Title: The Cross/Galatians 3:13
Contents of the cross / Galatians 3:13
.... Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us, for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangs on a tree.
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The cross prophesied in the Old Testament...
"Surely he has borne our afflictions and carried our sorrows, but we thought that he was chastised, smitten by God, and afflicted. He was pierced for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. With his chastisement we have peace, and with his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of our company. For he gave up his soul to death, and was numbered as one of the transgressors, but in reality he bore the sins of many and prayed for them.” (Isaiah 53:4-12)
ransom
As prophesied in the Old Testament, Jesus came to redeem His people from their sins by offering Himself as a sacrifice.
But no matter how much our Originator becomes the scapegoat, what is the use of sacrifice if life does not repent with conscience and do true repentance? If there is no remorse over the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, what good is it if there is no genuine repentance? If I do not receive the grace of sacrifice, the salvation of sacrifice will become irrelevant to me.
Regarding this truth, God gave the prophet Isaiah the image of Christ reflected in the sacrifice. Therefore, he prophesied that the Messiah would come and become a sacrifice to forgive the sins of his people. He also pointed out that sacrifices without genuine repentance of sins or good deeds are like "slaughtering an ox is no different than murder, offering a lamb is no different than cutting off a dog's neck, offering an offering is like the blood of pigs," he said. Burning incense is no different than praising idols..." (Isaiah 66:3).
The cross prophesied by Jesus
The Jews had a sense of superiority as their chosen people, but they were a Roman colony at the time of Jesus. They had to live in the midst of persecution in Rome, so they looked forward to the prophesied Messiah. However, the Jews made the sacrifice of God a formality without genuine repentance and remorse. It was just made out of old customs and traditions. Such formal sacrificial practices not only held God's people to a vain system, but only hindered the spread of God's way as a worldwide gospel. Jesus rebuked the priests and clergy, the leaders of the Jews, for their formalism. He overturned the tables of the merchants in the temple and drove them out. It is interpreted as a message that the purity of God's way must be restored. This provocative attack on the Jews was to fulfill the mission of a scapegoat by being caught and executed by the Jews.
"From that time on, Jesus Christ began to teach his disciples that he must go up to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day..." (Matthew 16:21)
Jesus said that by his execution, he would make atonement for the sins of the people.
“For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
He took his own body and blood, compared it to the meat and blood of the Passover lamb, and gave it to the disciples. “As they were eating, Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” And he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from this, all of you, for the forgiveness of sins. It is my blood of the covenant, which is shed for men” (Matthew 26:26-28).
prophecy of the resurrection
He spoke of the glory of the resurrection after his death.
Matthew 16:21: From that time on, Jesus Christ began to teach his disciples that he must go up to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
Mark 8:31 He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.
Luke 9:22 He said, "The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day."
Luke 24:7: For he said, “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day be raised again.”
John 20:9: (They did not yet understand the scripture, which says that he must rise from the dead.)
pain of execution
He did not fear death, because he saw this resurrection, and walked toward the execution table. However, it was painful to bear the execution without avoiding it. “Jesus prayed more earnestly and with all his might, and his sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44).
“Father, if it is your will, remove this cup from me; but it is not my will, but your will.” (Luke 22:42)
How can we guess the suffering of God who gave up his Son, Christ, in the midst of that suffering?
The Bible has shown God's suffering by projecting it into Abraham's heart before. In other words, Abraham had to sacrifice his son Isaac. But Abraham, believing that God would bring him back to life, put a knife to his son. What parent in the world could grab a child and cut it into pieces and set it on fire? But God did. He did it for the great purpose of the salvation of mankind. Christ, the Son, also endured suffering for the great hope of the salvation of mankind, only through prayer of faith and obedience.
Christ Jesus, who passed through the valley of the shadow of death and suffering and gave His life for a brighter world where there will be no more death and suffering, became our example (Hebrews 12:2).
Even if we live our whole lives attached to our lives, we will eventually die. However, if you dare to risk your life for the kingdom and righteousness of God, you will receive eternal glory. Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is to give and live with everything you have, and to gain it.
It is to endure the pain of death and overcome it for the glory of the future.
jesus on the cross
As in the Bible and his prophecies, Jesus carried the cross, climbed Golgotha Hill, and was crucified.
Jesus prayed to those who crucified him, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34).
People crucified the innocent Christ, not realizing that they were sinners who would be crucified under the curse of God. Not knowing that Jesus was being executed in place of the curse they deserved, they mocked him.
But now we know what it means. We knew what God's curse was and that crucifixion was the place for us, not Jesus, to run.
"Lord! We blasphemed because we did not know and did not believe in Jesus who died for our sins. Lord! Forgive us our sins. I want you to put the mistakes of the past in your place. Lord! Did you die in our stead?
There were two thieves on either side of the cross where Jesus was crucified. One of the thieves did not know Jesus Christ and slandered Him. But another thief knew that Jesus was innocent, yet he was being crucified for the sake of his people. So he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Then Jesus said, "Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise."
You cannot enter the kingdom of the Lord because you are good and you are righteous. No matter how righteous they are, in the end they have no choice but to die for their sins. But if we believe that Christ was sacrificed for the sins of His people and ask for His grace, He makes atonement for us with His blood.
satisfaction of justice
When Jesus died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn from top to bottom. It means that He tore the veil from above. This means that the barrier between God and his people due to sin was removed through the atonement of Jesus. Jesus' death on the cross solved the problem of God's justice for sin. The death of Jesus solved the death caused by mankind's sin. Therefore, Jesus said, "It is finished" (John 19:30) and he died.
And Jesus rose from the dead on the third day.