Transcript

Why did God “have to” become man? Couldn’t He have just waved a magic wand to restore us to His good graces? First and foremost, God became man out of love. St. John Vianney says, “You love something according to what you are willing to give for it, and God gave His only begotten Son for you!” We read in the Bible that “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” If God didn’t want to save us, He would have kept His distance and just left us to our own demise. But that’s not what happened. Out of love, God interceded for us. Now, God also became man as a matter of justice. And this answers the “soteriological” aspect of the question. So it all starts with Adam and Eve. When Adam and Eve sinned, who did they offend? Well, sin always offends yourself, your fellow man, but, most of all: God. Is God finite, or infinite? He’s infinite. So sin carries with it a quasi-infinite weight. But how can finite man make up for a quasi-infinite offense? He can’t!!! He absolutely cannot pay the price that he owes. Who could pay such a price? Well, God could, He’s infinite. But God didn’t sin. For Him to snap his fingers and magically restore mankind, justice would not be served, it would actually be an act of injustice by God. So we need someone who is man, who can stand in the place of all of humanity and take on humanity’s sin… but Who is also God, and can bridge the infinite gap left by sin. So the Father sends His only Son, “and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” As man, Jesus can take our sin upon Himself. As God, He can cancel out our infinite debt. Jesus is the one and only Savior, He became man to save us from our sins.