THE UNBRIDGEABLE DIVIDE BETWEEN MARTYRDOM AND SUBSTITUTIONARY ATONEMENT
Was the admirable and noble martyrdom (shaheedi) of the Sikh gurus the same as the sacrificial
death (balidan) of Jesus Christ? Absolutely not. Why? Because guru Arjun Dev and guru Tegh
Bahadur died for noble causes—but Jesus died as a substitutionary sacrifice (balidan) for the sins
of the mankind.
Christianity didn’t begin in the 1st century AD—it began in the Garden of Eden when Adam and
Eve sinned. In response, God instituted the concept of substitutionary death by killing an
innocent animal in their place. This first balidan enabled God to show grace without violating
His justice. The Adi Granth indirectly affirms this :
ਬਾਬਾ ਆਦਮ ਕਉ ਕਿਛੁ ਨਦਰਿ ਦਿਖਾਈ ॥ ਉਨਿ ਭੀ ਭਿਸਤਿ ਘਨੇਰੀ ਪਾਈ ॥
He bestowed His Grace on Adam, the father of mankind, who then lived in paradise for a
long time. (AG p1161 Kabir).
This initial balidan of an innocent animal was a picture that foreshadowed the ultimate sacrifice:
Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29b).
Christianity is the Balidan Marg—the path of substitutionary sacrifice—conceived in God’s
mind before creation:
“…the Lamb. slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev13:8b).
Jesus’ death was foretold and prefigured in the Jewish Passover. His sacrifice is fundamentally
different from the martyrdoms of the Sikh gurus. The very etymology of kurbani (ਕੁਰਬਾਨੀ) from
karib (near) teaches that our sins distance us and separ4ate us from God—and it is Jesus’ kurbani
that pays the debt and brings us karib (near) to God.
When Jesus died, the curtain in the Jewish Temple which separated the Holy of Holies, the inner
sanctuary was supernaturally TORN FROM TOP TO BOTTOM making the way for us to draw
near (karib) into the presence of God.
“And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth
shook; and the rocks were split.” (Mat 27:51).
There was an EARTHQUAKE both when Jesus died and when He arose from among the dead.
(Mat 27:54 & Mat 28:2). There was also total darkness for three hours from noon to 3 PM.
“And when the sixth hour had come, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth
hour.” (Mark 15:33).
Unlike the Sikh gurus, Jesus was declared INNOCENT by THE IMPERIAL GOVERNMENT,
even though he was (falsely) accused of treason and a threat to Rome by his enemies. Pilot, the
Roman governor of Israel declared
“I find NO GUILT in this man.” (Luke 23:4b).
Jesus was also declared innocent by KING HEROD. Even the CENTURION, said,
“Certainly this man was INNOCENT.” (Luke 23:47).
In contrast, the Sikh gurus were condemned to death by the emperor and died as martyrs
(shaheeds), not as sinless substitutes. Their deaths are in a totally different category to Jesus who
gave His SINLESS life as a sacrifice (KURBANI) not martyrdom (shaheedi) in the name of a
cause, not even for an admirable and noble cause such as the right to freedom of worship.
If God merely overlooked our sins, He would violate His attribute of justice. The death of Jesus
Christ effectively CREATED GRACE which means God can forgive us without violating His
attribute of justice. Jesus paid the just penalty for our sins. The last words that Jesus spoke on the
cross before He died were: “IT IS FINISHED!” (John 19:30). The Greek word for “it is
finished” is “TETELESTAI” which is an accounting term and means “PAID IN FULL.” His
death paid in full the sin debt of mankind. The Sikh gurus did not and could not say “paid in full”
since their deaths were not for the sins of the world. Unlike the Sikh gurus Jesus was sinless.
Never did the gurus say that they were SINLESS. On the contrary many times they said they
were SINNERS and NEEDED TO BE SAVED.
For example, guru Nanak says:
“As the oceans are filled with water SO IMMENSE IS MY SINFULNESS, show a
measure of thy GRACE that this sinking stone may cross over.” (AG p156 M1).
The Grace that guru Nanak seeks is available ONLY through Christ. In contrast to guru Nanak,
Jesus challenges his observers: “Which one of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46). Even His
enemies, who watched Him extremely closely and would have loved to find sin in Him, could
NOT find any sin which is why they had to fabricate false charges against Him.
Jesus was treated by God the Father as sin on our behalf since He was a substitute (as a BALI)
for us. God the Father accepted Jesus’ BALIDHAN/KURBANI as full payment for the sins of
mankind as evidenced by Jesus being raised from among the dead by God the Father. No one
ever died as Jesus died, with THE SINS AND THE GUILT of the whole world. He not only died
for our sins but AROSE FROM THE DEAD & is alive right NOW.
The great Sikh scholar, Gopal Singh who translated the Sri Guru Granth Sahib into English also
wrote a book about Jesus, that very few Sikhs know about, “The Man Who Never Died.” It is a
poem exalting Jesus who arose from among the dead. Jesus’ death was foretold hundreds of
years in advance in the Jewish scriptures. Unlike Jesus, the deaths of the Sikh guru Arjan Dev &
guru Tegh Bahadur were NOT foretold in any previous scriptures. The deaths of guru Arjan Dev
& guru Tegh Bahadur was not foreshadowed in the animal sacrifices (bali) given by mankind
universally all around the globe for centuries. Without Jesus’ death God could not offer us
salvation through THE UNDESERVED gift of “GRACE.”
KURBANI is the one and only method of SALVATION. Just before Jesus’ death the Holy Bible
says:
And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if
it is possible, LET THIS CUP PASS FROM ME; yet not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”
(Mat 26:39).
And a little later, in reference to His death on the cross, Jesus prayed:
“My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, THY WILL BE DONE.”
(Mat 26:42b).
There was NO other way to save mankind except the sacrifice of a PERFECT & SINLESS human
being. Since no human has ever been perfect & sinless, the invisible incorporeal formless (Nirankar)
God took on a human body in order to die as a BALI for the sins of mankind. It is God’s way (marg).
Why? Because it is His sovereign Hukam (Will), not the invention of any human being or guru. It is
like the LAW OF GRAVITY which you cannot wish away, repeal or change. You cannot have it your
wishful way and drop a rock expecting it to fall upwards or float in the air. You cannot go to a human
banker let alone the divine sovereign God and dictate the terms of your debt. You can’t do business
with the Lord of the universe on your own terms. You cannot repeal God’s one and only way of
salvation. This is His Hukam (Will) that no one can overturn. Guru Nanak says:
“ਜਿਉ ਭਾਵੈ ਤਿਉ ਰਾਖੁ ਤੂ ਮੈ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ਕੋਇ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ
AS IT PLEASES YOU, LORD, You SAVE ME. There is no other for me at all.”
(AG p20 M1)
Around 2200 years before guru Nanak’s birth, circa 700 BC, the Lord through the prophet Isaiah
tells what pleases Him:
“Yet it was the LORD’s WILL (pleased Him) to crush him and cause him to suffer, and …
the LORD makes his life an offering for sin… (Isa 53:10a).
This was a prophecy of the sacrificial death of Jesus the Christ (Messiah) for the sins of
mankind. Jesus’ payment for your sins by dying on the cross might sound very strange to you.
The Holy Bible agrees and says:
“For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing FOOLISHNESS, but to us
who are being saved it is THE POWER OF GOD. For the wisdom of this world is
FOOLISHNESS before God.” (1 Cor 1:18-9).
Jesus says:
“I am the way and the truth and the life. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER
EXCEPT THROUGH ME.” (John 14:6).
Jesus is the only Savior of mankind. Even today Jesus asks you the ultimate question,
“Who do you say I am?” (Mat 16:15b).
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