WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATH OF JESUS?

The answer to this question has been debated through-out history. It has been the launching pad for racial discrimination as well as countless wars. Adolf Hitler used this Q & A as reasoning while trying to convince the people of Germany that the Jews were an evil race.

So again a simple question: Who is responsible for the death of Jesus Christ?


Did the Jews Kill Jesus Christ? Did Pontius kill Jesus? Did the Sins of the World kill Jesus Christ? The Romans? Satan?



The Associated Press reported on March 2, 2011 that in a new book written by Pope Benedict XVI, the Jews were exonerated for the death of Christ.






In the exerpts printed here the question of who is responsible is not answered. Only who was not responsible.

Thankfully the scripture has been around for thousands of years and therefore we do not need to wait for a ‘sermon,’ book, new church documents or commentaries.

All we need do is Study.

So what does the Bible say about the death of Christ?

Let us start at the beginning…

In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good evil. This was a direct violation of the only restriction that the two had. Let us pick up in the book of Genesis as the Lord is passing out punishments.

“And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:13-15)

If there is any 1 man or group to blame for the death of Jesus, it is here. The man Adam and his wife Eve. Although Eve ate the fruit first, their eyes weren’t opened until Adam ate. Therefore it was because of Adam’s transgression that we are born into sin so to speak.

Click here for the post that examines the concept of Adam being solely responsible for the fall of man. Because of their sin there is enmity between Jesus (her seed[women don’t carry seeds, Mary was the only one who did from God]) and the Satan (the serpents seed[snakes don’t talk, we’re talking the Devil here]).

But our answer lies further. Adam’s sin may have been the cause or the beginning of the chain reaction but certainly he did not ‘kill’ Christ.

The question begs to be asked, why did Jesus come in the flesh anyway? What purpose did he accomplish?

“Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not... But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed... He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth... Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand” (Isaiah 53:1-13)

The 53rd chapter of Isaiah is one of those chapters that we can learn something, while we are on our way to learning something. Contrast this chapter with what we all witness on Sundays throughout the world. ‘There is no comeliness,’ ‘no beauty that we should desire him?’ I have never been to a church (and I have been to churches all over the country and a couple other countries) where they had a picture of an ugly Jesus. Wheather a Greek church, Catholic, Protestant, and even churches in the African American communities where Jesus is black;

Jesus may have flowing blonde hair,    

 

dreadlocks,

 

or a bushy Afro

he is always a good looking man. The artist created those pictures for beauty, but as usual the Bible contradicts the wisdom of man.

‘He is despised and rejected of men?’ But EVERYONE loves Christ. Even R&B singers who talk about sex in every song, will when an award and talk about how the love Jesus.

He was brought like a lamb to slaughter. He opened not His mouth. Verse 10 says it pleased the Lord to bruise him! The Lord made his soul an offering for sin! It seems that we are getting closer. It pleased the Father to make him a sin offering, but this does not mean that the Father actually killed Him.

Just before Jesus was betrayed He made a comment that most people read right over…

“The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.” (Matthew 26:24)

Jesus is telling His disciples here (as he told them many times) that He would die & be resurrected.

So then finally,

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATH OF JESUS?

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.” (St. John 10:14-15)

Eventhough Jesus died to combat Adam’s stupidity, it pleased the Lord, was instigated by the chief priests almost reversed by Pontious Pilate and was executed by miscellaneous Roman soilders

it was Jesus Himself who is responsible for His death.
How?

By laying His own life down for us (the sheep).

“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” (St. John 10:17-18)

The conclusion of the matter: It was necessary for Christ to die that he may live forever and that we may in turn live forever. After studying the Bible the question almost becomes a moot point. More important than who is why? And Jesus sums it up in the 15th chapter.

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

And what does it take to become a ‘friend’ of Jesus?

“Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” (St. John 15:12-14)

May the Lord Add a Blessing to the reading of His Word.

 

LOCKSMIF... LLAVES (keys)