The Purpose Behind Jesus’ Public Suffering and Death

When pondering the sufferings of Christ, we might ask why His death needed to be so public, agonizing, and humiliating. Could God have redeemed humanity through a quieter, less visible path? The Bible offers profound insight into this question, showing that Christ’s public suffering and crucifixion were essential to God’s eternal plan.

Here are six biblical reasons why Jesus’s suffering and public death were necessary for our salvation and His glorification.

It Was God’s Predestined Plan

From eternity, God planned every detail of Christ’s suffering and death. Acts 4:27–28 reveals that Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and Israel were gathered against Jesus “to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.”

The events of Good Friday were not random but orchestrated by God’s sovereign will. A quiet or natural death for Jesus at an old age was never part of the divine blueprint. God intended Christ’s suffering and public crucifixion to fulfill His redemptive purposes.

It Fulfilled the Scriptures

Christ’s sufferings were prophesied in intricate detail throughout the Old Testament. Isaiah 53:5 declares, “He was pierced for our transgressions.” Psalm 22 vividly portrays the Messiah’s agony, down to the dividing of His garments.

These prophecies could not be fulfilled if Jesus had died in obscurity. His public suffering authenticated the Scriptures, proving that He was the promised Savior and that God’s Word remains unbroken and true.

It Was Fitting for Our Salvation

Hebrews 2:10 says, “It was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.”

The word fitting points to the profound harmony of God’s plan. The sufferings of Christ were not arbitrary or excessive but perfectly aligned with God’s character and purpose. His public suffering displayed the seriousness of sin and the depth of God’s love, creating a path to salvation that was not only effective but also gloriously appropriate.

It Was a Sacrificial Offering

Jesus’s death was not an accident or natural event but an intentional sacrifice, mirroring the sacrificial lambs of the Old Testament. As 1 Corinthians 5:7 states, “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.”

A quiet death would not convey the weight of this sacrifice. Jesus’s crucifixion vividly demonstrated that He was “slaughtered” (Revelation 5:9) as the Lamb of God, intentionally offered by the Father to atone for our sins.

It Required His Blood

The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes that salvation comes through the shedding of Christ’s blood. Hebrews 9:22 declares, “Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.” Romans 5:9 adds, “We have now been justified by his blood.”

The public, brutal shedding of Christ’s blood on the cross underscores the cost of redemption. It reveals the gravity of sin and the magnitude of God’s grace in providing a Savior.

It Exalted Him as Lord of All

Philippians 2:8–9 connects the depth of Christ’s suffering to His subsequent exaltation:

“And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.”

Jesus’s public humiliation and death on the cross were the lowest point of His obedience, and God responded by exalting Him to the highest place of authority and glory. Revelation 5:9–10 affirms that Jesus’s worthiness to rule the world flows from His being “slaughtered” and ransoming people “by [his] blood.”

Why Public Suffering Matters

Christ’s public suffering wasn’t incidental; it was essential. His visible death demonstrated God’s justice, mercy, and love. It provided undeniable evidence of His identity as the Messiah and fulfilled God’s eternal plan for salvation.

For eternity, we will sing the song of the Lamb (Revelation 5:12–13), celebrating the visible, sacrificial, and public suffering that purchased our redemption and brought glory to God.

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