Jesus came for the sinners and yes, He died for them/us. I forget that Jesus died for me, not as a righteous member of society, but as a sinner headed for a terrible death and eternity in hell.
I think about what it must take to die for someone. Putting one’s life on the line for another person is extraordinary. Fireman running into a burning building. Law enforcement running toward gunshots. Teachers walking into some of the inner city schools. All of these folks put their lives on the line for the good of others. And parents doing all they do to protect a child from any danger, like stepping in front of vehicles to save. Or, shielding a child from any harm at all. I know that I would personally do anything to protect my boys, even die in their place.
All of the above are acted upon for generally the innocent and we as those jumping in, do not even think about the danger to ourselves, we are only focused on the act of helping others. Jesus did that as well, only, I am not so innocent.
“7For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” — Romans 5:7-8 (ESV)
My jumping in to protect my boys and those others that rescue the innocent are exceptions to any rule, and that is what I see in verse seven above. It is verse eight that I am fully amazed at. Jesus came to this world to purposefully die for those that are not so innocent. I am a purposeful sinner. I am not the one who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, I am to blame. Yet, Christ came to die for me.
Jesus came for sinners like me. He came to bring me the gospel. He came to show me the way. He came to provide the opportunity for salvation (yes, provide, not force upon me). Yes, there are those counted as righteous who benefit from the arrival of Christ. And Jesus came to die for them as well as me,
“23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” — Romans 3:23 (ESV)
Yet, it is me, the sinner who is not specifically counted as righteous. Jesus came to die for my sins and knowing even that I will continue to sin even after receiving salvation. He knows me and yet He died for me.
I have to remember daily that Christ came for me and not just to chat with, but to die for. I am the sinner that Christ came for. And so are you. No matter what you have done, Christ knows and forgives you. He came to take your sin with Him on the cross, and he did not meet you in person. Christ chose you and me as the ones He would save through His sacrifice. He died for us.
What are your thoughts of Christ dying for you? Are you like me and cannot believe He would die for you, the sinner? What if you had the faith and hope provided by Christ through His death for you the sinner?
Trevor's Thoughts 