I am glad we have an annual day called Easter or Resurrection Day, or whatever you call it. It’s the time of the year that the preaching of the cross at Calvary becomes front and center.
This should not happen only at Eastertime. But that’s my point. If it were not for this time of the year, the message of the cross would seldom be preached. This I say because during the rest of the year, we rarely hear the preaching of the cross.
When onlookers observed the crucifixion of Christ, they had not a clue what was going on. All they saw was a man dying a barbaric death. The normal assumption was that the person on the cross had committed some serious criminal act. That was true about the other two men on crosses beside Jesus. But His death on the cross was different in a serious way.
The Fourfold Provision of the Cross at Calvary
So, what was at stake at the cross at Calvary? What redemptive work was accomplished through the death of Christ? Perhaps the following verse from the book of Isaiah speaks to these questions like no other single verse in the Bible does: “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” (Isaiah 53:5, KJV).
Notice that this verse mentions four problem areas that were addressed on the cross at Calvary: transgression, iniquity, peace, and healing. We understand the latter two terms. But allow me to touch on the difference between transgression and iniquity. Transgression denotes acts of rebellion against or disobedience to God. Iniquity refers to lawlessness or sinfulness, as opposed to actual acts resulting from it.
Also, note the word “our,” used repeatedly in the verse above. Jesus’ death was not about Himself but about us. The one who knew no sin was made sin for us. That’s why Jesus’ death on the cross is personal. It was all about us. His death was not a pretty sight. The ugliness of the cross reflected the ugliness of humanity’s offences against God.
Last but not least, the cross at Calvary was a reflection of God’s boundless love for us. We were lost without hope in this world. No one on earth could redeem us because everybody was in need of a Savior. But when nothing else could help, love found a way. God came down in the person of His Son and died in our stead. As the hymnologist wrote, “Jesus paid it all; all to Him I owe.”
Copyright © 2022 by Frank King. All rights reserved.