If God is all-knowing, powerful, and loving, why did he send his son to die a miserable death?

Question

We all know that since God is all-powerful, he can save us from sin (or whatever his intention was) with a snap of his fingers. So why was there a need for an all-loving God to put his son through such torture? If your answer is something along the lines of: "to teach us a lesson," then why wouldn't God do it in a more loving way? When our own children do something wrong, we don't have them executed. You can't get any more closer to common sense than that. So how could this whole sending your only begotten son to die for something you could take care of yourself make any sense?

I know what you think the impact of Jesus's death was, but WHY would God need to do something so drastic when he could snap his fingers and end sin forever?

Answer 1

There are reasons why God could not save us from sin with a snap of His fingers. His holy and just character would not allow it. A payment had to rectify the transgressions committed.

What He did though is offer a SOLUTION to the sin problem that would also lead to eternal life. The solution was Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son.

Can man just do anything he wants and expect eternal life? No. Adam and Eve were given the opportunity to live forever and CHOSE to blow it. THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES for blowing it, in every aspect of life. Adam and Eve were no exeption, rather they were mankind's first examples to demonstrated that there are consequences for doing wrong. Instead of being able to live forever, they would die.

The consequences to sin then is death. So, what is the remedy?

Something had to remedy sin. There is no darkness in God. He is holy. No man could ever see God and live. He is too holy and full of pure light...beyond our scope of understanding. Therefore, He had to make a way for us to be able to exist with Him forever in His magnificent glory, splendor, and light. Sin is darkness and can not abide with light.

In Leviticus 17:11 God told the Israelites that the life of the body is in the blood. He gave them rules for pouring that blood on the altar. They had to do this in order to cover their sins.

Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins Hebrews tells us. The blood represents life. If a sacrifice were made, it would remedy the sin...wash the sin away...cleanse the sinner from the sin. Why? Because God said so.

In the TNK, this was temporarily accomplished through animal sacrifices...spotless animals. The reason for Jesus Christ coming in the flesh was so that he could be the final sacrifice. He would literally give His life, so that all might live. He was blameless, he did no sin, therefore he qualified as the "spotless Lamb" of God. He gave His only begotten Son who was willing to die for the world.

In the offering the priests shed animal blood, but that blood only provided a cover for sin. Only the blood Christ shed was able to put sin away (Hebrews 9:26)!

Couldn't God have died for us? No. God is not a man. Only a flesh and blood sinless person could be the exchange. His Son was what He gave, with His Son willlingly doing so.

Jesus GAVE his life freely out of love. It was not "taken" from him. His blood poured out to cover the sins of all who believe and wash them...freeing them from the bondage of sin. All sin was imputed to him to reconcile the world to God. Jesus Christ, through His sacrifice, put the world in a position to be "reconciled" in actuality to God.

Reconciliation removes the hatred (Romans 5:10; Colossians 1:21; Ephesians 2:16); reconciliation makes a person clean. Through reconciliation God paid for our sins and put them away (2 Corinthians 5:19; Hebrews 9:26; 1:3). Reconciliation breaks down the walls between God and man (Ephesians 2:14). At one time you and I were the enemies of God. By faith in Christ we brought ourselves back to God (Colossians 1:21). The war is over! God signed a peace treaty in the blood of Christ (Colossians 1:20)!

Anyone, who believes God and His Son can be washed clean by the spilled blood of Christ. God then, by His loving grace, declares a person "righteous" who has this kind of saving faith.

Just as God raised Christ from the grave to a new body and immortality, so will He do the same for all who believe. At the first resurrection, and at the last trump, Christ will return. All in Christ (true Christians) will be changed instantly to an incorruptible, immortal body and person never to sin again and fit to dwell in the light of God.

Answer 2

I agree, an all knowing, all powerful, and all loving god would not let his son die. Jesus didn't need to die for our sins, an all powerful god can forgive us, no death is needed.

It's a badly written story that is full of contradictions.

The Keepers' answer (the answer above mine) may sound convincing, but, it's actually flawed. He said:

"the reason God could not save us with the snap of his fingers is that he gave us the agency to act for ourselves and make our own decisions. For him to force salvation on all of us would take away our right to make choices, and my guess is that you would rather make your own decisions and not have your every decision made for you."

If that is true, then god would ask us: "Do you want to come and live with me in heaven; a perfect and all loving place for the rest of eternity, or, do you want to stay here?"

If god did that, which he would if The Keepers' story made any sense, then no ones free will would be violated.

Answer 3

God still has to live by the laws that he has set up, otherwise he would cease to be God. So God decreed that no unclean thing can return to live with him, and since we all sin none of us could ever get into heaven. This basic concept is called the law of justice. But there is something else called mercy, which obviously we all need, and this is where Jesus Christ stepped in. By living a perfect life, and paying an extreme price for our sins by suffering in the garden and dying on the cross he has made it possible for us to return to live with God again. Christ paid the debt that we could not pay.
And the reason God could not save us with the snap of his fingers is that he gave us the agency to act for ourselves and make our own decisions. For him to force salvation on all of us would take away our right to make choices, and my guess is that you would rather make your own decisions and not have your every decision made for you. So now your decision is whether to accept what Christ has done for you or not.

Answer 4

Well, since God, Jesus, and the Holy spirit are one, you could say God died a miserable death, in the form of man, and be correct. Because He is all-knowing, powerful, and loving, He tasted His own creation and the wages of sin (death) for us. But He did it without sin. Jesus is the son, because he was born of a woman, and the Spirit of God. And since He has risen from death, He gives the same promise to us too, to rise again. There had to be a first Resurrection, so who better than God Himself. He did this out of His great love. We can't ask God about His reasoning, For he knows what He is doing. He is in control.

Answer 5

When the Bible says, "For the wages of Sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life," it means death (physical) will come to those who sin, granted Jesus committed no sins of his own, except for the fact that, he became flesh, " For we are born in sin and shaped in iniquity,"

Jesus had to physically die for our sins, think about it, If a king decrees law he has to abide by it, or he wouldn't be king. Since God's law states that the wages of sin is death, someone had to die, why else would there have been the sacrificial laws?

Jesus' death was the ultimate sacrifice for sin.

If you've studied the bible, you'll find where God asks who will save mankind, ther was silence, except for Jesus. He went freely, God didn't force Him to go die a miserable death, Jesus Christ chose to.

St. John 3:16.
For God so loved the world that he GAVE His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish(in sin) but have everlasting life.

God GAVE, as in he didn't try to stop Jesus from doing what He wanted to do, He (God) did not FORCE Jesus Christ to die a miserable death.

Answer 6

its not just a made up story, or fate, because adam and eve did what god told them not to and eat of the fruit on the tree and knowledge, good and evil, they learned of there nakedness, were ashamed and hid from god,and when he would meet them in the garden, they knew of good evil, right and wrong, god kicked them out, in punishment thus sperating god from man. so there was what is called a spiritual gap between man and god, the only way to get to heaven was to know that god exsisted, adn be spiritually clean, sacrificing animals, which i believe was just turned aout to be a joke,. for some reason, know to few, god created what was call the new testement and a new order was created, to be taken more serious, only the few the proud the commited could make it . jews, however deny this and still carry out procedures from the old testement, but thats beside the point. to bridge the gap between man and god, and to create this new order. and his son started this new order as a sacrfice. i hope this makes sense adn answers ur question.

Answer 7

The "sending" of God's only begotten Son down here to "die a miserable death" wasn't as one-sided a decision as you proffer. Jesus, who became our Christ, did so out of His own choice, from His own understanding, that He was the Only One so powerful and instrumental with His Father that could alter His Father's decision to send all our sorry asses to hell. And, knowing that, came down here to do just that: "die a miserable death" just to save our sorry asses, and all the other parts therein attached. And why didn't they come up with an easier way to do the same thing, because, as you say, it's " . . . more closer to common sense . . ." to do something easy than to do something hard. I can only imagine that you're too young to understand the idea that the completion of more difficult "tasks" has greater rewards than "sleazing off" the easy ones. I didn't understand it when I was a lot younger either, and then, as life brings you along, you see values and rewards of all different levels and qualities, and you choose which ones you want, and you suffer or endure the efforts it takes to "get-the-job-done" for the better or higher rewards. Seems like Jesus, who became our Christ because of His decision to come down here and "die a miserable death" thought pretty high of His Father's handiwork: the creation of us, and so He did just that; came down here and "died a miserable death" to keep us open to Heaven. Dang high task with incredible suffering, but He thought the rewards were worth it. I, for one, certainly ain't gonna argue His decision at this point. I've seen too many of the alternatives, and it scares the hell out of me. It didn't used to. I thank God it does now. God Bless you.

Answer 8

Jesus never said he came to die. He came to gather us back to God. That's what all Prophets of God do, they 1) found a new religion (from Judaism to Christianity, for example), and 2) to call people back to God. It's like spiritual springtime, things are made new.

As for ending sin, God gives us free choice to obey Him or to distance ourselves from Him. If he snapped his finger (for lack of better terms, since God doesn't have fingers), to remove sin, then we wouldn't have a choice. He wants us to WANT Him, so He has given us the ability to show it.

Jesus died because the Jews didn't recognize their Messiah, and thought Jesus a heretic. They handed Him over to Pilate to have Him executed. Please, don't think I'm hating on the Jews 'cause I'm not, I'm just saying how it happened. Jesus' death DOES NOT redeem our sins, that is a ridiculous story. Jesus was slain by people because they didn't believe Him, that's why. Prophets of God aren't here to be slain, they are here to gather people back to God and to found a new religion.

Answer 9

Because The wages of Sin is Death Romans 6:23

without shedding of blood is no remission of sins. Heb. 9: 22


But why punish people for sin?
If someone steals we put them in jail


But why such a harsh punishment?

I have to use an example to explain this one

If i give you a class of water fresh from the bottle then I put a little bit of rat poison in it, would you drink it?

God is pure and we have sin so we are seperated from him Jesus bridges that gap and reunites us.

Answer 10

Remember Adam and Eve? Well they listened to the devil instead of God. By doing so they doubted God's sovereignty. With this the Devil is saying "see, no one loves you or wants to abide by your rules". Before Adam and Eve sinned they were perfect but they ruined the future for all of us. We're no longer in the garden of eden are we? Soooo, Jesus came to show Satan that indeed there are people (including him) who do love him and care to abide by his rules at any price. While he was here he healed the sick, fed people and preached about a bright future that God has promised. The miracles he performed are proof that he CAN do it again in the future but in mass quantities. Adam was perfect so a perfect man (Jesus) was needed to buy out sinful humans and give them a chance at paradise again (in the future). God's integrity was put on the line. You should read the bible because Jesus volunteered to die for us, God doesn't force us to obey him, has he forced you?

Answer 11

Before Jesus's death the only way to pay for your sins was by offering a sacrifice. God sent Jesus to be a sacrifice so that everyone's sin debt would be paid for.