(John 1:29 ESV)

Often times as Christians in America we look at our salvation as “our” salvation, personal, individual, just us and Jesus. This Easter, might we look beyond the cultural influences of our day and age to be amazed at the breadth of Christ’s death. Jesus is the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. Not just your sins. Not just my sins. Not just the sins of the Jews. Not just the sins of upper class white males. Not just the sins of the straight ‘A’ students who stay out of trouble at home. Jesus came to take away all of our sins. He came to take away the sins of the Middle School student born into a Christian home who can’t really remember when they first believed in Jesus because they always have just as much as he came to take away the sins of the High School student who is living on the streets and unable to return home where they are beaten and they refuse to believe in a good God because they don’t know anything good in this world. Not only that, he came to take away the sin that causes a parent to beat their child, for youth to be homeless, to make us think that there is nothing good.

Justin Bruce, Youth Ministries
Cascade Presbyterian Church