DID CHRIST DIE FOR OUR SINS?
This has really been heavy on my heart ever since I heard you say "Jesus did not die for our sins". Please understand my heart in sending this email, it is not in any way to prove any one right or wrong but to confess (which means to agree with) what Gods Word states about the subject. Then to ask you to be open to ask God to show His heart and mind on this subject regardless of any teaching you may have received concerning this subject. Then after all that, if you still do believe that Jesus did not died for our sins, please ask Pastor Mike, Bruce, Kent, Ryan, Tim and Joann Johnson, Ann Bowman as well as any board member or any other Leader at V.C.C as to what is core fundamental belief and teaching on this subject.
The following is a brief look at the subject of "Jesus death for our sins" and by no means is an attempt to be exhaustive (complete). Before diving in the shallow end of this deep water subject I feel as though I have to establish the basic understanding of which all true Christian doctrine comes from, that is that the Bible is authoritative and inerrant. That means that no mans teaching can override what God clearly states in His Word/ Bible and that what He states in the Bible is true and with out error.
With that stated, if we desire truth to be established in our inward parts we must than keep to those principles as we search the scriptures, that is His Word, to learn what He state about any subject. In doing so, then and only then, can we know the truth about that subject.
In addition to that, Biblical doctrine is not formed by the use of a single statement in the Bible. To form a Biblical doctrine we must consider what the whole of the Bible states concerning that particular subject. In Christianity there differing beliefs on different subjects such as the gifts of the Holy Spirit (how and whether they are still in operation) as well as how and when Jesus will return to earth. The two subjects above (gifts of the Spirit and the return of Christ) are foundational to how you walk with Jesus every day, but they are not essential to your salvation and therefore will not determine whether or not you are saved eternally from your sin debt (the wages of sin is death, Romans 3:23). There many scholars/ teachers and believers which disagree on the gifts of the Spirit and the end times/the second coming of Jesus, yet they are saved. The reason they are saved is because the gifts and the end time’s subjects are not part of the essentials of salvation. We can as the beloved children of God agree to disagree on those matters.
When it comes to the elements of salvation, there is no room for disagreement. There are core fundamental understandings which all who are saved must stand on. All who are saved are saved because they agree with God regarding the requirement's which He has determined for salvation to occur. In the requirements God has put upon
all individuals to receive salvation there some essential elements that must be
understood and greed upon.
1) The Depravity of all.
2) The consequence of depravity/sin and the necessity of Salvation
3) Salvation is a gift from God to sinners and it can not be earned.
4) The necessity of a just payment for the debt of sin.
5) Only Jesus fulfilled the requirements to provide the forgiveness of the sin debt that is owed by all.
6) You must acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He died for your sins and He rose from the dead.
Let's start with the bad news first "The Depravity of all", before we get to the good news... and O by the way that is the meaning of the word Gospel...Good News. I’m not sure if the is one word for used for bad news in the Bible, but I have experienced enough of it, to know that there many different words that can be used for it. In the study of Salvation that is “Soteriology” there is one word that is commonly use for the bad news of sin, it is depravity.
1) The Depravity of all.
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fallen short of the of God" The Bible tells us that sin is by inheritance as well as by choice.
Romans 5:12 "therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, thus death spread to all men, because all have sinned.
It is important to have at least a very basic understand of what the word sin means. In the Old Testament the word has the idea of “a miss step”, to lose your footing. Much the same in the New Testament the word means to miss the mark (like an archer who did not hit the target). There are many words through out the Bible that are related, transgression, debt, and iniquities are a few. Though they each have a specific meaning the over all understanding is the same... It is not good for you or others and that is why God tells us not to sin. As much as some people would say that lying is not bad, if you have ever had to deal with the pain it can cause, then you know it is not good. This is a real problem with our society today. People minimize the need to acknowledge sin for what it is and as a consequence it is an escalating destructive force that affects society as a whole. The effect of sin on society is another subject and much like the topic we are discussing (did Jesus die for our sins), it is deep waters to enter into, of which, we have not the time to swim in now.
Sin comes in many forms of actions, as well as in the thoughts and the intentions of the heart. Sin manifests itself in sins of commission (acting out sins) and sins of omission (not doing what you should). The bottom line is you do not have to be on this dirt ball called earth long to see that sins is in each one of us and that the effects of it are not good for any of us.
2) The consequence of depravity/sin and the necessity of Salvation
Romans 6:23 "for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
The Bible teaches that death came as a result of sin. Romans 5:12 “Just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin,
and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” And Ezk 18:20 "The soul that sins shall surly die"
Since the direct result of sin is death it is important to understand the meaning of death as it is used in the Bible. There is the physical sense when our body will die. That is the death that is easy to understand since all of humans know that someday they will die physically. In addition to the physical reality of death, there is another aspect of death that the Bible tells us to consider. The other aspect of death is just as real and has far greater eternal consequences.
The death I am referring to is known as spiritual death. In regards to spiritual death there are two types. The first is the one that we are born into by inheritance. The second death is based upon individual choice.
The first death is inherited through Adam. All mankind is born with a sin nature through our forefather Adam. There are many passages that indicate so. Here are a few seen in the book of Romans chapter five.
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—
Romans 15:17a For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one,
Romans 15:18a Therefore, as through one man's offense [judgment came] to all men, resulting in condemnation,
This is also noted in the Old Testament in Psalms 51 which also notes the condition of inherited sin at birth and before.
Psalm 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.
The first and the second death have the same initial results, both separates individuals from God. The second has far greater eternal consequences. Concerning the first we read.
Isa 59:2 "But your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that he can not hear."
Adam chose to sin in his act of disobedience when he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:17, 3:6, 1 Tim 2:14). Adam, experienced what is stated in the book of James 1:14-15...[He] was tempted when he was drawn away by his own desire and enticed, then when desire was conceived it gave birth to sin, and when sin was fully grown it brought forth death"
The same death (separation) that we have all felt the pain of because of our sin. In Genesis 1-3 Adam was still alive physically when he was sent out of the garden Eden, but he became separated from the place where he walked with God in the cool of the day. Adam no longer had fellowship with God thus he was separated from God as well. At that time he became spiritually dead. Remember Romans 5:12
"Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, thus death spread to all men, because all have sinned.
Adam did not die physically as soon as he ate of the fruit, but he lost his fellowship with God. To not have fellowship with a person is as if they are dead to you. In the Jewish culture if a family member coverts from being a Jew to any other religion the family will have a funeral for the person that converted. They are considered to be dead, to never be spoken to again. They are dead to that family even though they still are alive. The Bible is clear that you can be dead while still alive.
1 Tim 5:6 "but she who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives"
Eph 2:5 "even when you where dead in trespasses, He made us alive together with Christ.."
In 1 Tim 5:6 and Eph 2:5 there are two types of death and life being discussed “Physical” and” “Spiritual”.
1 Tim 5:6 "but she who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives" This speaks of widows that live for pleasure and how God says they can be alive physically and yet dead spiritually because they have put there desires for pleasure in front of trusting in God. (1tim 5:5)
In Eph 2:5 "even when you where dead in trespasses, He made us alive together with Christ.."
We see from Gods perspective, we where alive physically while being spiritually dead in our trespasses, then God made us alive spiritually. Just as there is physical l and spiritual death there is also physical and spiritual birth/life. This is why Jesus makes the following statements to Nicodemus.
John 3:7 ...You must be born again.
Jesus then goes on to explain the two types of birth.
And
John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and [of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
The water speaks of when a woman who is in labor. When her water breaks then physical birth takes place. Next Jesus goes on to explain the Spiritual birth when the wind/breath/Spirit of God moves on a person and they are born a second time not physically but spiritually.
John 3:6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
God is pro life and pro choice. He desires that you will choose to live life to the full that is why Jesus said He is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). Yes He is the Life. Jesus also said, He came that you may life and that more abundantly (John 10:10).
The type of death is known as the second death. This death comes about as result of choice. God desires that all will chose to live.
Deut 30:19 "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death blessings and cursing: therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live."
Ezk 18:32 "for I have no pleaser in the death of the one that dies, says The Lord GOD. Therefore turn and live.
Revelation 20:11-15 “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged
according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
This is why Jesus says
Luke 12:5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.
The Lake of fire, is the place of the second death. All those that are there will be separated from God for all eternity. He desires that none will chose to end up there.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning [His] promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
3) Salvation is a gift from God to sinners and it can not be earned.
Romans 5:15-18 But the free gift [is] not like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. And the gift [is] not like [that which came] through the one who sinned. For the judgment [which came] from one [offense resulted] in condemnation, but the free gift [which came] from many offenses [resulted] in justification. For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) Therefore, as through one man's offense [judgment came] to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act [the free gift came] to all men, resulting in justification of life.
Romans 5:15-18 make it very clear that Justification is a free gift and can not be earned. It is imperative to understand what Justification is. Justification is the act by which a sinner is pronounced to be in a status of being “just as if they had never sinned”. Vines Expository Dictionary of the New Testament words states the following about Justification; The act of pronouncing righteous, justification, acquittal, God "justifies" the believing sinner on the ground of Christ's death
The Gospel is the power of Salvation and Salvation is God's power to deliver from the bondage and penalty of sin, which is death. Salvation is available by grace through faith to sinners who believe that Jesus sacrifice paid there sin debt on the tree of Calvary.
1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree..,
Luke 23:33 And when they had come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him.
Thus, Jesus took our sins upon Himself so we could be saved from the power of sin and death and be pronounced to be in a status of Justification...“just as if we had never sinned”. Salvation is the result of Justification. God must declare you are justified or you are not free from you sin dept. Remember the wages of sin is death Romans 3:23. His sacrifice was necessary to put away sin.
Heb 9:26b-28 “...But now he (Jesus) has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”
The thing we all must be saved from is our sin debt. Those who have not had their sin debt removed by Jesus sacrifice will have to face the judgment of eternal death.
4) The necessity of a just payment for the debt of sin.
1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
I am certain the word propitiation when it is understood makes demons gnash there teeth and calls repentant sinners to the highest praise.
The following are excerpt from Vines Expository Bible Dictionary on the word Propitiation
God through the provision He has made in the vicarious and expiatory (atonement) sacrifice of Christ death on the cross, He has so dealt with sin debt owed that He can show mercy to the believing sinner in the removal of his guilt and the remission of his sins
Elsewhere in the New Testament propitiation occurs in Rom 3:25, where it is used of Christ Himself; the Revised text and punctuation in this verse is important: "whom God set forth to be a propitiation, through faith, by His blood." The phrase "by His blood" is to be taken in immediate connection with "propitiation." Christ, through His expiatory death, is the Personal means by whom God shows the mercy of His justifying grace to the sinner who believes his "blood" stands for the voluntary giving up of His life, by the shedding of His blood in expiatory sacrifice, under Divine judgment righteously due to us as sinners, faith being the sole condition on man's part.
Note: By “metonymy”, blood is sometimes put for 'death,' inasmuch as, blood being essential to life, Lev 17:11, when the blood is shed life is given up, that is, death takes place. The fundamental principle on which God deals with sinners is expressed in the words 'apart from shedding of blood,' i.e., unless a death takes place, 'there is no remission' of sins, Hbr 9:22.
akin to hileos ("merciful, propitious"), signifies "an expiation, a means whereby sin is covered and remitted." It is used in the New Testament of Christ Himself as "the
propitiation," in 1Jo 2:2; 4:10, signifying that He Himself, through the expiatory sacrifice of His Death, is the Personal means by whom God shows mercy to the sinner
"Vines Expository Dictionary of the New Testament"
To sum up the idea of propitiation God says there has to be a just payment for sin. The just payment for sin is death. Jesus death on the cross is the just payment; for all who believe that He paid for their sin debt. Thus Jesus died for our sins so we would not have to make the just payment of death but can have eternal life.
Ezk 18:20 The soul that sins shall surly die Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fallen short of the of God" Romans 6:23 "for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
5) Only Jesus fulfilled the requirements to provide the forgiveness of the sin debt that is owed by all.
Jesus was and is sinless.
1 Peter 2:22 Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth
1 John 3:5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin
John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
The lambs that were used for sacrifices in the Old Testament had to be with out blemish. They were a type of Jesus. When He died on the cross He was not dying for His own sin, because he had never sinned. He laid down His pure, Holy, Spotless life to pay the price for sinners. The price/debt God requires for sin is death. Jesus did not have any sin debt to pay for, so he could pay the debt that sinner owed, in their place.
2 Cor 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin [to be] sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Before Jesus Birth Joseph was told by an angel of the Lord who appeared to him in a dream
Mat 1:12 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."
The way Jesus saved His people from their sins is through His atoning death on the tree of Calvary.
Gal 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree",
1 Peter 2:24 "who His own self "Jesus" bore our sins in His own body on the tree...."
The sin debt of the whole world was placed on Jesus so He could save all who come to Him.
Heb 7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him
It is our sins that Jesus died for on the cross. Only His sinless life could be sacrificed to pay the necessary payment (death) for the sin debt owed by all humanity. With out His payment for our sin, the entire world would be hopeless and none could be saved.
Acts 4:12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
1 John 4:10 And He "Jesus" Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world
2 Tim 1:10 "but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life immortality to light through the gospel.
In 2 Tim 1:10 the term "the Gospel" is used. As I stated before, the meaning of the word Gospel is Good News. In the New Testament the Apostle Paul makes if very clear as to what the Gospel is.
1 Cor 15:1-4 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
This passage states "that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures". This is as clear as it gets “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures” and praise be to God that He in His abundant mercy saved us from our sins by Jesus death. Sin, Death and life are all a big deal with God. God is In favor of life, and since sin is the thing that causes death, He came to destroy death (1 cor 15:26, 2 Tim 1:10 ). He overcame the power of sin and death through Christ death for our sins according to the Scriptures.
Paul makes the following statement about the importance following the Gospel he preached.
Gal 1:6-9 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
The meaning accursed is “a person or thing doomed to destruction and with out hope of being redeemed”. To believe in a different Gospel than: “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures”, is a very dangerous place to rest your belief.
6) You must acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He died for your sins and He rose from the dead.
Before entering into this subject it is important to state there are many places in the Word that talk about being saved by believing in Jesus. Even Jesus said
John 6:47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
John 11:25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
Those scriptures do not negate the reality of what that He also said at other times.
John 19:22 Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days? But He was speaking of the temple of His body. Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.
This speaks of the death and the resurrection of Jesus. Believing in Jesus is an essential to salvation, but I do not believe that when Jesus talks about believing in Him it is limited to: His existence or what He did or Who He was. I believe that is all part of believing in Him, but there is more. I believe God put a huge amount of emphasis on believing in what He says, in the entirety of His Word. We are called to believe in the red letters of Jesus as well as the entire rest of His Word.
Luke 9:22 saying, The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
1 John 2:2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
So in looking at the red letters of Jesus in Luke 9:22 and what the Apostle John wrote in 1 John 2:2 we must believe both these scriptures and that the combination of them points to His dying, where he paid for the sins of the world, as well as His Resurrection.
Romans 10:9 “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
In Romans 10:9 you may say that it does not tell you to believe that Jesus died for our sins to be saved, but it does state that you must believe that God has raised Him from the dead to be saved.
The fundamental belief of the resurrection of Jesus is that because Jesus was sinless (1 Peter 2:22, 1 John 3:5, 2 Cor 5:21) and He humbled Himself and became obedient to [the point of] death, even the death of the cross (Phl 2:8). God accepted Jesus’ sinless death on the cross and God raised Him from the dead (highly exalted Him Phl 2:9).
So when you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you are agreeing with the Gospel that Paul preached in 1 Cor 15:1-4 That Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures a sinless death and therefore God raised Him from the dead. As you continue to read through Philippians chapter two you will see that Paul goes on to say that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ [is] Lord, to the glory of God the Father. This is the same as is stated in the confession of faith for salvation in Romans 10:9.
Phl 2:8-11 He humbled Himself and became obedient to [the point of] death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and [that] every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ [is] Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Romans 10:9 “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Remember the Gospel is that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
In closing, as stated in the introduction it is absolutely imperative that when making a determination about what God says, or about what some one else says about what God says, that you take the entire Bible/His Word in to consideration before you make a conclusion as to what you believe. The Apostle Paul talks about the importance of the whole counsel of God.
Acts 20:27 For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God.
Don’t believe something because it comes from an angel or even an preacher or Apostle.... But even if we,
Gal 1:8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
Don’t believe something just because you heard it from a teacher or a prophet.
2 Peter 2:21But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.
The Apostle Paul says in Acts that those that are of Noble Birth “Fair- Minded” receive the word with readiness and search the scriptures to find out whether the things said are so. So dig into the word of God and check out what you hear and see if it lines up with what God’s Word says.
Acts 17:11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
If you are going to believe something, believe it because lines up with Gods Word. If someone challenges you on what you believe then seek Gods Word first and then go to the elders of the church and listen to what they say and then check what they say against the Word of God.
Proverbs 11:14 Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.
Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. Ps 138:2 I will worship toward Your holy temple, And praise Your name For Your loving
kindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.
Ps 12:6 The words of the LORD [are] pure words, [Like] silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times.
John 6:63 "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
1 Peter 1:25 But the word of the LORD endures forever." Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.
Col 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
This is God's remedy for Guilt, Condemnation and Shame. Guilt says there is a judgment against you of which You must pay, Condemnation Says you're stuck in your judgment and there is no way out, Shame says That's who you are, Shame is Your identity. Once we understand what the Gospel truly teaches then Guilt Condemnation and Shame are all just lies from the enemy to distract us form the truth of the finished work of Christ! Yes! The Guiltless one Christ took our punishment so we could take on His identity of being guiltless! He took our judgment on the cross so that we could be free from condemnation, now therefore there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. And the shame that made Adam hide in the garden has been removed by the blood. Gods plan for the redemption of man tells us that we died, were buried and raised with Christ unto a whole new creation with a brand new identity. We had to die because we we're born with the identity of the first Adam who lived in Guilt, Condemnation and Shame, but after the Cross we were Raised In a brand-new identity with the second Adam, Christ free from Guilt Condemnation and Shame! So live free in your true identity.