Christ says He laid His life down of His own accord.
Jesus Christ, fully God-fully man, the second person of the Trinity, died as a man.
How can God die? Jesus' deity did not die but His humanity did. How is this possible? How did this happen? It is startling. It is mysterious.
But even more so than that, Christ shouts on the cross "My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?"
The two english definitions of the word are as follows.
To give up (something formerly held dear); renounce
To leave altogether; abandon
God the Father turned His face away from the Son because our sin was laid on Him and God cannot look on sin. It is our sin that separates us from God. It separates us from God's presence. It separates us from His face. And it was our Sin that separated Christ from the Father's face, for we are told that "He who knew no sin became sin for us" and "He bore our sins in His body on the tree"
"Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed."
Jesus Christ died for our sins in accordance to the scriptures. He died for our sins. He died because of our sins. Christ died for us. The wages of sin is death. Adam would have never died if he had not sinned. Christ the God-Man would never have died if our sins were never laid on Him. He laid his life down for us. He died for our sins.
We must not think that Jesus was killed because He was just a controversial prophet. We must not think that Jesus died only because people hated Him. He died for sinners! He died for our sins!
"Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people."
Propitiation means- the act of atoning for sin or wrongdoing (especially appeasing a deity) (that is princeton's definition by the way).
"Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand."
"He [who] did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all"
And Christ did not sin in all of this. Though He sweat drops of blood before He was nailed to the cross. He walked through the valley of the shadow of death and feared no evil. Christ had perfect faith. He never sinned on the cross.
I can't help but think of this passage "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him"
This is the kind of faith Christ had. He knew He must take the cup of suffering before Him. He said Not as He willed but as God willed.
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Though God was completely separated from Christ on the cross, Christ never lost His hope in God. He never lost His joy in God. He did not once sin. Separated from God, yet He still trusted in, loved, hoped in, even delighted in God perfectly. Just like the psalmist (in 44) God hides his face but the psalmist proclaims "In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever."
What a display! Look at how God hates sin! But yet, look at how God loves us!
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.
Look at the cross of Christ! Look to Christ. Only there will your heart melt. Only there will you truly cry "I have sinned!" and only there will you find your salvation!
What a mystery. Christ took our punishment and died because He loves us. That is amazing. Only God could do that. Only God would do that. Look at what He has done. Praise the Risen Lamb all you peoples! Turn to the Risen Lamb of God!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrtgrU_uo9s&feature=related
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