The Exchange!

The Exchange!

2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV

[21] For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Pause and reflect on the amazing sacrifice that Jesus had to make on my behalf. Think of the pain and hurt in the heart of God when He permitted the unusual to happen, simply because of me. We usually say that the gift was free, but that is easy to say from our own perspective. We also usually say that there is nothing God cannot do, and it is usually in respect of the impossible and the amazing. What of this: A God who hates and punishes sin; a God who is holy and righteous, who had made it clear since creation what his view of sin is, allowed his own Son, without sin and without blemish, become that which He hated. He had a choice as God, and He could have found a way to restore man to his original position, but He had to follow His own principle in relation to sin, and allow the shedding of blood for the full remission of sin for mankind. That is faithfulness, even in the face of personal cost. 

I was the one who sinned, and it was only fitting that I should be the one to pay the price for sin. I was the one who chose rebellion over obedience, and was due for the legal and fitting punishment that my actions deserve. However, with death being the price to be paid for sin, God knew that there was no way my old nature could pay such a price and still survive. How can that which is already dead due to sin still pay the appropriate sacrifice for that which was the reason for the death in the first place? There had to be a solution that was not subject to the problem of sin, or under the control and influence of sin. The solution could not come from those who could not save themselves. The flip side was that the solution also had to walk in my shoes in order to be able to fully pay the price. The solution had to experience what I did. This is just a tip of the pain, discomfort and shift that God had to put His son through, because of me. 

Due to the sacrifice made, He has been able to walk in my shoes, and now, I can walk in His. He experienced death on my behalf, and dealt a final blow to its power and scope, and by His resurrection, He now offers me the life and hope that are possible inside of Him. The limits that sin placed on me have been dealt with and removed, and I can now experience the life of God in its full form. That was the whole point behind all that He did: he wanted Godly offspring, the kind that looked, talked, dressed, walked and thought like Him, because they had His kind of life on their inside. The work He did has now birthed people who appreciate the sacrifice made, and now live in daily appreciation. They hate sin the same way He does, and embrace the righteousness He is and gives. Let it be known that no excuse for sin is acceptable anymore; that which Christ did is sufficient once and for all time. He has done His bit; how do you respond? God's time of favour is here.