The Unseen Work Of God Within YouSample

Christ’s Substitutive Atonement

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

What a strong and poignant statement of Christ’s substitutive atonement. Is it ever stated more strongly in the Bible? 

“For our sake.” God did all this—take His eternal, sinless Son and make Him sin, while taking sinful rebels and making us holy—for our sake. For you and me.

“He made Him to be sin.” Jesus, the Sovereign God of eternity, too holy to look upon sin, comes to earth and is made into sin on the cross. Bearing our sin, He becomes sin. And that leaves you speechless.

“So that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Jesus took our sin, while we took His righteousness. What a good deal for us. He’s the best deal imaginable!

Martin Luther perhaps had this verse in mind when he wrote, “Learn to know Christ and Him crucified. Learn to sing to Him, and say, ‘Lord Jesus, You are my righteousness, I am Your sin. You have taken upon Yourself what is mine and given me what is Yours. You have become what You were not so that I might become what I was not.’”