Pierre Michel Bruneau
I hope you will come to agree with me that Jesus paid it all on the cross and now our salvation does not rest on our good works or our good deeds. As saint Paul says, “For if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing” (Galatians 2:21). Jesus died entirely in our place and took upon himself the punishment the punishment we deserve. I love the way Cyril of Alexandria says it in the following words, "They led away the author of life to die – to die for our sake. In a way beyond our understanding, the power of God brought from Christ’s passion an end far different from that intended by his enemies. His suffering served as a snare for death and rendered it powerless. The Lord’s death proved to be our restoration to immortality and newness of life. Condemned to death though innocent, he went forward bearing on his shoulders the cross on which he was to suffer. He did this for our sake, taking on himself the punishment that the law justly imposed on sinners. He was cursed for our sake according to the saying of Scripture: “A curse is on everyone who is hanged on a tree.”" Then Cyril emphasizes his point even more by describing what us fallen human beings deserve for our rebellion against God. He continues with the following words: "We who have committed many sins were under that ancient curse for our refusal to obey the law of God. To set us free he who was without sin took that curse on himself. Since he is God who is above all, his sufferings sufficed for all, his death in the flesh was the redemption of all. And so, Christ carried the cross, a cross that was rightfully not his but ours, who were under the condemnation of the law." Finally Cyril finishes off with the following words: "Our Lord Jesus Christ was not ashamed to carry the cross we deserved, and he did so because he loves us." This is the power of the cross. Christ took the blame for our sins and “we stand forgiven at the cross.” It is indeed forgiveness of all sins, for Jesus died for
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