Recently, I was reading the words of the Lord Jesus in John 10. “No man taketh it [My life] from Me, but I lay it down of Myself . . . [that I might] take it again. This commandment have I received of My Father.” Death had no claims on the Son of God who had life in Himself (John 5:2626For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; (John 5:26)).
Yet our blessed Lord surely felt the awful agony of crucifixion. Psalm 22 clearly foretells that. Both Jew and Gentile stand guilty before God of the murder of Emanuel. But He laid down His life of His own choice. At the end of those three awful hours of suffering from the hand of a thrice-holy God, the work of redemption was fully accomplished. God was fully propitiated concerning the whole question of sin.
When the Saviour cried, “It is finished,” Scripture records that it was a loud cry. With the words, “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit,” He bowed His head and gave up the ghost. Death had no claims on Him. He had never sinned (He could never sin), and thus He was not subject to death. Yet for our sakes He willingly tasted death for every man.
We read that “without shedding of blood is no remission” of sins (Heb. 9:2222And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. (Hebrews 9:22)). He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. His precious blood having been thus shed proved that His life was poured out.
The Lord’s sufferings at the hand of man showed His patient love and man’s wretchedness. But those sufferings could never put away our sins—they only condemned man the more. It was only when the Lord Jesus was made sin, during the last three hours on the cross, that the atonement was wrought. Then He was forsaken of God, when it pleased the Lord to bruise Him, when He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities (Isa. 53).
“For me, Lord Jesus, Thou hast died,
And I have died with Thee.
Thou art risen, my bands are all untied,
And now Thou livest in me.
The Father’s face of radiant grace
Shines now in light on me.”
K. Gorgas (adapted)