The 7 Whys of EasterMostra

Why Did Jesus Choose a Cross?

Crucifixion is so horrific that it has been outlawed in nearly every country on earth. Why did Jesus die in this way? Any death would have paid the debt for our sins. He needed to die publicly so the world would know what he did for us, but stoning or beheading could have been just as public.

If there was an easier, less horrible way to die, don’t you think he would have chosen it? Don’t you think his Father would have chosen it for him? The word of God predicted the manner of Jesus’ death a thousand years before it happened.

In Psalm 22, David wrote these words: “Dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet” (v. 16). Note that he made this statement five centuries before the Persians invented crucifixion.

I can think of only one reason why the Father and the Son chose the cross: to show us their solidarity with our most horrific, indescribable pain and shame. There is no physical pain we can feel worse than his - no pain from disease or disaster, war or criminal attack or accident. The worst that can happen to us is no worse than what happened to him.

There is no shame we can feel worse than his. We know the shame of our individual sins; he took the shame of the entire human race on himself. Then he demonstrated that fact by dying in the most shameful manner possible—paraded through the streets, stripped to all but a loincloth, and executed before his mother, best friend, and enemies.

None of this was necessary for Jesus to understand our pain and shame. He was and is omniscient. He did not learn something about us at Calvary he did not know beforehand, but we learned something about him at Calvary we did not know beforehand. We now know the God of the universe is not impervious to our needs, he is not removed from our sufferings, he is not an impersonal force, and he is not simply a judge of right and wrong.

The Son felt the worst we can feel. His Father watched his Son suffer in such pain and shame, proving he understands all we feel for those we love. The bottom line: Jesus chose the cross to show us he will help us bear our cross, whatever it is.

What is the worst pain and shame that you have felt? Take that shame and pain to the Lord, knowing his burden is light and only he can provide true peace.