Offense of the cross: All sinners guilty of the Son's death

[Ghada]

And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

I often wondered why anyone would be offended at the cross of Jesus Christ, and also persecute them preaching the gospel of the cross. Until I understood it's the judgment of the cross that so offends sinners everywhere.

The death of Jesus on the cross is not when any man is saved nor justified with God, as some want to believe. It's the exact opposite: When Jesus Christ died on a cross, is when no man on earth is saved nor justified with God.

Instead, all people were concluded as unbelievers at the cross:

For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. (Rom 11)

And not only so, but all men that have sinned against God, are judged and condemned as crucifiers of the His dear Son, alongside them laying wicked hands upon Him. And this is especially true of them that sin and calling Him Lord:

If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

It is because all men have sinned, that the Lamb of God must be slain upon earth, and so all men that ever sinned slew the Lamb ourselves. Even as all Israel slew the bulls and goats and not just the priests, so now all the world is condemned before God, and not just the crucifiers.

The Son did not come to condemn the world, but the world condemned itself when slaying the Son in the world.

Far from any man being forgiven at the cross, all sinners are condemned by God the Father as guilty of His Son's death on the cross.
And so, we see that the offence of the cross, is not at the man Jesus dying on a cross, but is at being condemned by God for His Son's death.

This is the offensive judgment of the cross, that so offends sinners everywhere

Nor is the offense so hard to understand. Afterall, it's a bitter pill to swallow to be condemned by our own sins, as shedding the blood of the only true and living Son of God on earth.

And the offence of course is compounded by the preaching of the cross, with all crucifiers everywhere are thus commanded to repent of their own sinning, lest they too be destroyed with the destroyers.

 

[Ghada]

Judgment and condemnation for sinning was not ended at Jesus' death on the cross, but began the judgment and condemnation of all the world, to include all men that sinned.

This offendedness at being guilty of the Son's death by sinning, is found among all unrepented sinners alike, both them that curse Jesus' name, and worse yet, them calling Him Lord.

If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

Why was, and is, Jesus offended at by His own? Because He now commands all sinners everywhere to repent and receive mercy to be saved by grace, including His own.

I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

It offends the Jews that seek only a Messiah to destroy their enemies, not their sinning. And it offends Gentiles that only seek a Christ to destroy their condemnation, not their sinning.

As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

It's all unrepented sinners, Jews first and now Gentiles, that stumble at the rock of offense. That rock being the uncompromising commandment of unconditional surrender by the triumphant risen Lord Jesus: Repent of sinning against Him.

All sinners are guilty of His death, and remain are His enemies on earth.

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

The gospel good news is mercy to all, but only upon the rock of repenting of all sinning.

Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

Only by ceasing of sinning do we cease crucifying Jesus Christ afresh in open shame.

 

[Mercy_Shown]

Judgment and condemnation for sinning was not ended at Jesus' death on the cross, but began the judgment and condemnation of all the world, to include all men that sinned.

This offendedness at being guilty of the Son's death by sinning, is found among all unrepented sinners alike, both them that curse Jesus' name, and worse yet, them calling Him Lord.

If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

Why was, and is, Jesus offended at by His own? Because He now commands all sinners everywhere to repent and receive mercy to be saved by grace, including His own.

I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

It offends the Jews that seek only a Messiah to destroy their enemies, not their sinning. And it offends Gentiles that only seek a Christ to destroy their condemnation, not their sinning.

As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

It's all unrepented sinners, Jews first and now Gentiles, that stumble at the rock of offense. That rock being the uncompromising commandment of unconditional surrender by the triumphant risen Lord Jesus: Repent of sinning against Him.

All sinners are guilty of His death, and remain are His enemies on earth.

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

The gospel good news is mercy to all, but only upon the rock of repenting of all sinning.

Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

Only by ceasing of sinning do we cease crucifying Jesus Christ afresh in open shame.

This is an interesting OP. We know that the Father laid the iniquity of us all upon Him, but I have never thought of the extension of that act because you are right. Those inequities killed Him. It is easy to think of the Romans killing Him or the Jewish leaders killing Him, but when you look at the way you present this we suddenly see the finger of blame pointing straight at us.

Also, this sheds a whole new light on repentance. It is deeper than just reciting our failings and asking for forgiveness, it is facing the reality the we killed the Son of God. Wow! Great OP!

 

[Ghada]

This is an interesting OP. We know that the Father laid the iniquity of us all upon Him, but I have never thought of the extension of that act because you are right. Those inequities killed Him. It is easy to think of the Romans killing Him or the Jewish leaders killing Him, but when you look at the way you present this we suddenly see the finger of blame pointing straight at us.

Exactly. Which of course is just the simple truth. The Father did not kill His own Son, no more than the good Commander kills His obedient soldiers sending them into battle.

And it's all men that sinned who are judged guilty of His death, because if men and women did not sin, then the Son coming in the flesh would not have been crucified for doing good.

Furthermore, unrepentant sinners today are still guilty of His blood as still crucifying Him afresh:

If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

The verse is saying that applies to us as well, if we also fall away back into sin with the world.

Also, this sheds a whole new light on repentance. It is deeper than just reciting our failings and asking for forgiveness, it is facing the reality the we killed the Son of God. Wow! Great OP!

Thank you.

I have found that some of the best insights to Bible teaching is a result of needing to accurately correct false teaching.

In this case, it's in response to some Christians teaching they are saved 'by the cross' alone.

This is false, because we are only born again and justified by His resurrection. (1 Peter 1)

And saying all our sins are now forgiven by Jesus dying on the cross, is equally wrong, because no man is forgiven before His resurrection, and only our old past sins are forgiven by godly repentance for Jesus' sake.

Also, our sin cannot be placed on anyone else, especially not the Son who still knew no sin on the cross. Sin is not an virus or disease or germ independent of the act of sinning.

And so now, if you'd like lets look at the verses this way:

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

It's sinful and blind man that esteemed the Son guilty, not God. Why? Because He died the death of wicked sinners.

For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin;

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Jesus could not have become sin nor a sinner, because He knew no sin nor sinned. Nor did He become a curse by dying as the wicked.

He was made to be unjustly sinned against and cursed by man, only because the Father commanded His Son to be so treated, and submit to it unto death. And it was for our sake by purpose of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree,

And so we have it: Jesus bearing men's sins on His body, was bearing the sinful acts of unjust condemnation and execution. And God judges it to be at the hands of all men, for all men have sinned, and all sinning is against God in heaven, even as the Son was on earth.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was wounded and bruised by our transgressions and iniquities. And all our iniquity was laid on Him by the very stripes on His own back.

Jesus Christ never became sin, nor a sinner, nor a curse by sinning, because He never sinned himself nor knew sin by doing so.

He did not die for sins, but dies by sins done against Him.

And He certainly did not take our sins with Himself to the grave, so that our death penalty for sinning 'died' with Him. Some even say His law was 'killed' with Him on the cross. (Antinomianism)

By commandment of the Father, the Son allowed Himself to be made to be treated as the worst sort of criminal, and that unjust treatment was seen in His own body.

The death of the Son of God on the cross is the condemnation of the whole world of sinners. And is still the condemnation for unrepented sinners today.

The Son did not come to condemn the world, but the world condemned itself by unjust condemning and executing Him, who knew no sin and only went about doing good.

But it was for sinful man's sake, that He did come and did unjustly die on a cross, that the repented for His sake might be justified by His resurrection.

He had to come to sinful man and die at our hands, so that He could rise again for our justification. And all men have to be rightly condemned for His death, that all men may repent for His sake.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

If it were just the Jews found guilty of the Son's death, then the Gentiles would find no place of repentance with God.

Conclusion: no sinner is forgiven of sins and born again of the Spirit, before Jesus' resurrection from the dead. And no one is forgiven without repenting of sins. And only past sinning repented of is forgiven and washed away by His blood of the Spirit.

Jesus' natural blood went to the earth, just like righteous Abel's.

If you see any correction needed, please let me know. Thanks.