07-ATONEMENT
Chapter Six
Atonement We will begin this chapter with a premise:
If unconditional election is true, then the gift of salvation can only be for the elect, and likewise, atonement can only be for the elect. However, if it can be proven that atonement is for all people, then the gift of salvation can be offered to all people, and unconditional election cannot be true.
We will begin examining this premise from the back end - Atonement. The Hebrew word for atonement is as follows:
Kâphar - A primitive root; to cover; figuratively to expiate or condone, to placate or cancel. (Strong)
We must be sure that we understand the meaning of atonement. Atonement and redemption are not the same thing. Redemption is the salvation of one’s soul because the debt has been paid. Atonement is that necessary payment for sins which purchases our redemption (1 Peter 1:18-19). Only the blood of Christ, the perfect lamb, is sufficient to pay for our recemption. Atonement is like bail. If a father had a son who had committed a crime, and was being held in prison, what would he do? Well the first thing he would do is to go to court and pay the bail to allow his son to be free until the trial. Now the bail payment itself is not the freedom for the son, but the bail is the payment that allows the son to be free. Atonement is the same idea. The actual word atonement is found in only one place in the New Testament:
Romans 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. The Greek word used in this verse is katallagē which means: to reconcile, restore, exchange. A change or reconciliation from a state of enmity between persons to a state of friendship. (Robinson) Katallagē is a Greek word which denotes reconciliation, not atonement in the true meaning of the word. As we saw above, atonement is the required payment which allows us to be reconciled to God.
The New Testament word which better denotes the meaning of atonement is the word propitiation. The Greek word translated propitiation is:
Hilastērion - An expiatory place or thing, an atoning victim. (Strong) This word obviously gives us the true meaning of atonement. There are four places in the New Testament where we see the Greek word hilastērion. In three places it is translated propitiation, and in one place it is translated into a word that may suprise you. Here are three places using the word hilastērion:
Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
1 John 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Hebrews 9:5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercy seat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.
We see that in Romans and 1 John, the word is translated propitiation, but in Hebrews it is translated mercy seat. We need to understand the connection in Hebrews nine between the Mercy Seat and the Atonement. Let us remember that the Mercy Seat covered (kâphar) the Ark of the Covenent, which contained the Law. The Law represents the knowledge of sin and sin’s consequences on man (Romans 3:20). The Mercy Seat represents the only thing that could hold back God’s judgment on sin in the Old Testament. Only the mercy of God can supress the judgment of the Law. The Day of Atonement typified the means of forgiveness, through the blood of the sacrificial goat. When the High Priest sprinkled the blood of the goat on the Mercy Seat, it covered the sins of Israel for one year. (Leviticus 16:1-34)
All this was a figure of of the future, perfect, one time offering of Christ on the cross for the sins of all. (Hebrews 10:10)
Now the question arises; for whom is propitiation / atonement? God gives us the answer in His Word!
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
The Greek word used here is halasmos, which is a form of hilastērion, and means propitiation. Atonement, or propitiation is Christ’s work on the corss that satisfies the required paymant for all sin.
According to 1 John, the atonement was not limited to only the elect, but was efficacious for the sins of the whole world!! The term "the whole world" is taken from the Greek word kosmos, which means all of humanity, but Calvinism tries to negate this verse by suggesting that "the whole world" does not mean all people, but only people of every nation. They cite Revelation 5:9 as a so called proof.
Revelation 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; This is a misapplication of Revelation 5:9 because the passage is related to redemption, not atonement. There can be no doubt that Jesus atonement covers the sins of all humanity. As a matter of fact, if you study "The Day of Atonement" in Leviticus 16:1-34, you will see that the blood of the sacrificial goat covered the sins of the entire nation of Israel every year.
Now we can return to our original premise and ask the question: If the atonement is not limited to the elect only, then can God’s gift of salvation be limited to only the elect?? The only answer to that question is a resounding NO!! Limited Atonement and Unconditional Election are both false doctrines. The Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ covers the sins of all of humanity, so that God can offer His gift of salvation by grace through faith to any who will only believe and receive. Before going on to the next section, we need to address one more point on the teachings of Calvinism concerning atonement. Many Calvinists believe that not only atonement was accomplished on cross, but also the redemption and regeneration of the elect was "finished" on Calvary. The teaching is that atonement, redemption, and regeneration of the elect was achieved on the cross of Calvary. Now let us see what Jesus taught on this subject. In John 3:16, we see Jesus telling Nicodemus:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. When a verse begins with the word for, it is usually refering to something stated in previous verses. Let’s see what was said:
John 3:14-15 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Now we see Jesus refering to something that occured in the Old Testament, and applying it to Himself. The reference is to Numbers chapter 21.
5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
Jesus said that as the serpent was lifted up, He also will be lifted up. But the parallel does not stop there. When the serpent was lifted up, was anyone who was bitten healed? The answer is no. It was only when the stricken person believed God, and then came and looked up to the serpent that he was healed. Jesus died on the cross to accomplish the atonement, but atonement is not salvation. If it was, then according to 1 John 2:2 everyone would be saved. Atonement is the price Jesus paid with His blood to reconcile us to God. But in order for a person to receive the gift of salvation, he must "Look and Live." People are saved only when they trust in the blood of Jesus to redeem them from their sin. Just as the stricken Jew in Numbers 21:1-35 must go and look up at the brazen serpent for healing. Again, the salvation of the elect or anyone else was not accomplished on the cross of Christ, it was the atonement that was accomplished. The lost sinner, any lost sinner, must come to the Savior by faith, trusting in the blood of Jesus Christ to wash away thier sin.
In summery, we see that the word propitiation is the New Testament word for atonement, and that the atonement covers the sins of the whold world, not only the elect. Also we learned that atonement is not salvation, but the price that was necessary to pay for our salvation. A person can be saved only when he or she has complete faith in the blood of Jesus Christ to take away their sins. And most importantly, we learned that since the atonement is clearly for all the sins of all people (1 John 2:2), then salvation is a gift from God that is offered to any who will believe and not just a select few (the elect).
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