The LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6
During His three years of ministry Jesus did so much good. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and spoke the greatest words that this world has ever heard.
He did so much good in three years of ministry. Think what He could have done in thirty! Yet, Jesus told His disciples repeatedly that He came to die. What could Jesus accomplish by dying that He could not accomplish by living?
Jesus Christ came into the world because there is a future catastrophe that we need saving from. He died as a sacrifice, and in the great love and mercy of God, our sins were laid on Him. Bearing our sins meant that Jesus bore our punishment. This is what was happening at the cross: “Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace…” (53:5).
You may wonder How can one man bear the sins of many? How can His hell on the cross remove my eternal destruction? The weight of our sin is measured by the One who is offended. The value of His sacrifice is measured by the One who is offered.
On the cross, Christ was punished for our sins, and He was shut out from the presence of God. That’s why He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Christ endured everything hell is… on the cross. He entered hell so that you would never know what it is like.
Do you think Jesus would have accomplished more by: Dying on the cross for our sins? Or living, teaching, and ministering for another 30 years, and then dying peacefully? Why?
