Title: The Cross of the Lord
Contents
the cross of the Lord
<Isaiah 53:1-12>
If you go up high in the city or on the upper floors of an apartment building at night, you'll see a lot of red neon crosses all over the city. It is as if the entire city and the entire Republic of Korea are Christian countries. Many Christians also wear a cross necklace as an accessory. Today, the cross is a symbol of Christianity. What exactly is the cross? What does the cross mean? Why did Jesus carry the cross?
Today's text Isaiah chapter 53 is the writing of the prophet Isaiah, who was active about 700 years before the coming of Jesus. But if you look closely at today's text, doesn't it seem that few people have closely watched the sufferings of Jesus? If you look at this, you can see that the cross that Jesus carried was not carried by chance, but was planned from a long time ago.
But looking at Genesis 3:15, we can see that Jesus' suffering on the cross was planned from the time Adam and Eve sinned. “I will make you hostile to the woman, and your offspring will be her offspring and enemies, and the offspring of a woman shall bruise you in the head, and you shall bruise her in the heel.”
But Ephesians 1:4-5 says, “He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him in love, by his good pleasure he predestined us to be his sons through Jesus Christ.” I am speaking.
In Matthew 25:34, Jesus said to those who were saved in the last days, “Then the king will say to those on his right hand, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Take it,” he said. If you look at this, you can see that even before the creation of the world, God created heaven and hell, some decided to live together in the kingdom of God, and some decided to punish them by putting them in hell.
In other words, God knew that we humans would one day sin, and in preparation for that time, He decided to save people through the cross of Christ and renew them with the Holy Spirit to establish the kingdom of God. This is what we call predestination. Therefore, the cross contains a wonderful mystery. It's never a failure, but a great comeback victory. It may seem that you have lost, but the true victory is the cross.
People like Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church said that they failed because Jesus died on the cross, but said that he was the living Second Coming Lord. One day he will die of old age or disease, and lie that he is a better Second Coming Lord than Jesus.
And some liberals say that Jesus tried to start a revolution with his disciples, but failed because of the betrayal of his disciple Judas Iscariot.
Even though the truth is clearly recorded in the Bible, if you want to doubt it, you cannot believe it.
Isaiah 53 speaks today. “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way, but the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. The LORD wants him to be bruised, so that he should be afflicted; when he brings his soul as a trespass offering, he will see seed, and his days will be long, and his hand will do the pleasure of the LORD. He will see the toil of his soul, and he will be satisfied; by his knowledge he will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities” (Isaiah 53:6-11).
What is the cross that Jesus carried?
That is what makes sinners righteous.
The Lord's cross is the human transformation device that renews all worthless sinners, all who deserve severe curses and punishments, and transforms them into holy people of God's kingdom without blemish or blemish.
The greatest and most profound event that God performed was that the Son of God became a man and took up the cross. What is the cross, and how can a terrible sinner and an atrocious sinner be transformed into a righteous and holy being through the cross?
The cross paid the penalty for our sinners, the Son of God, Christ our Lord Himself. In other words, God paid for all mankind's sins on His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
Therefore, Isaiah 53:6 clearly states, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; the Lord hath laid upon him the iniquity of us all.”
Why is the world today dark and full of tragedy?
Because it is a sin. It cannot be denied by anyone. Some people in the world claim it is because of the so-called haves. Therefore, they argue that the labor movement should take what belongs to the haves and give them to the poor. But it is a beautiful thing when the rich share with joy what they have, but it is a crime for the poor to kill the rich and take away his property. What is the end result of the communist countries that have been created in that way? The result is poverty together. It is not right to force yourself to do anything. No matter how good, no matter how righteous, no matter how pious, it is meaningless to force people to do it.
That's the problem. Why do people sin? Because freedom is important, God has given people freedom, but people abuse their freedom to commit sins. It means doing things that shouldn't be done. If you tell me not to do it, even if I die, I do it while saying it's my freedom. That is what sin is.
A prime example is the Fruit of Good and Evil. God clearly told people, “You must not eat this fruit. In the day you eat it, you will surely die!” He said that he tried to go down the road of death by himself by eating it freely. Therefore, whether it be angels or people, the very thing that matters is freedom.
Then, the question is, do you want to rescue human beings from their sins without destroying their freedom and make them into godly people who have the fullness of their free will, but who long for and pursue the righteousness of the kingdom of God? This is what the cross is.
the cross
First, it convicts us of our sins.
Why did Jesus carry the cross? It is because of our sins. Look at the world today. Do you know that you are a sinner even though you have sinned a lot? They rationalize everything, make excuses for everything, and believe that they are innocent. Therefore, there is never any hope in the world. It is a vicious cycle of tragedy. But the cross is a reminder of our sins. Why did Jesus carry the cross? That He was crucified for our sins. It is not that Jesus was sinful, nor that the revolutionary movement failed, but that he died for your sins and mine.
Second, the cross is what makes us realize the wonderful love of God.
God is not a God whom we hate and curse when we sin. On the contrary, he is heartbroken, and he wants to save us who have no choice but to face punishment for our sins. What is called a sin must be punished. If you forgive your sins without paying any penalty, the whole world will be stained with sin. However, God has made His innocent Son bear the punishment and the whip that should be directed against mankind.
The important thing is to believe in this cross, repent of your sins, and repent. It is to renew the resolve to be thankful for God's love, never to wander in the world again, and only to follow God's guidance. This is faith, and baptism is a sign of that faith.
When looking at the cross like this, voluntarily confessing and repenting of our sins, learning the word of God, and living obedience to God's word, God promises to live in obedience to the word of God. It is to completely forgive the sins of the past, present, and future. And it is to send the Holy Spirit to our saved hearts and to live as children of God and people of the kingdom of God.
Salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ crucified. Human good deeds can never receive the grace of salvation. Why? Catholicism teaches that man cannot be saved by faith alone. Therefore, they teach that we must do good deeds, give a lot of alms, do a lot of service, and donate a lot to be saved. In a way, it sounds plausible, but this is a huge misconception. No matter how good a man is, he is still a sinner in the eyes of God's flame. Why? As Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, it is also a sin that a man commits in his heart. No matter how good and righteous a person is, how often do they sin with their heart?
Because it is not possible because of human good deeds, Jesus came and paid the price for all of those sins on the cross. So, is it that those who believe in Jesus and are saved should not do good deeds but live by doing evil deeds?
That's not it.... Good deeds are not done in order to be saved. You are doing good because you are saved. The reason God saved us through the cross is to do good because he saved us to learn the commandments, keep them, and become good and righteous people. In other words, we do not do good deeds in order to be saved, but we do good deeds because we are saved. God, you are not that cruel. If you say that you are saved by human good deeds, where are those in the world who will be saved? Then, why does God save people through the method of the cross?
For people to keep the Word of God and live holy and without blemishes, it is not something they are forced to do. This is to allow us to live in obedience to the word of God by ourselves, that is, by free will, by being touched by Jesus, who Himself took up the cross to sanctify us, and the love of God who sent Jesus. In the kingdom of God, infinite freedom is given, but the cross is always present, and while looking at this, he is trying to make him realize his sins, repent of his sins, and make himself new.
What is the ‘Son of God’?
The ‘Son of God’ is another personification of God. In other words, it is the Son of God who manifests himself in the same way. Therefore, the suffering suffered by the Son of God is the same as the suffering suffered by God. In other words, the crucifixion of Jesus is the same as the crucifixion of God the Father. Therefore, we must be truly renewed through these truths, the truth of the cross, and the truth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Think of Jesus who died on the cross for me. Think of Jesus who suffered for me on the cross instead. And let us repent of our sins with tears. And let us be thankful with tears for the love of God who loves us so much. And now, I want you to confess that you will not live according to your will, but only believe in God, and live according to God's will. ◎