So many people are questioning; questioning whether or not there is a God, questioning their purpose, questioning what the end will look like. With so much hate and division in the world today, we need God now more than ever. But, Christianity has also developed a negative reputation now more than ever.
The media is bursting at the seams with stories of the intolerance and judgement of Christians. Yes, there are Christians and people who claim to be Christians doing and saying horrible things, but they have it all wrong. It’s absolutely heart breaking to think that so many people are closing their minds to Christianity because of a false portrayal of what it really is.
Christianity is not about condemning for every mistake and every sin. Christianity is about the endless love and the chance at eternal life that God gives us in spite of the condemnation we deserve. God’s love is not conditional. It’s not given because of “good works,” but it’s given despite the constant cycle of mistakes we are inevitably caught in.
Yes, it is important to spread love, because God wants us to live like He would. Being kind and helping other people is one of the most powerful things we can do. God wants us to lead our lives according to His Word and do as He commands us to do, but He will never ever abandon us when we fail Him. When you accept Christ as a part of your life, no matter your age, what you’ve done in the past, your political and social views, nothing can take your salvation away.
The stories you see in the media, the pictures of posters telling people they’re going to Hell, that is not what God wants His followers to do. He wants us to spread His Word and share His undying love, not threaten or condemn. He wants everyone to accept His gift of eternal life, and His heart aches for us when we don’t choose to follow Him.
The reason why Christians believe what they believe is because of a death, or rather, a resurrection. God (as Jesus, the Son of God,) willingly put Himself through a state of humanity. He came to earth and endured the same pain that we do every day of our lives. He was tempted (even though it was useless to even try to tempt Jesus), He was ridiculed, He was underestimated; Because of this, He knows what it’s like to live on earth.
Now, this is something that you probably hear all the time associated with Christianity: Jesus died on the cross and rose again. But, there's so, so much more to it than that. If that was all there was to it, why would millions of people so wholeheartedly dedicate their entire lives to the Christian faith?
The "more" part of this story is that Jesus endured an excruciating, bloody, horrific death just for us. Roman crucifixions were not held high off the ground as seen on TV, in movies, and in artistic interpretations of the Bible. Criminals were hung on a cross only six or so inches off of the ground, making death humiliating, as they were so close to the earth, but helpless to save themselves. So, soldiers were able to scream and spit in the face of the God suffering inexplicable pain to save them.
The question a lot of people respond with is, “If Jesus has so much power, why didn’t He save Himself from the cross?” But that's just it! That's the reason why God cannot even be fathomed by imperfect people like us. He did have the power to save Himself, but He didn't. He didn't even consider that for a second, as the crowd cheering on His torture dared Him to. He was whipped until His skin hung in fragments over His back, nails were plunged through His hands and feet, a crown of thorns poured blood into His eyes. And He didn’t need to do any of it. Jesus could have even hung on the cross, but taken away all of the pain. He didn’t.
You may be thinking, I would die for someone that I love too! Would you die for someone who would murder you; someone who would ask for your slow, agonizing death? Would you die for someone who would spit in your face and scream obscenities at you as you gave your life to save their's? Would you die for someone like that if you had the power to avoid it? If you knew you were the most powerful being to ever exist? If you knew that the ground you walked on should be worshipped by the same people hurling insults at your dying body?
But what would that have proved if He did save Himself? That He was powerful enough to? He’d already proved His power by working miracles for the people that He created and that He loved more than any of us could ever love anything or anyone. And He proved it, yet again, when He rose from the dead three days later. People still didn’t believe Him, but demanded his crucifixion and questioned His power.
Isn’t it much more powerful to know that a God so perfect would suffer unimaginable, insufferable torment and torture just to save you, than if He simply decided to demonstrate His own power by saving Himself?
Luke 23:24 - "And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.”
Not only did He save us and everyone who demanded His torture, but He begged for us to be forgiven as He hung. He did all of this, while they gambled for His clothes.
Jesus' death took the place of ours. Because He suffered, death has no power over us if we choose to live our life according to Him. When I die, I know that I will find myself in Heaven with the God who died for me. And that's the assurance that all Christians desperately want for everyone.
God loves us enough to die an excruciating, humiliating death that He did not deserve and could have saved Himself from. He did this for us, despite the horrible mistakes that we all make over and over again.
Being a Christian means believing in a love so deep, that it’s impossible for us to completely understand.
