THE CRUCIFIXION
The most inexplicable event in world history is the crucifixion. Jesus Christ was crucified, dead and buried. Son of God, God of God, (1 John 1:1) according to the Scriptures. He was crucified and confirmed dead by the soldiers who crucified him and pierced his side with a spear. (John 19:34) The crucifixion is, therefore inexplicable yet it illuminates all other events that take place in this world. It is central to understanding our existence, past, present and future. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, speaks louder than words of God’s justice, suffering and love for mankind. God’s justice because sin destroys that which is holy and good and must be dealt with; suffering, because God sacrificed his Son to live and die in this world to forgive sin and take the blame for sin; love, because God wants all mankind to be saved through faith in Jesus Christ.
GOD SAW THE FUTURE
God saw the future. He knew from the very beginning, when Adam and Eve sinned, that just as Eve trusted in Satan’s lies, so would her offspring. Eve knew full well that if she disobeyed God she would die but Satan, represented by the serpent, (Genesis 3:1) in the Garden of Eden, persuaded her that she would not die but become wise and be like a god. (Genesis 3-5) Her sin, repeated throughout the ages since that time, was refusing to believe in God’s Word. Adam and Eve both lost their lives. They lost the eternal Paradise they lived in and were cast out of Paradise. God knew this would happen and it did. God wanted mankind to learn the reality of its own self will and self knowledge. Hence, suffering would become the norm of human life from that day to this. There would be no way to stop it; the root cause of which is selfish desire, ambition, dictatorship, pride and covetousness.
GOD’S JUSTICE AND LOVE
God foresaw man’s rejection of his word. He saw clearly that Adam and Eve would believe a lie, a lie that came from Satan but a lie that they were willing to listen too. Therefore, it was absolutely necessary that God should judge sin and pass the death penalty on Adam and Eve. But that judgment was not extinction for man was created in God’s own eternal image. (Genesis 1:26) Man is an immortal soul.
The story of the Garden of Eden projects the consequences of refusing to believe in God and his word. The suffering of mankind then and now is because of man’s choice to freely determine the future without God. That is the root cause, according to the bible, of suffering, disease, disorder and death.
But God has revealed, not only his justice but his love for mankind. It was never his intention to end human life completely but to save it on the same terms that it was destroyed: by faith in God’s Word, revealed to us in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, Saviour and Lord. God has granted a Saviour and a Lord from sin and death to those who believe in God and his word. He grants this, not to those who are good, for none is good. As Jesus said, ‘Only God is good.’ (Mark 10:18) but by faith alone that will change the future and bring back the Paradise lost. St. Paul says, ‘By grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.’ (Ephesians 2:8) Jesus stands as the evidence of God’s love and justice for mankind, ‘for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him might not perish but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16) This promise God also extends to the souls of the biological dead from the beginning of time. This is the extent of God’s love and mercy. But if his Word and will is rejected again what hope is left for those who reject God? Who else can save us from the lies of Satan and the reality of this world’s misery and despair?
THE CRUCIFIXION
Christ broke through the fortress of Satan’s lie that a knowledge of good and evil is wise. The cross on which he suffered and died revealed God’s justice against mankind’s sinful condition. Jesus took the blame for man’s sin and suffered the crucifixion to forgive the sins of the world. He took the blame for man’s refusal to believe in God. He died that we might be forgiven, he died to make us good, that we might go, at last to heaved saved by his precious blood. (Hymn ‘There is a green Hill’ Cecil Francis Alexander (1818-95)
St. Paul summarises the crucifixion: ‘Even while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.’ (Romans 5:8) The cross stands for God’s justice against sin, his unwillingness to repent of the penalty of sin, for sin destroys that which is holy and good and is a deliberate choice to reject God. Even whilst the Christ was nailed to the cross he was heard to say, ‘Father forgive them for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34) That loving prayer is absolutely true. Adam and Eve did not know what they were doing in believing the lie and the priests and doctors of the law who had him crucified did not know the ignorance of their own hatred and disbelief of God’s only begotten Son.
ANGELS AND MEN
God’s will and purpose for human beings, created in his own image, was only good. Human beings of all his creation were created in his own image more so than angels who were created to be ministering spirits. (Hebrews 1:14) God foresaw the future of man whom he loved dearly. He wanted them to love him just as he loved them. But they were not the only beings who were unfaithful and unbelieving. There were angels who questioned God’s right to rule over them, according to Scripture. One, Satan, for reasons of his own, determined to destroy God’s creation by a false claim that God was keeping from human beings a knowledge of good and evil upon fear of death. He claimed that God was just trying to keep them ignorant and they would surely not die if they sought such knowledge. This is the kernel of the story of the Garden of Eden where God made Adam and Eve. Hence, death entered human life due to believing a lie. For thousand of generations this knowledge is an ‘after the fact’ event because its origin is in the graves of the dead and the chaos of human life. Each child born lives its life without any sense of where history comes from. To tell him that it comes from a lie is too simple as well as complicated. But lies and truth lie at the very heart of all human relationships, past and present and the desire for truth is yearned for and sought after by countless human beings.
The most compelling truth of man’s existence is the crucifixion where the death penalty for righteousness and truth is vividly and starkly displayed. There, on the cross the pure and holy life of Jesus is condemned by those religious men who feared his light of truth because it exposed their religious lies and hypocrisy. But they were unable to extinguish his light for the resurrection of Jesus Christ followed his death, proving that his light is the light of God and the light of hope. That is how God broke through the darkness of sin and death by his own sacrifice on the cross, reconciling man to Himself through faith alone, for no knowledge of good or evil can atone for sin. Jesus declares, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6)
This is the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, of which his disciples bear witness and the church makes disciples of all nations. Quote Hebrews 1:1-4 in full
耶稣基督在十字架上受难
耶稣基督十字架受难了是最费解的事件在世界历史。耶稣被钉十字架，他就死了和被埋没 根据到圣经。耶稣基督是上帝的儿子。他是也神的图像、可以这么说上帝的骨肉和血、他的心灵和精神。(2 科林蒂安 4:4)他钉在十字和战士的确认他死。战士他的身边刺穿与矛。
(约翰福音 19:34)
钉在十字架上的基督是因此费解的。 虽然、它照亮了都其他的事件那发生在这世界里。 钉在十字架上的基督、 上帝的儿子、是我们的了解的中央向存在、过去，现在，他的未来。为基督痛苦说话事实胜于雄辩上帝的痛哭、爱和义为人类。
未来上帝预见到
未来上帝预见到。他知道，当亚当和夏娃犯罪、夏娃的后裔也将是罪和倾心撒但的谎言的。夏娃知道如果她违抗上帝她会死为上帝对她说; ‘你将死。’(创世纪:2:17)但是撒旦、象一条蛇一样、说话了: ‘你将不是死但是你会成为明智象一个神。’(创世纪 3:5)她的罪、是重复了始终时了、是拒绝到相信上帝的词。根罪的是不相信上帝说什么。故、亚当和夏娃失去了他们的生命，和失去天堂。上帝的爱我们因为我们是他的孩子。他造我们。上帝是义、刚和圣洁。他患有为我们因为他爱我们。
上帝的义和爱
上帝预见他的孩子的拒绝他的词。他看见认清了那亚当和夏娃会相信谎。亚当和夏娃因、为他们罪、是惩罚了。上帝传死刑对他们。但是死刑不是绝种、为亚当是造在上帝的图像和是一个不朽灵魂。(创世纪1:26) 人类的苦难在过去和现在是因为人的自由选择决定没有上帝的未来。这是根本原因，根据圣经，苦难，疾病，紊乱和死亡。
通过信心恢复
但是上帝有揭示不只他的义可是他的爱为人类。它是从来没有他的意向到全然结束人的生命但是救它。上帝的智慧: 如果男人要去他的自己道、他的必学习后果的选择罪。这是坏消息; 好消息是 ‘上帝这么爱世界那他给了他的只独生儿子那谁相信在他会不亡但是有永生活。’(约翰福音 3:16) 生活、死和复活的耶稣基督是上帝的会道救那些人谁信。
钉在十字架上的基督
撒但的谎、那一个知道的好和邪恶是明智是撒但的要塞。今天、虽然人的不信在撒但的存在、他们还相信撒但的谎。现在耶稣基督有揭示人类的有罪的条件为他是世界的光; 他的圣的生活、死了和复活、他的真理、已经、撒但的谎的暴露。好福音是我们现在知道真理。到相信在耶稣基督里它意思有罪过原谅，并得到接受永生的礼物。为 ‘他的死了那我们可以是原谅、’他死了到做我们好的、他死了那我们可以到天堂去、 救了被他的珍贵的血。’(圣歌: Cecil Francis Alexander 1818-95)圣保罗说: ‘甚至当我们是还罪人的耶稣死了为我们。’(罗马书 5:8)
天使和男人
上帝的会和目的对于男人、 造在他的自己像、只有最好。人类是造在上帝的自己的像只、如此比天使谁是精神了。希伯来1:14) 罪的问题存在的人类创造之前。一天使、叫撒但、像一个暴君、开始对上帝的一战。它是撒旦谁欺骗夏娃、和由人类到罪。撒旦欺骗了夏娃。他声称了那上帝想防止让夏娃从知道着善恶、和从有智慧。因为夏娃相信撒旦这么亚当和夏娃死。他们迷路永生和死亡了。这是核心的伊甸园的故事。故、死进了在人命里。每一个出生的孩子有不知从哪里来的罪的历史。告诉他它来从一个谎是太简单和太复杂。然而，真理和谎言是人类关系的根源、今昔和渴望真理的是我们的最欲望和需要。钉在十字架上的基督和他的复活是真理和 所有人民希望。在那里，耶稣在十字架上的纯洁和神圣的生命被那些谁担心他的真理之光，因为它暴露了他们的宗教谎言和虚伪宗教的人的谴责。但是他们无法熄灭他的光、耶稣基督的复活跟随他的死亡这证明他的光芒是上帝的光明和希望的光芒。这是上帝通过耶稣基督、罪恶和死亡的黑暗、如何打破。耶稣宣告， “我就是道路，真理，生命。没有人能到父那里，但由我。 “ （约翰福音14 ： 6 ），这是福音，耶稣基督的好消息，这对他的门徒见证;和教会使所有国家的弟弟子。(马太福音 28：19)
