There is a popular song by Michael W. Smith called Above All. Here is the chorus:

Crucified, Laid behind the stone You lived to die, Rejected and alone Like a rose, Trampled on the ground You took the fall, And thought of me Above all

After reviewing a few passages in the Bible, it occurred to me that this is not exactly accurate. I do not mean to indicate the confines of the human mind—although that has bothered me for a while. Take a look at Matthew 2 (13-18) and see if you can pick out what is wrong:

And when they [the wise men] were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

If Jesus came only to die, why was his life spared here? If you are familiar with the Scriptures, John 10:18 might come to mind:

No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

If his life (even up to two years) had begun with his death, then it could not really be said that he had laid down his own life. There is another problem with this. We are using a teaching of Jesus to explain his death.

Shouldn’t it occur to us that Jesus lived to teach us how to live?

Maybe, just maybe, that is the reason that Jesus gave so many commands and one last admonition to obey them (Matthew 28:19,20):

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.

Jesus did not come to leave us in our sins. He came to show us the light and life of God. John 1:4,5:

In him [Jesus] was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

His death was necesary as only the death of a human could atone for human-kind, but it was for life. This is why aborted babies cannot save us. This is why the nephews of priestesses cannot be crucified to redeem us (documentation; search for “Tzotzils of Chamula”).

Are you enjoying that life?