The Book Illustration
A useful illustration of Jesus' death, which can be used in the second study. The object of this illustration is to show visually the meaning of the crucifixion, especially in terms of substitution. You will need a large thick book, preferably not a Bible. Tell the group that this book represents the life story of any member of the group-from the day of birth (page 1) until the day of his or her death (last page).
In this book is written every time we have broken any of God's laws—every wrong deed, every wrong word, every evil thought. For example, Jesus says to hate another person is as bad as murder according to God's outlook. To lust after another person is to commit adultery in the heart. Tell the group that there are many dark pages in your own book which you would not like them to read, and if they are honest, the same will be true for all present.
Hold out your left hand, palm uppermost, and say: Now suppose this hand represents you, and let us say that the ceiling represents God. Now the Bible says that between us and God is what the Bible calls 'the unfavourable record of our debts' (Co1.2:14). Place the book on the upturned palm of your left hand and keep it there throughout the following explanation.
So our sins separate us from God. In fact the Scriptures say that God is so pure that even if only one line was written in this book-that would be enough to separate you from God. But sin is more than doing, saying or thinking wrong things. It is an attitude of rebellion against God whereby we ignore Him and run our lives our own way. This is what the Bible means by SIN. This attitude of rebellion is the motive or reason for our many SINS.
Let me make the picture even blacker. The Bible says that, although God is love, he is also a just judge. God hates all evil and must punish our sin. One prophet in the Bible describes God in this way: 'Your eyes are too holy to look at evil, and you cannot stand the sight of people doing wrong.' (Habakkuk 1:13).
So we have two problems. First, we all have much evil written in our books. Second, God must punish all our evil. Now let me try to illustrate what happened during that time Jesus was hanging on the cross. Suppose now that this hand represents Jesus. Hold out right hand palm uppermost, the left hand with the book on it should still be held out. Again, the ceiling represents God. Now there was no 'book' between Jesus and God. He always perfectly obeyed the will of God. He always pleased his Father. While Jesus was on the cross, God took the sins of people in every age and placed them on Jesus. Next, transfer the book from the left hand on to the upturned palm of the right hand.
Peter put it this way: 'Christ himself carried our sins in his body on the cross' (1 Peter 2:24) and Paul says, 'For our sakes God made Him who knew no sin, to become sin for us...' (2 Corinthians 5:21). You could say that on the cross Jesus became the most sinful man the world has ever seen, as the sins of millions and millions of believers in every age were poured into his body. Then an amazing thing happened. Remember, God must punish all evil. Well, at this moment, God poured upon his own Son on the cross, all the wrath and anger and punishment that should fall on you and me. You could say God executed his own Son! Jesus died of the punishment of God. To show that he had completely dealt with our sins and punishment, three days later God brought him back to life! Now refer people back to the left hand, now empty, still with the palm uppermost.
Well now we must ask-how much sin remains between the person who believes in Jesus, and God? Press the point until someone answers 'none'. So then, when a person believes in Jesus Christ, God counts him or her as absolutely sinless and perfect in his eyes-in fact, as perfect as Jesus Christ Himself. Go on to stress that this forgiveness is not automatically conferred on everyone, but only on those who accept God's grace by receiving the giver, Jesus Christ.
Cam Fletcher demonstrates the Book Illustration