{"id":40,"date":"2011-07-04T16:14:11","date_gmt":"2011-07-04T16:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/firststepsontheway.com\/?page_id=40"},"modified":"2011-07-04T16:14:11","modified_gmt":"2011-07-04T16:14:11","slug":"step-03-christ-crucified%ef%bb%bf%ef%bb%bf","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/firststepsontheway.com\/?page_id=40","title":{"rendered":"Step 03 Christ Crucified\ufeff\ufeff"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cCHRIST CRUCIFIED\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0The message of the whole Bible can be summarized in just these two words: \u201cChrist crucified.\u201d<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 By answering a few simple questions about these two words, the whole message begins to unfold!<\/p>\n

Who is Christ?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cChrist\u201d<\/em><\/strong> is a Greek word and means \u201cthe Anointed One.\u201d\u00a0 It was one of many titles in the Bible which describe the unique person for Whom mankind had been waiting for several thousand years.<\/p>\n

\u00a0You see, our first parents (Adam and Eve) disobeyed our Creator, Immediately the suffering and death that God had predicted began.\u00a0 All of us have inherited their wicked predisposition to disobey our Creator and all of us add our own disobedience – with its miserable consequences.<\/p>\n

But God promised that He would send the \u201cSeed\u201d<\/em><\/strong> of the woman. This \u201cSeed\u201d<\/em><\/strong> would remove the curses that result from mankind\u2018s disobedience. \u00a0During the next 4,000 years God repeated and amplified this promise through His prophets many times, as mankind waited.<\/p>\n

In 6 B.C. God\u2019s own Son was born of a Jewish virgin named Mary in Bethlehem of Judea in Palestine.\u00a0 He was named Jesus, because He would save His people from their sins. Jesus is the promised \u201cSeed,\u201d<\/em><\/strong> the long-awaited \u201cChrist.\u201d<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 The waiting was over!<\/p>\n

Why was Christ crucified?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0The Anointed One proved that He is indeed God\u2019s Son by performing many astounding miracles and by living a pure life for us.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Then, just as God\u2019s prophets had predicted, in the spring of 30 A.D. He took our place and suffered the horrible curse of our disobedience; He died for our sins.<\/p>\n

Again, just as God\u2019s prophets had predicted, on the third day afterward the Anointed One defeated death for us by rising from the dead.\u00a0 He appeared to\u00a0 many witnesses after His resurrection.<\/p>\n

What should I do?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n