WHY JESUS CHRIST DIED

There was an old grey-haired man who regularly taught his granddaughter about the things of God and of Jesus Christ. One night he sat his daughter on his lap and began to teach her about the love God had  for all mankind. So much so that He gave His only begotten son for us, so that he could save any and all of us, who want to be saved, from our sins.

” Sarah” he said, “when anyone understands enough about Jesus Christ to confess him as lord that person is delivered from their sins.”
When the grey-haired man was finished teaching Sarah, he put his Bible up and kissed his granddaughter good night. Sarah didn’t walk away as she usually did, with a bounce in her step. Tonight, she had a quizzacle look on her face and a slow deliberate stride as she walked to bed.

The next night Sarah, once again, sat on her grandfather’s lap, but, this night Sarah started to speak first.

“ Grandfather?”

“yes darling.”

“ I need to talk to you about last night’s teaching.”

“Ok, what is on your mind?”

“ I feel guilty.”

“Whaaat? Why?”

“Because…,” Sarah started “Because I don’t want anyone to die and I especially don’t want anyone to die for me! The thought of Jesus going through all of the beatings and then dying makes me sad and and
I feel guilty for him doing that just for me. I can’t accept it. I want to cry!” With that Sarah buried her head in her grandfathers chest and started to sob.

“Sarah sweety” said the grandfather as he held her tight.
For several minutes grandfather held Sarah in a bear hug of an embrace. Finally, he raised her off his chest and looked into her eyes.

“Boy, I sure didn’t explain things very well last night. I am so sorry for that. Let’s dry your tears and let me have another go at explaining this.”
Sarah went and blew her nose and wiped her tears from her face and came and sat down on Grandfather’s lap once more.

“Let me see” said Grandfather. “What I did last night, I think, was to give you the impression that Jesus traded his life for yours. Is that the way you see it?”
“Yes” said Sarah.

“Well, in a sense that is true, but, there is something else that you must understand. Remember the story of Adam and Eve, the first two people on Earth and how they lived in the Garden of Eden?”
Sarah’s eyes lit up, “Yes Grandfather I remember. They did something they weren’t supposed to do and ended up getting kicked out didn’t they?”“That is right, but, there is more to the story than that.” “What happen is that God gave rulership of all the Earth and all the animals, birds and fish to Adam. Whatever Adam said went. Adam even named all of the animals, birds and fish! So, Adam was responsible to God for being the big boss of the World.”
“Who’s the big boss now Grandfather?” asked Sarah.

I’m going to get to that, but your jumping ahead of me.” Replied Grandfather.
“Sorry Grandfather”
“It’s OK Sarah. I like that you are inquisitive. That means you are listening and thinking.” Said Grandfather.
Grandfather continued, “The devil, God’s arc enemy, you remember hearing about him?”

Sarah snuggled into Grandfathers chest and said “yes Grandfather, but, I don’t like talking about him.”
“Neither do I” said Grandfather, “but, for you to understand I need to teach you what he did. You see, the devil wanted the authority that Adam had, but, he knew he could never have it by honest means. So he started talking to Eve,. He knew he didn’t have a chance to fool Adam, but, if he could fool Eve then  Eve could work for him and maybe the both of them could fool Adam. So, that’s what he did. Day in and day out the devil would pretend that he was an angel of light and come to talk to Eve. Over time the
devil convinced Eve to do the one thing that God told Adam not to do. God told Adam not to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. The devil got Eve so twisted around that, when the devil asked Eve what God said she changed a word, added a word and deleted a word. In other words, she forgot what God said.”

“Uh Oh” exclaimed Sarah.

“Uh Oh is right” said Grandfather. ”Because Eve didn’t remember what God said the devil could and did convince her to eat the fruit that she wasn’t supposed to eat.” Do you know what it is called when you do something that God tells you not to do?”

“No, Grandfather, what is it called?”

“it is called sin, dear child.” Replied Grandfather.

“Grandfather, sin sounds so harsh.”

“It does sound harsh, but all it is is not doing what you are told.”
“Kinda like when I don’t pick up my room when Mommy tells me to?” asked Sarah.

“Exactly” chuckled Grandfather.

“So” Grandfather continued “Eve did just what the devil thought. She convinced Adam to eat the fruit of tree of knowledge of good and evil. When Adam ate that fruit, he committed high treason against God.”

“What is high treason, Grandfather” Sarah asked looking rather puzzled.“High treason, Sarah, is when someone commits a crime against a nation or kingdom by giving something of value to another nation. Usually it is secret information, but, sometimes it is something material of tangible.

“You have a puzzled look on your face. Did I loose you?.” Asked Grandfather.

“I don’t understand.” Replied Sarah.

Grandfather sat for a minute trying to come up with a comparison that Sarah could understand.

“ Well, honey,” Grandfather started “if we lived in a castle and someone in the castle gave information to the enemy about a secret passage that would let the army of the enemy in to take over the castle that would be high treason against the king and the people of the castle.”

“OK, Grandfather, I think I see” Sarah said, interrupting Grandfather.

“Good” said Grandfather, “but, there is another part to this. If we lived in the same castle and instead of a king we had a governor and that governor opened the gate to the army of the enemy and let them take control that would be high treason as well.”

“OK, I understand now.” Sarah chimed in.

“Back to the story of Adam and Eve” said Grandfather. “By doing what God told Adam not to do Adam broke fellowship with God and transferred his authority as governor of the World to the Devil.”

“Really?” Sarah looked at Grandfather with a look of disbelief.
Grandfather continued, “ yes that is why in John chapter fourteen Jesus said ‘ the prince of this world cometh and has nothing in me.’ Adam was the prince of the world, but, now the devil is because of Adams sin.”

“But Grandfather, what does this have to do with Jesus Dying?”

“I’m getting to that, Sarah. You see, when the devil got control of the world, he, also, got control of the people. We became his property.

“Wow, Grandfather, that sounds horrible!”

“It is sweetheart. That is why there are so many problems in the world today.” Grandfather continued, “

But, God made a plan to get us back from the rulership of the devil and it involved His son Jesus Christ.”

“You see, Sarah, Just like Adam did, the devil would have to do something against the laws of God so that it would break the his rulership, his authority over mankind.”

”Are you following me so far?” asked Grandfather.

“Yes I think so” said Sarah.

“Good girl” replied Grandfather. “So God’s plan was to send His son to help us. However, if the devil tried to get rid of or kill Jesus, God had a plan that was hidden before the foundation of the world.

“That’s a long time, Grandfather” exclaimed Sarah “ What was the plan?”“The plan was to allow the devil to kill Jesus Christ, something the devil had no right to do because Jesus was innocent of all sin and that would break the hold that the devil has on mankind.”

“That sounds horrible!” blurted Sarah

“Well it was” said Grandfather “but it had to be done to save us and you have to understand even though it was so terrible, God and Jesus Christ both saw the glory of Christ Jesus’ being raised from the dead and forever more sitting on the right hand, the hand of blessing, of God.”

“Wow, God really does love us doesn’t He, Grandfather!”

“Yes child He surely does, but, that is only the half of it,” exclaimed Grandfather, “the other half is that anyone that does what Romans chapter ten verses nine and ten says to do is no longer under the authority of the devil and they have an unrevokable one way ticket to Heaven.”

“So, Grandfather what about all the things that I hear about my sins?”

“Because of what Jesus Christ went through” said Grandfather,” “and because we are no longer under the authority of the devil, but, citizens of God’s Kingdom and children of God, when we do sin or break
fellowship with God all we have to do is tell God we are sorry and the Bible says that God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”

“Thank you for explaining that to me, Grandfather” said Sarah, “I feel much better knowing that it wasn’t something I did that caused Jesus to die and just knowing that he is alive and I will get to see him is exciting, isn’t it Grandfather!”

“Indeed it is child, indeed it is.”