Jesus had a choice whether or not to suffer and die, and chose to, to save us. He suffered for us to make us good enough for heaven, and could have stopped at any time, but didn’t. Jesus doesn’t have to pay the price for his sins as he has none, and Christians believe that in his willingness to suffer and die on their behalf, Jesus set an example, which they themselves should be prepared to follow. In the Gospel Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me…he must deny self and take up his cross and follow me.”
Jesus’ death was not a sign of his failure, but the climax of his ministry. Christians believe that Jesus’ death arises from our separation from God. Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden for abusing the freedom they were given, and they became separated from God. Jesus died in payment for our sins, and to restore our relationship with God, as we are incapable of restoring it ourselves because unlike Jesus, we are not perfect.
Jesus died because the people of that time were afraid of what he had to say, especially the Jewish leaders, who felt threatened by him. This is shown in the question about rising from death, the Sadducees try to trick Jesus into contradicting the law of God and try to make him look stupid.
Jesus suffered the worst type of death. He could have been executed in many ways but he was crucified. Crucifixion was reserved for the worst criminals. He hung on the cross for six hours, and the sky went black at noon, signifying the sadness and enormity of the event.
Just before Jesus dies, his humanity is seen most blatantly. He cries out “My God, My God, why did you abandon me?” . Christians have two interpretations of this question, one is that Mark is trying to help us imagine the amount of pain Jesus suffered, another is that Jesus was beginning to recite psalm 22:1 which ends triumphantly.
When Jesus dies the curtain, which separates the Holy of Holies from the rest of the world apart from the high priest tears. This signifies the universalism of the message, that God is for everyone and he accepts everyone, rich or poor.
The suffering and death of Jesus are completed through his resurrection and it’s here that the triumph over suffering and death is most clearly displayed. This is when the conflict between good and evil is resolved. The resurrection proves the identity of Jesus as Messiah and completes the vocation of Jesus, which is to bring people back to God. The forgiveness of sins opens the gates of heaven for those who want to listen.
The resurrection is the central belief of the Christian churches. Without it, to many people, Jesus would just be an interesting and good man. Ultimately, the belief in the resurrection is an act of faith. Christian’s believe that Jesus’ was a physical resurrection, a corpse was brought back to life and in other gospels, we are told he talked and ate with people after his death, although physically, he was not the same as he could walk through walls.
In rising from death, Jesus demonstrated the truth of his claims, and proved that the debt of man’s sin had been paid. He also demonstrated that there is life after death. Christians believe that everyone who has died will be resurrected at the “Last Judgement”. Those that God finds acceptable as a result of Jesus’ sacrifice will enter heaven-the rest will not.
