At the heart of Christianity is the assertion that God entered His own universe as a man. The Bible declares Jesus to be God the Son and that God made this astonishing move so that he could bring about our salvation.
What does it mean for someone to be “saved”? Well, first of all the Bible isn’t talking about some shallow psychological fix. It offers a remedy that tackles our deepest needs: real forgiveness, peace with God, and healing from the damage caused by sin in our lives: a salvation that holds out the offer of sharing God’s life, now and forever.
The question of our individual wrongdoing is at the core of God’s plan to save us. The Bible says that God loves us, but that He can’t ignore our sin, because that would be an unjust thing to do. We live in a moral universe, where our every sin incurs a moral debt. It is our sin which has separated us from God. It is this core issue which has to be addressed.
The story of the Cross is the story of how the debt was paid, so that God’s justice and love could be reconciled. On the Cross, we see God in Christ taking our punishment on Himself, as our substitute. Our moral debt was paid by the Divine Judge. The death of Christ at Calvary was a personal act of love and loyalty performed by God for each one of us.
The Bible describes how God raised Jesus from the dead, opening up the way for men and women to receive the gift of eternal life. So Christians don’t follow the example of a dead leader. They have an intimate relationship with a living person.
