|
I've always felt it depends on you're take on the whole story. If you believe Jesus was literally God's son, performed miracles and ascended bodily into heaven then it follows that by dying for our sins he undertook the suffering and retribution due the entire human race, meaning that everone else would be forgiven when they die, and allowed into heaven, their punishment having already been taken.
Another viewpoint, one i take, is that Jesus was a prophet, who's message conflicted with the interests of the authorities of the time, and was later given the Son of God status by the fledgling Roman Catholic Church in order to justify its own existence. Therefore Jesus did not die for our sins, but in facing his execution the way he did, and forgiving his executors as he died, he set an example to his followers of tolerance and forgiveness which they could then use to continue the church he founded. Unfortunately the message appears to have become somewhat garbled over time, leading to such things as extremist protestants and catholics, 2 branches of the same religion, killing one another and forgetting was was basically the central tenet of their shared faith.
|