This question touches upon the core of Christianity: the sacrificial and substitutionary death of Jesus Christ as expiation for our sins. It’s a complicated question, so let’s break it down:

Why Jesus, and not us? After all, they’re our sins, not His. Isn’t God all about personal responsibility? Yes, He is. But in this case (the opening up a pathway for the forgiveness of all the world’s sins), only an absolutely perfect sacrifice would do -- a sinless, unblemished, freely-willing sacrificial victim was required -- Jesus, the Only Son of God.

Why death? Couldn’t God have just waved His hand and forgiven us, without requiring the death of His Only Begotten Son? Yes, God can do anything. But if He were to ignore the sins of the world, it would make His Commandments meaningless. A law without penalties is a suggestion. And God’s rules are not suggestions. They are Commandments, and therefore they are binding. That’s why He wrote them on our hearts -- so we couldn’t forget nor ignore them.

Why so horribly? Couldn’t God have made it easier on His Son? Well, remember three things: i) Jesus is God ; ii) As a wise priest once put it, “If you want to know God’s opinion of sin, just look at the Passion of His Son” ; and iii) Jesus willingly submitted to the horror of crucifixion for the forgiveness of our sins.

Why for sins? People sin every day, so what’s the big deal? Well, sin actually is a big deal, whether modern society admits it or not. Remember, every sin is an affront to God, a knowing refusal by a creature to do the will of the Creator. (Yes, there are degrees of culpability, partly based on the level of knowledge one has about the seriousness of what one is doing. But except for cases of mental/spiritual deficiency, we all know when we’re sinning.) Also remember that there are no victimless sins, for every sin hurts the sinner (and almost always others as well).

So you see, sin cut an impassable chasm between God and us, for it moved us away from Him and His ways. And thus “it took a Cross to bridge the great divide”, making it passable again.

Thank You, Jesus.