Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Many years ago, man had an erroneous view of God as a righteous, all-powerful being, so awesome that to see His face was to die. To sin was to incur His wrath. He seemed aloof and lived in a place so incredibly beautiful and perfect that we can’t comprehend it.

Someone had to give us a more correct understanding of God’s love, mercy, forgiveness and grace. That person would have to interface with us in sometimes difficult or dangerous situations. He would have to endure heat, cold, hunger, thirst, fatigue and other unpleasant physical conditions. He would have to see evil, cruelty, injustices, hatred and other examples of man’s inhumanity to man. He would have to face rejection and opposition from those who felt their power threatened. He would have to set us free from the evil and wrong ideas that were holding us captive. And, in the end, He would have to suffer and die a cruel death for our sins.

Jesus volunteered for that job, came to ea...