He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities– Isaiah 53:5
Above all things and at every stage of life we are helped by keeping our attention on the cross. Not only is it the message that leads to our salvation, it is the means to our sanctification. The following copied from “A Good Thing” says it well:
It was love that sent Jesus to the cross. It was “the joy set before Him” that kept Jesus on the cross. But it was our sins that necessitated the cross.
Why couldn’t Jesus simply come to earth and preach and call for repentance and then go back into heaven? Why was it not good enough for Him to live a perfect life and then return to His Father in heaven? It was because sins, before a holy and just and good God, require punishment.
Because God is just, He will not allow us to go free without punishing our sins. That would be like a judge letting a convicted serial killer back onto the streets.
Because God is good, He will avenge every one of the countless wrongs in the world. He will not allow victims of violence and deceit to be victims for ever.
Most importantly, because God is God He will not allow His holy character and position to be ignored and violated without consequence. Therefore, our sins must be paid for.
The great beauty and tragedy of the cross is that there the perfect Jesus received the wounds for our transgressions, there He was bruised because of our sins. He chose to take our place and receive our punishment.
How can we dare to willfully sin any more, knowing that precisely those sins were what caused the great wounds of our great Savior?
