The soul that sins shall die. Ezekiel 18:20
God's law has been broken, divine justice demands punishment for
transgression of the law. But divine benevolence offers mercy. How can
both justice and mercy be fulfilled at the same time? Some have called
this the divine dilemma. Sin cannot be overlooked, it must be punished,
and God's love cannot be suppressed by sin.
To deal with this seeming dilemma, God became a man to be punished for the sins of man, and this way, God's love can be shown to the sinner. Only by this could divine vengeance against sin be fulfilled. So when you look at the cross, and see the Son of God hanging there, what you see is divine vengeance against sin. This is how far God was willing to go to rid mankind of the evil of sin, and to bring man back to Himself. God has placed more value on man than we can ever contemplate. This cannot be a God that wants to punish the sinner at every point of his failure. God is not only just, He is love, and on the cross, both His justice and love were manifested. In the economy of God, justice was not sacrificed for mercy. Both were duly satisfied. On the cross, justice and mercy kissed. Hallelujah!
Toni
