He Died for Us All
By: Egoeh Seth Gogo

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” – Isaiah 53:5.

Today marks another important date on the calendar of all Christians – Good Friday! A question could be asked: Why would the day on which Jesus Christ died be called Good? Have you ever asked yourself that question?

Isaiah prophesied the death of Jesus more than 2500 years ago. In fact, the way He was going to die, His resurrection and ascension were clearly prophesied and outlined in the Bible. The main reason why Jesus came to our planet was to die and resurrect so that all people can have access to salvation. In essence, the coming of Jesus (i.e. His Birth) would have amounted to nothing, had He not died and resurrected. We celebrate Good Friday not because the day was good, but because of the event that took place on it – the death of Jesus?

Since the fall of man, we were separated from God. The kind of direct relationship that Adam and Eve had with God was lost. Sin became part of man and will continue to be.  Because of the separation, the only way to appease God was through sacrifices of bulls, lambs, goats, etc. There were many types of offerings that were made for different circumstances. There were: Peace Offering, Sin Offering, Burnt Offering, Drink Offering, Heave Offering, Meat Offering, Wave Offering, etc. There are hundreds of references in the Bible to attest to this offerings.  And all these sacrifices were handled by the Priests (Leviticus 1, 2).

Isaiah and all the other Prophets in the Bible told us that the death of Jesus shall bring salvation to the world. What it means is that we no longer need to sacrifice the blood of lambs, bulls and goats to appease God. Jesus was the sacrificial lamb. John proclaimed “Behold the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Jesus Christ is the only Man who can take away your sin! It is therefore misleading for any church to still be practising Old Testament’s customs. We now live in the New Testament.

Now, let me briefly explain the essence of Jesus’ death. In the Old Testament, there were two tabernacles: the Sanctuary and the Holiest of all (Heb. 9.2,3). The first tabernacle is for service unto God by the priest. The second tabernacle is entered only once by the High Priest every year for blood offering for the forgiveness of his sins and the sins of the people. The two tabernacles were separated by the veil (Heb 9:3). No one was qualified to enter the second tabernacle apart from the High Priest. In Matthew 27:51 and Mark 15:38 we were told that when Jesus died on the cross, the veil of the Temple as was rent in two. The death of Jesus made manifest the second temple unto all.

Hebrews 9:11 explained to us that Christ is now our High Priest and the sacrifice that He made is of His own blood. And because of the Blood of Jesus we can all enter the Holiest (Heb. 10:19). The death of Jesus brings forgiveness of sins, peace and healing to those who believe in Him. As we celebrate this great victory – the death of Jesus – let us remember our core duty of reaching out to the world. Let us carry Jesus Christ with us everywhere in our attitudes and talks.

If you are reading this and have not given your life to Jesus Christ, this is the time to do it. Just say this prayer and and find a Bible believing church and fellowship with them and you will be saved.

Prayer: Father LORD, I accept that Jesus Christ came to die for my sins. I accept that I am a sinner. I accept Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Saviour.  Amen!