God has blessed man with the great and beautiful world in which to live. He not only cares enough to give physical blessings but God has also made provisions for mankind’s salvation.
When man sinned in the garden, God could have destroyed man at that point in time. However God’s love for man caused him to make a way for man to be justified once again. It took the giving of Jesus for man to be saved, and God was willing to do that very thing.
The death of the lamb of God at Calvary was the only atonement for man’s sins that God would accept. Paul wrote, “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph. 3:10, 11).
This is seen as the purpose given for Christ coming to earth, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).
For centuries animal sacrifices were made as sin offerings. However, the blood of the sacrifices could not take away the sins of man.
The Hebrew writer put it like this, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure” (Heb. 10:1-6).
It was never God’s intention that the animal sacrifice would save man. The Law of Moses did what God intended it to do, even though man had trouble keeping it. It was the school master to bring us to Christ.
Paul wrote the Galatians Christians to tell them why the law was no longer to be followed. “Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; … But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster” (Gal. 3:19-25).
When one reads of the road Jesus trod to the hill at Golgotha, he reads of the fulfillment of God’s plan and the manifestation of God’s love for man.
Isaiah the prophet foretold of this wonderful, yet terrible, occurrence: “… Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all …” (Isaiah 53).
Love such as this world had never known, love so great that the very Son of God would be slain so that sinful man could have salvation. What a tragedy it is when man will not listen to God’s word, when they refuse to obey and when they count the death of the Lord as no great matter.