A Horrible Death - A Necessary Sacrifice

Listen to the Holy Spirit-inspired words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 3, “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3 shares with us the very reason Jesus’ sacrifice was necessary. Apart from the cross of Christ and His atoning death, not one person can be declared righteous. In other words, there is only one way to become a child of God—through the blood of the Jesus Christ! (John 14:6). Good works and moral actions will not earn God’s favor. This inevitable truth remains: every person sins, and a sinner cannot enter the presence of holy God. We need a sacrifice to atone for our sin! The shedding of Christ’s blood on the cross made it possible for anyone to be cleansed of sin thereby creating a relationship with the Creator. The basic requirement to begin our walk with Jesus is by trusting Jesus as Savior and by surrendering ourselves to Him in baptism. You see, for God to be just, He must remain true to His own principles. His holiness dictated that “the soul who sins will die” (Ezek. 18:4). The penalty for sin—namely, death—had to be paid in a way that was acceptable to God. He explained through Moses why a blood sacrifice was required: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement” (Lev. 17:11). A life must be given for a life to be spared. On that basis, the heavenly Father provided a perfect sinless sacrifice for all mankind. The only way God’s justice could be satisfied and His holiness could be maintained was for Jesus Christ to take our guilt and sin upon Himself and die in our place. When we say that there is only one way to the Father, we mean that a person must believe Jesus Christ IS the only way to the Father. Have you committed your life to Him?




Have a blessed day and remember the One who gave it to you! Kevin