The Problem Of Evil

The Good Friday service at my church tonight was especially powerful.  The message was about taking responsibility for our individual sins that put Jesus on the cross and how doing so is a crucial part of accepting the forgiveness that Christ extends to us.  During communion, we had the option of dipping our hands into red paint and then placing them on the cross to acknowledge our guilt.  We then were invited to take communion and then go to another station to wash our hands as a symbol of the cleansing provided by Jesus' death on the cross.  The bowl of water quickly became red, making the stains difficult to wash off, similar to how there was only one way that our stains could be washed off and it was not easy.  

As powerful as those reminders were, there was one part of communion that really got to me.  I had the privilege of serving communion tonight.  I got the grape juice.  As anyone who has served communion at my church knows, this can be a bit of a messy job as some of the grape juice inevitably ends drips off of the bread.  Tonight was especially powerful as I felt the grape juice stream down my hands at times and saw spots of it spattered on the floor, all while telling person after person, "The blood of Christ spilled for you."  It was almost like feeling that blood spilled out over me.  My hands were shaking by about half way through.

Today is a day of mourning.  A day of mourning Jesus' death.  But it is not sufficient to only mourn His death.  True repentance comes in mourning the reason for His death.  So often we focus on the fact that Jesus died because He loves us.  While this is true and fully supported by John 3:16, it is not the whole truth.  Because of our sin, we were separated from God.  A perfect sacrifice had to be given in order for us to be reconciled to Him.  Our sins had to be placed on that sacrifice.  The cross is not about God overlooking our sins; it is about God placing them on His one and only Son and punishing Him so that we may live by putting our faith in Him.

Jesus didn't just die on the cross because He loves us.  He died on a cross because our sins grieve Him and He wants to remove them.  That was the only way.  I don't think it is possible to  show proper appreciation for the sacrifice Christ made without grieving our sins that put Him there and realizing just how awful those sins are.  At some point in our lives, we have all chosen to yell, "Crucify Him," spit in His face, and mocked Him.

One of the major philosophical issues, especially in regards to religion, is the problem of evil.  How could a God who is all good, all knowing, and all powerful allow evil to happen.  Christ's willing death on the cross is never mentioned.the thing is, why would a God who doesn't absolutely detest evil take on flesh, allow Himself to be handed over to His enemies, and willingly die one of the most brutal and humiliating deaths in all of history in order to rid people of their sins- and not just so they can go to Heaven, but that this redemption would take place here and now?  I look at Jesus and see a God who cares far more about the problem of evil than any of us do.  And He conquered it on that cross.

When I realize just how much was given in order to pay for my sins, I hate my sins.  I hate my sins that put the God I love on that cross.  The cross is where my desire to turn from my sins is strongest.  I'm repulsed by the way they marred my beloved Savior.  And in this I find my desire to take up my cross and follow Him- to die to myself and to find a new and better life in Him.