I invite your attention to 2
Corinthians chapter 5, verse 21, the second epistle of Paul the
apostle to the church in Corinth, 5th chapter, 21st verse. Our text in its context was read
just a few moments ago So I'm going to take your attention
to verse 21, and God willing, this morning, we will consider
the subject, Christ made to be sin. For he made him who knew no sin, to be sin for us that we might
become the righteousness of God in him. That is an astounding text with two glorious truths. One of them, someone was made sin for some
other people. And the second truth is, they
for whom he was made sin were made to be God's righteousness
in him. And that is way over my head. I do not know that I can explain it. I know I cannot do
justice to it. So bear with me this morning.
I'm just going to tell you what it means. I'm just going to define
some words. Because the more I studied this
subject, and I have studied it for years, the more profound
it becomes to me. First, who was made to be sin? He is identified as him who knew
no sin. And he is not identified by name. But you do know this, do you
not? He is no mere mortal. Because every mortal is sinful
and knows it. This one knew no sin. This one is the God-man. He knew
sin intellectually because as God he is omniscient and knows
all things, but he never knew sin experientially. He never had a personal experience
with it. For 33 and a half years walked
on this earth and never personally experienced sin. He knew no sin. He knew no sin in his character. For in his character he is holy,
harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. This is true because although he is man, son of man,
he did not have the taint of our Adamic nature in him. The son of God was very God of
very God, became the son of man, very man of man, except He had
no human father and therefore did not have the taint of irodemic
nature. He was miraculously conceived
in the womb of a virgin by the Holy Spirit. He was in her womb
called that Holy One who is to be born and shall be called the
Son of God. He is the only person ever born
of woman of whom it is said, in him there is no sin, 1 John
3, 5. He is the only man who ever walked
upon this earth who could say, the ruler of this world has nothing
in me, as Jesus said in John 14, 13. No sin in his character. He had no sinful nature like
you and I. Furthermore, he knew no sin in
his conduct. He committed no sin, nor was
deceit found in his mouth. He never sinned in deed. He never
sinned in word. He never sinned in thought. He never sinned In anything He
ever did, anything He ever said, anything He ever imagined. Unlike
you and me, we sin in everything we do, everything we say, and
everything we imagine. He did not. He was in all points
tempted as we are, yet without sin. And no one answered his challenge
when he said, which of you convicts me of sin? He is the just one
and the only just one who died in the place of the unjust. He teaches his disciples to pray,
but he does not join them in praying, forgive us our trespasses,
because he had none. He had none. Who was made sin? This is Jesus
Christ, the God-man, who knew no sin. Second question, who
made Him to be sin? We read, He made Him to be sin. And again, He's not identified
by name, but He's identified in the context. Look in verse
18. Now all things are of God. God is the one who made him to
be sin. We read in verse 20 that gospel
ministers are ambassadors for Christ as though God were calling
through us. We implore you in Christ's behalf
be reconciled to God for God made him who knew no sin to be
sin for us. God did this. And no injustice was done because
he who was made to be sin consented with it. Third question. For whom was
he made to be sin? Paul says, for us. But it does
not identify them. Who are the us? They are identified
in the context. They are all for whom Christ
died. For we read in verse 14 that
if one died for all, then all died. These are those in verse
15 of whom we read, they live no longer for themselves, but
for him who died for them and rose again. These are in verse
18, all whom God has reconciled to himself through Jesus Christ.
These are all in verse 19 of whom we read that God is not
imputing their trespasses to them. Notice that. God never
charges them with sin. Never does. How can that be? Because someone was made sin
for them. These are all who obey that command
in verse 20 to be reconciled to God. These are all who in
verse 17 are a new creation in Christ. And I will say to you
right now, that if you obey this gospel that I preach to you,
if you are reconciled to God, if you come to God for peace,
I can assure you of this, God made Jesus Christ to be sin for
you. For you. Now, Fourth question, what is
the sin he was made to be? What is the sin he was made to
be? Some say he was made a sin offering. And he was, but that's not what
we read here. He was indeed made an offering
for sin. Jehovah says he would make his
soul an offering for sin. Isaiah 53 verse 10. He's a sacrifice
for sins in Hebrews 10 verse 12. But we do not here read that
God made him to be a sin offering. That word offering is not in
the text. It's not there. He was made to be sin. We do not here read that he was
made to be a sinner. It does not say that. It says he was made to be sin. He was considered as a sinner.
He was numbered with the transgressors. There on that cross he was numbered
with murderers and adulterers and blasphemers and even the
chief of sinners. He took the place of sinners.
He was there as their substitute. He was treated by God as a sinner
on that cross. But we're not told here that
he was made to be a sinner. God did not make him to be a
sinner. Rather, God made him to be something
worse. than a sinner. Worse than a sinner. What is worse than a sinner?
That which is worse than a sinner is the sin that makes one to
be a sinner. And that's what he is. He was
made to be. He did not know what it was.
Never experienced it. And God made him to be the most
despicable thing that is ever before God's eye. God made him
to be sin. He was made to be the exact opposite
of righteousness in the latter part of the text. But God made
him to be sin. That is the worst thing that
he could have been made to be. It was the greatest contrast
to what he was. God made him to be sin. Fifth question, in what manner
was he made to be sin? Well, he was not transformed
into sin. It was not some transformation
Because remember that even when he was made to be sin, he still
did not know sin. He still had never experienced
it, except that he was sin. He was not merely considered
as sin. Some say, well, that's what it
means. I mean, God did not really make him to be sin. He was merely
considered to be sin. No, that's not what it says.
That's not what it says. He was made to be sin. Not merely considered as though
he were sin. He was made to be sin. Something
actually happened to him. Sin was not infused into him,
because in him there still was no sin, though he himself was
sin. He was not merely charged with
sin. He was not merely accounted as
sin. We do not here read that sin
was imputed to him, although it was. But indeed, nowhere in
the scriptures do you ever read that sin was imputed to Christ. It never is found. Adam's sin
is imputed to us. Christ's righteousness is imputed
to us. But never do the scriptures say
that our sin was imputed to Christ. Rather, the scriptures say he
was made to be our sin. And since he was made to be sin,
sin had to be imputed to him. He had to be charged with it
because sin is what he had become. This text does not emphasize
a mere legal declaration that was expressed This text emphasizes
a real action that was performed. It was not just a legal thing.
It was a real thing. Sin was not merely imputed. He
was made to be sin. He was made to be sin in the
sense that something actually happened to him. Now the word
that here is translated Made to be sin. Made to be is the
same word that is used when we read that Jesus made water into
wine. In one moment it's water, in
the next moment it's wine. Something actually happened. The water became wine. The property
of water is still in the wine, But it's no longer water, it
is wine. And so it was with Jesus Christ. The property of sinlessness is
still in Him, but He is sin. He has been made to be sin. Something has actually happened
to Him. God took all the sins of his
people, all of them, gathered them up into one load, all their
sins made to be one load, and put it on Jesus Christ. And Jesus
Christ willingly bore it. And when God put those sins on
Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ was made to be sin. That's what he
is It is no wonder That on the night before he was
made to be sin He prayed in agony His sweat became like great drops
of blood falling to the ground, and he prayed, Father, if it
is your will, take this cup away from me. But nevertheless, not
my will but yours be done. Some say he was afraid of dying.
That's not what he's afraid of. He realizes that he's going to
have to be made sin. He's going to have to be made
that which is most despicable to God and most contrary to himself. He stumbled at that. He sweat
profusely. He would have had anything else
happen to him except that it was his father's
will and so he says, we will do it. on that cross, when he was made
to be sin, he cries out in agony, my God, my God, why have you
forsaken me? He's quoting the 22nd Psalm. Why are you so far from helping
me and from the words of my groaning? Why did God forsake Christ? The answer is found in Habakkuk
chapter 1 verse 13 in which text we read that God is of purer
eyes than to behold evil. God cannot look upon sin. And when Jesus Christ was made
to be sin and had all the sins of God's elect upon himself,
When God looked upon that cross, he saw the sin of his people. Notice that Jesus Christ did
not say, Father, why have you forsaken me? He said, my God,
why have you forsaken me? And God could answer, I can no
longer look on you. And God turned his back on Calvary,
turned his back. God is of purer eyes than to
behold evil, and evil is what he had become. Evil, sin, wickedness,
transgression, and forsaken by God. God forsakes sin, has nothing
to do with it, even when it is his own son that has become sin. Jesus Christ on that cross spoke as a sinner. Repeatedly spoke as a sinner. Go to Psalm number 40, the 40th
Psalm. This is a Messianic Psalm. It is particularly a messianic
passage dealing with Christ. You'll recognize the words in
just a moment. Psalm 40 verse 6. Sacrifice and offering, are you
with me? Psalm 40 verse 6. Sacrifice and
offering, you did not desire my ears, you have opened. burnt
offering and sin offering you did not require and then I said
behold I come this is Christ speaking you can read that in
Hebrews chapter 10 behold I come he says in the scroll in the
volume of the book it is written of me I have come to do your
will I delight to do your will oh my God and your law was written
in my heart that's Christ speaking He continues, I have proclaimed
the good news of righteousness in the great congregation. Indeed,
I do not restrain my lips. Oh Lord, you yourself know. This
is Christ speaking. I have not hidden your righteousness
within my heart. I have declared your faithfulness
and your salvation. I have not concealed your loving
kindness and your truth from the great congregation. That
is still Christ speaking. Are you with me? This is Christ
speaking. He continues. Do not withhold
your tender mercies from me, O Lord. Let your loving kindness
and your truth continually preserve me. Why? This is still Christ
speaking. And listen, for innumerable evils
have surrounded me. My iniquities have overtaken
me so that I am not able to look up. They are more than the hairs
of my head, therefore my heart fails me. That's Christ speaking. He calls them My iniquities. His iniquities. When did He ever commit iniquity? He never did. Those were not
sins of His that He had committed. Those were My sins. And they're on Him. And He's
made sin. That's my lying, my thievery,
my adulteries, my murders, my thoughts, my covetousness. And
he calls them his own. And they're overwhelming me,
he says. Yeah, they overwhelm me. And he knows what it is. He speaks like this sinner should
speak. and suffered as this sinner should
have suffered. Go to Psalm 69, the 69th Psalm. Any commentary will tell you
this Psalm is Messianic. Christ is all the way through
it. I'll not give you all the details on that, but I will tell
you that you'll find Messianic particularly in verses 8, and
verse 9, and verse 21, These are quoted in the New Testament
as saying, speaking of Christ. So when you read this 69th Psalm,
bear this in mind. This is Christ speaking. This Psalm speaks not only of
Him, this Psalm is spoken by Him. Psalm 69, verse 1. This is Christ speaking. He says,
Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink
in deep, my, where there is no standing. I have come into deep
waters where the floods overflow me. This is Christ speaking. Look in verse 5. Oh God, you
know my foolishness and my sins are not hidden from
you. Where did he ever get sins? He
says they're mine, they're mine. You know my foolishness. When
did Christ ever know what foolishness was? when he had to endure mine, when
he was made sin for me, my sins are not hidden from you.
He says, where do you get those sins? They're mine. They're mine. And he's made to be sin. And
this is Christ on Calvary. He is stricken, smitten of God,
and afflicted. Why? Because he's there as my substitute,
suffering what I deserve, and he's made sin for me and for
all who believe this gospel. God made him to be sin, though
he knew none. Oh, my soul. If you want to see how God deals
with sinners, look at Calvary. If you want to see how God deals
with sin, look to Calvary, because sin is on that tree in the person
of Jesus Christ. Sin is on that tree, and God
has turned his back on it and said, justice, strike him till
he dies. Make him drink the cup down to
the last bitter dreg. And he did. That's how God deals
with sin. And that's how God dealt with
Jesus Christ when he was made to be sin for me and for God's
people. One more question. what resulted
from him being made sin. Let me end on a good note. You
do not mind me doing so, do you? Oh, this message is so difficult
to preach. It deals so much with what I
am, sin, sinfulness, and him being made sin in my place instead,
suffering for me, Let me end on a good note. Why was he made to be sin? What
resulted from it? We become the righteousness of
God in him. And I do not understand that. But that's what it says. Do you
realize that if Jesus Christ was made to be sin for you, You have become God's righteousness in Christ. I don't understand. That is way
over my head. But we have become the righteousness
of God. His righteousness. But then again,
Christ is our righteousness. His name is Jehovah, our righteousness. And if you, through faith in
Christ, had become the righteousness of God in Christ, you'd become
a new creature. Old things have passed away,
and behold, all things have become new. I rejoice in that. Oh, I rejoice
in that. You mean to tell me I've been seeing all my life
from my mother's womb? It's passed away. Oh, I've still
got that old sinful nature, but I've got a new nature now. I have a nature that cannot sin.
God's Word says so. Will not sin, cannot sin. I have
become the righteousness of God in Christ through faith in Him. And this promise is to everyone
who will believe this gospel I preach to you. Be reconciled
to God. Oh, what a blessedness it is.
Be reconciled. There is an ambassador preaching
to you today with this good news. Be reconciled to him. And if
you will, I'll assure you of this, God will show you that
Jesus Christ was made to be sin for you so that you might become
the righteousness of God in him. And that's the gospel I preach.
pastor.