Christ Bore Our Sins Alone
At the Lord’s table, we remember the immense spiritual, emotional, and physical burden Christ willingly bore for our salvation. His obedience carried him from Gethsemane to Golgotha, where he completed the mission his Father gave him.
- Jesus personally bore our sins in his body.
- In Gethsemane, he submitted fully to his Father’s will despite the anguish before him.
- The Lord’s Supper calls us to respond to his completed sacrifice with deep gratitude and praise.
By Lonetta McKee
Coming around the Lord’s table provides a perfect opportunity to consider the full impact Christ felt as our sacrificial lamb. First Peter 2:24 says, “He himself bore our sins in his body” (New International Version). Ponder this for a moment: “he himself.” The salvation and forgiveness of sin for every woman, man, and child was dependent upon Jesus and his death.
His Anguish in Gethsemane
Luke 22:44 tells us that as the Lord agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane over what lay before him, his sweat was like drops of blood. The spiritual and emotional anguish he experienced was that intense. Was he anticipating the weight that was incumbent upon him to carry when he prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me”?
But thank God the prayer did not end there. “‘Yet not my will, but yours be done’” quickly followed (Luke 22:42). When our Savior uttered those last words, he did not do so without being fully aware of what he would endure to fulfill his Father’s will. He did not shrink from the heavy responsibility he would bear by himself—just him alone.
Gratitude at the Lord’s Table
As we observe the Lord’s Supper today, may our hearts overflow with thankfulness that Christ resolutely and earnestly complied with his Father’s will. That he made the solitary walk up Golgotha’s hill to suffer an excruciating death. That, instead of calling on his Father to send twelve legions of angels to come to his rescue, he remained on the cross, suspended between heaven and earth. That he fulfilled his mission to its completeness. May our gratitude be expressed in silent praise as we gather around this table, knowing that because of Christ’s sacrifice, our sins are forgiven.
