Expert: Messianic Rabbi Yochanan Levine - 6/6/2009

Question
How can you justify the Father in sending His Son to the cross as an expression of love? Can sending a loved one to a cruel death be motivated by love?

Answer
Hi Oscar,

Christians believe in a doctrine known as Original Sin. This sin has separated humanity from God since the time of Adam's original sin of rebellion against God.

God revealed that the only acceptable cure for Original Sin would be the sacrificing of His own Son (first mentioned at Genesis 3:15) when He ordered Abraham to offer Isaac in the Book of Genesis. As Abraham prepared to obey God's command and sacrifice his only son, Jesus' distant ancestor, an angel stayed his hand.

When the Law was given through Moses the Jews were commanded to make various animal sacrifices as atonements for their sins (and the world's). This also was a pre-example of Jesus' then-future sacrifice. Shortly after Jesus' sacrifice was made the Jews lost their Holy Temple at Jerusalem and these animal sacrifices were no longer possible as prescribed in the Lew and so they ceased. THE sacrifice had been made.

Jesus willingly offered himself up as the sacrifice for the sins of the world.

No loving parent can imagine making such a sacrifice but what is clear is that knowing that such an extreme sacrifice would save the world, performing it would a sign of unimaginable love for those it saved.

WHY this sacrifice was necessary, WHY God required it as the only means to restore humanity to fellowship with Him remains an unanswered and unanswerable question (on this side of Heaven). Its a matter of divinely revealed faith.

What is certain is that:

John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Hope this helps,

~ Pastor John