Why Did Jesus Die For Us?

Who did Jesus die for and why?

Scriptural Support for Universal Atonement – Tipping the scales of evidence in the favor of universal atonement is the support it gains from Scripture. Set against the view of limited atonement, universal atonement is the view that Christ died for every person and His atoning death becomes effective through individual acceptance.

1. Those who hold to this theory appeal to several categories of Scripture to support their claim.
2. The first collection of passages supporting universal atonement speaks of Jesus’ death in universal terms.
3. While introducing Jesus, John the Baptist says, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!” (John 1:29).

Commenting on the incarnation of Jesus, the Apostle John says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). The plain sense reading of this verse suggests that John is speaking of Jesus’ mission in universal terms.

1. Along the same lines, the Apostle Paul talks of Jesus’ dying this way: “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.
2. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Cor.5:14-15; emphasis added).

In another passage Paul speaks of the hope believers have in God, “who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe” (1 Tim.4:10). This verse is of particular interest and significance, observes Millard Erickson, “since it brackets as being saved by God both believers and other, but indicates that a greater degree of salvation attaches to the former.” 13 Again, the all-inclusive language used in relation to Jesus’ atoning death is used by the author of Hebrews: “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone” (Heb.2:9).

Another cluster of passages that support universal atonement addresses the universal proclamation of the Gospel. The most notable examples of this come from Jesus’ own mouth. In Matthew 24:14 Jesus casts a vision for the Gospel reaching the whole world: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Nearing the end of Jesus’ mission on earth, He commissioned His disciples to continue the work He began by saying, “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:19)”.

The book of Acts provides yet another example of this: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). It is against this backdrop of texts that advocates of universal atonement frame the question: Doesn’t it seem kind of insincere to offer salvation to everyone when you know that Jesus only died for the elect? Isn’t it a bit plastic, disingenuous, naïve, and in some ways improper to offer Christ to everyone if He did not die to save everyone? 14 Further intensifying this problem, Erickson points out, “is when one observes the number of passages in which the offer of salvation is clearly unrestricted.” 15 For example, Peter describes the Lord’s unrelenting patience towards an unrepentant world by saying, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promises, as some understand slowness.

• He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet.3:9).
• Elsewhere, Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt.11:28).
• With these passages in mind, Jesus’ invitation to come and His desire for no one to perish seems insincere if salvation was never intended for the non-‘elect.’ Furthermore, there seems to be a contradiction between God’s love for the (entire) world and a belief that Christ did not die for them.

Most famous of all passages in the Bible, John 3:16 seems to suggest that Jesus died for all: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Nothing within this proposition seems to suggest that God’s Son perished for only the ‘elect.’ Only a tortured reading of the text would convey that the ‘world’ actually means the ‘elect.’ Of all passages in Scripture, three stand out as the most compelling of all.

The first is the premier messianic prophecy found in Isaiah 53:6: “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (emphasis added). Note the connection between Isaiah’s two uses of the word ‘all’ in this verse. Isaiah’s language is clear in expressing the universal extent of sin.

Every one of us has sinned. And right within the same verse, the extent of sin that will be laid upon the Suffering Servant exactly parallels the extent of sin! Put differently, you would have to reject a plain sense reading of this passage, not to conclude that everyone who has sinned was atoned for.16 In the second passage, the Apostle Peter gives his readers a category for those Christ has died for perishing.

1. Warning his readers of false prophets, Peter tells them, “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.
2. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves” (2 Pet.2:1).

Denial of the sovereign Lord and the introduction of destructive heresies clue us in to the spiritual state of these false teachers. They were obviously not believers. More than this, the swift destruction that will befall them for these deeds can be none other than eternal separation.

And yet, Peter indicates that they were bought by the Lord; an obvious reference to Jesus’ atoning death. Finally, the Apostle John says, “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). John’s language here is unmistakable. Jesus died for the sins of John’s audience (undoubtedly believers in Christ) as well as for those of the entire world.

Why was Jesus killed?

He is arrested in Gethsemane, convicted of having uttered a threat against the temple, and condemned to death by Pilate. The answer to the question of why Jesus was crucified seems to be his threat against the temple.

Why did Jesus die on the cross for kids?

Life – The best part about the story of Jesus’ death is not that He died. The best part is that He came back to life! When you’re talking to your kids about Jesus’ death, stay on for a minute, then slide right on by and talk about life! We see this death-to-life all around us so it’s easy to make comparisons like seeds which are buried in the ground to bring new fruit, dead trees that sprout beautiful blooms, winter’s cold which leads to fresh spring! (Phil Vischer talks about this so perfectly in his book, What is Easter? Click here to read my review of the book,) Before we admire daffodils and lilies bloom, we have to go through winter.

Before we celebrate Easter Sunday, we have to get to Good Friday first. Children don’t need all the gory details about death. The Bible doesn’t even spend very long on the crucifixion, The purpose of talking to our kids about Jesus’ death is so they see the miracle of new life. Jesus’ death was a pre-planned act of love and sacrifice, one that would end in life so surprising and amazing that it overshadows the gruesomeness of death–and even defeats death itself.

Let’s point our kids to Jesus’ loving sacrifice and His amazing resurrection life this Easter!

What death did Jesus save us from?

Jesus saves us from eternal death to eternal life. Romans 6:23 says, ‘For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.’ Jesus said, ‘He who believes in Me will never die’ (John 11:26). Christians die physically but they don’t die spiritually.

Why did Jesus suffer for us?

Jesus Christ Suffered for Us It was a Friday afternoon. I started driving home, and the last thing I remember was I was at a stop light. The next thing I remember is I was sitting in the hospital on a bed, and there were people around me. I just didn’t understand what happened all, and I was- I was kind of confused, and I was really angry.

After that night, I spent a lot of time on my knees asking Heavenly Father why this happened. I didn’t understand it. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. After suffering in Gethsemane, He suffered on the cross and died for our sins. What He did for us is provide the means by which we can overcome our weaknesses, our sins, our faults, and return to live with our Heavenly Father again.

It’s a great feeling to know that He loved me, personally, that much. Without Him, I don’t know where I’d be today. He is my Savior, and I love Him very dearly. But after the accident, and after being on my knees quite a bit, I learned that Atonement is real, that Jesus Christ came to earth.

He lived a sinless life. He was the most charitable man there ever has been-He was perfect, and that He took upon Him all of our sins, and then He was crucified, and then after that, He was resurrected so that one day we’ll be able to be resurrected. But that- also that we can sin, and that we can repent of our sins, and be forgiven of our sins.

My name is Darren, and I believe in Jesus Christ. : Jesus Christ Suffered for Us

Did Jesus ever commit a sin?

If Jesus was a human being, was He really sinless? After all, the Bible says that no human being is free from the effects of sin. So how can both be true? Let’s find out. The Bible affirms the full humanity of Jesus, and even records moments when Jesus experienced the temptation to sin.

1. This is something we see in His trials in the wilderness in Matthew chapter 4 where, after Jesus spent 40 days without food or drink, Satan appeared to Him and tempted Him three times with offers built around temptations we all face—provision, protection, and comfort or ease.
2. So Jesus was tempted, but He the Bible also affirms that Jesus was completely sinless throughout His life on earth.

The Apostle Paul wrote that God “made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” The author of Hebrews described Jesus as “kind of high priest we need: holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.” And Peter said that Jesus “did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” Jesus He is our sinless Savior, who died in our place, and through His death frees everyone who trusts in Him from bondage to sin forever. Aaron Armstrong is the author of several books including Epic: The Story that Changed the World, Awaiting a Savior, and the screenwriter of the documentary Luther: the Life and Legacy of the German Reformer, From August 2016 until September 2021, Aaron was the Brand Manager of The Gospel Project and publishing team leader for The Gospel Project for Adults. Follow him on Twitter,

Why was Jesus killed the first time?

New Testament narratives – The earliest detailed accounts of the death of Jesus are contained in the four canonical gospels, There are other, more implicit references in the New Testament epistles. In the synoptic gospels, Jesus predicts his death in three separate places.

All four Gospels conclude with an extended narrative of Jesus’s arrest, initial trial at the Sanhedrin and final trial at Pilate’s court, where Jesus is flogged, condemned to death, is led to the place of crucifixion initially carrying his cross before Roman soldiers induce Simon of Cyrene to carry it, and then Jesus is crucified, entombed, and resurrected from the dead.

In each Gospel these five events in the life of Jesus are treated with more intense detail than any other portion of that Gospel’s narrative. Scholars note that the reader receives an almost hour-by-hour account of what is happening. : p.91 A depiction of the Raising of the Cross, by Sebastiano Mazzoni, 17th century, Ca’ Rezzonico After arriving at Golgotha, Jesus was offered wine mixed with myrrh or gall to drink. Both the Gospel of Mark and the Gospel of Matthew record that he refused this.

He was then crucified and hung between two convicted thieves. According to some translations of the original Greek, the thieves may have been bandits or Jewish rebels. According to the Gospel of Mark, he endured the torment of crucifixion from the third hour (between approximately 9 a.m. and noon), until his death at the ninth hour, corresponding to about 3 p.m.

The soldiers affixed a sign above his head stating “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” which, according to the Gospel of John, was in three languages (Hebrew, Latin, and Greek), and then divided his garments and cast lots for his seamless robe. According to the Gospel of John, the Roman soldiers did not break Jesus’s legs, as they did to the two crucified thieves (breaking the legs hastened the onset of death), as Jesus was dead already. Bronzino ‘s depiction of the crucifixion with three nails, no ropes, and a hypopodium standing support, c. 1545 According to all four gospels, Jesus was brought to the ” Place of a Skull ” and crucified with two thieves, with the charge of claiming to be ” King of the Jews “, and the soldiers divided his clothes before he bowed his head and died.

Following his death, Joseph of Arimathea requested the body from Pilate, which Joseph then placed in a new garden tomb. The three Synoptic gospels also describe Simon of Cyrene bearing the cross, a crowd of people mocking Jesus along with the thieves/robbers/rebels, darkness from the 6th to the 9th hour, and the temple veil being torn from top to bottom.

The Synoptic Gospels also mention several witnesses, including a centurion, and several women who watched from a distance, two of whom were present during the burial, The Gospel of Luke is the only gospel to omit the detail of the sour wine mix that was offered to Jesus on a reed, while only Mark and John describe Joseph actually taking the body down off the cross.

1. There are several details that are only mentioned in a single gospel account.
2. For instance, only the Gospel of Matthew mentions an earthquake, resurrected saints who went to the city and that Roman soldiers were assigned to guard the tomb, while Mark is the only one to state the time of the crucifixion (the third hour, or 9 a.m.

– although it was probably as late as noon) and the centurion’s report of Jesus’s death. The Gospel of Luke’s unique contributions to the narrative include Jesus’s words to the women who were mourning, one criminal’s rebuke of the other, the reaction of the multitudes who left “beating their breasts”, and the women preparing spices and ointments before resting on the Sabbath.

1. John is also the only one to refer to the request that the legs be broken and the soldier’s subsequent piercing of Jesus’s side (as fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy), as well as that Nicodemus assisted Joseph with burial.
2. According to the First Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 15:4), Jesus was raised from the dead (“on the third day” counting the day of crucifixion as the first) and according to the canonical gospels, appeared to his disciples on different occasions before ascending to heaven.

The account given in Acts of the Apostles says that Jesus remained with the apostles for 40 days, whereas the account in the Gospel of Luke makes no clear distinction between the events of Easter Sunday and the Ascension. Most biblical scholars agree that the author of Luke also wrote the Acts of the Apostles as a follow-up volume to the Gospel of Luke account, and the two works must be considered as a whole.

In Mark, Jesus is crucified along with two rebels, and the sun goes dark or is obscured for three hours. Jesus calls out to God, then gives a shout and dies. The curtain of the Temple is torn in two. Matthew follows Mark, but mentions an earthquake and the resurrection of saints. Luke also follows Mark, although he describes the rebels as common criminals, one of whom defends Jesus, who in turn promises that he (Jesus) and the criminal will be together in paradise.

Luke portrays Jesus as impassive in the face of his crucifixion. John includes several of the same elements as those found in Mark, though they are treated differently.

Where did Jesus go when he died?

Did Jesus Go to Hell? – The place named “hell” in this creedal statement was earlier known in the Greek as Gehenna, or the realm of the dead in the Bible. It is understood as a place of eternal punishment for those rejected at the final judgment. The Old Testament description of location uses the Hebrew word Sheol, which refers to the grave — a place far away from the presence of God where the righteous or wicked reside.

So, the question must be asked, is this where Jesus went when he died? An early view of Jesus’ descent into this ‘underworld’ location in one interpretive camp was that he liberated the faithful that had previously experienced death. A later view shares that this place of descent portrays Christ’s victory over the Kingdom of Satan, completed in death.

The Creed goes on to state Christ’s victory in rising to new life, ascending to heaven and resting in eternal triumph at the right hand of God, the Father. This second view supports the promise of the coming judgement upon Christ’s return, where final victory over death and evil will be unveiled.

Augustine, one of the early Christian writers, rejected the view that Jesus preached the gospel to those who had died before his coming, making salvation available to them. Yet, a later medieval view stated once again that only believers of the pre-Christian period were indeed recipients and beneficiaries of Christ’s preaching in Hades, implied in Matthew 27:52 and again in Hebrews 12:23.

Still, yet another view comes later from John Calvin, who saw this phrase as a description of Christ’s internal torment, as one who suffered complete and absolute separation from God. In other words, the torment on the cross alone was a vicarious endurance of what hell could be like as one removed from God.

Why did Jesus have to die for us to be forgiven?

Jesus became sin for us and bore our sins in his body on the cross, thus fulfilling the law.2 Corinthians 5:21: ‘God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’

Why did Jesus let himself die on the cross?

9 Summary and Next Steps – Jesus shared the widespread belief of his Jewish contemporaries that if sinners repented, that is turned from their ways, God forgave their past misdeeds. This did not depend on the cross, but on the merciful nature of God, who does not desire the death of sinners, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.

Since Jesus shared this belief, it would not have occurred to him to go to the cross to save people from their sins. What he did for sinners was urge them to repent. Jesus’ reason for surrendering to the cross was to save his followers from suffering a similar fate. This succeeded, and they were preserved to become the beginnings of the church.

Further study is now needed to explore the important consequences of our findings for the way in which the forgiveness of sins is linked to the cross. Since Jesus shared the belief that God forgives the past misdeeds of sinners who turn from their ways, of course without the cross, reformed sinners today, gentile as well as Jewish, can seek God’s forgiveness in direct prayer to God without any need to rely on the cross.

Nonetheless, this forgiveness comes to Christian sinners through Jesus’ surrender to the cross, because his surrender preserved his followers to become the beginnings of the church and it is their successors in the church who bring Christian sinners to repentance and to the merciful God whom Jesus worshipped and who forgives reformed sinners.

This traces the forgiveness of Christian sinners back through the cross by simple, concrete historical cause and effect—a better way than any of the many abstract, metaphorical ‘soteriological theories’, none of which have been generally accepted as both convincing and complete.

How did Jesus take our sins?

How did Jesus die for our sins? “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross.” – This apostle Peter has Isaiah 53 and the sin offering in mind when he writes, “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness; by His wounds you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).

Did Jesus pay for our sins?

Free From Sin and Guilt Because of Christ – “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” – Romans 8:1–2, NIV Even for Christians, guilt and shame can creep into our lives.

It is important for us to remember that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” because we have been set “free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2, NIV). Jesus took our sins upon himself when he died on the cross and rose from the grave three days later. He purifies us of our sins.

We do not have to be bound by guilt for our sins because we are freed from them and can find forgiveness in Christ. This forgiveness is available to all those who ask for it and recognize that God is worthy of our praise and obedience and that Jesus has made a way for us to be reconciled with Him.

• If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, NIV).
• Jesus did not pay for our sins only in part: he paid for all our sins.
• So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36, NIV).
• He has made a way for us to be with God, defeating death and hell.

This does not mean we are free from sin and temptations on Earth or consequences for our actions, but it does mean we do not have to live in fear. Instead, we can have confidence and freedom in our salvation through Jesus Christ. Want to read more blogs from Grand Canyon University? Click out the GCU blog page and the variety of blogs that we have to offer.

To learn more about GCU and the degree programs offered in the College of Theology, click on the Request Info button at the top of your screen. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grand Canyon University.

Any sources cited were accurate as of the publish date.

Why does God love us?

Why Does God Love You? 3 Reasons God Loves You So Much 1 John 4:7-9

Here are 3 reasons God loves you so much. 1. God Loves You So Much Because of Who He Is

We often imagine God to be the “random rule maker.” In other words, we often believe that good is good because God said it is good and bad is bad because God said it is bad. If God said stealing was good would stealing then be good? If God said being unfaithful was good would adultery be good? The key to answering questions like this is to understand that God ultimately does what he does because of who he is.

God would never say that stealing was good because God is completely just and thus he could never command anything unjust. God commands faithfulness not because he randomly said faithfulness is better than unfaithfulness; rather, he commands faithfulness because he himself is faithful in his own nature.

My point is, everything God does flows from who God is. His laws and his actions are a reflection of his being. So the reason God loves you so much is because God is love.1 John 4:7-9 teaches us: Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.” This truth is so important because we must always remember that God does not love us because of what we do; again, God loves us because of who he is.

This means that God’s love for us will never change because he never changes. This is why God can love us at our worst. In our darkest hours when we’ve done the worst things in our lives, God’s love remains because his love is rooted in himself and not in us.

1. You can’t lose the love of God because of something you might do because you did not gain the love of God by something you did.
2. We can’t let the love of God down because we were never the ones holding the love of God up.
3. Certainly God lets us reap what we sow and demands that we repent of sin (Galatians 6:7-10), but God also extends to us endless grace and love for us to humbly receive because he is a loving God (Romans 5:20-21).2.

God Loves You So Much Because of Who You Are While God loves all of his creation – the stars, the grass, the ocean, the animals – God has a special love for humans that is unlike any other love he has for anything else in all of creation. So God not only loves us because of who he is, God also loves us because of who we are.

• There are at least two expressions of this truth.1.
• God loves us because we are his creations made in his image, and 2.
• God loves us because he remembers we are completely dependent creatures in need of his love.
• To the first point, notice what God said in Genesis 1:26-27.
• It states: Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.

And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” God loves all human life because we are all endowed with a special value from God himself.

No other creations in all the universe are loved like humans by God. If you are human, you are loved by God because he made you. But God in kindness also loves us because of how needy we are for him. Like a parent who looks at their little child who makes all kinds of mistakes and is in need of all kinds of help, God loving helps us because he remembers our neediness.

As Psalm 103:13-17 teaches us: As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.

1. But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
2. God will always love you because he remembers who you are.
3. You are his creation, and you are in desperate need of him.
4. He will not abandon you.3.
5. God Loves You So Much Because It Brings Him Glory While the love of God should make us feel protected, secure, and even “important” as God’s creation, we must also remember that even the love of God is ultimately about the glory of God.

While God does love us immensely in a way that no other part of his creation experiences,, If he didn’t, he would no longer be God. This is why the love of God will not be forced upon us. While God loves the whole world, according to John 3:16 he will only save those who believe in Jesus.

1. God will not bless those who curse him unless they repent because God will never allow his name to be dishonored.
2. According to Isaiah 43:7, God made us for his glory.
3. When God shows us his love, when God forgives through the sacrifice of Jesus, and when God blesses us even when we don’t deserve it – all of this shines a light on his greatness.

As Psalm 23:1-3 famously states: The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” Why does God love us so much? “For his name’s sake.” While to some this might feel like God’s love is cheapened by this truth, in reality, this truth only enriches the love of God for us.

Why did God saved us?

What Do Scriptures Say about the Savior’s Atonement? – Jesus suffered pains, sicknesses, and temptations of every kind. Because He knows us perfectly, He can “succor,” or help, us. (See Alma 7:11–12,) The Savior understands our sorrows and grief (see Isaiah 53:2–5 ).

Does Jesus cry over us?

Interpretation – Significance has been attributed to Jesus’s deep emotional response to his friends’ weeping, and his own tears, including the following:

• Weeping demonstrates that Christ was a true man, with real bodily functions (such as tears, sweat, blood, eating and drinking—note, for comparison, the emphasis laid on Jesus’ eating during the post-resurrection appearances). His emotions and reactions were real; Christ was not an illusion or spirit (see the heresy of Docetism ). Pope Leo the Great referred to this passage when he discussed the two natures of Jesus : “In His humanity Jesus wept for Lazarus; in His divinity he raised him from the dead.”
• The sorrow, sympathy, and compassion Jesus felt for all mankind.
• The rage he felt against the tyranny of death over mankind.
• Although the bystanders interpreted his weeping to mean that Jesus loved Lazarus (verse 36), Witness Lee considered the Jews’ opinion to be unreasonable, given Jesus’ intention to resurrect Lazarus. Lee argued instead that every person to whom Jesus talked in John 11 (his disciples, Martha, Mary, and the Jews) was blinded by their misconceptions. Thus he “groaned in his spirit” because even those who were closest to him failed to recognize that he was, as he declared in verse 26, “the resurrection and the life”. Finally, at the graveside, he “wept in sympathy with their sorrow over Lazarus’ death”.

Does Jesus cry for us?

3 Times Jesus Wept And What We Learn From His Tears Several months ago, I preached a on the tears of Jesus. Our Savior was a ” man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief ” (Isaiah 53:5). This is more than mere emotionalism or shallow sentimentality – it is a reminder that He cares and that He carries our burdens.

There are three times in Scripture that Jesus wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41; Hebrews 5:7-9). Each is near the end of His life and each reveals what matters most to our loving God. He truly is ” touched with the feeling of our infirmities ” (Hebrews 4:15). His tears are a reminder that He loves sinners and cares for every soul.

A few weeks ago, I received a very kind email from a young lady who listened to that particular, She is a gifted poet with a heart to help others. Out of the truth that was shared, the Lord gave her a beautiful poem to express the message. I asked if I could pass it along to others and she has graciously allowed me to share it here.

• I hope that it will encourage you to see the tenderness of Christ and to ask the Lord to fill your heart with His own love for others I asked the Lord to give me love – His love for souls in sin;Instead He gave me weeping eyes,A broken heart within.
• I asked Him why He gave me tears,He took me back in timeTo when my Savior lived on earth,When He was in His prime.

I saw Him go to where His friendWas lying in a grave;The sisters and their friends were grieved -What love to them He gave. You see my Savior standing thereWas also grieved that day,He wept great heaving tears with sobsTill those who saw could say: “Behold we see now how He loved.”His tears revealed His heartHis love was evident through tears -I saw God’s point in part.

And then He took me to the day The people hailed their KingWhile Jesus enters to their cheersThe children run and sing. But when He saw JerusalemStretched out before His eye,His soul was moved with grief for them;It moved His heart to cry. Oh, as I read those solemn wordsI feel that they are sweetFor in them I behold His loveSo perfect and complete.

To one more place He took me now,At midnight I beheldThe Son of God bowed down with griefIn deepest sorrow held. I heard His weeping, strong and deep,But through it I discernedHe prayed for me – it melted me,His love for me I learned. With tearful joy I thanked the LordFor answering my prayer,For giving me His love for souls – His tears, His heart, His care.

-Christina Joy Hommes To read more of Christina’s poetry visit, To find more helpful resources, visit our full library

: 3 Times Jesus Wept And What We Learn From His Tears

Did Jesus ever deal with depression?

Coping with Depression: Stories from the Bible – Perhaps one of the oldest stories in the Bible, Job, is about a man who had many blessings, but also had many blessings taken from him. The story of Job gives many insights into loss and suffering, and there is much to garner for the reader. Then in Job 3:11, Job himself said, “Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb?” Later in the same chapter, Job also said, ” “I have no peace, no quietness, I have no rest, but only turmoil.” Around Chapter 10, Job stated: “I loathe my very life; therefore, I will give free rein to my complaint and speak out in the bitterness of my soul.” Finally, in Chapter 30, he says: “Terrors overwhelm me my life ebbs away, days of suffering grip me.

Night pierces my bones, my gnawing pains never rest.” Now this is not the end of the story and the Lord did restore to Job what was lost and much more. However, from these few verses it is clear that Job, at least for a season, struggled with depression. Jeremiah struggled with loneliness, feelings of defeat, insecurity, and likely depression.

“Cursed be the day I was born why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame?” (Jeremiah 20:14, 18) A case can be made that he was depressed. Anyone who reads the Old Testament prophets knows that all of them had special and peculiar callings from God where they often journeyed through moments of great emotional distress.

1. Another prophet, Elijah, had just won a great victory against the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18), and in the next chapter, the prophet is fleeing from the wrath of Jezebel and fearing for his life.
2. He is feeling defeated, depressed, and hoping to die.
3. In fact, Elijah appears to be depressed and at least passively suicidal! Elijah was discouraged, weary, and afraid.

He came to a broom bush, sat down under it, and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors”(1 Kings 19:4). Of course, the Lord ministered to Elijah and the rest of the story is an amazing recovery for the prophet Elijah.

• Then there is David, my favorite Old Testament hero.
• He had a heart after God, this was said by the Lord Himself.
• David won many victories in the name of the Lord.
• He was anointed to be king in his teens, but he spent his youth (15 years) being chased from cave to cave by Saul, who wanted him dead.
• David experienced years of trauma.

When he finally became King of Israel, he fought many battles and won many victories for the Lord. Nevertheless, at one point he was confronted with his own sin, and went through many difficult family situations for the rest of his life because of it.

There were some terrible moments in David’s life. David gives some clues in the Psalms that he often struggled with depression. For example, “I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. I groan because of the turmoil of my heart” (Psalm 38:6, 8). “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.

For You are the God of my strength ” (Psalm 42:5; 43:2). Of course, David repented of his sin and God surely helped him all the days of his life. In the New Testament, one of the best examples of depression can be found in the Apostle Paul. In 1 Corinthians 1:3-8, Paul writes about being in complete despair and says, “burdened beyond our strength,” The Greek word for despair in those verses literally means to be utterly at loss and to renounce all hope. When a person is depressed, they lose hope. Furthermore, one might think that Paul never felt bad about his past once he was saved and filled with the Spirit.

I believe he often battled in his mind due to his past experiences. Try to imagine Paul’s thought life at times. After all, he was responsible for killing Stephen and many other Christians before his conversion. The enemy loves to project guilt from our past and beat us over the head with it. There are other verses that give us hints to Paul’s struggle in his own mind.

It seems clear that he struggled with poor self-esteem. There must have been times when the enemy tried to use his past against him. Paul once stated concerning his apostleship that he was as one born abnormally and considered himself the least of the apostles (1 Corinthians 15:8).

There was a thorn in the flesh that the Lord did not remove, even when Paul prayed for it to be taken (2 Corinthians 12). Further, when you do a survey of the book of Philippians, Paul is apparently depressed and joyful at the same time. He is in prison and not likely to get out. He believes he will soon die.

It appears clear that he even wants to die and believes it will soon be time. Yet he claims that all he has ever known is worthless compared to knowing God (Chapter 3). Paul clearly gives a message of joy being available to him and to his brothers, even in the midst of great personal struggle and sorrow.

Even the Lord Jesus Christ, when He was in the garden facing crucifixion and preparing to take on Himself the sin of the whole world, was in a difficult emotional state. No other man had ever faced such an ordeal. The prophet Isaiah tells us that the Messiah would be a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53).

In the garden, the Lord said to His disciples concerning His condition, “My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch” (Mark 14:34-36). In the book of Luke, we are told that the Lord’s mental anguish was so great that He sweat drops of blood.

• It might not be accurate to call this clinical depression, but it definitely was mental anguish of a severity that no other man had ever experienced.
• Of course, Jesus was there to do the will of the Father, which for Him took preeminence over His emotional state.
• He would ask for this cup to pass if possible, nevertheless, “not what I will but what you will” (Mark 14:36).

Even if Christ was not depressed in the garden, there is insight into understanding the humanity of Jesus Christ. God has come in the flesh (John 1). The incarnation is the greatest miracle. Fully God, but also fully man. Some might think that Jesus, being the Son of God, never experienced what we do because He is God.

1. I believe this is incorrect.
2. In Philippians, Paul tells us that Christ humbled Himself, set His deity aside, if you will, “made himself nothing being made in human likeness” (Philippians 2:6-7).
3. In Hebrews, the writer tells us that the great High Priest (Christ) is “touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Hebrews 4:15, KJV).

This means that Christ knows the frailties and weakness of our flesh, because He has experienced the human condition. Christ was tested in His flesh, but never sinned. We also know Christ conquered the flesh. When Christ died upon the cross, fully man and fully God, He took all the sin and the sickness (even depression) upon Himself and became cursed for our sakes (Galatians 3:13).

• I believe Jesus, being touched with the feeling of our infirmities, knows what it is like to be discouraged and overwhelmed by emotions.
• How could He not know? There is comfort in this truth.
• The old songwriter says it well with the words, “No one understands like Jesus!” He understands when we are depressed.

The risen Savior now sits at the right hand of the Father and intercedes for us. This is our faith, which is the victory! (1 John 5:4)

What sin did Jesus forgive?

Have I sinned too much to repent? – Jesus has paid the price for every sin. You may have felt like your sins are too serious or that you have made the same mistake too many times. But no matter how much we have sinned, we can always repent and be forgiven. Some sins may be easier to correct than others, but Jesus Christ has provided for total forgiveness from all sins. He is eager to forgive.

What sins are unforgivable to Jesus?

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit – Mark gives us some help for interpretation by noting that “He said this because they were saying, ‘He has an impure spirit'” ( Mark 3:30 ). Jesus has been healing the sick and casting out demons in the power the Holy Spirit ( Matthew 12:28 ; Luke 11:20 ).

• Yet the religious leaders attribute the work of the Spirit to Satan ( Mark 3:22 ).
• In other words, they look right into the light and then turn to the darkness.
• The key to the unpardonable sin, then, seems to lie in the role of the Holy Spirit, which is to reveal God and draw people to the truth.
• Anyone who rejects the work of the Spirit in their life is essentially rejecting any hope of salvation ( John 16:8 ; 1 Corinthians 2:14 ).

And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come ( Matthew 12:31–32 ).

Does Jesus still love you if you sin?

Does God Still Love Me after Sexual Sin? Dear Ali, What if a Christian indulged in sexual activity for sometime but regrets it? Does God not love the Christian anymore and won’t be happy with them?

• Elizabeth
• Hi Elizabeth,

Thank you for the question! God’s Word gives us a wonderful promise as an answer. For the Christian, God’s Son, Jesus Christ, satisfied the wrath of the Father by dying on the Cross. This atonement for our sin allows us to come before the Lord in repentance, seek forgiveness, and be covered with Jesus’ perfect righteousness.

1. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
2. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8–9) “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace” (Ephesians 1:7) God’s forgiveness and love are unconditional.

He loved us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8) and we cannot earn His love by our good works. We are forgiven based on the perfect work of Jesus Christ. God does, however, require repentance in order to grant forgiveness. Receiving God’s forgiveness involves us recognizing that we have sinned and asking for the Lord’s mercy.

• Repentance causes us to see the depth of our depravity.
• It includes a change of heart and a change of behavior.
• David’s example in Psalm 51 gives a clear picture of what repentance looks like.
• Here are the first few verses, and I encourage you to prayerfully read the whole psalm.
• Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me.” (Psalm 51:1-3)

1. We come before our Heavenly Father with confidence that He is faithful and just to forgive our sins, but we come in humility knowing that we are not owed, nor deserve, the forgiveness we are so freely granted.
2. Through sincere repentance, and the forgiveness of sins, we can grow in our usefulness for the Kingdom of God!
3. I hope this has helped.
4. Yours in accountability, Ali
5. “Ask Ali” is an op-ed column answering common questions about accountability and related topics.

Originally published on May 19, 2022 : Does God Still Love Me after Sexual Sin?

Who are the elect according to the Bible?

The Old Testament applies the term ‘elect’ (Gk: ἐκλεκτος, Hebrew: בָּחִיר) to the Israelites in as far as they are called to be the chosen people, or people of God, or are faithful to their divine call. The idea of such an election is common in Deuteronomy and in Isaiah 40-66.

Who was Jesus sent to save?

When Jesus began to minister in the world, his only intended audience was God’s people, the Jews. It is recorded in Matthew 15: 24 ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.’ Remember, God chose the Israelite’s as his own and He was their God.

Who held Jesus before he died?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Saint Simeon
Simeon the Godreceiver by Alexei Yegorov, 1830s–40s
Prophet The God-Receiver
Venerated in	Oriental Orthodox Church Eastern Orthodox Church Catholic Church Anglican Communion Lutheran Church
Major shrine	Church of St. Simeon in Zadar, Croatia
Feast	3 February 8 October
Attributes	Depicted as an elderly man, sometimes vested as a Jewish priest, often holding the infant Jesus
Patronage	Zadar, Croatia

Simeon in the Temple, by Rembrandt van Rijn, 1631 Simeon ( Greek : Συμεών ) at the Temple is the “just and devout” man of Jerusalem who, according to Luke 2:25–35, met Mary, Joseph, and Jesus as they entered the Temple to fulfill the requirements of the Law of Moses on the 40th day from Jesus’ birth, i.e.

The presentation of Jesus at the Temple, According to the Biblical account, the Holy Spirit visited Simeon and revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Christ of God. Upon taking Jesus into his arms, he uttered a prayer which is still used liturgically as the Latin Nunc dimittis in the Catholic Church and other Christian churches, and gave a prophecy alluding to the Crucifixion of Jesus,

Some Christian traditions commemorate this meeting on 2 February as the feast of Candlemas, or, more formally, the Presentation of the Lord, the Meeting of the Lord, or the Purification of the Virgin (Mary). His prophecy is involved in the devotion to Mary as Our Lady of Sorrows,

Who was the first to die for Jesus?

What Happened To The 12 Disciples? On a recent Sunday morning we read how Jesus called 12 young men out of his followers to preach the coming of the Kingdom of God. Their names were Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means “sons of thunder”), Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. After Jesus ascended to heaven (Acts 1). The 11 remaining disciples appointed a brother named Matthias to replace Judas, who had committed suicide after betraying our Lord. This is a debated point because the Scripture gives us no indication whether or not God wanted them to do this, and many see the apostle Paul as God’s obvious replacement for Judas.

• While I personally tend to hold this point of view, I find it pointless to argue or debate.
• God has called all of us to the work he has for us and no one is more important or more holy or more loved in God’s kingdom than any other person.
• The reason I’m writing this blog is to make the point that these people spent years with Jesus (except Paul) before his death and all of them (including Paul) had interactions with someone they believed to be the risen Jesu after his crucifixion.

All of them suffered greatly because of their proclamation of Jesus as Lord and it their testimony strongly shapes our faith today. What happened to these men after Jesus is based in part on historical record and in part on church tradition. Unfortunately politics enters into the traditions of men and so we have traditions claiming that James, the brother of John, went to Spain, when the Bible makes it clear that he was the first of the 12 to be martyred (killed) for his faith in Jesus, when he was put to the sword in the early days of the church in Jerusalem.

PETER Peter was crucified around 66AD in Rome under the persecution of Emperor Nero. There are all kinds of unverified traditions about his death, most notably that he was crucified upside down because he didn’t consider himself worthy to die the same way Jesus did. JAMES James was the first of the 12 to be put to death.

King Herod had him killed by the sword in Jerusalem (Acts 12). There are some non-biblical traditions about James that I will address later. JOHN The writer of the the Gospel of John, the book of the Revelation and three epistles bearing his name, John is the only one of the 12 that history says was not put to death for his faith, although he suffered greatly because of Jesus throughout his long life.

1. Tradition says he ended his life ministering in the region around Ephesus in modern day Turkey and is buried there.
2. ANDREW The brother of Peter, Andrew traveled north, bringing the good news to what is now Russia and the western regions of the former Soviet Union.
3. He later traveled through modern day Turkey and Greece where he was martyred.

PHILIP Philip ministered in North Africa and then Asia Minor. Traditions says that a Roman Proconsul was so enraged that his wife had converted to Christianity because of Philip’s preaching that he had Philip brutally put to death. There is disagreement about the manor in which he died but no matter the method, it was because he fully believed that Jesus had died and risen from the grave.

It is possible that Philip’s tomb was recently discovered (read about ). BARTHOLOMEW/NATHANIEL Bartholomew was apparently someone who loved to travel. Some accounts have him going to India with Thomas, then Armenia before heading along the trade routes between Ethiopia and the southern Arabian regions.

While we are not sure how he met his end, tradition agrees that he was martyred for his faith. In some places he is listed as “Nathaniel” which could have been a family name or a name he was known by in the church. MATTHEW/LEVI The gospel writer who had previously been a tax collector, Matthew traveled to modern day Iran and then down to Ethiopia, probably following established trade routes and preaching the gospel along the way.

While some account do not include how he died, others say he was stabbed to death in Africa. Like Bartholomew, Matthew was known by more than one name: Levi. This other name is easier to pin down and is probably a family or tribal identification. THOMAS Thomas get’s a bad rap. Although he doubted the resurrection at first, Thomas’ faith in the risen Jesus was strong enough to send him traveling east to Syria and Iraq to preach the gospel, eventually ending up in India were the Marthoma Christian tradition considers him to be their founder.

The Marthoma tradition says that Thomas died by stabbing at the hands of four soldiers. JAMES THE SON OF ALPHAUES Very possibly the brother of Matthew/Levi, James is believed to have preached in the regions north of Israel. A non-christian historical account says that he was stoned and then clubbed to death.

He is sometimes known as James the Younger (younger brother of Levi?) or James the Lesser (which would have had different connotations then it does for us today). SIMON THE ZELOT Simon’s ultimate end is somewhat unclear. I wrote earlier that politics gets involved in the traditions about the apostles.

When Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire it became politically advantageous to be connected with the apostles or notable christian events or leaders. This means that places like Turkey, Greece, Rome and Jerusalem naturally had more power/influence than churches in places like Britain, France, Africa and Spain.

As I said earlier, there are non-biblical traditions regarding the apostles. In the 12th century, a Spanish bishop began to promote the idea that James had come to Spain, despite the account of James’ martyrdom in Acts 12. The same is true with Simon the Zelot with different groups and agendas making claim to Simon’s legacy.

The majority view seems to be that Simon was sawn in half in Persia. PHILIP Little is known about Philip’s life after Acts 2. Some have tried to link him with the Philip found later in the book of Acts but the circumstantial evidence doesn’t seem to fit other than sharing the same name.

• Tradition says that he preached in the Phrygia region of Asia Minor (modern day Turkey) and was martyred for his faith in Jesus in the town of Hierapolis.
• JUDAS THADEUS The early church father Jerome called Jude “Trinomius” which means three names.
• Mark and Matthew list him by his family name “Thaddeus”, while Luke refers to him as Judas the Brother of James.

Some have tried to link him with Jude, the half-brother of Jesus who wrote the book of the same name but we reject this view. Tradition holds that he preached the gospel in the area we could think of as Northern Syria, Iraq and Turkey. He was said to have been killed with arrows in Turkey’s mountainous northern region.

• MATTHIAS Tradition says that Matthias traveled north, possibly as far as the Caspian Sea.
• He was martyred for his faith although the method of his death is unclear.
• PAUL Paul suffered for the Lord throughout his life.
• In addition to imprisonment and multiple threats to his life, Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:25 that “Three times I was beaten with rods.

Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea.” Paul was beheaded in Rome in 66 AD, possibly at the same time as Peter. JUDAS Judas committed suicide after betraying Jesus. I mention this because every one of Jesus’ followers died.10 of them as martyrs.

John died of old age. But Judas chose a cursed path. He was not the only one who betrayed Jesus; all of the other disciples abandoned Jesus, Peter directly denied knowing him. Paul persecuted Jesus’ followers. Yet all of them embraced the grace and forgiveness of God and that same grace was available to Judas.

If you’ve read this and have ever felt like Judas, thinking there is no hope, you need to know that each and every apostle was at some point in a place of “no hope'” but unlike Judas they turned their eyes to Jesus and embraced his grace. The same is available to you.