You Killed Jesus, and So Did I
1/11/2008
Have you ever heard someone say, "If you were the only person on earth God would have still sent Jesus to die for you, that's how much you're worth to God."? The next time you hear someone say that, do the following:
_Look them directly in the eyes and smile politely
_Place one hand on their shoulder in a warm, caring way
_Slap them across the face several times and shout, "That's not it at all!"
Just kidding about the last one...sort of. We need to remember that Christ's death doesn't prove our worth, it proves our utter sinfulness and depravity. Hear the words of Jerry Bridges:
Furthermore, even a deep, penetrating sense of our sinfulness does not do justice to the reality of our predicament. Our need is not to be measured by our own sense of need, but by what God had to do to meet that need. Our situation was so desperate that only the death of His own Son on a cruel and shameful cross was sufficient to resolve the problem. The Gospel For Real Life
We were so wicked and so perverse that it took the death of God Himself to save us. Our sin was so great, that only the infinitely precious blood of the Son of God could wash us clean. I know that I'm a proud man, a selfish man, a greedy man, an anxious man, a thoroughly sinful man. But I rarely see the true depths of my sin. My sin was so heinous, so perverse, so utterly disgusting, that only remedy was for God to kill his own son in my place.
Which brings me to the question that I'll be asking for all eternity: why would God bother with me? Why would God save such a wicked sinner as me? I didn't give a rip about God or his ways. In fact, I hated God. And yet God gave His son to rescue me. What extravagant mercy!
The death of Jesus doesn't prove my worth, it proves my wickedness. And it also proves how deeply God loves me. Enjoy the love of God today.
7 comments:
jul,
Great question, and great thoughts. Yes, in a sense we do have have worth to God in the fact that he created us and we are his image bearers. However, our sin has seriously marred the image of God in us, and we have no spiritual goodness in us that would make us worthy in God's eyes. I have nothing good in myself to offer God. That's what makes God's love so amazing!
I just wanted to say many thanks for this blog. It's always thought-provoking. Are you a preacher or something?
Jul,
I think you are right to point out God's extravagant love, but the Cross speaks of the greater extravagance of God's overflowing mercy, kindness, and beauty. It says everything about His character -- which includes mind-boggling love for vile sinners (like me). God's infinite worth is on display at the Cross and in all redemptive history.
Astonished,
Lisa in NC
sheep wanderer,
Thanks for your encouragement. My dad and I have the privilege of serving on staff at Sovereign Grace Church of Indiana, PA. My dad has been preaching for twenty-five years, and I'm just starting to get my feet wet when it comes to preaching. I'm glad you find the blog helpful...
Yes, I could smell the minister spirit on the blog. I'm glad you have the opportunity to make your God-inspired ponderings go global to bless those of us on the other side of Atlantic.
May God continue to use you much.
I love the cross and all of it's power. Jesus is so cool, that he can settle everything over the course of a weekend. He fought sin and sickness made a perfect sacrifice that God accepted and found fit enough to atone for our sins and everyone else's, and then he fought, and beat death itself by raising from the dead through the Spirit of the father. He did however, took a few more days before he completed his mission by going to heaven and sitting at the right hand t=of the father thus being glorified and lifted above all names, principalities and powers. Your sin as though it were vile enough to crucify him, are now nothing be considered. We are no longer slaves to sin but to righteousness, and sin is no longer your master.
Somebody praise the LORD
"Which brings me to the question that I'll be asking for all eternity: why would God bother with me? Why would God save such a wicked sinner as me?"
I understand partly what you're trying to say, but isn't it also true that we must be worth something to God as his creations, that he wanted to have fellowship with us which is why he made us and why he also redeemed us and restored us to himself? He saved us because he loves us...'and God demonstrated his love for us in this, that while we were still sinners Christ died for us." The truth is, if we hadn't sinned (if Adam hadn't sinned) we wouldn't have needed to have Christ died for us, but if Christ didn't love us, he wouldn't have redeemed us.