Christ is a Savior. He did not come on earth to be a conqueror, or a philosopher, or a mere teacher of morality. He came to save sinners. He came to do that which man could never do for himself – to do that which money and learning can never obtain – to do that which is essential to man’s real happiness; He came to “take away sin.”
Christ is a complete Savior. He “taketh away sin.” He did not merely make vague proclamations of pardon, mercy, and forgiveness. He “took” our sins upon Himself and carried them away. He allowed them to be laid upon Himself and “bore them in His own body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24). The sins of every one that believes on Jesus are made as though they had never been sinned at all. The Lamb of God has taken them clean away.
Christ is an almighty Savior, and a Savior for all mankind. He “taketh away the sin of the world.” He did not die for the Jews only, but for the Gentile as well as the Jew. He did not suffer for a few people only, but for all mankind. The payment that He made on the cross was more than enough to make satisfaction for the debts of all. The blood that He shed was precious enough to wash away the sins of all. His atonement on the cross was sufficient for all mankind, though efficient only to those who believe. The sin that He took up and bore on the cross was the sin of the whole world.
Last, but not least, Christ is a perpetual and unwearied Savior. He “taketh away” sin. He is daily taking it away from every one that believes on Him – daily purging, daily cleansing, daily washing the souls of His people, daily granting and applying fresh supplies of mercy. He did not cease to work for His saints, when He died for them on the cross. He lives in heaven as a Priest to present His sacrifice continually before God. In grace as well as in providence, Christ works still. He is ever taking away sin.
Adapted from Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of John by J.C. Ryle
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