Last Sunday during worship at church we sang the song Light of the World. Before we reached the bridge, the pastor paused to say how much he loved the words: “And we’ll never know how much it cost, to see our sin upon that cross.” He encouraged us to think about that truth—that Jesus paid our debt on the cross so completely that we will never know the full cost ourselves.
I like to leave church each week intentionally remembering something to meditate on throughout the week, and this was it. In fact, it stayed with me so much that I even dreamed about it.
It is true that we will never know how much it cost to see our sin upon that cross—but the truth goes far beyond simply understanding it intellectually. Scripture reminds us that Christ “himself bore our sins in his body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24). The weight of our sin was not symbolic; it was real, and it was placed upon Jesus.
Throughout history, many faithful disciples of Jesus have been martyred. Some even died by crucifixion, just as Jesus did. Those deaths certainly involved terrible suffering, and in some small way those disciples tasted the suffering Jesus endured. Yet for them, their suffering ended with their death.
The cost of our sin, however, was far greater than physical death. The true cost was eternal separation from God. Scripture describes hell as a place where there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 13:42). That kind of cost is something no human being could ever fully comprehend, and certainly none of us could ever pay it. Only Jesus could pay that price.
I also believe that Jesus’ suffering was greater than any other crucifixion. Consider what was happening in that moment. Jesus was bearing the sins of the world and paying the penalty for every person who would ever live. As Isaiah prophesied centuries before the cross, “the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). Paul later explained it this way: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Imagine the agony of crucifixion combined with the weight of billions of sins placed upon Him. The physical pain was unimaginable, but the spiritual burden was even greater.
Because of Jesus, we will never know what it would be like to spend eternity paying the penalty for our sins. Instead, we are given something completely different—eternal life with God. Jesus promised that He went to prepare a place for us so that we may be with Him forever (John 14:2–3). Scripture also tells us that in that eternal home “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore” (Revelation 21:4). That means no sickness, no anxiety, no brokenness, and no longing for death—only real life as God always intended it to be. There will be no separation from loved ones, no family strife or division—only unity, love, and peace in the presence of God.
We need to try, even if only in small ways, to grasp that truth more deeply. I could go on, but the point remains the same. Oh, how grateful I am for Jesus and want others to know the truth of His sacrificial death. What an incredible blessing it is that we will never know how much it cost to see our sins upon that cross—we only get to experience what that sacrifice purchased for us.
This truth should be the foundation we walk on each day and the motivation behind how we live. It certainly is for me and is the heart behind Lifted Hands—the effort to share the gospel, strengthen churches, train the next generation, and help those in need.
Thanks for being a part of the Lifted Hands Team helping more people come to know Christ so that they too will never have to know the cost of seeing their sins upon that cross.
(Written by Doug Linser 2026)
