Jesus Christ / Cross

  • Justification by Faith Alone

    John 8:46

    Because we are sinners, we can do nothing in and of ourselves to merit eternal life. Even after we are saved, our best works remain tainted by sin and cannot produce the perfection we need for a righteous standing before ...Read More

  • The Need for Atonement

    1 Corinthians 2:1–5

    In other religions, such as Islam and Judaism, God simply waves sin away, not requiring payment for transgressions in order to forgive. This idea betrays a view of a Creator who is not really all that holy, who ultimately is ...Read More

  • Christ’s Descent into Hell

    Matthew 27:45–46

    Sin against an infinite being demands an infinite punishment in hell. In a few hours, Jesus suffered and exhausted the infinite punishment that impenitent people cannot exhaust even after an eternity in hell. He could do this because, in His ...Read More

  • The Demands of Justice and Truth

    Genesis 2:15–17

    Without a robust doctrine of divine simplicity, we have a God at odds with Himself and One who cannot be trusted. The “gods” of other religions are not as just as they claim to be because they do not pour ...Read More

  • Particular Atonement

    John 10:7–18

    Christ’s death truly and eternally secured our redemption. We do not experience the blessing of the atonement because we have faith; rather, we have faith because Jesus actually atoned for our sins and sent His Spirit to give us ...Read More

  • Our Kinsman Redeemer

    Leviticus 25:23–28

    We are accustomed to thinking of a sibling or a parent as our closest relative. For those who are in Christ, however, Jesus is our closest relative, our closest kinsman who paid our debt when we could by no means ...Read More

  • Vicarious Substitution

    Matthew 3:13–17

    Nothing that Jesus did was an accident. He did not need to be baptized for the forgiveness of sins, but He did need to be baptized to keep God’s laws perfectly and to be perfectly identified with His people ...Read More

  • The Suffering of Christ

    Isaiah 53

    The Heidelberg Catechism says that Christ sustained the anger of God against the sin of His people “during his whole life on earth, but especially at the end” (Q&A 37). There is a sense in which all of the suffering Jesus endured on earth was part of His work of bearing sin, but Scripture is clear that the key work of atonement occurred on the cross. If we focus on Jesus’ life at the expense of His death, we will miss why He really came in the first place.Read More

  • Saved Through Christ Alone

    John 3:36

    Paul, the great Apostle of justification by faith alone, commends the “obedience of faith” (Rom. 1:5) not because faith is a meritorious work that earns salvation but because to trust in Jesus alone is to follow His command. In ...Read More

  • Paying for Our Sin

    1 Peter 3:18

    Christ not only died for us, He lived for us as well. Understanding this point helps to assure us of our salvation. We are, of course, called to please God through obeying His will. Nevertheless, we realize that the best ...Read More

  • Imprisoned for Christ

    Ephesians 3:1

    We do not often stop to consider just how offensive the message of the cross is to unconverted hearts. Which sinner could possibly imagine that the omnipotent Creator would save His people through the weakness and ignoble death of the ...Read More

  • No Longer Far Off

    Ephesians 2:13

    The longer we are Christians, the easier it can be to forget the greatness of our salvation and the incalculable price that our Father paid to adopt us as His children. Yet we must never allow ourselves to consider the ...Read More

  • The Exaltation of Christ

    Ephesians 1:21

    Christ’s reign and protection of His people does not guarantee that we will not face hardship, trials, and suffering as long as this present sinful order exists, for He has promised that suffering will be the lot of His ...Read More

  • Where to Set Our Minds

    Colossians 3:1-2

    As we recall the great inheritance of the age to come, we will seek more and more to enjoy a greater foretaste of the blessings that will come in that day when sin will be no more. Knowing that sin ...Read More

  • Christ Defeats the Powers

    Colossians 2:15

    John Calvin says that the demons “are disarmed, so that they cannot bring forward anything against us, the attestation of our guilt being itself destroyed.” Demonic powers cannot rightly accuse those who are in Christ of guilt, nor can they ...Read More