The crucified

Moses raised bronze serpent in the desert.
Was it a sign of punishment or sign that God gives life.
Son of man was lifted up on the cross.
Do we see punishment, or the love of God.

The way we view the crucified defines our way of Christian life.

Old wine skin of Sin and Punishments

Salvation is based on God’s love and goodness. We have tied it with sin and punishment. We still seek the security of old wineskins. We have not let grace free us into new wine. Sin, sin, and only sin and their punishments are the reality we can see inside the old wineskin.

At the very moment the prodigal son asked for his share of the property, the father kept a book writing down all the offences he got from the son. While the time he came back the book was full, marking the punishments due for all the offences. Who bore the punishments of the prodigal son?

Luke 15 father is quite different. He did feel the pain of all the offences, rebelliousness, separation, squandering, pathetic end and everything. But he received him not less than his own son. Divine justice is of a heart full of love.

Why do we want to push the equations of penalty and punishment to God's heart? To suit the theology we want, should we disfigure the face of God?

Holy face of the tempter

The tempter has a holy face,
he appears to be God.

God gave manna in the desert, can  he not change stones to bread? Can you not become a bread provider and glorify god's name?

Those who limit God to religious frames will mistake the tempter for God. They get everything in godly flavours, power, pleasures, fame ... They can't be even aware that they are serving the tempter. If not guided by God, religion can lead us to sin.

Suffering of Christ and Divine Justice

Our stubborn morality that demands a punishing justice from God is an absurdity in the nature of God. Justice brought by punishing offences is a process in  'gentile' courts. Divine justice wants everyone to live to the full. This nature of divine justice bring a great commitment according to the gospel values. We the righteous are often not ready for it. 

Jesus was committed to that justice. So, his love was a scandal for the holy. He bore the painful heavy burden of gracelessness. Sin-bearing is an emptying, and going lifeless, because sin is something lacking in grace. Jesus, while assuming gracelessness/ lifelessness poured out grace and life. Grace heals even the burdens and wounds that generate resistance to the path of grace or  the inability to be open to grace. 

Punishment is a must for those who bring God to their ideal legal frames. So, penalty theology is necessary to put Jesus's sufferings as a penalty for the deserved punishment over humanity. God was not adding on punishment after punishment over humanity, God was instead raising and healing many in grace. We find that God in human flesh in Jesus. Jesus lived the compassion and mercy of God. That cannot remain in healing  and doing  good. He also knew how they struggled without grace. 

Jesus had to suffer, because this justice is costly for the privileged righteous, because, taken seriously they have to welcome the unprivileged sinners to the same God's kingdom that they were guaranteed. Even while he suffered an unjust death, he lived a life-giving and self-emptying sacrifice, just as he was when he was healing the sick and forgiving sins.