5. The Role of Jesus Christ in Salvation
The life and teachings of Jesus continue to inspire and guide Christians around the world. But more than that, Jesus’ role in salvation is crucial, because it is through Him that we have access to God’s grace and forgiveness of our sins.
The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ was necessary in order to fulfill the prophesied Old Testament scriptures, and to achieve authority over the power of sin in our lives. When Jesus was crucified and buried, He took upon Himself all the sins of the world to the grave. Although Jesus was sinless and did not deserve to die a criminal’s death, He offered His life in exchange for ours. By doing so, Jesus paid the death penalty of sin that we deserved in order to appease the law of God forevermore.
In the book of Leviticus God teaches the Israelites the importance offering an unblemished lamb or goat as a sin sacrifice. The appointed priest would offer it to God as an atonement for the person’s sin. If God consumed the offering the person was forgiven. To a Holy God, sin is a serious offense equal to capital punishment and the Israelites were God’s chosen people who were to be an example to all the nations of the world. They were to be His ambassadors and a royal priesthood that glorified Him on earth. Therefore, their sin sacrifices were to be presented with a genuine sorrowful heart.
After some time, the people began to offer sin sacrifices as a ritual and their hearts and minds grew cold about its purpose because God did not kill them when they committed sin. They took for granted God’s good will towards them. They began to desire the lifestyle of the surrounding culture of idol worshippers, offering despicable sacrifices, dressed immodestly, and were perverted.
As a result of their unfaithfulness, their offerings were meaningless to God who saved them from brutal slavery and possible extinction way back when their ancestors where in Egypt. But many of the Jews still offered sacrifices, because according to the scriptures, they were to do so until the Messiah returned.
Animal sacrifices in the non-Christian Jewish community eventually halted in A.D. 70, during the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Roman armies. God did this to ensure that Jews stopped offering sacrifices because they were unacceptable since they did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah who came to give His life in exchange for theirs at the crucifixion.
Without the Temple, the Jews did not have a place to offer sacrifices to God. This was an event that Jesus prophesied about when He was with His disciples. Because the Jews did not believe in Him, Jesus said concerning the Temple; “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; each one will be thrown down.” Matthew 24:1-2.
The Jews doubted Jesus and they asked Him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” John 2:18 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (Verse 19). Because they did not believe in Jesus, they could not understand the meaning of Jesus’ words.
What Jesus conveyed to the Jews was that He would rise again three days after His burial inf fulfillment of the scriptures. This rendered the Temple obsolete and the true followers of Jesus would embody the temple where His Spirit resides.
As stated in Acts 7:48-50, that “God does not dwell in houses made with hands.” Referring to the prophet Isaiah who quoted God, “Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the Lord, or what is the place of My rest? Has not My hand made all these things?” Isaiah 66:1-2
The Christian community ceased animal sacrifices with the death and resurrection of Christ. And because the unbelievers rejected Jesus or felt that His sacrifice was insufficient some believers faced persecution or were pressured by the Jewish community to continue offering sacrifices. Jews then and most who are not Christian Jews today fail to acknowledge that the Old Testament sacrificial system was fulfilled in Christ.
The apostle Paul preached to the Jews and pointed to Christ as our Passover lamb who was sacrificed on our behalf. “Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.” 1 Corinthians 5:7
Jesus Himself celebrated the last legitimate Passover, pointing to Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins during the institution of the Lord’s Supper, just before His death in Luke 22:14-20. These events and their implications were significant for our faith especially today. When Jesus rose from the dead three days later, He defeated sin and death once and for all. Through His sacrifice, we are able to receive salvation and be reunited with God. If Jesus had not risen from the dead, Christianity would have no grounds to declare Christ as the Son of God.