Thursday 6 March 2014

Read: Mark 15:21-37, Romans 3:21-26
Jesus is Saviour

Aside from someone's name, what is the first thing that you ask about when you meet someone new? Most often the first thing that we ask is something like: "What do you do?" One of the first things that we always want to know about someone is what sort of work they do. Although this isn't always a helpful first question (our total identity is not just the things that we do) it does provide a helpful insight into who someone is. If I told you that I was an accountant you would immediately have a certain perception of what sort of person I am. The work that we do reveals a certain amount about who we are.

Imagine for a moment that you met God the Son for the first time at a party. After introducing yourself you ask that first question: "What do you do?" For God the Son the answer will always be the same. There is one incredible, life changing, earth shattering, history altering thing that He has done that we must know. For us to understand God the Son we must understand this incredible thing: Jesus is Saviour.

We read about this incredible thing that God the Son did in Mark 15. Jesus suffered and died on the cross. Jesus, God the Son incarnate, willingly became a man, willingly suffered at the hands of cruel Roman soldiers and willingly surrendered His life on the cross.

Why would this possibly happen? Why would God Himself choose to come to Earth and to die a seemingly pointless death? What could the purpose possibly be? We find the answer in Romans 3:21-26. In these verses Paul carefully unpacks for us the meaning of Christ's death.

Paul has established in the first few chapters of Romans how mankind is broken, sinful and totally without excuse before God. In chapter 1 he described how all of mankind can see evidence of God's existence and character through creation. Despite this mankind still sinned and still chose to reject God. The evidence of God in creation means that man is without excuse when they choose to sin. In chapter 2 he made it personal, each of us have broken God's righteous law and each of us deserve His punishment. It is not enough to be a Jew and to keep the law (as if that was truly possible for fallen mankind) or to seem outwardly righteous. Each and every person has broken God's standard. Paul sums this up in Romans 3:23: "For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God"

It certainly doesn't seem like good news. Each and every person is condemned before God. But Paul follows right up with the good news in verses 24 and 25. Have another look at those verses. This is what makes the cross good news. God presented Jesus as a sacrifice of atonement for sin. Jesus’ death pays the penalty for all of our sins. On the cross Jesus receives everything that we deserve. When we put our faith in Him we are saved from the penalty of our sins and before God we are considered righteous. Through the cross Jesus becomes our Saviour.

This incredible event in history was not just some afterthought. God did not see the sinfulness of mankind and panic about what He would do to solve the problem. There wasn't an emergency meeting held in the Trinity after the fall to figure out how to solve the problem. God the Son had always planned to come as a man, to live, to suffer, to die and to be raised from the dead for His people. Even before creation, before the fall and before becoming a man Jesus planned to be the Saviour for the world (Ephesians 1:4-6). This is a vital part of who God the Son is.

If you have been part of a church for a long time you will have hopefully heard this before. This is the essential message of the Christian faith, the central Gospel message. After we have heard it a few times it is easy for us to forget its impact and be desensitised towards the most incredible news in the universe. Reflect afresh today on what Christ has done as our Saviour. Wonder again at the great love of the Saviour that He would willingly choose to live, to suffer and to die for us. Praise Him for His goodness, His grace and His love.

Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. Why do you think it is so easy to lose the wonder about what Christ has done for us? Why do we so quickly forget?
2. How can we remind ourselves every day about what Christ has done?
3. What could you do as a group to help each other remember Christ's incredible sacrifice on your behalf?

Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.

Adoration: 

Confession: 

Thanks:

Supplication:

• Thank Jesus for all that He has done. Praise Him that He willingly humbled Himself to become a man for you. Praise Him that He chose to live and to die for your sake. Praise Him that He suffered the penalty for your sins on the cross. Pray that He would help you to remember the wonder of what He has done.
• Pray for the pastor of your church. If your church does not have a pastor pray for those who preach the Word and who encourage and love the congregation. Pray that God would encourage them and strengthen them in their work. Pray that they might maintain a strong relationship with Him and grow in their love for Him and His people. Pray that God would show you how you can encourage the leaders in your church.