It’s difficult when you’re far away from someone you love who is sick. My mom lives in Idaho, I live in Florida, and this past weekend she was admitted to the hospital. Thankfully she has my sister and brother to help her out. She’s doing better, but that doesn’t make it easier when I can’t go check on her myself.
Now imagine knowing your child needs you, and you have the ability to stop the pain, but you don’t.
That’s what God did by allowing Jesus to die on the cross. God had to ignore when Jesus cried out to him. In Luke 22:42, Jesus says “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” God could easily have stopped His Son’s misery. How hard it must have been for Him to turn His back.
By allowing Jesus to die, God proved His love for us. His love is so great that He allowed His Son to die to give us everlasting life.
Could you make that sacrifice? Could you allow someone you love to die in order to save others?
Worse, could you be the one to kill someone you love to allow a stranger to live? That’s basically what God did. He’s the maker of Heaven and Earth and decides when you live and when you die.
He not only allowed Jesus to die on the cross, but He had him die for nonbelievers. If that doesn’t say love to you, what does? God allowed Jesus to make the ultimate sacrifice by allowing His child to die for the benefit of others.
If asked if they could do the same, some of us might think, “Yes, it would be hard, but I would do it.” Easy words when there is little chance you’ll have to make that decision. Until the circumstances force you into that predicament, you really don’t know how you will react.
The good news is most of us will never have to face such a choice. But be thankful God was willing. Because of Him allowing Jesus to die for us, we get to spend all eternity with Him.
