At one point or another we have heard this being said that Jesus became sin. What does this mean….
You ready to dig, lets go…..
First lets look at what the scripture says in the NLT version.
For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
– 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NLT)
The first part “For God made Christ”. We see one thing that is very clear. Jesus Christ came from God. He did not come from man. This is important because it shows that Jesus did not have sin. How does this show that? Because he came from God. Let’s go back to Genesis 3, sin entered the word through man: Adam. After the fruit was eaten their eyes were opened. If Jesus would have come from a man he would have sin already in him, the same way we all do, but since He came from God He doesn’t.
Scripture References
2 Corinthians 5:21
Genesis 3
Romans 5:17-19
John 3:16
Romans 5:7-8
Romans 10: 9-10
The next part says Christ never sinned. That is what the word says. Its not a bad thing to question the text to get more understanding but at the same time we have to trust and believe the word we read is 100% truth. The bible says Jesus never sinned so what do I believe, Jesus never sinned.
Now that we got that, we must take a step back. I want to level the field here so we are all pushing forward together.
What is sin? The greek word for sin is ἁμαρτάνω (original word), the transliteration for that word is hamartanó. That means to miss the mark, do wrong, sin. Sin is disobeying God. Sin is a nature. One meaning of the word nature is defined as the basic or inherent features of something, especially when seen as characteristic of it. So the sin nature is a characteristic in us to disobey. Lets take this a little further. The very definition of disobedience is refusing to obey rules or someone in authority. Who was Adams authority: the only authority Adam had was God. If you disagree with this here is a practical example. Your parents are one figure of authority of you and that is because they created you. Same here with Adam. God formed Adam. God is Adams authority. Going back to Genesis 3, sin entered the world through Adam because He refused to listen to Gods command about not eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Through that one act a nature was birthed in every human called sin. A scripture to back this up is Romans 5:17-19 says “For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.”
Let’s continue on with the verse.
The next part says “to be the offering of our sin”. Lets start with the last part. It is our sin that Christ was an offering for. If He had sin He would not be able to be an offering of ours. What does it mean to be an offering. I like being practical. One of the definitions of offering is a thing offered as a religious sacrifice or token of devotion. God loved us so much he gave his only son (John 3:16). That is a token of devotion and sacrifice. Sending an innocent man who did not commit sin as a sacrifice for us who sin. Romans 5:7-8 says “Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” I know I am a sinner but why did He have to become something He was not. Something that is dirty can not clean something that is dirty. You can’t clean dirty dishes with a dirty rag. If Jesus had sin in him He would not be able to offer himself as a sacrifice for our sin.
Lets continue with the verse.
“So that we could be made right with God through Jesus”. Jesus becoming sin was solely to bring us back to God. God loves relationship, we see that example set in Genesis where God walked with Adam in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). That shows the level of intimacy that Christ wants with us. That was broken when sin entered but it has now be redeemed through Christ. This redemption is available to everyone but not everyone will partake in it. Romans 3:22 says “We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.” Scriptures back each other and confirm one another. God has given us the ability to be made right but the only way for each of us individually to be made right is to follow the formula set before us. What is that formula: Confess and believe. “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.” Romans 10:9-10
God gave us the gift, will you accept it?
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