Have you ever noticed that world
history is divided by one event? That event was not the rise or fall of some
major empire, as one would expect. Nor was it the discovery of a new continent.
Instead, world history has been divided by the birth of a single itinerant
rabbi living in a relatively obscure part of the vast Roman Empire. Considering
the vast number of Jews born at this time, it’s even more revealing that this
one birth, among so many, should be the marker that has divided world history
into its two largest epochs.
That birth, of course, is of
Jesus.
In the context of God and
history, we can better appreciate the significance of salvation. For here, at
the Cross—with the obvious failure of all humans, and thus, human history—is
where the background and also the deepest meaning of world history unfold. The
Cross tells us that, by forgiving us and making us His children, God has opened
up a new future for us, a future in which we no longer need to drag along with
us the enormous guilt of our past or of our personal history. This guilt has
been taken away by One who “has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows” (Isa.
53:4, NKJV).
