The message that I'm going to
deliver today, I feel, contains some very important information.
So please listen carefully. I found it interesting while
I was putting this together, and I hope you'll find it interesting
as I deliver it. The title of today's message
is The Death on the Cross. It'll come from 1 Peter 3.18.
Now, historically, We all know that Jesus Christ
was born into this world about 2,000 years ago. He lived here
on earth. We all know he died on the cross
at Calvary. But here's the big question.
Why was it necessary for the Son of God to die on a cross? Most people out there never ask
this question. But today, I want you to think
about it right now. Why did Christ have to die? Please read with me in 1 Peter
3.18. It says, For Christ also hath once suffered for sins,
the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being
put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. In this
verse of scripture, we find some answers to this question. Why
did Christ have to die? This right here is the gospel
of redemption and substitution declared in plain words, which
is vital that it not be misunderstood. Now here's some answers to that
question. First of all, 1 Peter 3.18 says,
for Christ also hath once suffered for sins. He died for sins. He didn't die for his own sins,
he had none. He died for our sins. Our sins
were laid upon him. Isaiah, writing about Christ's
death, said this in Isaiah 53, 5. But he was wounded for our
transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him. And with his stripes,
we are healed. Several messages ago that I delivered,
I went through this scripture right there and I did this before
and I'm going to do it again because it really makes it clear
to me. So we're going to read that verse again and put your
name in the place of all the personal pronouns that are there.
I'm going to put my name in there and read through it and just
think of your name as I read it to you. He was wounded for
Jason's transgressions. He was bruised for Jason's iniquities. The chastisement of Jason's peace
was upon him, and by his stripes, Jason is healed. Now that right
there is why he died. He suffered for our sins, not
for his sins. He had no sins. Paul says in
1 Corinthians 15 verses 1 through 3, Moreover, brethren, I declare
unto you the gospel which I preached unto you. which also you have
received, and wherein you stand, by which also you are saved,
if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed
in vain, for I delivered unto you first of all that which I
also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to
the scriptures. When the Lord Jesus Christ died
on the cross, he died for our sins. And when I say this, please
understand, I'm not saying that Christ died for every sinner
who ever lived or who will ever live without exception. I'm saying
that he died for those that God the Father gave him and he paid
the debt. We don't die because he died,
but there is still death. The penalty of sin is death. It says that in Ezekiel 18 20.
The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the
iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity
of the son. The righteousness of the righteous
shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
Sin demands death. Christ suffered for our sins
in the stead of, or in the place of, the sinner. He died. He reconciled us unto God. The scripture says in first Peter
2 24 who his own self bear our sins in his own body on the tree
that we being dead to sins should live unto righteousness by whose
stripes you were healed. Where did he put those sins?
The scripture says in Micah 719, and thou wilt cast all their
sins into the depths of the sea. This is such good news to the
believer. Christ made an end to sin. Christ suffered for our
sins. And while we're talking about
suffering, understand this, we're not just talking about his physical
suffering. When we hear people talk about
the death of Christ, they often talk about the crown of thorns.
The crown of thorns was terrible as it was pressing into his brow. People will also talk about the
nails in his hands and feet. And these physical sufferings
were horrible, as terrible as they were. They're not to be
compared with his spiritual suffering, the immense suffering of his
soul. The scripture says in Isaiah 53 10. Yet it pleased the Lord
to bruise him. He hath put him to grief when
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed,
he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall
prosper in his hand. Christ made his soul an offering
for sin. It says in Isaiah 53 3 through
5. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces
from him. He was despised and we esteemed
him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows. Yet we did esteem him stricken,
smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him. and with his stripes
we're healed. It says right there, a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief. Our Lord suffered deep within
his soul. When he was in the garden of
Gethsemane praying, it says in Luke 22 verse 44, and being in
an agony, he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was as it were
great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And he cried
unto the father. Now this was before Calvary.
This was before he was crowned with thorns, before he was beaten,
and before the nails. He cried before the father in
Matthew 26, 38. He said, my soul is exceeding
sorrowful, even unto death. Christ suffered. Now that's what
suffering for sin is. It's such a deep suffering. that
we cannot possibly imagine. Christ made his soul an offering
for sin. Christ offered himself as a sacrifice,
and he bore our hell. He was our substitute, our surety,
and we don't have to suffer because he did. Here's another word that
we should pay attention to in 1 Peter 3.18. And this is very
important. It says, for Christ also hath
once suffered for sins. He suffered for our sins and
our transgressions once. Here's some scripture that also
supports the fact that there is one offering that reconciled
the sin debt. Hebrews 9.28 says, so Christ
was once offered to bear the sins of many. And Hebrews 10.14
says, for by one offering he hath perfected forever them that
are sanctified." How many times do sins have to be paid for?
It says once. Scripture says it one time. That's it. People out there and
most of professed Christianity today try to make so many sacrifices
to earn or achieve their salvation. If they would just read those
verses in the scriptures, that I just read, they would clearly
see that the offering was made once. It doesn't have to be made
over and over. Christ is the suitable substitute
who took care of the sin debt once and for all. All right,
let's look at the next part of 1 Peter 3.18. It says, for Christ
also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust. He suffered for sins and he died
the just for the unjust. And in the Bible, there are several
places where our Savior is called the just one. Isaiah 45, 21,
it says, tell ye and bring them near. You let them take counsel
together who have declared this from ancient time, who have told
it from that time, have not I the Lord and there is no God else
beside me. a just God, and a savior. There is none beside me. Our
God is a just God, a righteous God, and a holy God. Ecclesiastes
7.20 says, For there is not a just man upon earth that doeth good
and sinneth not. There's not a just, holy, righteous,
honest person of integrity on this earth. There isn't. And that's just the truth. That's
what it says in the scripture. There never has been not among
the sons of Adam from the time that Adam fell to this present
day. But there was one. And he's called the just one.
That's the Lord Jesus Christ. He's perfect. He's perfectly
holy in his nature. He was born without sin, conceived
of the Holy Ghost. born without a human father,
and was not part of Adam's sin. He was holy in his life, the
heavenly father said in Matthew 3, 17. And lo, a voice from heaven
sang, this is my beloved son, and who I am well pleased. Christ
was holy in his deeds. He went around the earth doing
good things. He was holy, harmless, and undefiled. God said of him in Isaiah 53
11. He shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied
by his knowledge. Shall my righteousness, my righteous
servant justify many for he shall bear their iniquities. Why did
he die on the cross? He died on the cross, the just
one for the unjust so that he could satisfy God's law in their
place. He's the substitute. Romans 3.26
says, To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness, that
he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Listen, the law of God has been
broken. And Romans 3.23 says, For all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And the justice
of God, says in Ezekiel 18.20, the soul that sinneth, it shall
die. Almighty God cannot be just.
He cannot be holy and righteous and set us free without our sins
being paid for and without our sins being punished. It says
it right there in scripture. But if one can be found among
the sons of men, if one can be found that can be called the
just one or the righteous one, if one can be found who can pay
that sin debt. If one can be found who can obey
the law perfectly and satisfy God's justice. If one can be
found, then God can be just and justify. If that one will take
our place and meet the law, obey it and satisfy it. And that's
just what it says in Galatians 3 13. Christ hath redeemed us
from the curse of the law. being made a curse for us. Christ
has redeemed us, delivered us, and has set us free from the
curse of the law. And when Abraham was told by
God to take his son upon Mount Moriah and sacrifice him, he
did just that. He took his son up there and
bound him and put him on the altar. And he was about to slay
him. And God spoke and said in Genesis
22 verses 12 through 13. And he said, lay not thine hand
upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him. For now I
know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son,
thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes
and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in the thicket
by his horns. And Abraham went and took the
ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his
son. And the ram was slain and shed his blood as an offering
for sin. That right there is a picture of Christ, the substitute. Jim talked about that last week
in his message. We need a substitute, just like
Abraham's son needed a substitute. Listen, we're the guilty ones,
but God took us from the altar of justice and the law and put
Christ there in our place as a substitute, the perfect one
who had no sins of his own. He suffered for sins, and these
are sins that he didn't commit. They're our sins. He died the
just one for the unjust. Now, because of Christ and his
substitutionary work at the cross, God can be holy and he can be
just. Here's another reason why Christ
died on the cross. He suffered for sins, not our
sins, not his sins. I'm sorry. He suffered for sins,
our sins, not his sins. He took our place. He died the
just one for the unjust. That God may be just and justify
people like you and me. The price has been paid. The
law has been kept. Justice has been honored. The
law has been satisfied. It says it right there in first
Peter 318. He died that he might bring us to God back in the Old
Testament. When God pictured sinners coming
before the Lord, there was a tabernacle in the tabernacle. There were
two sections. There was one called the Holy
Place, and in the Holy Place, there was a candlestick that
gave out light. And there was a showbread, 12 loaves of bread,
one for each tribe of Israel. And there was the burning incense.
Then there was a second veil from floor to ceiling, from wall
to wall. It was a very thick veil. Behind
that veil was another room. It was the Holy of Holies. And
in that holy of holies, there was an ark. And in the ark, there
were the 10 commandments, which God gave to Moses, which we,
which we have broken. We've sinned against that law.
And over that broken law, over that ark was a mercy seat. The scripture says in Hebrews
nine. that the high priest went into the Holy of Holies once
a year alone. Only the high priest could go
in. He was a man selected of God. He would enter in once a
year with a blood offering, the atonement. That went on for years
and years and years until the Lord Jesus Christ came. Christ
is our high priest. And he's the lamb slain. And
when he died on the cross, The veil in the temple was torn.
The Holy of Holies was opened, and Christ, the scripture says
in Hebrews 9, verses 11 and 12, but Christ, being come in high
priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect
tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building,
neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood
he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal
redemption for us. Now, this holy place was not
made with the hands of a man, not the temple in Jerusalem,
but into heaven itself in the presence of God. Christ went
into the presence of God and obtained for us eternal redemption. You see, every time back in the
Old Testament days, For years and years, the high priest went
in once a year into that holy place. He made an offering, a
sacrifice over that broken law until Christ came. In Hebrews
10, 14, it says, for by one suffering, he hath perfected forever them
that are sanctified. Christ is our mercy seat. He's
our sacrifice. He's our high priest. and he
is our advocate. He went into the very presence
of God, and he took us with him. Christ said in John 10, 16, and
other sheep I have, which are not of this fold, them also I
must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be
one fold and one shepherd. Bring where, you may ask, when
he says, them also I must bring. Bring to God, that's what he's
saying. When Adam fell in the Garden of Eden, our sins separated
us from God. There was no way back to God.
Sin is dealt with by Christ and is put away by Christ. The law
is satisfied, justice is satisfied, and Christ takes us to God the
Father. Why did he die? He died to bring
us to God, holy, unblameable, and unreprovable in him. faultless. He presents us. He brings us
before God. And that is the only way that
a man can come before God faultless through him. The only way that
a man can be faultless is not in himself, but only in Christ. Now listen carefully to this.
His death had to do with our sins. He saved his people from
their sins. His death had to do with God's
justice. He enabled God to be just and
justifier. His death had to do with the
holiness of God. We're able to come before God's
presence now in Christ. His death had to do with our
death. Back in 1 Peter 3, 18, it says,
for Christ hath also once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust,
that he might bring us to God. being put to death in the flesh,
but quickened by the spirit. Christ died on that cross as
a man. He was the God-man in human flesh. Romans 8, 3 says, for what the
law could not do, and that it was weak through the flesh, God
sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,
condemned sin in the flesh. In the flesh, he died. Now here's
some more important information. One word that's always associated
with the flesh is what? What do we always think about
when people say the flesh? Most people will say sin. And
that is true, but right now I'm gonna share with you another
word, and that word is death. Scripture says, it's appointed
unto men once to die, As in Adam, all die. By one man, sin entered
this world, and death by sin. So death passed upon all men. So I'll tell you this. If you're
a human being, and we all are in here, you're going to die. I'm going to die. We're all going
to die. And that's guaranteed. That's
one word that's associated with the flesh, is death. And God
said in Genesis 3 19. In the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread till thou return into the ground. For out of it
was thou taken. For dust thou art and into dust
thou shalt return. All flesh will die. What's another
word that's associated with flesh? Fear. Most people will know about
this. I hear a lot of people say that
I'm afraid to die when you talk about death. Here's another word
that we can associate it with. Judgment. So here we are in the
flesh. We all have fleshly bodies. We
all have to die a physical death. We're afraid to die. And after
death, there's going to be a judgment. So what are we going to do about
it? Well, to be honest, There's nothing a sinner can do about
it. It's a bad situation for a sinner trying to save their
self. But I have good news. The Lord Jesus Christ did something
about it. He died in the flesh. And when
he died in the flesh, he took away that sting of death. Their
souls don't die. Their souls go to God. When this
tabernacle is laid aside, Our body goes to the ground, but
our soul goes to God. He took away the sting of death
and he took away the fear of death. There's no need to fear
death when you can rest in a suitable, holy, blameless, perfect, capable
substitute who satisfied God's law in every way. Paul said in
Philippians 121, for to me to live as Christ and to die is
gain. So Christ died to put away our
sins, to enable God to be just and justifier, to literally bring
us sinners as holy and righteous and present us before the holy
throne of God. He's going to take away the sting
of death, the fear of death, and the judgment after death. All of his sheep will stand righteous
before God only because of his work. Why did he die? It says in the
last line of this verse that he was quickened and made alive
by the Spirit. What does quicken mean? I went
over this in my last message just a little bit, but quicken
means to be made alive by the Spirit. Our Lord arose from the
grave. He had to die to put our sins
away. He had to die to satisfy justice. He had to die to conquer death
and to bring us to God. He also had to die that he might
rise. The only people that rise from
the dead are those who die. The only people that walk out
of the grave are those that have been in the grave. And so our
Lord Jesus Christ died that he might be risen. Also, because
he lives, we live. Without his death, let me tell
you, we'd all be in a world of trouble. But because he arose
from the grave, we can stand righteous before God the Father. Many people would ask me after
this, what proof do you have that the dead will rise? And
there's only one thing I can say. There isn't any way in this
world to prove that graves will open and men will come forth,
but by one way, because Christ arose. There's no other proof. If you're gonna die, which you
are, and you hope to rise, then you've got to believe on Christ
alone. If he didn't rise from the grave,
then we would never rise from the grave. If he does not live,
no one is going to live. In 1 Corinthians 15, verses 14
through 16, it says, and if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching
vain and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses
of God because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ
whom he raised not up. If so, be that the dead rise
not. For if the dead rise not, then
is not Christ raised? And if Christ be not raised,
your faith is vain. You are yet in your sins. Then
they also, which are fallen asleep in Christ, are perished. If in
this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most
miserable. He lives, and because he lives,
we live. He died for our sins to fully
take care of the sin debt, and he rose again according to the
scriptures. I'm going to tie this all up,
and I won't keep you much longer, but in conclusion, I'm going
to summarize this real quick. There's a holy law And in order
to stand before God, we must keep the law perfectly. We're
all guilty of sin. We have all broken the law in
Adam. Sins must be punished. And the penalty of sin is death.
What we need is a perfect substitute to stand in our place before
God. And that's where Christ comes
in. He's our representative. He abolished the sin debt for
his sheep. He paid that debt in full. It
was a one-time payment. No more payments are due. That's
why the death on the cross is so important. If God has shown
you that Christ did it all and there's no more work to be done,
be thankful. Amen.