"The Passion" is a term used to describe the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, the most important event in all history. Few in our day are unfamiliar with the story: the mocking and beatings He endured, the scourging of His body under the whip, and the nailing of His hands and feet to the cross on which He bled and died. For centuries, many have attempted to portray Christ's passion, whether through art, theater, or film. Some of these depictions have been so stirring as to move even the irreligious to tears.

But sorrow over Christ's physical sufferings is not the same as an understanding of the cross, nor are tears over His death the same as belief in the gospel. Many men in history have suffered horrible deaths, giving their lives for a just cause, shedding their blood for the sake of others, or holding to the truth at the ultimate cost. Many have been unjustly crucified, mutilated, burned at the stake, and tortured to death at the hands of the wicked. If their stories were told in detail, our hearts would melt, and our eyes would drip with tears. What, then, makes the suffering and death of Jesus Christ unique? Why has it turned the world upside down and transformed the lives of countless people? What are we to believe about it nearly two thousand years later? To aid our understanding, let us ask and answer four questions regarding the suffering of Christ.

Who is the one who suffered? According to our text, it was the Christ--the Messiah, the Son of the living God. It is He who created the world and all things in it (John 1:3). It is He who sustains all things by the Word of His power (Heb 1:3). He is the Lord of glory (1 Cor 2:8), the perfect union of God and man, in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Col 2:9). It was Jesus Christ, the everlasting King of Kings (Micah 5:2), who suffered and died. How the heavens stood still at the sight! The eternal Son of God giving His life on a cross!

When an innocent man is caused to suffer, the event is marked as a great injustice. But what shall it be called when the sufferer is Jesus Christ? He is the Holy One, who by reason of His nature deserved the worship of those who killed Him. He is the just One, who had been tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin (Heb 4:15). He went about doing good, healing the oppressed, and preaching the gospel to the poor. But He suffered and died. Never was there an event like it. "The Christ had to suffer."

What did He suffer? --"Death, even the death of the cross" (Phil 2:8). His humiliation in becoming a man was great, but how much more the humiliation of His death! He was the Prince of life (Acts 3:15) but was despised and rejected by men. His clothes were removed, His face spat upon, and His flesh beaten and torn. "His appearance was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men" (Isaiah 52:14). His persecutors mocked Him, and those who passed by wagged their heads and said, "He saved others. He cannot save Himself." And there He was, nailed to a cross, forsaken of men, with His lifeblood pouring out.

But Christ's suffering went far beyond the humiliation and physical agony that He endured. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He said, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me" (Matt 26:39). The cup referred to is "The cup of His fury" (Isaiah 51:17), the cup of the judgment of God. It was a cup so agonizing that Jesus cried on the cross, "'Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'" (Matt 27:46). For all eternity, he had been in perfect union with the Father. Now, at the cross, He stood in the place of sinners, enduring the judgment of His Father upon sin. He became a sacrifice to God (Eph 5:2), bearing the sins of His people in His body on the tree (1 Pet 2:24). "The Christ had to suffer."

Why did He suffer? Did Christ suffer as an example of patience and forgiveness? Did He suffer to teach us integrity and virtue? Did He suffer as a testimony to the cruelty and injustice in the world? Or as a martyr for the truths that He taught? All of these, though true, did not require His incarnation, suffering, and death on the cross. He became man and died to save sinners. "He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5). In Christ's own words after His resurrection, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations" (Luke 24:46-47).

Same may argue, "Can our sin really be that bad? So bad that the Son of God had to die on a cross under judgment?" Yes, for we must not judge sin by our own notions but according to God's Word. Our sins have separated us from Him (Isaiah 59:2). He is "of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness" (Hab 1:13). He is "a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day" (Psalm 7:11). And we must not judge the cross by our human estimation of sin, but we must judge the severity of sin by the cross:

God is so holy that all sin against Him is worthy of hell. He is so perfect a judge that all rebellion against Him must be given a just recompense. Therefore, the Christ had to suffer, for only His death on the cross can save human beings from the judgment of God. "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" (1 Tim 1:15). His death was a moral necessity if any were to be forgiven. "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Is 53:5-6).

What is the result of His sufferings? Christ has made the way for reconciliation between God and man! He "suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God" (1 Pet 3:18). He was made sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 5:21). And if we are in Christ, our sins are washed away; though they are as scarlet, they are made as white as snow.

Had Christ remained in the tomb, all would be lost, and those who have set their hope on Him would be of all men most pitiable. They would still be in their sins. But Christ is raised from the dead! He is crowned with glory and honor, never to taste death again, for it has no power over Him. He ever lives to intercede for those who come to the Father through Him. His salvation is for people of every tribe, tongue, and nation. He is our hope for eternal life, and none who come to Him by faith will be turned away. He does not look for our sympathy but our repentance. So dear friend, turn to Christ. Do not delay, and do not take lightly His sacrifice, for how shall you escape if you neglect so great a salvation (Heb 2:3)? Turn from going your own way and commit your life to Him as your Lord and Savior. And remember His words: "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it" (Matt 16:24-25).