The Lamb of God
Recently, I was teaching a class in our church, and I said, “Demonic spirits get involved in a Christian’s life oftentimes because they believe that they are having difficulties because God is punishing them for some sin that they have committed or for the sins of their past.” A man yelled out, “God has already punished Jesus for our sins.” The abruptness of his statement shook me, but his words were so true. He was simply agreeing with me, but he gave a lot of clarity to what I had spoken. God did punish Jesus for all sin even though Jesus had never sinned. What was the punishment? Jesus was mocked. He suffered all man’s depression, oppression, anxiety, fear, worry, etc. while he was in the Garden of Gethsemane until His sweat became as great drops of blood. Jesus was beaten with a leather whip with glass and metal in the end of it. A crown of thorns was placed upon His head then beaten down with a rod, imbedding it into His head. He was made to carry His own cross. His body was nailed to that cross. He descended into the depths of the earth to suffer the torments of the evil one(s).
We read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he (God) hath made him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” We then read in Isaiah 53:11, “He (God) shall see of the travail of his (Jesus’) soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge, shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” Jesus bore the punishment for all man’s sins of the past, the present, and of the future. The Bible tells us in John 1:29 that John saw Jesus coming unto him, and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” The people of that day knew exactly what was meant by a lamb being sacrificed for sin. Jesus was God’s Lamb. God offered Him not for His sins, but for the sins of all man.
The sin debt has been paid. It was paid over 2,000 years ago when Jesus became our sin, and sin was punished by God. Man has to simply receive Jesus as his Redeemer. If he does not receive Jesus, then he will be punished for his sins. That punishment is an eternal punishment in hell. Matthew 8:11&12 Amp. Jesus says, “I say to you that many [Gentiles] will come from east and west, and will sit down [to feast at the table, and enjoy God’s promises] with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven [because they accepted Me as Savior], while the sons and heirs of the kingdom [the descendants of Abraham who will not recognize Me as Messiah] will be thrown out into the outer darkness; in that place [which is farthest removed from the kingdom] there will be weeping [in sorrow and pain] and grinding of teeth [in distress and anger].”
So, what is Easter all about? Jesus suffered a horrible death by the hands of God to remove the sin debt from all man. Jesus cried out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me” (Matt. 27:46). When the debt for all sin was punished, Jesus was raised from the dead the third day victoriously. He is alive today. Do you know Him as your personal Savior? …If so, then your sins are forgiven and you will see Him again. If you are not sure, write to us or call 865/693-0144. Don’t wait until it is too late, my friend.