How does the crucifixion of Jesus Christ become justification, and through it, salvation for a sinner? Only when we get a satisfactory reply to this question, can we say, "We know You, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you sent". Since this knowledge is the basis of eternal life (Jn 17:3) incorrect knowledge regarding this may result in the loss of eternal life.

The world thinks that God will try a sinner on the basis of the ten commandments and pronounce judgement as in the case of a just judge who gives the verdict according to the prevalent laws of justice. This is a false idea about God and God’s justification. From Jesus’ words, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his justice," it is clear that the justice of God is not that of the world. Neither is it the justice Israel received through Moses. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth became law because the practice of repaying a blow with murder, was already in force. Through Moses there was an effort made to bring man from a cruel, inhuman justice to a moral code of equality. However, mercy and truth are obtained in this world only through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. God became man to open to us the way to spirituality. Jesus proved through his life, death and resurrection that God does not condemn the sinner but only justifies him, "That is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us" (2 Cor 5:19). It is the message of this reconciliation that is the vital truth of the Gospel. It is only where this truth is proclaimed that conversion, which is the experience of reconciliation, will take place.

The reason why the first parents, who disobeyed God’s commandments and sinned against God’s infinite love, ran away from God’s presence and hid themselves behind the trees, was the false belief that God would not let them go free without reckoning their sins against them. It is this wrong idea received from Satan that all religions that had their origin in the race of Adam, hold. The Israelite race was no exception. Adam’s God who considers the sins of men and punishes them accordingly, is also their God. That is why the people tell Moses that they do not want to have the vision of God. Yet, later we see in Psalm 103, the description of a God who does not punish according to the gravity of the sin and shows mercy to those devoted to him. This is a phase in the evolution of the knowledge of God. When we say God shows mercy to the devotee, there still remains lack of clarity in the measure of the devotion necessary to be saved from punishment. That will lead to blind observance for the man who is convinced that God will, at any cost, punish the sinner. The only way to grasp the truth is Jesus on the cross.

When we hear our God saying, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do", when it happens in the public square of history, there is no more place for fear. It is as clear as the day that God does not judge or punish man. Our justification is that our Lord Jesus Christ himself justifies those who are nailing him to the cross and killing him. We can see that we, of the present generation, shouted, "We do not want Christ", who is the same yesterday, today and forever. When we live with a mind that accepts Barabbas, we reject Jesus by implication. If that has been the case so far, never mind. The Lord has not been angry with us on that account. Rather, he has only justified us. Let us, therefore, give up all fear and come to the feet of the crucified Lord and tell him, "Lord, we need you. For your sake, we reject Barabbas." The person who decides to live for Jesus Christ, who died to save the world, experiences the justification of God. He will then realise that the fear regarding the punishment due to his sin is baseless, that God does not punish, that a servile fear of God is what he experiences as punishment and that the freedom to come close to God is the fruit of the wealth revealed in the prayer on the cross.

We have heard it said in regard to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, that sin is the offence of man against the eternal God, and so God’s anger is kindled against man, or an insignificant creature like man cannot atone adequately. So the Son of God, who is equal to the Father, became incarnate as man and offered atonement, placating and pleasing God - this is the explanation that used to be given. A little reflection will tell us that this is not a correct teaching, because, if the action of a man can provoke God to be angry, it will follow that God is not God. God does only the first act; he does not react. God is pure act. God is the unmoved mover. Even when Jesus was crucified on the cross, he only blessed. To curse those who nailed him to the cross, would be the natural reaction. To bless is the pure act that pertains to God. The apparent anger of Jesus at the business transactions that were carried out in the temple, is also a pure act. The first act he undertook to give an idea of the sacredness of the temple to those who did not have it. For example, suppose someone is about to handle a live electric line wire that has fallen down. A gentle, soft-spoken bit of advice given to this person, not to touch the wire, will not register. An angry shout to warn him may be necessary. This is also a pure act originating from love.

The Father and the Son are one, not two. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one in essence. The triune God has only one and the same desire, decision, judgement, command and plan. God is the unity that partakes equally of the same bliss, the same ‘Satchitananda’. Explanations such as the Father alone being offended, the Son dying on the cross to remove that offence, the Father being pleased when he sees it, are not appropriate to the trinitarian nature of God. The Father punishing in justice and the Son redeeming in mercy-such considerations misrepresent the nature of God. All that does not tally with Jesus’ teaching that his works are those of the Father who sent him, his words are the words of the Father and that he and the Father are one, is fraught with error.

The Holy Spirit does the Father’s work in the Son. The Holy Spirit expresses the Father’s love through the Son. Here the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one. The crucifixion and resurrection and the salvation that is achieved through it, is the Father’s work accomplished through the Son and the Church which is his mystical body. These are also the work of the Holy Spirit.