Watching the movie
The Passion of the Christ is a moving experience for many people.
Reports of entire audiences weeping, sitting in stunned silence at the end
of the film, lingering in the lobby holding each other, and feeling that
something supernatural has occurred have been reported in many places.
However, others watch the movie and say, "So what? It's a good movie and
all. Good special effects, but I don't get it. What's the
point?"
Frankly, that is a good question. And I'm not talking about the movie
now. What I want to address is what was the point of the real, true,
passion of the Christ. What did it matter that this man who lived more
than 2000 years ago was tortured and put to death in such a terrible manner?
After all, two other men died that day in the same way as did Jesus of
Nazareth. We don't even know their names. Thousands of others
were crucified by the Romans. This one man's death meant little
to either Rome or Jerusalem at the time. So, why is it important
enough for us to be talking about it today?
First, Christians believe that this was not just any man. We believe that this was a special man who was the Son of God. More precisely, we believe that this was God himself inhabiting a human body for 33 years.
The first verse of the Gospel of John, speaking of Christ, says "In the Beginning was the Word (logos) and the word was with God and the word was God." It's interesting to me that the Christ is called The Word or in the Greek "Logos." Logos refers to the essence of the communicative act, speech and logic or rational thought. Jesus was in essence God's communication to humanity. He showed us what God was like, taught us what God wanted us to know, and eventually expressed God's love for us by sacrificing himself on the cross. We'll talk about what that sacrifice meant later on, but for now, it is important to understand that the death of Christ on the cross was not a great tragedy of a good man being murdered for disturbing the status quo. This is the case of a man choosing to die for a purpose that no one could have imagined at the time. The question of who killed Jesus is moot. He said it himself:
Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. (John 10.17-18)
This is an amazing statement. Jesus death on the cross was not an
unfortunate end to an inspired life? Does this mean that He actually
intended to die? Are we saying that the very purpose of his life was
not the teaching, the miracles, the healings, the setting up of a religious
system, but rather, that everything in his life was leading up to this
horrible death? Is that what Christians are saying?
That's exactly what we are saying. As horrible as Jesus death on the cross
was, it was not by far the low point of his life. No, it was what his
whole life was destined to become. He was destined to not only
sacrifice his life, but to become a sacrifice.
I know this is hard to deal with. In modern culture we are used to
thinking about Jesus as a great teacher, maybe even a prophet, a great moral
example, maybe the "son of God" as we all can become "son's of God" if we do
good for others. And in one respect this is all true, but it's only
half of the story. The other half is that God himself becomes a
man so that he can do the one thing he cannot do as Almighty God, Lord of
the Universe, Creator of Heaven and Earth, existing outside of space
and time. He comes to earth and becomes human so He can die.
That's it, but not just to die, but to become a sacrifice. A sacrifice is something that dies in place of another. In the Old Testament, sheep, goats, doves and cattle were all sacrificed to atone for the sins of the people. But these sacrifices were only temporary. They were imperfect. So, God himself decided to become a perfect sacrifice in the person of Jesus Christ. Hebrews puts it this way:
Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:12-14)
A perfect sacrifice was needed. The Bible says that "The Wages of
Sin is death." (Romans 6.23). It also says "All have sinned and
come short of the Glory of God" (Romans 3.23) That means that because
of sin we are separated from God. Sin cannot enter the presence of God
because God is life and sin is the product of death. That means that
we cannot have a relationship with God. It's not that God doesn't want
it, but because His very nature is such that it is impossible. But the death
of one who is pure can atone for the impure. So, in the beginning
animal sacrifices could atone for the sins of the people when done with
sincerity of belief. But these were temporary and had to be repeated.
A better solution was needed, and one was prepared.
God becomes the sacrifice. The sin of all mankind, past, present and
future, are laid on the one person in all of history who is a true innocent
-- Jesus of Nazareth, fully God, but also fully man. He endures the
whipping, the crown of thorns, the crucifixion all dramatically portrayed in
the film. He endures the punishment for sins that did not belong to him. And
that sin laid upon him is so egregious that God the Father cannot look upon
God the Son and darkness falls on the earth. But through that, the
price of sin is paid in full forever.
Christians believe that this is what Isaiah the prophet spoke about when when he wrote:
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 every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53.4-6)
The Apostle Paul put it this way:
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. 2Co 5:21
In other words, the point of the passion of Jesus was to do for us what we could never do for ourselves. It was to pay the price for the sin of humanity. He died so that we might live. Again the Apostle Paul said:
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. (1Th 5:9-10)
The story doesn't end with the crucifixion. Friday was dark, but
Sunday morning things brightened up considerably. If Jesus had just
been killed, then it would have just been another example of a great human
teacher being crushed by the status quo. He would have been no different
than Socrates, Gandhi or Martin Luther King. His death would have
little meaning. But Sunday Morning, the tomb was empty.
And for 40 days afterward Jesus was seen by more than 500 people (I
Corinthians 15.6).
Just as the crucifixion is historical fact, so is the resurrection.
Jesus lives today. And he has a gift of eternal life available to
everyone. And not just eternal life, but eternal relationship with
God. Imagine, being on intimate terms with God, able to live in his presence
and walk with him daily here on earth, but also to live forever with him in
heaven. What would you pay for that opportunity? Well, it's not
for sale. The price has already been paid.
That's what the passion is all about. The death of Jesus was only the beginning of the story. The story has not concluded yet. The theatre has not gone dark, yet. But that time is coming. And the question remains, where will you be going when it does?
Click Here for information about how you can accept the gift Christ paid for with his passion.