I remember preparing for my first ever Sunday sermon. It was Easter Sunday and I chose to preach from Isaiah 53, the most vivid Old Testament prophecy of Christ’s death and its meaning. As I studied the text, I found myself fixated on verse 10 which starts with these words, “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief”. Isaiah was saying in no uncertain terms that Jesus would suffer a brutal death according to the Father’s will and plan.
I believed this truth but wrestled with how to communicate it. It is hard to wrap our heads around the idea that God, our good Father, would orchestrate the suffering and death of his beloved Son. It is so counterintuitive that some theologians have tried very hard to deny it. Their arguments might pull on our heartstrings but they flatly contradict the teaching of Jesus himself and his apostles¹. Scripture is clear, God the Father was the architect behind the death of Christ.
So, what are we to make of this? What does Christ’s death show us about God the Father? Much can and has been said on this but as I reflect on it, I see at least three encouragements it gives us.
See his great love for you. Scripture tells us why God orchestrated the death of Christ. He did it out of love for sinful humans like you and me. The cross reflects not the smallness of the Father’s love for Jesus but the greatness of his love for us. John 3.16 famously says, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son”. In saying “he gave” Christ, it speaks of giving him to die in our place. To settle the debt we could never repay. To reconcile us to himself. If you ever doubt God’s love for you, remember he gave Christ for you while you were his enemy (Romans 5.6–10). If he did not spare his own Son but gave him for you, you can trust his commitment to doing you good (Romans 8.32).
See his full pardon of you. Christ’s death displays not only God’s love but also his righteousness (see Romans 3.23–26). We struggle to comprehend the gravity of sinning against our holy God and the wrath it deserves. If God simply forgave us because we said sorry or did more good than bad, that would be unjust as he would be simply ignoring our sins. However, God does justice to the believer in Christ because all their sins are punished in Christ’s death and God is “faithful and just to forgive” (1 John 1.9). If you ever worry that God still counts sins against you or are tempted to work for forgiveness, remember God gave Christ to be a more than sufficient payment for all your sin.
See his ability to turn evil into good. The death of Christ is simultaneously the most heinous injustice and most loving act in history. In it we see the highest fulfilment of the words Joseph spoke to his brothers, “you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive” (Genesis 50.20). God often shines the brightest light out of the deepest darkness. And this is reason for us to hope. If your situation looks hopeless and bleak, remember the death of Christ and see that God can and will still turn even this for good.
¹ Isaiah 53.10, Luke 24.42, John 3.16, Acts 2.23, Acts 4.27–28, Romans 3.25, Romans 8.32
These articles are written without the use of generative AI.