Jesus Christ Made A Voluntary Sacrifice Essay

Atonement is a Christian theory that explains the reconciliation of human beings with God (Torrance 6). In simple words, it is the redemption/forgiveness of sins through the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Christians were forgiven their sins and reconciled with God. The bible in the book of John 3:16 say that, “For God so loved the world, and gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish” (King James Version, John 3.16). According to the bible, whoever believes in the son of God, shall not perish but will have everlasting life, and this is the atonement, since through the death of the son of God, Christians were forgiven their sins, and received eternal life. According to the doctrine of

First. Through the atonement we receive forgiveness of sins. Second. We receive sanctification through the blood of Jesus. Third. Healing of our bodies. Sickness and disease are destroyed through the precious atonement of Jesus.

Though Jesus was sinless and undeserving of death, he offered himself as a sacrifice in atonement for all sin (Invitation to World Religions, pg.418). Paul was always emphatic in maintaining that salvation cannot be earned by “works”, whether humans’ effort to obey the commandments in the Torah or excellent work in general. Instead, he taught that the salvation made possible by Christ’s sacrifice is a gift, the ultimate expression of God’s love and grace. Salvation is given to those who respond to God’s grace in faith, the conviction that God has acted through Jesus Christ to amend for human sin. Although Paul was very clear in teaching that salvation depends on God’s grace and the individual’s turning to God in faith, he did not dismiss the importance of works (Invitation to World Religions, pg.419). For Paul, faith does more than bringing salvation; it unites the believers with Christ in a “newness of life”. He believed that the spirit lives in believers and brings them into union with God. As a divine presence within, the spirit encourages the growth of spiritual virtues, the greatest which is love and makes all Christians one in the church often called “the body of Christ”.

• Writes about James, brother of Jesus, who was called the Christ. Stoned to death in A.D. 62. Pg.78

The word atonement means "reparation for an offense or injury" (Merriam Webster Dictionary). This word is the title of Ian McEwan's best known novel, Atonement. This novel is quite literally, "a story of sin and atonement" (Merriam Webster Dictionary). Set during WWII, Atonement follows the life of main protagonist Briony. The novel begins when Briony is thirteen years old and witnesses a flirtation between her older sister Cecilia, and son of a household servant, Robbie Turner.

Vicarious atonement and salvation by grace (cf. 1 Pet. 2:24, 2 Cor. 5:21, Rom. 4:25, 1 John 2:2, 4:10; John 11:25-26; 14:6; Eph. 2:8-9; Gal. 2:21, 5:4; Rom. 3:20; 4:1-11; 10:1-13).

Atonement is the "reunion of two alienated parties, in this case, God and humanity." Atonement is provided by Jesus' self-offering on the cross on behalf of humanity because JC represents all humanity and offers to God a sacrifice that reconciles humanity and God.

Repentance was not an acceptable path to redemption due to its’ limited power. Athanasius argues that repentance is fine for a minor offence, but inadequate to turn men away from the death that they have brought on their own soul. For repentance does not “call men back from what is their nature – it merely stays them from acts of sin.” Men’s nature became subject to the rule of death, and repentance could not change

All humanity was justifiably condemned, but God declares Christ’s death to be the appropriate, designated sacrifice for sin. Christ then stands in humanity’s place, having paid the penalty of death for sin. Pardon, deliverance and freedom are brought by Jesus’ sacrifice.

The bible, in particular the Old Testament, is full of instances of animal and human sacrifice. Initially, Israel was not united, and became united in their purpose to worship Yahweh, who is the lord that resides in the mountains. Worship involved the presentation of a number sacrifices. In the old testaments, there is mention of five different forms of offerings, the meat offering, a burnt offering, a peace offering, a guilt offering and the sin offering. Presenting sacrifice to God was considered to be an act of generous hospitality. But the question is, was Yahweh appeased by the sacrifices, or he actually detested it and only used it as test of faith?

It affirms that God attributed the sins and guilt of humankind to Jesus, Who in place of man, received that punishment that humanity would have otherwise deserved. Jesus’ actions signified the payment of the sins of humankind, which settled both the righteousness and wrath of God so that sinners could be forgiven without God Himself compromising His holy standard. In essence, according to the penal substitution theory of the reformers, Jesus died in place of man, in the process accounting for the sins of man and bearing them. The act of Jesus taking the sins of man indicates that Jesus carried the cross of every believer, setting him free and safe from all the penal demands of God’s law. In this context, the holiness of God and the righteousness of His law are accounted for by the substitution. Notably, in modern theology, the penal aspect has been a stumbling block despite being regarded as one of the dominant atonement in the bible. According to the model, Jesus paid man’s ransom on his crucifixion. However, this view only works because Christ was paying man’s penalty. Therefore, Christians should be inspired by the self-sacrifice acts of Jesus on the cross. In addition, Jesus’ death and resurrection implied significant victories over death, hell, and sin in our union with him and God. Lastly, God accomplished his mission to reconcile the world with Him despite various trespasses by

Terry, Justyn. “The Forgiveness of Sins and the Work of Christ: A Case for Substitutionary Atonement.” Anglican Theological Review 95.1 (Winter 2013): 9-24.

The concepts of atonement and forgiveness, while similar, have slightly different connotations. Mahatma Gandhi describes forgiveness as “choosing to love” (Huffpost), giving it a more secular process where one’s sins are admonished, where atonement is primarily recognized as the reconciliation of sin or wrongdoing towards others. And while these terms share similar characteristics in a sense of general ‘mending’ of feelings, atonement bears the implication of reparation over agreement of forgiveness. This claim is reinforced by various sources such as Oedipus the King, The Scarlet Letter and The Grapes of Wrath, as well as sources that compare forgiveness and atonement, and the religious implications that come with them.

Anselm of Canterbury, also a twelfth century theologian, had a quite different understanding of sin and redemption. He espoused the theory of Satisfaction that argued “it is not enough for humans to cease from sin. They must offer satisfaction for the sins that they have already committed” . He argued that only Jesus, who was born without sin, could offer his life to God as satisfaction. Humans could not do so because they owe everything to God.

It is the act of being delivered from the principal consequence of the original sin. Although the word salvation requires that God has forgiven us our sins, the word itself is not to be mixed up with the word forgiveness. Salvation is a greater act than