A SPECIAL EASTER WEEKEND CATCH

There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

Who killed Jesus? This is a big question with a very simple answer, but one which is overlooked by most people including Christians. I overlooked it myself until recently, and I have been a Christian for most of my life.

The three most common suspects in the death off Jesus have traditionally been the Romans, the Jews — especially the Jewish leaders — and the mob that was whipped up and yelling, “Crucify Him!” Truly, they all played a part, but when you get right down to it, none of them actually killed Jesus. That’s because — think about it — no one can kill God.

Jesus Himself clarified how He was going to die in John 10:17-18, “The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again. No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”

Notice the motivation for this was love. The Father loves Him because He voluntarily laid down His life so He could take it up again (in the resurrection) and thus save why God created the human race in the first place, to have someone in His image to love.

Splitting hairs? Not at all. When you make God responsible for His own death, you uncover something overwhelming about His love. This was His thing from start to finish. That’s why God loves the Son because He was obedient and willing to lay down His life so that God could be free to love His creation because Jesus in His death removed the barrier between God and humanity which was our sin.

The human agents (the Romans, the Jews, the mob) were necessary to make this death happen on earth in real time, but no one could kill Him. He voluntarily laid down His life. They all had reasons to kill Him, but His reason to die trumped them all. His reason was love.

So this was how He died:

“By this time it was about noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. Then Jesus shouted, ‘Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!’ And with those words he breathed his last.”(Luke 23:44-46)

He gave His spirit to God and breathed out His last. He did it Himself. No one could kill Him. No one could take His life from Him. He laid it down Himself, so He could pick it up again on Easter morning on behalf of all of us. And what a glorious day it was!

Happy Easter!