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Jesus Died For You
"But God demonstrates His own
love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us."
Romans 5:8(NASB)
Sometimes it's easy to look at Jesus' death on
the cross in a distant, removed way that, while
acknowledging it as an important event in history,
obscures its personal, eternal purpose. It's one thing
to say Jesus died so that sinners might have the
opportunity of eternal life. It's quite another to say
"Jesus died for me, a sinner." When we look closely at
why Jesus died we will see that Jesus' death is only one
half of the story. The other half lies squarely in our
corner.
When we think of those who would lay down their
life for another, a few people come to mind; the soldier
who would jump on a grenade to save his fellow soldiers;
the Secret Service agent who would jump in a bullet's
path to save the President; the police officer who would
draw a criminal's fire to save a victim. In each case,
the life of one is nobly given so that others may live.
Jesus, in dying for us, did just the opposite - He died
that we may also die.
That doesn't sound right...
Confused?
You're in good company! A man named Nicodemus came
to Jesus one night and Jesus told him that to enter the
kingdom of God one must be born again (John
3:3-21). Nicodemus was befuddled. He thought about
crawling back into his mother's womb and coming out
again. (What a visual image that conjures up!) He
tripped over the same stumbling block that trips up many
of us - the key understanding that in order to be reborn
into eternal life, we must first die. When we are born
into this world we inherit the sinful nature that
prevails in all humankind. This nature is contrary to
God's Holy Will and separates us from Him. When we kill
off this sinful nature once and for all we can then
begin to experience eternal life in Jesus.
Actually, to take it a step further, what we are really
doing is admitting that the worldly life we are living,
is actually death, cleverly disguised as life.
Continuing along under this illusion doesn't change the
fact that we are separated from God. Dead. Jesus knew
that we would remain hopelessly separated from Him
without His direct intervention. Most of us, if faced
with the decision, would give our life if it was the
only way to save someone else. Who are the 'someones' on
your list? Your children? Your spouse? Your best friend?
What is at the core of this willingness to sacrifice so
completely for someone else?
Love.
And so it was with Jesus' sacrifice for you.
Have you followed up Jesus' death with your own? (If
not, read "For God So Loves You" in our archives
now!) If so, you know exactly what the apostle Paul was
feeling in his heart when he wrote, "I have been
crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live,
but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in
the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved
me and gave Himself up for me (Galatians
2:20)."
That's the truth.
God demonstrates His love for you in that even
though you are a sinner, Christ died for you. If
you will die for Him, eternal life is
yours.
That's the YouTruth. Jesus Died For
You.
©2008 Dan Buckhout
Scripture taken from the Holy Bible,
New International Version®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by
Internatonal Bible Society.
Used
by permission of International Bible
Society. |
