The Great Exchange

2 Corinthians 5:21

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We’re pretty familiar with exchanges and trades in fact every time we go to the store and buy something in a sense we make an exchange. We exchange money and get a product in return.

Sometimes we’ve even been provided a gift. Maybe it’s a sweater but it’s a red sweater and we didn’t want one or it doesn’t fit or it’s not our style. So we take that sweater to a store and exchange it for one we like. But we’re also aware of when we’ve had trades or exchanges and we think we’ve gotten the raw end of the deal, the short end of the stick. We’re not very happy.

But I want you to listen to an exchange that took place that far surpasses any time we’ve ever felt that we got the short end of the stick. It’s written in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21.

God made him who had no sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

So here’s the trade, here’s the exchange that God made: his own Son Jesus who had done no sin to be the sinner to be the sinful husband, wife, mom, dad, son, daughter, in any vocation we have and he became the sinner who went to the cross. And there he even demonstrated his love for us in this: that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

So he took our sin, our guilt, and what do we get in return for that? What’s the exchange that takes place? We get his righteousness. His holiness. And when we think of a worldly view of that whole idea of trades and exchanges this seems totally unfair and yet this is God’s plan, his only plan, his saving plan that we are now looked at not guilty, declared not guilty, because Christ exchanged his holy life for our sinful life.

And that’s what provides us purpose in life to serve our neighbor and God with love and thanks all because of the great exchange: our sin given to Jesus, Jesus holy life given to us. Amen.