Yes, Jesus Died as the Sacrifice for Our Sins  

I don’t usually use this column to respond to the writings of others and thereby allow them to dictate the subject matter. However, it is interesting that it was just such a refutation I penned in a letter to the editor twenty years ago that led to my receiving the invitation to become a regular contributor. There are occasions when I believe I would not be faithful to this opportunity God has given me if I failed to point out error or to clarify what His Word says about certain issues that are raised. Such is the case today.

Someone recently suggested that the Bible attributes various meanings to the death of Jesus. And so it does. However, this writer went on to declare that one of those understandings is no longer valid or relevant to our modern world. It’s the concept that Jesus died as the sacrifice for our sins. I hope that most people will immediately recognize that to make such a statement reveals a view of scripture which is rooted in the idea that the Bible is primarily the fallible words of men rather than the authoritative, reliable Word of God. It allows its adherents to ignore parts of the Bible that either they don’t like or doesn’t fit their own understanding of how things ought to be. It opens the door for us to interpret scripture so as to fit us rather than our having to change in order to adhere to biblical truth. I hope most of us possess a higher view of God’s Word than that.

This writer indicated that the concept of Jesus dying for our sins made sense in a culture that practiced temple sacrifices but doesn’t make sense for us today. We do have to consider the context of culture when interpreting scripture. However, we should only conclude that a concept or principle is cultural rather than universal when other scripture lends evidence toward that understanding. It shouldn’t be simply because times have changed and we think we know better now. While some things may change, there are principles and truths in God’s Word which are eternal, regardless of how society changes or how modern minds may view them.

 The Bible is clear in declaring the main purpose of Jesus’ death. And it is not just rooted in the book of Hebrews or in the writings of some church leader centuries later. It is depicted all through the pages of the Bible if one is willing to see it and accept it as God’s revelation. It is first foreshadowed when God shed the blood of an animal in order to provide a covering for Adam and Eve after they sinned. It is seen in the sacrificing of the Passover lamb to protect the Israelites from God’s judgment on the Egyptians. Isaiah foretold of the coming Messiah that “He shall bear their iniquities” (Isaiah 53:11). John the Baptist declared that Jesus was “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Jesus Himself clearly stated His purpose in coming into this world – “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Numerous other biblical references could be cited that plainly state the truth that Jesus died to save us from our sins. A person has to deny the validity and reliability of the Bible in order to deny this basic tenet of Christianity.  

If Jesus did not die for our sins, we have no forgiveness, no salvation, and no hope of eternal life. Let’s be thankful for the wonderful truth that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).