The King Who Came to Die

 

The cover story was hard for me to resist: In Search of the Real Jesus.

And so against my better judgment, I picked up the magazine and began thumbing through.

I mean, what else do you do in the checkout lane if you’ve left your phone in the car?

Hmm. The Real Jesus, I said to myself. Let’s find out what unbelievers have discovered about our Lord and Savior that apparently the Bible has left out. 🙂

And here’s the religious studies expert’s bottom line:

Jesus was a misunderstood revolutionary who was executed because of His good work.

Uh, no.

Not according to the Bible.

The Scriptures say quite the opposite: Jesus wasn’t killed for His good work; it was His good work to be killed.

He came to die.

That was The Plan from the start—like even before the start.

Listen to how John describes Him in the Book of Revelation:

Jesus is “the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world” (13:8).

In other words, the sacrificial death of God’s Only Begotten had always been in the works, even before the earth was formed.

So when readers get to the part in the story where it seems like the bad guys are winning, everyone can know:

Nothing has gone wrong; there was no “mistake” or sudden turn of events that has taken the Son by surprise.

The Real Jesus knew who He was and what He came to do:

“We’re going to Jerusalem where I’ll be handed over to the authorities and sentenced to die” (Matthew 20:18). “They will mock Him, spit on Him, flog Him with a whip, and kill Him, but after three days He will rise again” (Mark 10:34).

It wasn’t going to be easy, but He knew what had to be done in order to save us.

Listen to what He says a few days before the Cross:

“Now my soul is deeply troubled. Should I pray, ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, for this is the very reason I came” (John 12:27)!

Jesus is in charge.

And when Pilate boasts that he has the power to either release Him or have him crucified, Jesus corrects him:

Actually you don’t have the power—heaven has that power (John 19:11).

He wanted every one to know:

“No one takes My life from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again” (John 10:18).

So when the evil perpetrators seem to win, we know the truth—they’ve lost big time.

As Jesus throws the fight, as it were, salvation is made possible for the entire world.

Now God can offer forgiveness, reconciliation and everlasting life to “whosoever believes in Him.”

And here’s why.

He was pierced for our transgressions,
    He was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on Him,
    and by His wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on Him
    the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:5-6).

The wages of sin is death–and so, if justice prevails (and it must), someone has to pay for those sins.

And the Savior says to every sinning soul: Allow Me! 

And even though He knew all about the suffering that would entail, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t terrifying.

Listen to what He said on that awful night:

“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me” (Matthew 26:38).

Sweat drops of blood—that’s a kind of stress we can’t comprehend.

But He seems to have had mixed feelings about the ordeal to come.

“For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (12:2) .

Joy knowing He could save us.

Revulsion at the thought of being crucified.

But something made Him determined to go through with it.

Love—a love the Bible calls “beyond comprehension” (Ephesians 3:19).

He’d rather endure unspeakable torture than to imagine heaven without you and me.

WE were the joy set before Him that persuaded Him to drink the cup He begged His Father to take from Him (Luke 22:42).

Needing a shot of “feel good” this Christmastime?

Need some motivation to continue to deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow Him?

You are the reason Jesus came; you’re the reason He did what He did.

You are the joy that was set before Him.