Romans 5:1-11
People are willing to die for many things. We see people commit suicide because they prefer death to life. We see suicide bombers kill themselves and others because they hope for a reward in paradise. We see parents both righteous and unrighteous sacrifice their own lives to save their children. Some people would die to save their pets.

Many factors determine a person’s willingness to die. People would give their life to save a loved one sooner than they would to save a stranger. People who have a miserable life might be quicker to sacrifice it than someone whose life is wonderful. A person, who is near death, may be quicker to die for another than a young healthy person with their whole life before them may.

Christ sacrificing his life is special in many ways. First, his timing was perfect. He died at the pivotal turning point in human history. It would take a book to explain why the time was perfect, but it certainly was. He died with no hope of personal reward. As the Son of God, all of creation was his. At His death, he gave up everything and gained nothing. He chose death, even though death was something he would never have had to experience. He died for us while we were still his enemies. He died for us while we were still ungodly. Christ did not die for us because he wanted to die; He died because there was no other way to redeem us. He died for us because it was our only hope for salvation, and he loved us enough to sacrifice Himself. His death became our only hope of life.

Christ did not die just to save us from death. Reconciliation with God saves us from death, but more importantly, it provides us the opportunity for real life. No longer fearing death, for the first time we really have the courage to live. We are no longer just alive. In Christ, we live life abundantly.