Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
One of my biggest struggles as a Christian is trying to wrap my mind around this idea that God would send His Son to die for me while I was sinning. Think of a time or season in your life when you were rebelling against God, doing your own thing, sinning and not just breaking the commands of God, but breaking the heart of God. Think of a time when you were at your lowest. That's when God sent His one and only Son to die for us.
What I love about this is it says, "While we were sinners." God didn't wait for us to clean ourselves up and then send His Son. No, He did it while we were rebelling. Think about that. That's amazing grace.
Why Did Jesus Have to Die?
He sends His Son to die on the cross for us. Well, why did Jesus have to die? See, our greatest need as humans is to be forgiven of sin, and that forgiveness is found in Jesus Christ. Because all of us are born sinners and we sin by choice, and the wages of sin, the Bible tells us in Romans chapter 6, verse 23, is death. We needed a rescue plan. What is that rescue plan? It's Romans chapter 5, verse 8. This is the good news of the Gospel, that God would send His Son to die for us.
When Jesus went to the cross, this is what He did. He absorbed the wrath that you and I deserved. When we place our faith in Jesus Christ, here's what happens. When God looks at us, He sees beauty. He sees perfection. Why? Because I'm in Christ. My job is to believe in Jesus Christ and to repent of my sin. When I do that, I am now in the family of God, and I go from being a child of wrath to a child of God.
The Costly Gift of Forgiveness
But make no mistake, when God sent His Son to die for us, and now when we receive forgiveness every day, forgiveness was very costly. Next time you ask for forgiveness, remind yourself of the high price of what it means to be forgiven. It cost God His one and only Son.
Here's what happens when we said yes to the Lord. Now we are redeemed. We're saved. We're set free. In fact, the word redemption means to buy out. Think of a slave being set free. We went from being children of wrath to children of righteousness. If you're in Christ today, I want to remind you, you have a hope. You have a future. But if you're not in Christ, let today be the day of salvation.
