Born to Die
Read: John 1:18; Mark 10:45; Matthew 16:21-23, 17:22-23, 20:17-19; Romans 5:8
John 1:18 tells us Jesus came to earth so that He might “make known” to us who God is. In the miracles Jesus worked, we see that God is both powerful and compassionate. In the sermons Jesus preached, we hear that He is wise and authoritative. In the interactions with His disciples, we recognize Jesus’ interest in growing us and using us in His work. Truly, we learn so much about who God is by looking at Jesus’ life.
However, Jesus did not just come to explain God to people . . . He also came to reconcile people to God. In Mark 10:45 Jesus says, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His live as a ransom for many.” By giving His life for the many, Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice on the cross to pay the price necessary to set sinners like you and me free.
The death Jesus died was not a tragic accident, but an intentional plan. Jesus was not the victim of a vicious plot by Jewish leaders or Roman officials. If Jesus had wanted to avoid the cross, He could have. Jesus was capable of slaying His enemies, outsmarting their schemes, and avoiding their pursuit. But He chose not to do so. Instead, knowing what lay before Him, He walked directly to Jerusalem to offer His life on the cross (see Matthew 16:21-23, 17:22-23, 20:17-19).
This reminds us that Jesus was “born to die” as stated in Bebo Norman’s song lyrics. We cannot rightly understand the birth of Jesus without reflecting on His death on the cross. As Philippians 2:8 says, “And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” That is the full extent of the incarnation.
Jesus was born to die. And His death was a beautiful expression of God’s love for us. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Will we receive His love this Christmas and allow His death to be the ransom to pay the penalty our sins deserve?
Born to Die – Bebo Norman
They never knew a dark night
Always had the Son’s light on their face
Perfect in glory, broken by the story
Of untold grace, come that day
Majesty had come down, glory had succumbed now
To flesh and bone
In the arms of a manger, in the hands of strangers
That could not know, just who they hold
And the angels filled the sky
All of heaven wondered why
Why their King would choose to be
Be a baby born to die
And all fell silent for the cry of an infant
The voice of God
Was dividing history for those with eyes to see
The Son would shine from earth that night
And the angels filled the sky
All of heaven wondered why
Why their King would choose to be
Be a baby born to die, be a baby born to die
To break the chains of guilt and sin
To find us here, to pull us in
So we can join in heaven’s song
And with one voice around the throne
All the angels filled the sky
And I can’t help but wonder why
Why this King would choose to be
Be a baby born for me, be a baby born
Be a baby born to die
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