Two Most Important Words

4/5/2016

2 Corinthians 5.21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. – St. Paul

First, God made Him, Jesus, who knew no sin – He never had intimate relations with sin like we do – to become sin for us. Perfection became putrescence. God made Jesus to be sinful even though He never sinned. Jesus was sinless; He always hit the mark; He always obeyed the Father.

Second, so that, in Him, we might become the righteousness of God. Two little words: in Him. All of what has happened since God said, Let there be light, has been for us, in Him.

The problem was, apart from Him, we had no remedy. The laws written before time was, required a substitution – a payment for the penalty. But there was no substitution among men until God became a man and perfectly offered Himself to be what we could never be: perfect. So, Perfection took on imperfection in order that imperfection could take on perfection. But imperfection could only do that: in Him, Who became sin for us…

In other words, imperfection (us) had to have some means to partake of perfection which was impossible apart from God. So, God provided a way, a means, for us imperfects to find perfection in the One who offered Himself as perfectly imperfect. We needed to reach the impossible threshold, and God provided a way…in Him.

“In Him”, that is, in Jesus, is a difficult term for some, but simply it means: on His side, or in His group; or belief in what He has done. It’s the power of belief. We get a glimpse of Who God is by what God does. God said, in front of all the galactic nay-sayers, I will offer Myself, My perfection for them who’ve insulted Me, and spat in my face because of their actions and attitudes. I will make a way for them to find what I’ve always offered: an eternity with Me.

Without the two most important words, ‘in Him’ all of this is, is fairy tale. We can hear fantastical stories and choose to believe them if we want. But fantasy will never bring about reality. And reality sometimes sounds like fantasy but we choose to ignore it, or worse, ridicule it. That’s the hard part about ‘in Him’; it’s ridiculed reality. But God, ever the Shock Therapist, said it was so; and the only way to benefit from what He has done is to believe He did it: that He made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us, so that in Him, we might become the righteousness of God.

Father, You are way smarter that the smartest among us will ever be. Your apostle wrote that even in Your foolishness (which is how men view Your deeds), Your foolishness is infinitely greater that all of man’s wisdom and learning. It seems foolish to us that You would do what You did. But in Him, the One You made to become sin, we find salvation from the death that embraces us and causes us to continue to spit in Your face because You care about us. All we have to do is believe. Help me in my unbelief. Amen.