Today, you’ll find the answer to one of the most commonly asked questions amongst new believers.

Why did Jesus die on the cross? Jesus died on the cross because of

We have all sinned, and the bible says the cost of sin is death. Jesus paid the cost on the cross with his blood.

We are no longer under the law of Moses where people had to sacrifice animals and other things to pay the cost of their sin.

Jesus paid it all!

But let’s dive in a little bit deeper to understand the why.

Old and New Testament

The bible is divided into two parts: The Old Testament and The New Testament.

Testament = covenant or promise

The Old Testament was before Jesus was born, and the New Testament was after his birth.

Before he was born, the people were under the “Old Promise” and then after we are under his “New Promise” (Old Testament/New ent)

The moment Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden of Eden, sin entered the world God had created. (Genesis 3)

The First Sin (Genesis Chapter 3)

The Fall

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”

Man realizes his sin.

¹⁰ He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked;so I hid.”

¹¹ And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

¹² The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

¹⁴ So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

“Cursed are you above all livestock
    and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
    and you will eat dust
    all the days of your life.
¹⁵ And I will put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring^[a] and hers;
he will crush^[b] your head,
    and you will strike his heel.”

¹⁶ To the woman he said,

Women’s Curse

“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
    with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
    and he will rule over you.”

¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’

“Cursed is the ground because of you;
    through painful toil you will eat food from it
    all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
    and you will eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow
    you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
    since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
    and to dust you will return.”

²⁰ Adam^[c] named his wife Eve,^[d] because she would become the mother of all the living.

²¹ The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.²² And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” ²³ So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. ²⁴ After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side^[e] of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

The First Sacrifice–Animals

The first time animal sacrifice is mentioned in the Bible is at the end of Genesis chapter 3, verse 21.

Adam and Eve tried to cover up their sin on their own, but they could not hide from God, and they could not take away what they had done or go back in time. They sinned, and then they realized they were naked and they felt guilty. God covered them up using skins from an animal.

Probably a sheep or something similar, an animal that was innocent—an animal’s blood was shed to cover up the sin and guilt of Adam and Eve

In Genesis 3, it says the Lord God MADE coverings for Adam and Eve. They did nothing. They did nothing to deserve the grace that God had given them. But this innocent animal was slain to cover their sins

There are many times in the bible where garments and coverings are written about in regards to righteousness. There is a beautiful example in the book of Isaiah.

Isaiah 61:10

“I delight greatly in the Lord;
    my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
    and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
   and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”

Isaiah 61:10

Jewish Day of Atonement— mentioned in Leviticus 16:30

The Jewish Day of Atonement was one day of the year in which the High Priest of Israel entered the Holy of Holies, in the tabernacle (and later the temple) to offer one sacrifice for the sins of all of the Jewish people.

Modern orthodox Jews still observe this Day of Atonement.

Old Testament Sacrifices (Before Jesus Came)

Therefore, to be forgiven of sins, the people during the Old Testament times had to offer sacrifices unto God.

You may have heard about people in the Old Testament sacrificing lambs, oxen, ect.  This was so that they could be forgiven of their sins against the Holy God.

Why did it have to be this way? Why did people have to kill animals to cover their sins?

The B says that the wages (or cost) of sin is death.  People had to kill something (a sacrifice) to pay the cost for their sins.

^“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23

This is why Jesus had to die for our sins. This is why Jesus died on the cross.

Jesus’s Death on the Cross

The “New Testament” is considered the time after Jesus’s birth, death, and resurrection on the cross. We are now under the new covenant/promise–which is that Jesus died for our sins and to have access to the Father and heaven we can speak to him freely and be with him in heaven one day, because he paid the cost on the cross.

God Sent his only son to be the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

Jesus paid the cost on the cross.

Now, we no longer have to sacrifice animals to be forgiven, because Jesus died on the cross.

“But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
   and by his we are healed.”

Isaiah 55:3

^“It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, ⁴⁵ for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. ⁴⁶ Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last”

Luke 22:44

Animal Sacrifices Were Not Enough.

^” It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
    but a body you prepared for me;
⁶ with burnt offerings and sin offerings
    you were not pleased.
⁷ Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—
    I have come to do your will, my God.’”^[a]

he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. ⁹ Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.”He sets aside the first to establish the second. ¹⁰ And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

Hebrews 10: 4-10

Verse 10 again, “ And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

The following, ever-so-popular bible verse sums it all up:

“For God so loved the world, that he his only son, that whosoever believes in him, shall NOT perish, but have everlasting life.”

John 3:16

Jesus Was Perfect

Jesus never sinned. He was a spotless lamb.

He paid the way so that we could have everlasting life. We don’t have to sacrifice to animals anymore. We don’t have to try to cover up our guilt or our sin.

All we have to do is believe that Jesus is the son of God and that he died for our sins. We have to confess that we are sinners and that we have sinned against God, and ask for forgiveness.

And then, we will be with him in heaven one day.

It is so sad to me that so many people think that if they have done bad things, or lived life in a “bad” way, that they are not worthy of God’s grace and that there is “no way they can enter” heaven.

This is just not true!

All you have to do is confess with your mouth and believe in your heart.

In fact, as Jesus was being crucified, there was another man being crucified right next to him. A thief and a murderer! Jesus told him to confess his sins and that he would be with him in paradise. Amen to that!

^” One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? ⁴¹ We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong. Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Luke 23:39-43

Ready to Accept Jesus’s Sacrifice?

If you have not asked Jesus into your heart, I invite you to pray this prayer.

Dear God, I come before you and confess my sins. I am sorry for sinning against you and you alone. I believe that you sent your son, Jesus, to die on the cross for my sins. Thank you for your blood that was shed for me. Help me to follow your commandments and to obey your law. I pray I would come to know you more deeply. Amen.

Why did Jesus die on the cross? Because he loves you!