Why did Jesus have to die?

Tonight we had a good discussion session. We sang "How Great Thou Art", read Psalm 103, and then one of the guys asked a good question. He asked why Jesus had to die to save us? He was suggesting that perhaps God could have come up with a different plan and thus would have spared Jesus.

The group discussion went well. In a Yokefellow session all opinions are welcome. Although a leader guides the discussion, the leader does not need to answer all questions. Sometimes the correct answer is "What do you all think?"

This is sometimes hard to do. I tend to want to answer a question when it is asked directly to me. It's important to remember that we want the inmates to think about these issues a bit and formulate in their minds why a thing is so.