Friday, April 6, 2012
Good Friday
Colossians 2:13-15 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
JESUS EARNS FORGIVENESS FOR SINNERS
It's easy to say, "I'm a Christian." But to understand what a person means by that takes a little more research. To understand what a person truly believes I sometimes ask ask, "If you stood at the gates of heaven today and God asked you, 'Why should I let you in?,' what would you tell Him?"
I've heard, "Because I've tried to be a good person. And I'm better than some."
I've heard, "Because I have faith."
Both of these answers fall short. The Bible says that no one will get into heaven because of their own actions (Romans 3:20). As for faith, there are a lot of different faiths. Faith is just trust. And trust is only as good as the thing you trust in. If my parachute has holes in it, no amount of trust is going to keep me from hitting the ground.
I've also heard, "Well, it's certainly not going to be because of anything I've done. Jesus suffered and died in my place. My sin is paid for." This is answer the Bible teaches us to give. Our sins earn us hell. But on the cross Jesus suffered our hell. Jesus expressed this truth by crying out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). Because He experienced the full sentence for our crimes, our punishment is used up.
"Why should I let you in?"
"The Cross. That's where our salvation is found."
And that's what it truly means to be a Christian -- one who holds on to the cross of Christ as the only certain hope of forgiveness.
