“Never build your case for forgiveness on the idea that God is our Father and He will forgive us because He loves us. That contradicts the revealed truth of God in Jesus Christ. It makes the Cross unnecessary, and the redemption “much ado about nothing.” God forgives sin only because of the death of Christ. God could forgive people in no other way than by the death of His Son, and Jesus is exalted as Savior because of His death. “We see Jesus…for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor…” (Hebrews 2:9). The greatest note of triumph ever sounded in the ears of a startled universe was that sounded on the Cross of Christ— “It is finished!” (John 19:30). That is the final word in the redemption of humankind.”
“It is Finished!” – Utmost Devotion
My girls, 7 and 5, can tell you why Jesus died on the cross. But I do wonder and want to dwell deeper into them. I want to go beyond just head knowledge and into a heart of recognizing sins and forgiveness on the cross. That’s hard work. On one hand, you can say it is the work of the Holy Spirit.
At the same time, as a father, I feel obligated to do so. Yes, I can show them God’s love by being kind and loving to them. But I don’t want to see God’s love for them as a separate thing from the cross. It is easy to accept that God loves us and, therefore, He will forgive us. But it is another way to be humble: knowing God loves us and His Son, dying on the cross, expressing that love.
The question and challenge I keep repeating to myself is to guide my girls so that they see the cross in their hearts and not just recite what we teach them at Sunday school or at home.
