Jesus' crucifixion

 It was certainly a dark day in the history of humankind. Jesus, God in the flesh, hung nailed to a wooden cross.

How did this come about? After all, Jesus proclaimed a message of God’s love. He healed sick people. He delivered those who were controlled by demons. He fed the multitudes. He taught truth and offered hope. Why would anyone want to kill a man like this?

To be sure, Jesus didn’t die because of His own sins. He was sinless. Instead, Jesus died to take our sins away. While we might want to blame Jesus' enemies or the Roman soldiers who actually carried out the act of crucifixion, we know that ultimately we are each responsible for Jesus' death. Our sins, coupled with His love for us, compelled Jesus to die on the cross.

John 10.17-18 reveals an interesting perspective on Jesus' crucifixion. Jesus said, “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life, only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” While the crucifixion was a tragic day in history, it was also the fulfilment of a plan that began way back in eternity.

So, what did Jesus' crucifixion accomplish? Jesus' death paved the way for us to establish a personal relationship with God. First Peter 3.18 tells us, “Christ died for sins, once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” Our sins have separated us from God. While we’d like to think that God could simply overlook our sins, God’s attribute of justice demands a payment, a punishment for sin. He can’t simply wink at our sins and walk away. However, God loves us too much to leave us stranded in our sins. That’s why He sent His Son, Jesus. Jesus died for our sins to bring us back into fellowship with God.

The crucifixion doesn’t make sense to the unbelieving mind. In 1 Corinthians 1.23-24, Paul described the cross of Jesus Christ as a “stumbling block” and “foolishness” to unbelievers, but to those who believe in Jesus the cross is “the power of God.”

Is it any wonder, then, that the Bible describes our faith with Jesus Christ as crucifixion? Galatians 2.20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Jesus died on a cross to pay for my sins. When I receive Jesus as my Saviour, I accept His crucifixion. In essence, I'm saying that my old life of sin was nailed to Jesus' cross. Now I can live a new life of faith and obedience to Jesus. Is the cross foolishness to you, or have you staked your life to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ? Why not turn to Him today?