He's Not Mad at You

I love the modern hymn “In Christ Alone.” I just think it’s a beautiful hymn with stunning lyrics. If you’re unfamiliar with it, take a moment to listen to it, paying attention to those lyrics:

I especially love the second verse, one that doesn’t always sit well with some:

In Christ alone who took on flesh;
fullness of God in helpless babe.
This gift of love and righteousness
scorned by the ones He came to save;
'til on that cross as Jesus died
the wrath of God was satisfied;
for ev'ry sin on Him was laid;
here in the death of Christ I live.

There has always been a lot of debate in the church about what exactly happened on the cross. What is the atonement about? (I always liked the way a friend talked about the atonement: it is the at-one-ment.) We are made one with God through the cross.

But what happened? We often want to know, and some Christians have very strong beliefs about what specifically happened, and their belief is the only acceptable one. That, however, has never been the universal understanding of the church. There are seven “theories” of the atonement. Here is a great overview of each, and I encourage you to take a few minutes to read through them. I have always been partial to the Christus Victor theory, where, through the cross, Jesus is victorious over the devil, sin, and the forces of evil. The cross isn’t just about me and you being forgiven; on the cross, Jesus defeats the power of evil in creation.

The cross and the empty grave must go together. On the cross, Jesus purchased our forgiveness and atoned for us. No matter what theory of the atonement you subscribe to, on the cross, sin was defeated. We are made right with the Father. No matter what you specifically believe happened there, that is what happened in the big picture. Jesus makes us right with the Father. Sin is defeat. That is the cross.

In the empty grave, death is defeated. No more does death hold sway. Think through Genesis 3, when sin entered into the world. What is the ultimate consequence of sin? Death. Because of sin, death enters into the world. The cross defeats sin, the empty grave destroys death.

This is also why I really like the Christus Victor theory; Christ is victorious over all.

I’ve shared a lot of theology and theory with you today, on this Good Friday. But want to circle back to that verse of that hymn. I love what it says, even if I don’t always emphasize it - the wrath of God was satisfied. No matter where you fall on what happened on the cross, we are atoned for, we are forgiven. Through the work of the cross, you are forgiven. You are made right. God’s justice, God’s wrath, the effect of sin, everything, it is done away with. It is no more. It is gone. As the prophet Isaiah says:

⁵ But he was wounded for our transgressions,
crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the punishment that made us whole,
and by his bruises we are healed.
⁶ All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have all turned to our own way,
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

The Lord laid upon Him all our sin, all our brokenness. All our mistakes. Everything. It’s all on Jesus. You are forgiven. You are forgiven. You are forgiven.

Through the work of Jesus, you are forgiven. He’s not mad at you. Jesus has done the work. There is nothing more you have to do. Nothing. You don’t have to do anything to earn it. It was done for you. You just have to understand that and receive it.

If there is anything you have to do to make God forgive you, then you’re saying that Jesus didn’t do enough. It’s not my perfect action + Jesus = forgiveness. It’s Jesus = forgiveness.

It’s not my perfect doctrine + Jesus = forgiveness. It’s Jesus = forgiveness.

It’s not my perfect church + Jesus = forgiveness. It’s Jesus = forgiveness.

It’s not anything I do + Jesus = forgiveness. It’s Jesus = forgiveness.

If there is something I have to “do”, then Jesus didn’t do enough. Then the cross wasn’t enough. Then the atonement wasn’t enough. But that is not right. Jesus did enough. He paid it all. He did it all.

But we struggled with that. We have internalized our unworth. Our fialiues. Our sins, everything. We have interpreted that God is mad at us, against us, and that we have to do anything in our power ot make God love us. If we do more, believe right, give enough, serve enough, then we can make God love us.

Friends, you cannot make God love you. If you try to make God love you, you will fail. You can’t make God love you. You don’t have to. He already does. He loves you.

God is not after you. He is not against you. He is not seeking to “get you.” No matter what you’ve heard, been told, had preached at, or read, He’s not mad at you. On the cross, our sins are forgiven. In the empty tomb, death is defeated. Through it all, we are loved.

Today, know how much God loves you. No matter what. He’s not mad at you. He loves you.