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One of the fundamental beliefs of Christianity is that Jesus
had died and allowed for the shedding of his blood for the sake
of granting forgiveness to people. In other words Jesus had
died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. Let us investigate
this topic from the Bible, and find out whether Jesus was sent
to be crucified or that he was crucified:
1. Willingness of Jesus Christ to Die for Our Sins:
Peter and the two sons of Zebedee were with Jesus Christ
before the elders of the people and the chief priests came
to take him to crucify him. Jesus at this point talked to
Peter and the two sons of Zebedee as in Matthew 26:38 "Then
saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto
death: tarry ye here, and watch with me." Then Jesus
went a little further way from them and prayed to God as in
Matthew 26:39 "And he went a little farther, and fell
on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but
as thou wilt."
It is very clear from the above verse in Matthew 26:39 that
Jesus had no intention of dying. In this verse it is shown
that Jesus was praying strongly (Matthew mentions that Jesus
repeated these prayer three time) to have this death removed
from him. Had Jesus Christ been sent to be crucified he would
not have hesitated to be killed at all. When I relate this
to my Christian brothers, they tell me that this hesitation
comes from the flesh side of him (in other words he was tempted),
and that his soul which is godly does not have this hesitation
at all. When we look at Matthew 26:38 we see that Jesus is
contradicting this idea by saying, "My soul is exceeding
sorrowful, even unto death." (Matthew 26:38). He himself
says that it really his soul that is hesitating and not his
body. These are Jesus' own words.
2. God Answered the prayers of Jesus Christ:
After Jesus made the above mentioned prayer he was answered
by God according to Hebrews 5:7 "Who in the days of his
flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with
strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him
from death, and was heard in that he feared." These words
clearly show that when Jesus was praying strongly to God,
God would grant him his request. The word "heard in that
he feared" (Hebrews 5:7) mean that God granted him what
he requested. So the above verse shows that when Jesus asked
of God to "let this cup pass from" (Matthew 26:39)
him, God respond to his prayer and saved him from death or
crucifixion.
3. The Post Crucifixion Prophesied
Events never happened:
When the people were asking Jesus Christ if he was going
to show them a sign, He replied by saying that the only sign
that they should expect is the sign of Jonas. Jesus also made
sure to specify what exactly this sign was. The details are
shown in the following verses:
Matthew 12:38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees
answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.
Matthew 12:39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil
and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there
shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet
Jonas:
Matthew 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights
in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days
and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Jesus here emphasized what will happen to him by specifically
saying that he will be like Jonas in terms of the number of
days and nights he will be in the heart of the earth, "
For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's
belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights
in the heart of the earth." (Matthew 12:40). Now let
us see if this prophecy came to pass.
Jesus was crucified on Friday, this is certainly known among
all Christians, and that is the reason for calling that Friday
by "Good Friday". Jesus was buried on Friday night.
Now let us start counting:
1.Friday night Jesus was buried. This is night number 1.
2.Saturday day Jesus was still in the grave. This is day number
1.
3.Saturday night Jesus was still in the grave. This is night
number 2.
Mary Magdalene, very early in the morning before sun rise
and after the Sabbath (Saturday), went to the see Jesus, and
he was not there. The following verses relate this event:
Mark 16:1 And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and
Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices,
that they might come and anoint him.
Mark 16:2 And very early in the morning the first day of the
week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
Mark 16:3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us
away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
Mark 16:4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was
rolled away: for it was very great.
Mark 16:5 And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young
man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment;
and they were affrighted.
Mark 16:6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek
Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is
not here: behold the place where they laid him.
The number of days and nights that Jesus had spent in the
heart of the earth is 1 day and 2 nights. This clearly challenges
what Jesus had prophesied. When I tell this to my Christian
brothers, some of them responded by saying that what Jesus
wanted to really say was that he will be gone for a while,
and not that he will be in the heart of the earth for three
days and three nights. This is clearly not the case. Had Jesus
meant that, he would have said it, but it is clear that he
wanted the people to know that this was a sign (miracle) and
that it will be like Joans' sign, and that he will be in the
heart of the earth for three days and three nights. These
were his own words.
Why Would Jesus Have to Die on the Cross?
According to the Christian doctrine, Jesus died on the cross
as a sacrifice for our sins. The idea here is that every human
is born with sins, or that all humans will sin, and therefore
it was necessary that someone as pure as Jesus would be the
crucified to nullify these sins. The question is; why does
anyone have to die for our sins when God, the All-Merciful,
could as easily give us forgiveness if we ask for it? Isn't
God the one who makes the rules? Why does He have to make
someone suffer for our sins or for someone else's sins? Isn't
that unjust of Him? According to the Bible the way to redemption
could be obtained without the need for sacrifice. The Bible
says:
Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son
shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the
father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of
the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the
wicked shall be upon him.
Ezekiel 18:21 But if the wicked will turn from all his sins
that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that
which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall
not die.
Clearly the soul that sins shall die. Clearly that no one
shall bear the iniquity (sins) of others. So Jesus cannot
bear the sins of others either. If one is righteous then it
shall be upon him, and if one commits a sin then it shall
be upon him, and not on Jesus. Finally, the way to repentance
and forgiveness is by turning from all sins, doing what is
right, and keeping the commandments.
Also we see the same message given by Solomon. He says in
the book of Ecclesiastes 12:13 "Let us hear the conclusion
of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments:
for this is the whole duty of man." This is the whole
message, and this is the conclusion of messages. It is that
one should fear God, and keep the commandments, and nothing
else.
Again in 2 Chronicles 7:14 "If my people, which are called
by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my
face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from
heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
This clearly states that to seek forgiveness from God we have
to humble ourselves, pray and seek God, and turn away from
wickedness.
Finally the Bible says in Samuel 15:22 "And Samuel said,
Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better
than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams."
This clearly states that obeying God is better that sacrifice
whether this sacrifice is of objects, animals, or humans,
or any other type. What God likes is for us to heed and obey
Him, and if that is what God likes then it is not of Him to
come later and change his mind, and change his ways. God says
in the Holy Quran, "Verily God is All-Knowing, All-Wise"
(Ch 9: Vr 28).
Now that we have seen this, Christians say that Jesus has
changed some of these laws. Let's look at what Jesus says.
In Matthew 5:17 "Think not that I am come to destroy
the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to
fulfil." Jesus clearly states that he was not sent to
abolish the law, the law of which had already existed. So
what is mentioned above cannot be discounted. Then Jesus continues
to say, in Matthew 5:18 and 19 "For verily I say unto
you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall
in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever
therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and
shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom
of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same
shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Jesus
here states that not even as much as a dot (tittle) shall
not pass from the law. Every thing is kept the way it was.
That is why the previous laws cannot be removed or discarded,
and those who willfully change these laws "he shall be
called the least in the kingdom of heaven."
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