A Better Understanding of Sacrifice

Easter

When Easter was coming up, I had begun to give some thought to what it all meant. I wanted to look further than the traditional Friday focus on the cross, or the giving of eggs on Sunday. I was looking for a deeper, and more intimate understanding of the sacrifice Jesus made for me – because only by appreciating the sacrifice am I better enabled to more fully grasp the astonishing accomplishment of the resurrection and the liberty it provides.

The culture I grew up in was largely influenced by Christianity, so at Easter, most of the Christian focus seemed to rest upon the cross. Even these days, there still seems to be a tendency amongst Christians to regard the cross as the pinnacle of Jesus’ achievements, rather than simply an awful, but necessary step in God’s plan for humanity. The fact that we still put crosses on our churches today testifies to that enduring attitude. But without the resurrection that followed, the cross would just have made Jesus another martyr. And even though the cross might stand to remind us of the sacrifice Jesus made for us all, we can unintentionally tend to narrow that sacrifice down to that one single day when an innocent man was unjustly put to death.

More to it

I was sobered when I came to understand that the real sacrifice Jesus made, and the life he gave, was more than just that one day of his death. Instead, it was every single day that he lived and breathed on this earth. Every. Single. Day. I mean, just take a moment to imagine what that might have been like. As a child, wouldn’t it have meant not being able to strike out in anger, as we may have done, to thump a sibling if they tried to nick his toys? Wouldn’t it mean not chucking a tanty when he couldn’t get his own way, or sitting in a corner sulking? And what about his teenage years, and a puberty fraught with the joys of hormones? He was unlikely to ever have wagged school, or snuck out to hang out with his mates when he should have been in bed, or gotten up to any unseemly shenanigans. He would never have played his parents off against one another to get his own way, or deceptively manipulated anyone for his own gain or amusement. He would never have sassed his mother, or disrespected his father. And he would always, always have told the truth, even when doing so might have painted a target on his back for the bullies, or negatively affected other people’s feelings about him. Every day, he never lorded his divine status over others to make himself feel important, or self-righteously sniggered in the corner at the failings of others.

A Quiet Life

Jesus selflessly sacrificed what we take for granted: the privilege of living a quiet, normal life. He surrendered the pleasure of having a home, the wonderous joy of falling in love, the intimate warmth and comfort of marriage, and the satisfaction and delight of raising a family.

Every day he had to make the decision not to give in to temptation. I don’t seem able to get through a single day without giving in to one temptation or another – I eat food I know I should not, I have uncharitable thoughts, or spend time in front of a screen instead of the Word, or in prayer. And yet every day – every single day – He chose not to yield to temptation, and to instead surrender every day of his entire life for every single soul that would ever live on this earth.

I find that very humbling.

You know, we can be really good for a few days at a time. Or we might be able to do good things for a few weeks at a time, like when we make a New Year’s resolution to lose weight and we begin a diet and exercise regime. But it only lasts as long as our will does, and then we tend to revert to our flawed nature. Jesus experienced all the temptations in life that we face, and yet was able to spend every day of his entire life always choosing to be good and do what was right.

We can usually admire people who accomplish great things, but what we really tend to look at is the accomplishment, rather than what it took to accomplish it. We cheer for the Olympic gold medallist as they stand on the podium to receive their award, and forget that their win was really a reward for all the years of early mornings at the pool before school, and years of weekends spent training and competing instead of having fun with their mates.

So in the future when we reflect on Jesus and what he did for us, let us remember the all the days of sacrifice that Jesus gave. All the days he fought so hard to help people understand their loving God. All the days he desperately tried to show them a better way. All the days he was reviled and persecuted, hated and hunted like a criminal. All the days he had no earthly friend that could truly understand him. All the days his purpose was misunderstood. All the days where those that had known and cared about him turned away from him, and all the days he ached and grieved because he knew that despite his sacrifice, so many would still refuse him. And yet he still gave it anyway.