Why Christ?

02/14/2020

There are many reasons why but let’s first think about this. God is absolute and perfect in every way. His standards are supreme, and His goodness unmatched. Do you agree? Since that is who God is, how could He be appeased with human goodness if no one is entirely good in nature and character like God is? The Bible makes it clear that human goodness/righteousness is like a filthy rag before God. So then, how can human goodness bring one to God if it will always fall short of the standards of a glorious God? What I am trying to say is that no amount of human goodness can “buy” God. That is not to say that we cease to do good things. It means that you cannot take pride in your goodness to earn your salvation because it doesn’t even meet the standards of a perfect God. God demands a righteousness that is equivalent to His. No one has that because everyone has fallen short of it. So what did He do? He became our righteousness in the person of Jesus Christ who was fully human and fully God, bridging the gap between humans and God.

God did not have to do this but He did because of His love for a dead world so that He will save those who believe in Him and obey Him. Mind you, our self-sufficient God does NOT need anything from humans, not even our worship because if we are to be silent, the stones would cry out and the animals would speak. Salvation in Jesus Christ is for all who recognize that regardless of how “good” they think they are, they miss the mark in comparison to God’s objective standards. As you know of the Adam & Eve story, humans were once like God in that they practiced only good because they knew only God’s goodness. But their disobedience resulted in spiritual death because they forfeited the life that was found in obedience to God. God asserts His sovereignty as true God by showing how humans rely on Him for everything including salvation. Religion says there are many ways to God. Religion says “just be a good person.” God is orderly and not chaotic, objective, and not a relativist, just and impartial. On whose standards would He rate a "good" person if not on His? If He accepted just anything, then He wouldn’t be God.

Jesus, as the image of the invisible God, says He is the only way, the truth, and the life. It is very straightforward and objective. To follow Christ is to be guided in a singular narrow way which is the objective truth the world is missing that leads to eternal life. God, in His excellency and wisdom, made it so that everything rests in Him, and Him alone. To follow Christ is conformity to God’s truth and His will which is absolute (yes, we are governed by absolutes in this world!). Yes, there is free will but we are wise when we realize that there is no better option out there than the absolute Himself! Who and what can rival God? Nothing! So God is not begging us to come to Him because He needs anything from us. He wants what is best for us and that is Himself. He is the ultimate not because He wants to be but because He is.

You follow Christ, not for material gain or worldly pleasure but because you no longer want to live as an enemy of God. It doesn’t stop at believing in Christ, it continues with obedience in faith. Your “good deeds” then become your reasonable service to God. They don’t buy you salvation but become an outpour of the righteousness you have attained in Christ alone. Once you are repentant and follow Christ, God’s Holy Spirit comes to dwell in you. He quickens you in correction to your human flaws, convicts you and reminds you to abide in God, and tells you things that are to come. You start aligning yourself with God's truth which the world hates, which you once hated too! So realize that we could never have negotiated salvation on our shameful merits. God proves He is God because He did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves on His perfect terms.

Jesus Christ suffered and died as punishment for our wrongs, and He resurrected showing the eternal new life that is in Him alone. His loving sacrifice was not cheap, and shouldn't be taken for granted. Jesus Christ as the son of God and God, allows sinners to become children of God, part of God's family who are obedient to the Father.