Salvation

1. Why did God allow Jesus to die instead of killing Satan?

Let us examine a possible real-life scenario to understand the reason.

Question - If you go to the store with a friend, see something you want but can't afford, and your friend suggests you steal it, and you do, Will you both be arrested?

Answer - No, only you will be arrested because you did the crime. Your wicked friend tempted you, but he did not commit the sin.

Satan is a tempter, but you can choose not to give in to his temptation. The wicked end up in the lake of fire instead of heaven because God does not accept the fact Satan tempted them as an excuse. The person who commits the sin is the one that will be punished. The punishment for sin is death (Romans 6:23). Therefore, everyone who sins should perish. It doesn't make sense to kill Satan, as he merely tempts people to sin; ultimately, individuals have the choice not to listen to him. Simply killing Satan would not solve the problem of sin in humanity’s hearts. The root issue isn’t just Satan’s existence, but human choice to follow rebellion. God created humans with free will—the ability to choose love, obedience, or rebellion.

The existence of Satan also serves the following purposes:

• His existence causes us to realize that we cannot change our nature. Most of us fail to resist temptation because of our sinful nature. We realize that we need God to change and cannot overcome sin or be holy by ourselves. Therefore, we appreciate the sacrifice of Jesus' death on the cross for our sins because no sinner can enter heaven. Jesus takes away our sins (Matthew 1:21) and provides us His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21).

• The only way we can know whether somebody is worthy of entering heaven is if their character is tested. God does not test or tempt anybody to do evil (James 1:13), but allows Satan to tempt us. Being obedient to God instead of sinning shows that we love God and we are worthy of entering heaven.

The death of Jesus is necessary because justice must be satisfied. Jesus’ death is viewed as a substitutionary sacrifice because He took the punishment humanity deserved. This satisfied God’s justice while also expressing His mercy. Simply destroying Satan without dealing with the justice due for human sin would violate God's nature as just.

2. How can Jesus save you when He said you will die in your sins in John 8?

Let us look at the verses before and after John 8.

John 8:21-24 says

21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.

22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.

23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.

24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

Verse 24 shows that it is only those who do not believe in Jesus who will die in their sins.

3. If Jesus knew that He was going to get crucified, why did He ask God why He had forsaken Him while He was on the cross?

Matthew 27:46 says, “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

In the Old Testament, God's prophets prophesied about the life and death of the Messiah. They even predicted the words he would say. 

The words spoken by Jesus in Matthew 27:46 are a fulfillment of the prophecies in Psalm 22.

Psalm 22:1 says, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?”

🔹David in the Old Testament also prophesied that the soldiers would cast lots on the clothes (vestures/garments) of Jesus.

Psalm 22:18 says, “They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.”

Fulfillment of Psalm 22:18 in the New Testament.

Matthew 27:35 says, “And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.”

🔹The Old Testament has prophecies about the crucifixion of Jesus.

Psalm 22:16 says,  “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.”

Zechariah 12:10 says, “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

Fulfillment of prophecy in the New Testament.

John 19:37 says, “And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.”

4. Didn't Jesus only come to save Israel?

Matthew 15:24 says, “But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.“

If you read the verses before Matthew 15:24, you will see that a woman from Canaan (a non-Jew) approached Jesus and asked him to drive out a demon from her daughter. Then Jesus said, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

The issue that the verse is addressing is casting out a demon from a non-Jew. The verse has nothing to do with salvation. Jesus said that He had been sent to cast out demons from Jews only.

Why didn't Jesus want to cast a demon out of a non-Jew?

Pagan nations worship demons or devils, although they are not aware of this.

1 Corinthians 10:20 says, “But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.”

Deuteronomy 32:17 says, “They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.”

The woman from Canaan was a pagan, and casting out a demon from her daughter was a waste of time because the demon would return and repossess her.

Therefore, Jesus only cast out demons from the Jews (the lost sheep of Israel) because it is unlikely that the demons will return, because the Jews worship the true God. Although Jesus did not cast out demons from non-Jews, He helped them in other ways because He loves all humanity.

• Jesus healed the servant of a Roman centurion (Luke 7:1–9).

• Jesus healed a non-Jew from leprosy (Luke 17:11-18).

God's plan was to have the gospel first preached to the Jews, then to the non-Jews. It would have been too much for Jesus to reach both Jews and non-Jews at once.

Acts 13:46 says, “Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you (Jews): but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.”

Romans 1:16-18 says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” 

Before Jesus ascended to heaven, he told his disciples to preach about the gospel to everyone, including non-Jews.

Matthew 28:18-20 “18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Mark 16:15 says, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Jesus Christ came to save the entire world.

John 4:42 says, "And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."

John 3:16-17 says, “16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

5. How is it possible that Jesus died for our sins when there are Old Testament verses that say a person cannot die for people’s sins?