"And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;
knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."
~1 Peter 1:17-19
Once upon a time... all good stories (even fictional ones) start this way... there was a kingdom. This kingdom was known for it's pretty white walls and kind, smiling people. The kingdom was built on the foundations of love and perfection. It was an unwritten rule that life here be based on love and perfection. No one thought about it because everyone loved each other and was perfect.
Then one day, as happens in all good stories, disaster struck. The people of the kingdom found that they could not help harboring thoughts that were not completely loving. They found that they could not live a perfect live because they kept messing up.
News of this reached the royal family. The king and his Son talked it over. They were good royalty and had planned for anything that might happen in their kingdom. They knew the law if people were to not live as loving and perfect subjects. Death. The idea that even one of their subjects would have to die though hurt them deeply.
Their main hall was filled with people with requests. A mother begged to take her life in place of her child, but she was already on death row herself. A friend begged to take the place of his best friend, but he was already on death row himself. The king was very sad, but lifted his hands for silence. He explained that if you were on deathrow, then you couldn't take another's place. Because you had messed up.
Then His Son stepped forward. He was still loving and perfect, as the royal family had always been. He and His Father exchanged a sad look, then the Son walked forward and stood before the executioner in the peoples' place.
That might be a fictional story, but it carries the same message. Thankfully, Jesus rose back to life. The reason why He could take our place is because he didn't have anything wrong with Him. In ancient times, the Israelites (and then later the Jews) sacrificed the most perfect lamb they could find. It couldn't have a broken leg or a cold. It had to be the strongest, healthiest lamb.
My grandpa used to have sheep. They seemed to always be born during the coldest nights. I was devastated the first time one was brought in to be warmed up only to die a few hours later. Soon I learned that the likely hood of a lamb living once it was so cold inside was very little. Lambs were fragile creatures.
To sacrifice your best lamb was a huge sacrifice on the parts of the ancient people. It was a loss to their flocks. Yet they did so gladly because it was a constant reminder that only the best could save them. And when Jesus, God's Son came and died, who could argue that God's Son wasn't the best? He was perfect with no mistakes on His record. Only the divine was not on deathrow, so only a divine being could take our place. That left only God and His Son. His Son chose the pain and despair of death so that we have that chance to live with Him.
Because only He is "without blemish".
Since only Jesus could save us, only He could grant us hesed. And He did.
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