Carl asked me a question. And I think my answer can be useful to you. ..............
Hello Carl,
Your question is only a question, put by more people: "Can anyone explain to me, why the death on the cross of a man, about 2000 years ago, has made me free from the sins I have done."
In the now following I ask you to see things spiritually. At first an example from the universe.
One of the developments of research is this, that in the universe there are stars, completely finished up, which have been broken together and have been reduced to 'dwarfs' of an unimaginable compactness. The atoms have come very close together, while before they were at big distances.
Should such things happen to our earth, it would be not bigger than a football.
Now imagine such a concentration in the heavenly realms.
Before the Almighty, the Unending, the not-imaginable Lord, all sins, done by all people, now and formerly and in the future, are absolutely manfest in his eternal 'Now'. Those are not only the sins you and I have done and still will do in the future. But it is llike this for all 'the thousand billion' people from Adam to the end of 'the thousand years'. Said otherwise. also the sins of the grandchildren of our grandchildren are involved in that overwhelming number.
And what happened in Gethsemane ? God made it like this : all those sins from formerly, now and the future have been sent into the direction of his Son. In that horrible approach he has concentrated and concentratesd them till they came together in an always compacter, more concentrated form, having in the end, when fullfilled, the form of a spiritual goblet , so heavy and so deeply red glowing of horror, that it is insayable.
And that goblet was seen by our blameless, absolutely pure Lord and Saviour and he knew: "I have to drink this". Not to wonder, that he, the 'blameless one' recoiled from it.. There is not a bigger controverse than this: he...the sinless...should - in drinking- become the most deeply sunk sinner of ever. At last however, he came through. ........ "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done", (Matthew 26 v 42) And then he drank...! ....... At that moment he died spiritually to our sins. That was a day before his body died. Thar's why he was 'three days in death'.
But after this terrifying drinking of this unimaginable mass of horribleness there followed on that friday, that 'good' friday the triumph call: "Filfilled", (John 19 v 30). In Jesus' heavenly refusew-incinerator flames had leaked around that menacing darkness, till the light conquered.
This precious coin, the 'golden tenner' of Jesus, had become the most poor cent, you can ever imagine. And in acting like this he made from our poor, rusty cents 'golden tenners'.
( Of course Jesus in the very end became 'the coin above all coins').
Now for a moment back Carl to a very earthly comparison.
If you , Carl, should come to visit me, I should certainly offer to you a cup of tea. And from that moment on that cup of tea should be at your disposal. But if you don't drink out of it. I throw away the tea, when you have left and it is standing there alone, become cold.
Now I offer a spiritual drink to you. If you accept that drink, making alive, then you get part in Jesus' conciliatory dying. To you the choice. And if you sin from now on, then also those sins are forgiven, if you confess them, after 1 John 2 v 1. If you say: "Jesus...forgive please...please... that creepy thought, playing through my mind at this moment", then there is his reassurance, his comfort, his relief: "Also for this I have brought my sacrifice".
And of course this gives strength to you to hide in his shadow and to receive more strength for struggle against sin.
Do not remain a 'no-sayer' Carl. Drink that heavenly cup of tea.
