“ For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.”
I Peter 3:18
INTRODUCTION: Converted at the age of 23 and called of God to preach, I cut my spiritual teeth on that great old hymn, “The Way of The Cross Leads Home.”
Jessie Brown Pounds wrote the song, “The Way of The Cross Leads Home.”(1906) and Charles H. Gabriel set it to music.
“I must needs go home by the way of the cross, There’s no other way but this; I shall ne’er get sight of the Gates of Light, If the way of The Cross I miss.
The way of the cross leads home, The way of the cross leads home; It is sweet to know, as I on-ward go, the way of the cross leads home. A-men”
Well friends, that is my subject at this time. By the way of the cross leads home!
1. Lost people around the world can come. Sinners can find their way to the cross as they are guided by the Holy Spirit. At the cross every Nationality is invited. All kindred’s and tongues can come. At the cross the ground is level and all are co-equal. Whosoever will come to the cross.
2. At the cross of Calvary when Jesus died, the people of the earth witnessed and so did all the angels (both good and bad) witness the grandest, the most tremendous event ever to take place. There never has been anything to cover up the cross, eclipse or make obscure the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
3. At the cross the Son of God died for the sons of men, the godly died for the ungodly. The righteous died for the unrighteous.
4. Because of the cross, the Christian Church has the most powerful message in all the universe…the power of the gospel. Romans 1:16
What do we have at the cross? We see a number of things being kept in order, in sequence. He came to this world born of the Virgin Mary, He came to do battle with Satan, live a perfect life and now for our sermon, we see Jesus on the cross and the cross was the last thing before His burial and resurrection and that’s the gospel. Yes, by the way of the cross leads home.
Paul wrote: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the POWER OF GOD unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16
Lets look now at our key texts:
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” (I Peter 3:18)
Friends, in this one verse, we could study and study. We can prepare Bible studies and preach many, many sermons from our key text.
Why did Jesus Die?
That’s the purpose of the
cross!
Now, friends, please don’t get all alarmed and frightened about that big word, “substitutionary,” I am going to explain to our church family just what that word means. Some of us already know the meaning.
Well, here it is plain and simple, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,…”(I Peter 3:18 that is the meaning of the word “substitution.”
How does God forgive sins? He just can not pass over sin, look the other way. God is a just God and the penalty of sin must be paid. So, how does God cause this sin debt to be paid? He does so through a perfect and Holy SUBSTITUTE. That substitution price is paid in full by the death of Christ on the cross. He gave His life for the sin debt and doing so, He bought us from the slave market of sin. The just for the unjust!
Judge In Civil Court: A court of law in our country can not pass over crime. He (the judge) must not look the other way. If he did, he would be a criminal. You see friends, sin must be dealt with and so God did so by substitution. How do we describe God? Think of one word. God is love! God is merciful! God is light! God is truth! God is creator!
Here is my one word to describe God. God is “HOLY- Holiness” would be my best one word to describe God. He is a Holy God and being Holy, He can not cover up sin, over look sin, look the other way; nor can God look to man to work out and pay his own sin debt. That is impossible and God knows that. So, how does God deal with sin and forgiveness? He gives a perfect sacrifice, a pure and perfect substitute. He gave His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God is love and He gave!
Friends, here is what every sinner needs to do. We need to put our faith where God put our sins. And that is in the Son of God and His substititionary death for the sins of the world. What He did at the cross is the fact that He took our sins, became our sacrifice and died in our place.
I Peter 2:24-25 “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness; by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls.”
Now, what did Christ do on the Cross?
1. He died for our sins.
2. He paid the redemption price.
3. He was our sacrifice and still is.
4. He was righteous for the unrighteous.
5. He was just for the unjust.
6. He was Godly for the ungodly.
7. He was innocent for the guilty.
8. Christ died instead of me.
Isaac was a son of Prophecy and so was the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, Isaac was the promised miracle seed of Abraham. Sarah was to old to give birth and so Isaac was a miracle child. Jesus was a miracle child also. Really, Isaac is a perfect type of the Son of God. We see that in Genesis many times over and over.
Genesis 22:1-2 “And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Mariah; and offer him thou for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”
Abraham believed God! Abraham obeyed God. He knew that the God, who gave a miracle in the birth of Isaac could give another miracle to raise Isaac from the dead.
Genesis 22:7-8 Question – Isaac asked, “Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Answer – and Abraham said My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
Genesis 22:9-13 Substitution: while Abraham and Isaac went up one side of that mountain, God and the ram went up the other side. Friends, it is no wonder Jesus said, “Abraham saw my day and was glad.” John 8:56
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins…” I Peter 3:18
Passion: Meaning feeling Christ, our Lord had passion and He suffered on the cross. Tongue can not tell, throat can not sing, pen can not write and heart and mind can not understand the suffering Jesus went through on the day, He died. He bore His own cross, beaten, mocked and finally crucified. Emotional and physical suffering, Jesus battles with His own humanity.
Lets look at Luke 22: 41-44
II Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
No one or group has ever suffered like the Lord Jesus Christ. There on the cross, the Son of God, the object of the Father’s love became (because of our sins) the object of the Father’s Wrath.
III.
THE SATISFYING PROVISON OF THE CROSS.
“For Christ also hath “ONCE” suffered for sins…” I Peter 3:18
Please notice that one word, “ONCE” that means one thing and that is God’s justice is completely satisfied. Once and for all time the sin debt has been paid. Never again will Jesus suffer for sin. The death of Christ is past history. He came the first time to live and die for our sins. He will come the second time without having to bare one pin point of sin, pain or agony.
Provision has been made for our Saviour to come the second time as King of King and Lord of lords.
“And he (Christ) hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.” Revelation 19:16
IT IS FINISHED: “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.” John 19:30
When Jesus said, “It is Finished” He did not have in mind, once upon a time, but rather all time, once and for all, never to go through that again, never to die again.
“…THAT HE MIGHT BRING US TO God,…” I Peter 3:18
We have taught it and preached it. That is the power of the gospel. Power to save from sin, from the gutter-most to the utter-most.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation…” Romans 1:16 so, the reason for the cross is that we might come to God by and through His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
In closing, what did I preach about? What did we get from this sermon? What can we take home with us after hearing this sermon? “By The Way of The Cross” Lets take the sermon title and remember that Christ took our place on the cross.
This sermon has given us a clear understanding of how we are saved. The sermon has shown us the PURPOSE of the cross. That purpose is to bring us to God by His saving Grace in Jesus Christ. Today, if you are lost and you have heard the sermon and have a desire to be forgiven, and to ask God to forgive your sins because of the death of Christ, let me say to you in humble words. Friends, Jesus died for you. You can be forgiven and saved by God’s FREE GIFT of love and grace.
In the beginning of the Bible (Genesis Chapter 2) we have the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. We read where Adam and Eve sinned, disobeyed God and by doing so they lost access to the tree of life and to the Garden. Jesus overcame Satan’s temptation and sin. By His death and resurrection He made it accessible again to all God’s children.
In the new heaven and new earth, there will be another “tree of life.” (Revelation 22:2) When we trust the Lord Jesus Christ, we are given Spiritual life and in the Kingdom, the tree of life will have replaced what was lost. Paradise lost will become paradise restored.
The tree of life once lost to man
Will be restored in God’s great plan,
The tree of Calvary is the way
To enter that eternal day! Clair Hess