Why Jesus Died, Part 3

Chuckle: "Being a husband is like any other job -- it helps if you like the boss!!!"

Quote: "When Christ commanded us to be lights of the world, He had in mind brilliant beacons, not spiritual lightning bugs." --William Arthur Ward

JESUS DIED TO BRING YOU TO GOD

"For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1 Peter 3:18 NIV).

Picture with me a giant chasm with you on one side and God on the other. The chasm is too wide and deep for you to jump across or build a bridge of your own making. From a human standpoint, there is no way for you to reach God. This giant chasm represents your sin that separates you from God, and there is no way for you to get to God on your own. But then the miracle of miracles happened -- God sent His one and only Son to bridge that chasm and allow you and me into God's presence forever.

Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6 NIV ). Jesus Christ is the bridge from sinful mankind to a holy and righteous God. There is no other way. Jesus said He is "the way," not one among many ways of coming to the Father. He is "the truth" that affirms the reality of all God's promises.

As "the life," Jesus joins His divine life to ours and only through Him can we receive eternal life as a child of God. When we are saved by God's grace through faith in Christ, we not only come to God but we become related to Him as His child. "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12 NIV).

So, we see in our passage that Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sins and to clothe you in His righteousness, but He also died to bring you to God and into loving relationship with God Himself. Not only does God want you to become His child, He also wants an intimate daily fellowship with you. He wants you to love Him and relate to Him in every aspect of your life.

God wants to be your heavenly Father with whom you walk closely every day. He desires for you to relate to Him in prayer, Bible study, and worship (adoration and service). When we Christians reflect on the truth that Christ died to span the chasm of our sin and bring us to God, it doesn't make much sense for us to keep God at a distance in our daily lives. We should want to get up close and personal with Him. It's this intimate personal loving relationship with your Lord that brings unspeakable joy into your life.

Love, Jerry & Dotse