One argument frequently made to convince people to become Christian is that Jesus died – “For you” or “for your sins.” Well no, he did not die for me; he did not know me as I was not alive at the time. If the task is to spend six hours on the cross in order to become everyone’s lord and savior, there would be millions of people around the world competing for the honor.

Regarding him being the sacrifice for our sins, I have to say this. I do not want anyone to die for my sins. I want to answer for them myself. I do not believe that an eternity of hellfire is a correct punishment for anything I have done. For that matter, I do not believe that an eternity of hellfire is a correct punishment for just about anything that a person can do. I believe that people should be made answerable for the things that they do and that they should atone for them wherever possible. But nobody deserves an eternity in hell.

What is right is that it appears that Jesus works in the lives of his followers to make them pleasing in the eyes of God. We see that for example in Alcoholics Anonymous. His role is that of a teacher and counselor. He does not only help people get sober; he helps them to be better people. We have seen many people whose lives were constructed with the help of Jesus. That is a real accomplishment, and Jesus should be thanked for that.

So my recommendation is: Away with the guilt trips and focus on actual benefits of a relationship with Jesus. There are many people whose lives were fixed by Jesus and people working with Jesus, and it is a true blessing to be at the receiving end of such efforts.

Ilya Shambat
https://sites.google.com/site/ilyashambatthought