“If God is for Us” (6)

[Romans 8:31-34]

Last week, we meditated on the second half of Romans 8:33 and the first half of Romans 8:34: “It is God who justifies; who is he who condemns?” The one who justifies us is God, and no one can ever condemn us. In John 8:3-11, the scribes and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery and stood her in the middle (v. 3) and said to Jesus: “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery. Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do you say?” (vv. 4-5). They asked this question to test Him, so that they might have something of which to accuse Him (v. 6, Contemporary Bible).
In conclusion, Jesus said to the woman: “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you? … Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more…” (vv. 10-11). Since Jesus did not condemn her, who would dare to accuse or condemn her? Absolutely no one! The one who justifies is God, so who could condemn us? (Romans 8:33b-34a) Absolutely no one!

Now look at Romans 8:34: “… who is he who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is Christ Jesus….” This speaks of the death and resurrection of Jesus. This is the gospel of the gospel, the heart of the gospel. Just believing in this gospel is enough for salvation. Today, we will meditate only on the death of Jesus, and next week, we will meditate on His resurrection.

Look at 1 Corinthians 15:2-4: “By which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” Here, the “word which I preached” refers to the gospel of Jesus Christ preached by the Apostle Paul. Just believing in this gospel of Jesus Christ brings salvation (v. 2).

The Apostle Paul explained the gospel of Jesus Christ in verses 3-4: “That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” These verses in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 refer to Romans 8:34, which speaks of the One who died and rose again, that is, Christ Jesus. The phrase “according to the Scriptures” (which appears twice) refers to the Old Testament. That is, the prophecies about Jesus Christ in the Old Testament were fulfilled when He died and rose again, as recorded in the New Testament.

First, let us consider the prophecies in the Old Testament about the death of Jesus Christ. Look at Deuteronomy 21:23: “His body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him the same day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.” This prophetic word predicts that Jesus Christ would be hanged on a tree, that is, on the cross. The key point in this prophecy is that the one who is hanged on a tree is accursed by God. Now, look at Matthew 27:35, 38: “Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots… Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left.” This passage shows that the prophecy in Deuteronomy 21:23 was fulfilled, and Jesus Christ (the Messiah) was crucified on the tree (the cross).

The fact that Jesus Christ died on the tree (the cross) means, from the perspective of the Jews according to Deuteronomy 21:23, that Jesus was accursed by God. In other words, the reason the Jews shouted loudly for Jesus to be crucified (John 19:6) was because they accused Him of blasphemy (Matthew 26:65; see also John 10:33, 36) and of profaning the temple (John 2:19). Look at Galatians 3:13: “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.’”

Psalm 22:16 says: “Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evildoers has encompassed me; they pierced my hands and my feet.” This prophetic word foretells that Jesus Christ would be nailed to the cross through His hands and feet. Mark 15:24-25 says: “And when they had crucified Him, they divided His clothes, casting lots to see who would take what. It was the third hour when they crucified Him.” Jesus was nailed to the cross exactly as the prophecy in Psalm 22:16 foretold. Jesus' piercing was for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5).

Zechariah 12:10 says: “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.” This prophecy foretells that Jesus Christ would be pierced in His side. John 19:34 says: “But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.” This fulfills the prophecy in Zechariah 12:10, where a soldier pierced Jesus' side with a spear.

Psalm 22:7 says: “All those who see Me ridicule Me; they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying...” This prophecy foretells that on the cross, people would mock Jesus, stick out their tongues, and shake their heads in scorn. Matthew 27:39-42 says: “And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, ‘You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself and come down from the cross.’ Likewise, the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, ‘He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him come down now from the cross, and we will believe Him.’” This passage shows that the prophecy of Psalm 22:7 was fulfilled.

Psalm 22:1 says: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My groaning?” This prophetic word foretells that Jesus Christ would be forsaken. Matthew 27:46 says: “About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” This shows that, according to the prophecy in Psalm 22:1, the only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, was forsaken by God the Father.

Isaiah 53:8 says: “He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken.” Here, the phrase “cut off from the land of the living” refers to death. This prophetic word foretells that Jesus Christ (the Messiah) would die. John 19:30 says: “So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” This passage confirms that Jesus Christ died on the cross, fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 53:8.

Psalm 34:20 says: “He guards all His bones; not one of them is broken.” This prophetic word foretells that when Jesus Christ died on the cross, none of His bones would be broken. John 19:36 says: “For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, ‘Not one of His bones shall be broken.’” This passage shows that the prophecy of Psalm 34:20 was fulfilled.

Next, I would like to reflect on the prophetic words in the Old Testament that predict that Jesus Christ would die for our sins and be buried.

(1) The prophecy that Jesus Christ would die for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3):
Look at Isaiah 53:5-6: “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” This prophetic word tells us that the reason Jesus was wounded, bruised, and beaten was for "our iniquities." It also reveals that God laid the iniquity of all of us upon Jesus Christ.

(2) The prophecy that Jesus Christ would be buried (1 Corinthians 15:4):
Look at Isaiah 53:9: “And they made His grave with the wicked, but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.” This prophetic word foretells that after Jesus' death, His grave would be with the rich. Look at Matthew 27:57-60: “When evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb, which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb and departed.” This passage shows that, according to the prophecy of Isaiah 53:9, the body of Jesus was laid in the new tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, a rich man, thus fulfilling the prophecy that Jesus was with the rich.

Thus, Jesus Christ died and was buried for us, just as the Scriptures said. Jesus' death was an atoning death for us, and we also died with Him. Look at 2 Corinthians 5:14: "For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died." One man, Jesus Christ, died for all, therefore all died. Look at Romans 6:6: "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." Look at Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Therefore, because Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3), we have received forgiveness of our sins and redemption.