FEB 10

Romans 3:25
Memorise 1 John 2:2
“And he is the propitiation for our sins…”

Recall the last time you made someone very angry. How did you appease him? Probably, you had to apologise, or perhaps you did something nice for the other person before he forgave you.

In a way, this is how things are between God and us too. Our sins have caused Him to show His wrath and righteous anger toward us. In our unsaved state, we deserved nothing but eternal damnation for all our sins. Because He is holy and just, God cannot forgive us just like that – His wrath had to be appeased. Christ achieved this by being a “propitiation” for us. The word “propitiation” here means a sacrifice that bears God’s wrath, such that God’s wrath toward us is changed into favour. By giving His life on the cross and shedding His blood, Christ was able to turn away God’s anger and restore us into a right relationship with Him.

Romans 3:25 tells us that this was actually an arrangement that was ‘set forth’ by God. It was God’s will that Jesus Christ would come to be the one to appease His wrath. What great love this is, that God would choose to punish his own Son, in order that mankind can receive the remission of sins. This is indeed a testament to the great forbearance of God, that He would forgive sinners such as us.

This does not mean that God Himself is changed. Rather, His wrath towards us was appeased by Christ’s sacrificial death, such that He can now show His favour towards us. Indeed, the entire plan of salvation declares to us God’s righteousness – He is a just God to whom we can approach only if we have faith in the blood of Christ.

Dear teen, do you acknowledge the fact that you are entirely deserving of God’s wrath, and that there is therefore a need to turn away this wrath? Christ has already turned God’s wrath away in your place, by being a propitiation for you. This sacrifice will be of no use to you, though, unless you accept Jesus as your Saviour. Will you not do so today, “through faith in his blood”?

Thought: Christ bore God’s wrath in my place.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for sending Lord Jesus Christ to be the propitiation for our sins.