Everything hinges on who that man on the cross really was. Jesus was not merely a unique miracle-worker and healer, an exceptionally good person, and an outstanding religious teacher. He is the eternal Son of God through whom and for whom everything in existence was made. As the rightful owner of every molecule in our bodies and everything we have ever used and abused, he is the Judge of all humanity. It is to him that you must one day give account for your every action.

The holy Lord yearns to destroy every source of evil like that which has caused you pain. A huge obstacle must first be dealt with, however. That’s where Jesus fits in. We rarely stop to consider that every human has in some way or another contributed to the evil on this planet. We have each lied, cheated, gossiped, stolen, or in some way hurt someone and thus added to human suffering. We want to draw a line as to what degree of inflicted suffering is excusable, and of course most of us carefully construct our artificial line so that we stand on the acceptable side of the divide. The holy Lord, however, cannot be partner to such hypocrisy. The Judge of all the world must be absolutely fair. The sober fact is that the very people whom God passionately loves – you and me – have contributed to the evil and suffering that God loathes with a fury that only Almighty God can contain. Jesus came to earth to resolve this gigantic dilemma.

John the Baptist, the prophet sent by God to herald the coming of Jesus, announced that Jesus is ‘the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.’

Jesus is so powerful and unique that embodied in him is the solution to every instance of evil ever committed, including everything associated with your abuse. The Ruler of the universe became human to deal with human sin. He come to earth specifically to die as a sacrificial lamb for every sin ever committed on this planet. He bore in his own person sin’s full penalty in order to gain the legal and moral right to remove every guilty stain from anyone who seeks cleansing through him. That way, when he next visits this planet he can physically destroy every trace of evil without that action requiring our own destruction. So completely did Jesus absorb within his mangled body the full impact of sin’s consequences that not a speck remained. The power of God then re-entered his corpse and he triumphantly rose bodily from the dead to live forever as your heavenly helper.

What Jesus did was without precedent and will never be repeated. No analogy is therefore adequate, and the following is far from perfect, but it might help.

Like a computer that has lost its connection to its server and the outside world, we have lost our connection with God. Like that computer, we can still function a little, but so much has been lost. For all eternity Jesus has been uniquely connected to God as a pure conductor of holy power. He offered himself so that through his own person you could be connected with God. While remaining united with God, he reached out to you and took upon himself humanity’s impurity. As usual, the infinitely high-voltage power of Almighty God surged through him, but this time, because he was no longer a pure conductor of such power, it killed him. Yet by his sacrificial act he become a safe connector for anyone willing to let go of their ineffective ways of coping with pain and, spiritually speaking, reach out and touch Jesus. The moment you do, you are suddenly connected to unlimited supernatural power. You spiritually light up. Because it is spiritual, not mental or emotional or physical, you may not feel it, but something of profound significance takes place in the deepest and most important part of you. If you have not had this, the greatest of all experiences, I urge you to read You Can Find Love.

A full explanation as to why and how the violation of Jesus’ innocent body brings you healing is long and complicated. Nevertheless, just as you can trust your doctor when she prescribes medication, even though you have little idea of how it works, so you can trust Jesus.