A wise man, asked such a brilliant question this morning: How did Jesus volunteer himself as Savior of the world and to pay for our sins?
If anyone knows what heaven and hell is like, it is God the Father and Jesus. When man sinned, that seperated man from God Almighty, because God will not have the evil of sin in His House/ presence. Man's sins, then, left him spiritually and physically seperated from God. If sin could enter heaven, it would not be heaven, nor Holy.
Sins do carry consequences in the spiritual world and have to be paid for. When mankind cut off his own communication with God, that's when God provided a Plan of Salvation, so his/her sins wouldn't send them to hell. In that plan of salvation, God knew a mediator would be needed between Him and mankind, since man completely cut off his communication and relationship with God the Father. IN that plan, Father God appointed and approved Jesus to be Savior of the world for the reason that Jesus, His Son, was the only one worthy enough to be Savior of the world, since He was pure and without sin.
We cannot save ourselves from sin's condemnation, because we cannot come to God the Father with our sin on us, so we then had to depend on our Mediator between God and man, that being Jesus. As we come to Jesus repenting of our sins and ask for forgiveness, He goes directly to His Father on our behalf, letting Him know that the person He gives by name, wishes to have salvation, and is asking God the Father to forgive them.
God promises to forgive us, and does so. Not because of anything we have done, because God said we cannot work for our salvation, so that means that God forgives us only on the basis of the works that Jesus did on the cross, in the shedding of His blood to pay for our sins. God hears our plea for forgiveness from Jesus, forgives us, and remembers those sins no more. We are restored once again, to fellowship with our great God. To a brand-new life in Christ! Salvation is a gift of God and when we are saved, we also inherit the kingdom of God for eternity.
If anyone misses Heaven, it will be because they refuse to allow Jesus to rescue them from the consequences that sin placed on mankind. ANY who accept God's Plan of Salvation, shall be saved. It is God's promise. But not all want Jesus or for Him to save them, and so they miss heaven. Man cannot drag his sins into a Holy Heaven, or it would not BE heaven, and that's why we need to follow God's Plan of Salvation and have our sins forgiven, so we can be ready for heaven in all its glory and perfection.
Thank you, God, for providing us with your Plan of Salvation, so that we could be Heirs of Heaven. And my sincere, deepest thanks and gratitude to you, Jesus, for your great, unconditional love, and for saving us by your selfless work of salvation. You not only said you love us...you proved it! For that I shall always be grateful.
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How did Jesus volunteer himself as Savior of the world and to pay for our sins? Just as lambs were chosen for sacrifice in the Old Testament and up until the time of Christ, I don't think Jesus volunteered himself, but rather was chosen by God to be the sacrifice. His sacrifice allowed our sins to be forgiven. Our acceptance and belief in Him and his sacrifice gives us God's gift, (through Jesus,) of eternal life. While of course God knew the plans for Jesus, I don't think Jesus knew his fathers plans immediately, but rather found out later in his life. Thoughts/comments welcome.
@IM5688 You are correct about Jesus not realizing his role as a child, until around 12 or 13 yrs of age. While on earth in the flesh, He was just like us....learning and growing. There was good reason for that, as well. Jesus wanted us to understand that He could relate to us on a personal basis, as He experienced things as we do, since He came to us in the flesh. He understands everything about us.
Do you think the cross could hold Jesus, against His will? Never. God the Father didn't force Jesus to do anything against His will. He doesn't even force us to do anything against our will. Even though He never wants to lose one of us to the influence of Satan. Jesus wanted to save us from the condemnation sin placed on us.
When the Bible says that God appointed Jesus to be Savior of the world, that's because He found Jesus to be the only one worthy enough to save mankind, since only a perfect, sinless sacrifice can pay for our sins, which could be none other, than Jesus. He was the only one that God the Father approve of and found worthy enough, to be Savior of the world. There was no other that could take His place.
Jesus wanted to accept this role and save His creation from sure spiritual, eternal death. God the Father made a plan to save mankind, yes, but don't forget...the bible mentions the Godhead...God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit...all 3 make up One God... all three of them conferred together in this plan and what it would entail. One does not do anything without the other, as they are always in total agreement and work in total agreement. As a teen, He told Joseph and Mary, they should not have been worried about him, as He knew He had to be about His Father's business.
Jesus wanted to do the will of His Father, out of His great love for Him, and us. He didn't have to do anything. He wanted to save us from hell, because that is his character, He is love personified. His love for us is ineffable. He could have called down 10,000 angels to rescue Him from the cross, but He didn't. He suffered horribly, to the agonizing end. He didn't even complain or shout at His enemies. He voluntarily accepted His part in saving mankind and His love so great for us, He was willing to be humiliated, spit upon, thrashed with a whip within an inch of his life, humiliated and cursed, then nailed to a cross. Look what He said when He was on the cross, about his enemies, who nailed his hands and feet to the cross and suspended him between Heaven and Earth. Which, by the way, also signifies his role as our Mediator between God and man, as well as His great love for us. Jesus looked up into heaven and said to His Father, of His enemies, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!"
Jesus not only said He loves us, He proved His love for us. And it is absolutely inconceivable that some people still won't believe in Him. He gave His all for us. Even unto death. I don't know how in the world, we could give Him less than our all, as well. For those who want redemption and salvation, He saved us from an eternity in hell. No one else could do that. God said so. He would know. It wasn't even Himself that He thought about on that cross. He had His mind on us, and what He could do for us. He was willing to do anything to save us and He proved it.
