The Sin penalty that Jesus took on Himself was not only painful, but the ridicule leading up to His death was significant as well. He took every sin that you and I have done in the past and future to the Cross! He stepped into our place!
At the moment He died, a great earthquake occurred, and the temple curtain was torn in two, representing that there was no longer separation between God and man—our sins no longer separated us from God! When Jesus died, our sins were washed away, and the penalty was paid! And on the third day, when Jesus rose from the grave, death no longer had power over us!
Jesus paid the penalty of sin and conquered death in His resurrection! The significance of our Savior’s sacrifice is that, first, God no longer sees us as sinners—He sees us as saints! Second, when we take our last breath on earth, we will open our eyes in Heaven! Without Jesus, we were separated from God as sinners. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we are now saints, no longer separated!
Despite Easter being behind us, God’s goodness is never in the rearview mirror. What Jesus did leading up to His being hung on the cross—the pain, rejection, death, and Resurrection now means we who believe in Jesus as our Savior have the same victory! Our past is forgiven, and as new men, we walk out our future in victory with Christ!
Stephen L. Thomas