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Thursday: Crucified for Us — 18 Comments

  1. Crucifixion was the preferred capital punishment method of the Romans. It is estimated that during the lifetime of the Roman Empire, an average of 200-300 crucifixions were carried out yearly. Of course, in times of rebellion, the rate was much higher. So, it could be said that Jesus' crucifixion was a pretty ordinary event. It was brutal, but so were gladiatorial contests, wild animal spectacles and other public events, that were eventually replaced by reality TV.

    The thing that sets the crucifixion of Jesus apart is not the manner of his death but the decision process that set it in motion. While the Romans carried out the crucifixion it was the Jews who made the decisions. Jesus' crucifixion was carried out because deeply religious Jews wanted to preserve the purity of their religion. They saw Jesus as a threat to their religion, so they killed him (or, to make it legal - they got the Romans to do it for them).

    Our Christian explanation goes into great detail as to what the Jews got wrong, how they lost perspective and were hypocrites. But in blaming the Jews are we in danger of missing the message for us?

    Seventh-day Adventists are sometimes regarded as the most Jewish of Protestant Christian Churches. We keep the Sabbath, pay tithes, and follow health laws. We connect Jewish temple services with the ministry of Christ in death and judgment. And we defend those beliefs and practices with biblical precedent. Are we missing something?

    Jesus' ministry was a ministry of sacrificial love. He went beyond religious practice to practical religion, becoming the living embodiment of God's love. The stark contrast to the religion of the day was too much so they killed him.

    I have been crucified with Christ; 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 for me. Gal 2:20 NKJV

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    • I'm teaching tomorrow. One question I will ask is what is the most important message we as a denomination have to give to the world? If anyone says "Sabbath", "3 Angel's message", "state of the dead", "sanctuary", etc. it would be wrong. Not that those aren't important and are part of defining who we are, but the most important message we can give (any Christian can give) is that love is the most important character aspect of God. God is love. God loves everyone.

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  2. Was crucifixion an “ordained” form of death by which salvation was to be achieved? Was it possible for Jesus to die through another form and yet atone for human sins? Crucifixion was divinely ordained (Psalms 22:16, Isaiah 53: 6). Crucifixion was God’s pre-determined plan and hence fulfilling what was written in prophesy. Why God ordained it is part of the plan of salvation that was designed before the foundations of the earth were laid. It is just mere speculation that Jesus could have died in another way and yet atone for human sins. Since crucifixion was divinely ordained, it had to serve specific reasons.

    1.The Crucifixion highly demonstrated the magnitude of God’s love. Sin is costly and painful. Crucifixion was a heightened painful death that measured up the costly nature of sin. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13). God’s justice had to meet its demand. The crucifixion was the price.

    2.Death on the Cross was a public demonstration that God was openly forgiving those who accepted the sacrifice of his Son. God used a symbol of shame and humiliation as a means to honour those whose who will persevere to the end. This was a symbol of victory over sin and death. On the Cross, Christ scorned the mortal enemy of mankind.

    3.The death on Cross is a serious reminder that sin is deadly and painful. Therefore, sin must be avoided through the power of the Holy Spirit who is our Helper in this treacherous life.

    “Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God” (Romans 6:12-13 - NLT)

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    • Omwenga, don't get foreknowledge confused with foreordained. It's easily done. I don't believe that God predetermined that Jesus would be crucified, just that He in His Omniscience knew it would happen that way.
      We have to be careful how much we read into scripture. A wrong understanding of the Atonement makes a God of love into a blood thirsty tyrant. Exactly the concept Satan wants us to have.

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      • The notion of God being "blood thirsty" is simply a limitation to understand the nature of a loving GOd.It caused incredible pain for God the Father to see Jesus on the Cross. God knew Jesus will go to the cross. He could not stop it because in his wisdom that was the only way to redeem humanity. Without imputing any "evil" intention on a Holy God. Nobody can say for certainty to have complete knowledge and understanding on the sovereinty of God. The Bible is very clear on this subject. God is absolutely sovereign, His ways are far beyond human imagination. All we can do at most is to have faith in his ways. In, fact some stuff in the Bible lacks human explanation. No matter how much spin we put to it. Faith is the answer.

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    • I don't agree with what you're saying because crucifixion did not do anything special to provide for our salvation and if we think it did, we make God into a monster of sorts. It was not the pain of the crucifixion that brought salvation but Jesus experiencing the separation from God that we deserve. In fact, Ellen White indicated in the Desire of Ages (pg.753), that Jesus suffered so much mental anguish that He hardly felt the physicial pain. And I believe He was already feeling that separation in the Garden and could have died then had the other events not taken place.

      The importance of the crucifixion is what it says about humanity. Remember, God had previously said "Cursed is anyone who is hung on a tree." This was a strong curse - when someone was hung on a tree (probably normally after being stoned as that was the Jewish form of execution), the community was declaring this person's crime was so heinous they deserved eternal death. I don't think this was lost on the Jewish leaders. They wanted Jesus to be crucified. Yes, they didn't have the right to sentence Him to death, but they could have done it - they almost stoned Jesus to death several times before and they succeeded with Stephen. It's likely the Romans turned a blind eye to some of this and Pilate probably would have been quite happy to see them do it themselves. But they wanted Jesus under "God's curse". And of course Satan was behind all of this.

      So the cross says more about how humanity felt about Jesus than any necessity on God's part. His death was necessary - the method was not. If the Jews had accepted Jesus, I believe He would have died, but it would have been different.

      Now God sent Jesus to earth at a time when this would happen so in a sense there's an element of responsibility. But I don't see it as a "must happen" as much as giving Satan freedom to demonstrate his character to the universe. He gives Satan and all of us the freedom to show how we feel, but that isn't permission.

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      • Thank you, Christina, for sharing your understanding to put the cross into perspective.

        I agree that the cross was not "the only way to redeem humanity" and that the cruelty of the cross says more about human depravity than about God's plan of salvation.

        While the cross revealed human depravity by crucifying the sinless Savior, it also revealed the self-renouncing love of a God who would do all He possibly could to rescue humans from the slavery of sin. (I also believe that if the Jews had not caused Jesus to be crucified, He would have experienced the awful separation from God that sin caused some other way.)

        Every paragraph of your comment is significant and worth re-reading. Thank you again.

        You gave us much to ponder with all the ramifications to this observation:

        God had previously said "Cursed is anyone who is hung on a tree." This was a strong curse - when someone was hung on a tree (probably normally after being stoned as that was the Jewish form of execution), the community was declaring this person's crime was so heinous they deserved eternal death. I don't think this was lost on the Jewish leaders. They wanted Jesus to be crucified.

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  3. When we reflect on Christ's crucifixion we are reminded of God’s awesome love for us. He sent His only begotten son to die for us that whosoever chooses and believe will have eternal life.
    As we emulate His character may we crucify self daily as He creates a clean heart and renews a right Spirit within us.

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  4. "From the beginning, God and Christ knew of the apostasy of Satan, and of the fall of man through the deceptive power of the apostate. God did not ordain that sin should exist, but He foresaw its existence, and made provision to meet the terrible emergency. "

    Anyone may you kindly explain - God foresaw the emergency of sin why didnt he stop it then, to spare His Son from all the trouble

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    • Hello Helen. You ask a very good question that many have pondered. The only way that God could have prevented Lucifer's rebellion would have been to violate or interfere with his freedom of choice. This shows how much importance God places on freedom of conscience, unlike earthly governments which operate on compulsion. For God to truly be love, He must allow His created beings the right to be wrong. I'm sure that it was a difficult and painful decision on God's part, but for love to truly be love there has to be a choice to choose not to return that love. God didn't want a bunch of wind-up, or programmed robots, He wanted individuals with the capacity to refuse and reject that love. Much like we don't want our children to love us because they are programmed to do so, or they are afraid of the consequences of not returning love. Love is a risk at all levels, but it's the only way that genuine love exists.

      God also could have snuffed out Lucifer when he first got out of line and started questioning God's character, but that would have only bolstered his claims and caused the other angels and created beings to fear God and serve Him out of fear, instead of love.

      I hope that my answer to your excellent question helps you make sense of it all.

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  5. Sin was not a part of God's design, but it was forseen and a plan of Salvation was put in place. Nothing surprises God. He cannot be checkmated. He knows every move and outcome - past, present and future.

    You might have come into this world unexpectedly. Your parents may not have planned for you or even wanted you. However, you did not surprise God. He knew your name before you were conceived. Because He knew you would be here, He made provisions for you.

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  6. Isaiah 55:1-13 – Verses 8-9:
    "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

    If there had been any other way to eliminate the power of sin unto death for mankind, our heavenly Father surely would have chosen it. Yet, in His divine wisdom, He allowed His Son, our Lord and Savior, to endure the pain of death to raise Him again and appointing Him to the Throne of Judgment over all humanity.

    God's Love and Justice hold a profound mystery: the sinful act, when forgiven, will ultimately cease to exist in the records of time. He calls us to forgive when wronged, so breaking the cycle of perpetual sin. Each act of forgiveness halts further sinning in its tracks — granting sin no further power or recognition; forgiven sin ceases to exist.

    God's mysterious, extraordinary Love wields creative power to eliminate and restore without force. Sin, if not met with retaliation, consumes itself and dies. Love, in its divine purity, removes the fuel that sustains sin - as love grows stronger, sin gets weaker.

    I believe that through continuous forgiveness - unconditional love -, sin is stopped in its tracks. God knows this, HIs Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, knew this as He awaited death, and we know this because we have been told to follow their example - Deut. 6:4-7; Matt.22:37-40; Mark 12:30-31. Though God's Thoughts and Ways are higher than ours, He graciously shares with us how to live on earth according to the ways of heaven.

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    • Brigitte, you wrote

      I believe that through continuous forgiveness - unconditional love -, sin is stopped in its tracks.

      If that were so, would Christ have needed to die? Could God not simply have continuously forgiven, beginning with Satan in heaven and continuing with every human ever born on this planet?

      So why did He not do that?

      I believe that the Bible teaches that Christ did, indeed, die "to stop sin in its tracks." He died so that, through His power, His followers are changed into His image and sin no more! There will be no sin in heaven or on the new earth, so God will not "continuously forgive." And that means that only those who want forgiveness and accept it will be saved.

      Not everyone will be saved!

      To be honest, I would not want to be in heaven or on the new earth with Satan and all his followers who were "continuously forgiven." Eternal death would be preferable. But the Good News is that God found a way to both forgive and transform those who accept His salvation! And heaven and the new earth will be free of sin and filled with self-renouncing love!

      (4)
    • Brigitte, if you're claiming that forgiveness is what will ultimately conquer sin in the universe then I must say you are wrong. I must have misunderstood what you were saying. In this life forgiveness can lead to some degree of changing sinners into saints. When we realize that we as sinners deserve what Jesus suffered it should change us. Having said that, forgiveness doesn't always change people. Consider the abusive spouse that continues beating their spouse because they forgave them for the last time they did it. Sometimes forgiveness becomes enabling an unrepentant person to continue in a lifestyle of unrepentance. There comes a time for tough love. Even God uses tough love in forgiving repentent sinners, yet letting them experience the consequences of their sin. This, I believe will be finally realized by those that reject forgiveness and experience the second death.

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  7. Christ's invitation is individual. He calls everyone, but the invitation is private because what matters is the answer, which is personal. Am I going to accept Jesus' invitation? If the answer is "yes," then "I should take up my cross and pursue His path; no complaints: focus is not here!"

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  8. For those who play chess it will be easy to understand it, Our God is able to watch our next move even before we get to it, and has plans for intentions in us, thats why it wasn't hard to predict of human being being sinful and formulate away of redemption, its just like Taking an insurance for the unseen event,the Insurance that God took for us was the blood of his own sons blood soon us to save mankind incase we get sinful.

    (2)

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