A large manufacturing company was having production problems. They were not sure what the problem was, much less how to fix it. They tried a few in-house solutions, but there was no improvement, no increase in productivity. Finally, they decided to bring in an outside consultant. One man in particular came highly recommended. They called him and he agreed to come immediately. He showed up and spent about two hours walking around the plant, observing everything. Finally, at the end of those two hours, he took a piece of chalk out of his pocket, walked to a spot in the assembly line, and put a big X on the floor. He said, “Here’s your problem. If you streamline this spot, you will see a tremendous improvement.” The management was somewhat skeptical, but they took his advice and overnight productivity went through the roof! They could not have been any happier, that is, until a few days later when they got the bill from the consultant. They opened up the bill and it said, “Consulting fees:  $50,000.00” The manager thought that was outrageous. The consultant had only been there for two hours! How could he justify charging that much? He called the consultant and demanded an itemized billing. The next day, he received another envelope from the consultant. It was the itemized bill. The first line said, “One piece of chalk, $1.00.” The second line said, “Knowing where to put the ‘X’ $49, 999.00.”

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still  sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned— for before the law was given, sin was in the world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come. But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! (NIV)

The cross marks the spot! God knew what needed doing. He knew when it needed doing. And He knew who needed to do it.

God Knew What Needed Doing. Here’s the problem: We were powerless. We were ungodly. We were sinners, separated from God by our sins. Reconciliation was what needed doing. Restoration was what needed doing. Redemption was what needed doing. And we could not do any of those things ourselves. Remember, we were powerless. That is what sin does to you. It gets you in its grip and convinces you there is no hope. You are stuck. And if you are relying on your own willpower or effort or fortitude to get you out of that mess, you are out of luck. It won’t happen. You can’t do it. What needed doing had to come from outside of us, and it did. Christ died for the ungodly. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He made the payment our sins had earned. He stepped in to take our punishment so that we could be spared, and in doing so gave us hope.

God knew when it needed doing. At just the right time, while we were still powerless, God did what needed doing. While we were enemies we were reconciled to God.

God knew who needed to do it. It wasn’t us! We were powerless. We were enemies of God. We were unable to do what needed doing at any time. But we … rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. At just the right time God sent His Son to do what needed doing, and He was the only one who could do it. Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary. This one who is the God-man came into this world for this very purpose: to redeem me, a lost and condemned creature, to purchase and win me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I may be His own, and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns through all eternity. This is most certainly true.

The cross marked the spot. God knew what needed doing. He knew when it needed doing. And He knew who needed to do it. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!

What about the bill? If you were to receive an itemized bill, it might say, “One Cross – no charge.” “Knowing who to put on the cross and when to put Him there – priceless, but still no charge to you.” And at the bottom, it would say, “Paid in full by your Savior, Redeemer and Friend, Jesus Christ.”