What is the most central doctrine of Christianity? It is, without a doubt, the Cross and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is no exaggeration to say that every word in the Bible serves as an explanation of these two events; they are the very heartbeat of Christian theology. However, whether they are believers or non-believers, many people seem to lack a clear understanding of the actual “saving principle” embedded within them.
Many skeptics view Christian doctrine as unfair or even nonsensical. They ask: “How can a heinous murderer go to Heaven simply because they believed in Jesus, while someone who lived a virtuous life goes to Hell just because they didn’t?” From a purely human perspective, I find this to be a perfectly understandable objection. However, I believe that if one grasps the overarching framework of Christian doctrine, they will discover that Christianity is more logical and legally sound than the teachings of any other religion in the world.
Today, I want to share the significance and the spiritual principles behind the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus.
The Common Teaching of All Religions – Humanity Sins.
Fundamentally, all the world’s religions teach that humanity is sinful. Even Mencius, who most extremely advocated for Seongseonseol (the theory that human nature is fundamentally good), presupposed the question of why humans commit evil. He believed that human wrongdoing stems from the defilement of our original good nature and taught that we must preserve that innate goodness through learning.
What about other religions? Buddhism teaches that one’s sins become “karma,” leading to reincarnation based on that karma; one must attain enlightenment to escape the cycle of Samsara and reach Nirvana. Hinduism shares a similar view of salvation, emphasizing the fulfillment of caste duties to escape the cycle of rebirth. In Islam, it is taught that a person’s good and evil deeds are weighed on a scale—if evil is heavier, one goes to Hell; if good is heavier, one goes to Heaven (though martyrdom for Allah can grant automatic entry).
If my good deeds outweigh my sins, am I a good person?
Is this view of salvation truly rational? In our world, are you exempt from punishment for a crime just because your good deeds outnumber your bad ones? Suppose someone saves 100 lives but then murders one of them. Does the fact that they saved 99 people negate the crime of murder? Most world religions teach that while you have sinned, you can achieve salvation by performing an equivalent or greater amount of “good.”
Consider someone who has never committed murder, robbery, or theft, but has been imprisoned for fraud. Is this person not a lawbreaker? A lawbreaker is not someone who breaks every law; breaking just one law makes you a criminal. The Bible faithfully explains this concept:
“For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.” (James 2:10–11)
While other religious doctrines contradict our common understanding of law, Christianity speaks clearly. Even without debating their specific definitions of “sin” and “goodness,” their logic deviates from general justice, whereas the logic of Christianity is remarkably legal and consistent.
The Christian Principle of Salvation – Jesus Christ
While all other religions claim that one can save oneself, Christianity asserts that humanity can absolutely never achieve self-salvation.
“As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.'” (Romans 3:10–12)
“Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.” (Romans 3:20)
The Bible tells us that no one in this world can be righteous in God’s sight—in fact, we cannot even realize what true righteousness is on our own. Therefore, God sent Jesus to this earth to save us. So, what exactly did Jesus come to this earth to do?
How the Cross and Resurrection Save Us
“Even as the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28)
Jesus stated that He came to this earth to give His life as a “ransom.” What exactly is a ransom? Let me explain this through a simple analogy.
Imagine someone accidentally drops a cigarette butt, which ends up burning down a high-rise building worth $10 million. However, this person is unemployed and has no money at all. What happens then? He is legally obligated to compensate for the $10 million loss, but since he has no ability to pay, he must face imprisonment.
Similarly, every person in this world sins. And the “wages” of that sin is death. Because of their sins, all people are destined for Hell. Humans lack the capacity to pay the price for their own sins; in fact, the longer we live, the more debt (sin) we accumulate. Thus, humanity was left without hope, facing eternal judgment.
But then, a miraculous event occurs. A wealthy benefactor pities the man facing prison and steps forward to pay the $10 million on his behalf. The benefactor asks for the man’s account number to transfer the funds. What should the man do? He simply needs to provide his account information to receive the gift. But what if he thinks, “I don’t need to pay this back,” or suspects the benefactor is a fraud and refuses to give his information? He will remain unable to pay the debt and will go to prison as scheduled.
Likewise, a miracle has happened for us. God, the Creator of this world, took pity on humanity headed for Hell and sent His Son—the only one capable of paying the price for the sins of mankind. He is sinless and possesses the power to overcome death, the very penalty that sends us to Hell. Therefore, if we can only receive His life, we do not have to go to Hell.
However, if someone thinks, “I don’t need to be saved from Hell,” or “The Son of God cannot rescue me,” and refuses to receive His life, that person must fall into eternal Hell to pay for their own sins.
Jesus Bore the Punishment of My Sin on the Cross
Instead of us paying for our sins, Jesus paid the price in our place. I do not believe that the “price of sin” refers only to the physical suffering Jesus endured on the Roman cross. While the Roman execution was brutal, I don’t believe Jesus prayed for the “cup to be removed” simply because He feared physical torture and nails.
As the Sinless One, He had to endure the actual punishment of Hell on our behalf, which meant being completely severed from His relationship with God the Father. This separation was the most excruciating agony for Jesus. In that darkness, He cried out, feeling the weight of being forsaken by God.
God did not let us bear the penalty; instead, He laid the entire cost of our sin upon His only begotten Son. This was a plan ordained by God from long ago:
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4–5)
Just before Jesus died on the cross, He cried out, “It is finished!” At that moment, the veil in the Temple was torn in two. What does this signify? It means Jesus took away the sins of humanity. Because He took that sin upon Himself, the relationship between God and man was restored, and Jesus fulfilled the payment for the debt we owed.
The Meaning of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
How do we know that Jesus truly bore all our sins?
Technically, any human could hang on a cross and claim they are dying for the sins of others. But how can we distinguish between someone merely performing a self-sacrificial “show” and someone who has actually, legally satisfied the debt of humanity’s sin?
How can we be certain that Jesus successfully paid the full price for our transgressions?
We know this because Jesus Christ conquered the power of death and rose again. His Resurrection is the absolute proof that the “wages of sin” has been paid in full. The Apostle Paul explains the necessity of the Resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:
“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.” (1 Corinthians 15:17–19)
It is true: if Jesus had not been raised, it would mean that despite His sacrifice on the Cross, we would still be headed for Hell. In that case, Christians—who endure suffering in this world only to face eternal judgment after death—would be the most pathetic people, clinging to a hollow hope.
But we know that Jesus has risen.
We know that He has fully discharged our debt of sin. We know that He has shattered the authority of death and emerged victorious.
“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” (1 Corinthians 15:26)
The Resurrection of Jesus is the definitive evidence that death has been defeated. It is the guaranteed assurance that every believer in Christ will also overcome death and rise again, just as He did.
How to Enter into Jesus Christ?
Even if Jesus conquered death and rose again, that news remains meaningless to us unless we personally participate in that resurrection. How, then, can we transfer our sins to Jesus?
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)
First, we must acknowledge that the Cross Jesus bore was due to my sins. In other words, we must admit that the Cross Jesus carried actually belonged to us. The Bible describes this as being “crucified with Christ.”
Second, we must acknowledge that since Jesus purchased us with His blood, we are no longer our own masters; Jesus Christ is our Lord.
When we make that confession, it is not by our own imperfect faith, but by the faith of Jesus—His perfect life, which fulfilled every requirement of the Law that we could never meet—that His righteousness is imputed (transferred) to us. In this way, through Jesus, we are declared righteous before God.
The Cross and Resurrection: A Legal Reality, Not Just an Event
Contrary to common misunderstanding, the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus carry profound legal significance. Jesus received the punishment in place of all humanity. God declared that “anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse.” Jesus, who was sinless and had no reason to be cursed, took that gruesome curse upon Himself for our sake.
“His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 21:23)
This was a substitutionary punishment with a clear legal purpose. Because Jesus possesses infinite holiness—sufficient to pay for all the sins of mankind—He had no reason to remain in Hell and was able to rise again. We describe this as “conquering death.”
The Cross and Resurrection were not mere “events” for show; they were God’s legal and logical plan for salvation. All we must do is receive that victory as our own through faith. Will you not accept this incredible love of God today?
