“And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”
We now come to the seventh and final statement of the Lord Jesus’s enormous descent from the essence of God to a criminal’s death.
“and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross”
Jesus was obedient to the point of death. He did not stop halfway. If He had not died, there would be no salvation for man.
For Jesus to die was not unique; everyone dies. Mark the word “even.” He was more than obedient unto death; He went further than death. He went to the cross’s death. That would be equivalent to the “death chamber” today. He died a criminal’s death. The cross was the instrument by which the Roman government executed its criminals. It was a slow death.
The cross was the goal of the incarnation. “Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements [the law] that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” (Col. 2:14). Jesus was nailed to the cross, and with Him, the judgments of the law against us.
The cross is the focal point of God’s dealings with us. That is where our redemption from sin was worked out. By shedding His blood on the cross, He paid the price for all sin for all time.
“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them” (2 Cor. 5:19).
The cross is a bloody issue with which to deal. The cross is offensive to many people. The cross offends people, especially religious people (Gal. 5:11). Religion leads people to believe that if they lead a decent life, they will be acceptable to God. People run to religion to tell them that they are “ok.” Some are offended when they hear an honest physician tell them a diagnosis they do not want to hear. They run to quacks to tell them about some panacea. They are not looking for a doctor; they are looking for a quack.
PRINCIPLE:
Only the cross of Christ can save us from our sins.
APPLICATION:
Have you come to the point of accepting the fact that it is only the cross of Christ that is sufficient to pay for your sins before a holy God?
If you are ready to make that decision for Christ, go to this page to see how to do it: https://versebyversecommentary.com/articles/doctrine/how-to-become-a-christian-2/
