Chief Enemies
We have quite interesting thoughts about enemies, and honestly, all of us have them, and we wouldn’t be human if we did not. However, have you ever thought about who your greatest enemy is? The Jews at the time of Jesus thought it was the pagan Roman authorities, and they were dead wrong! The truth is that they were oppressed people, and they thought of no greater enemy. We are in a time as a country we feel very oppressed, and we have quite a number of enemies. So, it is true that God’s people are not exempt from oppression and their oppressors are great enemies, but do our oppressors take the medal as the greatest of our enemies? What was staring at God’s people as the greatest threat was not their political freedom but rather something far dangerous; sin and death. Surely, the conquering of sin and death did not require military prowess and great armies. Instead, it required humility and a willingness for Jesus to take the form of a servant and submit to the punishment that God’s people deserved for their sins.
It is recorded for us in Philippians 2: 5-11, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Ooh, those beautiful words! If only all humanity understood the deep need for a savior to rescue us from sin and death.
Debt, Enmity and Crime
Allow me to bring to your attention something that I think is of profound importance. There is a book by a late respected Bible teacher and scholar, R.C Sproul, “The Unexpected Jesus.” In this book, he shares some very profound revelations about sin, which I want to highlight. He says that sin is to be understood in three ways: sin is a debt, it is enmity, and it is also a crime.
First, when sin is described as a debt, it directs our thoughts to the authority of God because His rule is a monarchy, and thus, he has every right to impose obligations on his subjects (think the government and KRA!). When we fail to perform those God-imposed obligations, we incur debt, one which we can never pay back because the demand for us to pay it back is that we are to be sinless, or in other words, we are to be perfect. But because of our inability to pay, Christ himself acts as our surety; that is, He acts as a guarantor to our debt, saying that it will be paid, and which he actually paid.
Secondly, we also see sin as enmity, and this points us to our disobedience, which is a result of inborn hostility towards God, having been born sinners. Our very nature condemns us to enmity with God, as the Bible records (Psalms 51:5). Therefore, we have God as the injured party or the offended party, and we are the ones who have caused this injury or offense. God, being the injured party, is angry with our sin; however, when Christ steps in, He comes as a mediator to quench the Father’s anger. Rather than being punished and sent into hell, that place of eternal damnation, which we rightly deserve because of our sins, Christ, as God’s son, appeals to the Father that He should instead pile the anger on Him. Therefore, He not only acts as the mediator but also the one who absorbs God’s anger. However, it should not be misunderstood that God is just an angry being towards our rebelliousness, but we should also see His love. He is the one who sends us this mediator as His son.
Lastly, we see sin as a crime, and this points us to God acting as both governor and judge, as His character is the ultimate standard of righteousness and justice. We have stated that God is the injured party, but here we are told that he is also the judge. Therefore, for God to forgive me as a sinner, He needed to accept a substitutionary payment for the debt that I owed and the crime that I had committed so that my payment of sin would be covered.
Sheer Grace and Mercy!
You see, Jesus has acted as our guarantor, mediator, and substitute. Don’t we see that this is just sheer grace? God has ensured that justice will be done and that the debt will be paid in full. He does not negotiate away justice. Therefore, Jesus paying my debt and accepting to be punished because of my crime shows that on the cross, there is peace and perfect mercy. Jesus has acted as our substitution. My point is that R.C. demonstrates to us the reality of our sin.
Ultimately, the point is that Jesus acts as a mediator, surety, as a substitute for our sin. He is the only one capable of appeasing God so that God may not pour out his wrath on us. Jesus is the perfect sacrifice; he was sinless and was consumed by His Father’s will (John 4:34). He was truly obedient, and that is why He was the only one who could bear our sin, my sin, and your sin, for those who are called to be His children. Just thinking about what awaited Jesus in Jerusalem, oblivious of his triumphant entry, I asked myself what I deserved for my sin, and all that shame, the pain, punishment, and suffering, was poured out on Christ, and He actually bore it for me. Even at that point of Jesus’s triumphant entry to Jerusalem and the crowds shouting with shouts of acclamation, they never quite comprehended it as they laid down their garments for Christ. So, I asked myself, what would I lay down for my Lord for his act of sheer love for me? This triumphant entry of Jesus is not just a mere fuss; it is not just part of a yearly holiday for you and me, nor is it just an opportunity to get the best of the palms; no! It is more than that; it is a constant reminder of the love of Christ for me that he was headed to defeat sin and death for my sake so that I could not face God’s wrath for my rebelliousness.
Our Response
Jesus Christ was truly the unexpected King. Maybe some expect of Christ differently than that which He really accomplished. Many have a wrong expectation of Christ even in our day. The Christ who was marching into Jerusalem was not a military king but a humble king who was to defeat my greatest enemies, sin and death. So, if all that I am demanded to do is to take Christ’s cross to show that I follow Him truly, I really think that is the least I can do. I understand I am not perfect, and neither are you, but I know that Christ will give me strength because He intercedes for us and ensures we shall be triumphant (Romans 8:34; Philippians 1:6). God is gracious and merciful. Palm Sunday should remind us of the sacrifice of Christ on behalf of God’s children. We dare not forget it is Christ’s love that has paid that ransom for me and you. So, let it be anchored and written at the core of your hearts that, indeed, the story of Jesus, even demonstrated in His triumphant entry to defeat sin and death, is one of the sweetest stories that ever was told.
