Joy Compelled Him

Why did Jesus die on the cross?

There are a few ways to answer this question. We could talk about how Jesus went to the cross to pour out his blood to cover our sins. In a similar vein, we could answer that Jesus went to the cross to take our punishment on himself. We could also trace it back to the commitment of Jesus, as the Son of God, to obey his Father and bring glory to Him through the redemption of many sinners. 

We are correct in saying that love and obedience compelled Jesus to submit himself to crucifixion on the cross and to endure the hellish suffering of abandonment from his Heavenly Father. However, the book/letter/sermon of Hebrews provides us with another motivation at work in Jesus´heart as he contemplated the anguish that lay ahead of him. 

“...Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

Joy.

If we are talking about what drove Jesus to the cross, we must include joy. As Jesus prayed in the dark loneliness of the Garden of Gethsemane; as he restrained himself from calling down legions of angels to put an end to his false arrest, as he held back his tongue and accepted the mocking of his own people; as he carried the heavy cross-beam on his bloody back; as the nails held his broken body to the cross, Jesus was thinking about the joy that lay before him. 

What was the joy that allowed him to endure the cross? It was the joy of being the Saviour of his people. It was the joy of knowing that after suffering the pain and shame of the cross, he would be able to rejoice in the salvation of his people. It was the joy of knowing that his bride would not never have to suffer as he did, but would enjoy everlasting life.

What this means for you personally is that Jesus went headlong into suffering and death thinking of you.

Now, the text doesn´t say that Jesus thought of each one of us individually as he made his way to the cross, but I don´t think that is too much of a stretch to say. As any good shepherd does, Jesus knows each one of his sheep. He did not lay down his life for sheep in general, but his own sheep, the sheep he knew better than anyone.

And so, as we begin to think about Easter and about the death of Christ on the cross for our sins, we can also think about the fact that Jesus died with you and me in mind. As he entered into his darkest hour, he was anticipating the joy of seeing you and me saved from our sins and brought into newness of life.

What a thought!