Why did Jesus have to die?

I have been reading through the New Testament this year, slowly, but surely. Currently, I am mumbling incoherently through the pages of Romans. I came across a passage that I think speaks truthfully into the age old apologetic question "Why did Jesus have to die?". Sometimes I think of little children asking this question, not yet fully understanding the basics of sin and death, but I can also think of adults asking, in a more apologetic fashion, the same question with the intent to preface the question with "If God is so powerful, and he knows everything, then why wouldn't He just save everyone, and why would He allow us to sin or create us if he knew the outcome?" A good question, but I am going to stick with the topic up top for now and let your mind explode while you wrestle with God's sovereignty.

Paul, in Roman 5:7-8, says the following:

"For one will scarcely die for a righteous person-though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-but God shows his love for us in that while were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Now, whether Christian or not, I think that it's pretty easy to admit that at least we are all sinners in the Bible terms, whether you ascribe to it or not. But why did Jesus have to die? I think Paul tackles it here but also goes deeper into identifying a key relationship principle that perhaps maybe, Christian or not, sounds good.

Let's say, for instance, that a three good friends of yours is about to be executed by firing squad and you have one chance to step up and take the bullet because hey, you're a pretty good person and you think since you haven't done anything too bad, God will let you in. But whom shall you choose? You, having no idea what they believed or having any knowledge of Christ, yourself included, were unsure of their destiny. One was an upstanding person in your eyes. Always doing the "right thing." So in your own mind, your own value grid, God would let them into your idea of heaven because he or she is a "pretty good person." The second is more of a "good guy", sometimes doing good for you, other times doing what serves he or she the best. So, they may have to splaining to do to old St. Pete, but he would probably let this person in the pearly gates after they reconciled a few things. And the third, shesh, well they are the person you are constantly trying to help but won't follow your guidance. Always needy, always blowing it, always burning bridges, but you still love them. However, you're not so sure they would be able to reconcile their history with God.

So, who do ya pick? Well you might say the first one because they could keep on doing good if he or she lived. You might say they second because you want them to do a few more good deeds in order to have fewer things to reconcile. Or third, perhaps you need to choose the third one, but you really don't want to because you're not so sure they would turn it around if he or she lived. And hey, do you really want to die for someone who will probably trample on your grave?

Well, I think Jesus did and I think that's what Paul is saying. But more deeply, their is some truth to our condition, a bit of honesty from Jesus. Sometimes, we think of ourselves as any one of the three characters, so at times, it's easy to think "did Jesus really have to die.?" But Jesus comes in with some refreshing honesty about our condition and our relationships. Which kind of person do you really want as a friend? Imagine the conversations with each person you might have before the trigger is pulled? How would you explain about why you are or are not selecting them?

The conversation with the third one would have to be honest for the hope to rest that they might turn it around. The difference in what is commonly thought and Christianity is that we don't live on to do better works. The price has been paid and we don't fear another firing squad. We live on because our friend came honestly and said "I'm going to die for you." Jesus had to die because of our sin. But also because he is honest. My question is, do we live this out, not only in our relationship with Jesus, but with our friends and loved ones? Do we come honestly, or do we put them in our own grid of "goodness", decide then who we need to die for and who doesn't need it, and then choose to run from those who do need the honesty, while keeping the "upstanding" and the occasional "good" guy close by? In other words, the safe person? Or, do you perhaps take the bullet for many of the "unworthy" with the hope of hearing praise or perhaps someone else taking one for you, only to find that, oh yea, that bullet killed me, and I can't be around to hear the praise or for someone to save me, which makes me angry?

But does not the death of Christ imply something true about us? If not, then you, the doubter, are correct, it was senseless. But then who decides and what decides the spectrum of "upstanding, good, and unworthy." Perhaps then we are all that " unworthy third person." Yikes.