God’s Chief Motive in the Cross
“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.”
– 1 Timothy 1:15-16
“It is not true that his love for us, expressed in the cross, is motivated chiefly by our inherent value and goodness. Christ’s death for us is chiefly motivated by the value He places on Himself and His own glory as a loving God. His chief motivation is to display His loving-kindness or mercy, as the glorious thing it is before all creation, that we might tast and enjoy his value, not our own.
– John Ensor from The Great Work of the Gospel (p. 38)
