Throughout the Bible, a narrative of substitution is progressively being played out. From Abraham heading out to sacrifice Isaac and God sending an innocent Lamb in Isaac's place, to Barabbas, a murderer on death row pardoned when a crimeless Jesus took his place. Through this doctrine of progressive revelation, God shows us how he will save humanity: by substituting what was owed to us onto someone else.
Like Isaac and Barabbas, we were as good as dead. Paul, in his letter to the Church in Ephesus, put it pretty explicitly: "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins" (Eph 2:1)
Paraphrasing how Voddie Baucham put it: "It doesn't say we were sick or terminally ill, that we were sinking and about to drown, it says we did drown, it says we were dead". When someone is medically considered dead due to heart failure, there’s nothing that person can do to change that for themselves. It takes external intervention from someone alive for that person to be resuscitated. So if we were all spiritually dead, facing eternal separation through our trespasses and sins, then the only person who could resuscitate us has to be alive.
Jesus, the bread of life (John 6:35), lived a sinless life in obedience to the Father, willingly giving his life as a ransom for the salvation of humanity on the cross (Matt 20:28). In doing so, by the power of the Holy Spirit, he spiritually resuscitates those who place their faith in him, giving us eternal life and completely severing the veil that was blocking our access to the Father. (2 Cor 3:15-16 , Matt 27:50-51)
"He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Cor 5:21)
In other words, Jesus Christ took on our sin, suffering the consequences of our actions by substituting himself in our place, bearing the full wrath of the Father that had been stored up for us (Romans 2:5). Instead, God treats us as if we’ve lived Jesus' sinless life, declares us righteous in his sight (Romans 3:22) and adopts us as his own. (John 1:12)
When I realised this, Jesus’ death became personal. Seeing my own sin on the cross for the first time, his calling was something I could no longer ignore. Behind all of this, what still perplexes me is his love. How God could love us so much that he couldn't bear the thought of us being separated from him, so he set a rescue plan in place even before laying the foundations of the earth.
In a world with many uncertainties, if there is one thing I am certain of, it is God's perfect love for us.
“But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)” – Eph 2:4-5
