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Have you ever asked yourself this question: What kind of god dies? Jesus kept telling his disciples that he came to die, he came to deliver them from their sins not from Rome. But they just couldn’t hear it. After all, what kind of god dies?
If I had been in the shoes of those disciples at that time, I’m sure I would have struggled with understanding that the Messiah—the one I had faithfully followed for over three years, the one I hoped was going to redeem Israel from Rome—this Jesus was going to die on a cross under God’s curse. No doubt they knew the passage from Deuteronomy 21:23 which says that “anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse.”
When Pilot ordered Jesus to be crucified, the Jewish leaders were very pleased for no doubt they thought this would be the end of this troublemaker and his followers. Surely those pesky disciples would give up after Jesus was hung on a cross. This helps us understand why the disciples went into hiding after the crucifixion and were frightened that they would be found out. They were bearing not only the grief of losing Jesus, but the shame and disgrace of the way he was killed—on a cross.
A crucified Messiah was not their idea of a hero, a Savior, their hope. And up to the end they just couldn’t believe it—Jesus was going to be crucified on a cross? They must have wondered why God sent Jesus to die and why did he have to die on a cross? What kind of god dies?
Well, with clear hindsight now and with the New Testament to explain it to us, we can look back and see why God the Son had to die—and yes, even his method of death, a cross, was part of God’s plan. Remember, no one took Jesus’ life from him; he gave it. This was all part of God’s eternal plan, every detail of his death was predetermined by God.
The reason Jesus had to die was because sin has consequences and a holy God cannot just overlook sin. The price had to be paid for sin; this is what God declared. He does not ignore our sins, but he makes it possible for our sins to be forgiven in Jesus Christ. Of course, God also never intended for death to have dominion over Jesus. What a glorious truth!