Jesus’ death on the cross carries multiple meanings

One night when our son was 4 years old, he cried his way out of his bedroom and into the living room: “Daddy, why did Jesus die?”

I never knew just why Jesus’ death was on his mind that night. I do recall I gave him more of a historical answer rather than a theological one.

In this post-Easter season, let’s explore a 4-year-old’s question about Jesus’ death a little bit.

The most popular answer is a theological one: “Jesus died for our sins.” This is an incomplete answer, just as mine was incomplete so many years ago as I held my son to calm him down.

Theology didn’t fit that night.

Did you ever stick your index fingers in a Chinese finger trap? Your instinct is to pull your fingers out, but that’s the trap. Instead, if you push your fingers toward each other, that movement will loosen the bamboo that has tightened around them.

At one level, approaching the question of why Jesus died feels like I’ve just put a finger into one end of a finger trap. The other end will hold a finger belonging to one (or more) of my readers who will disagree with me before thinking through what I’m about to say.

If you do put your finger into the trap opposite mine, don’t pull so hard in reactive disagreement that you trap yourself. What I’m about to say isn’t meant to trap you or me.

In fact, I hope you are willing to push your finger toward mine so we both can be free to explore this question in a respectfully enlightened way.

My son is now 35. If he asked his childhood question today, I might engage him first in a little review of the scriptural reasons why Jesus died.

Marcus Borg offers five interpretations in his provocative and thoughtful “The Heart of Christianity.” I’ve distilled his insights to fit my available space:

“The cross defeats the powers. Jesus is a social and spiritual troublemaker whose presence threatens both the Roman authority and the Temple hierarchy. The people are politically and spiritually dominated by a mix of political systems that are morally bankrupt and ultimately defeated.

“The cross is both a rejection and a vindication. The political and religious authorities reject Jesus and kill him. But God vindicates Jesus in the Resurrection. The historical reason for Jesus’ death was political. The Resurrection signaled that earthbound powers were no longer in charge.

“The cross reveals “the way.” Death and resurrection symbolize the inner transformation at the center of Christian life. We die to an old way of life so we can be raised to a new way of life. St Paul affirmed: “I’ve been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who lives, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2:19-20)

“The cross reveals the depth of God’s love for us. Jesus’ death is not just a historical event. It also is the ultimate act of God’s love for all people. Romans 5:8 declares, “God proves God’s love for us in that while we still were sinners, Christ died for us.”

“On the cross, Jesus dies for our sins. This interpretation’s popularity is based on sin and sacrifice. Our sin can only be forgiven through a perfect human sacrifice – Jesus. Such forgiveness is possible, but only for those who believe Jesus died for their sins.

I struggle with the “elitist” way this meaning of Jesus’ death is usually interpreted.

There is definitely more of the story to be considered. But space dictates that I continue our exploration on our next visit.

I hope we will continue the search without sticking our fingers in the finger trap.