Monday, July 02, 2007

Payment Made

whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
(Romans 3:25a – ESV)

1 John 2:2, 4:10 – Propitiation – a sacrifice that satisfies the wrath of God against sinners. Jesus on the cross not only reveals God’s justice and His righteousness but it actually saves sinners. By expiating (removing the problem of) sin, God was made propitious (favorable) to us. Instead of leaving all consigned to hell, He showed His love to those whom He calls to Himself.

There is a major difference between pardon and justification. Pardon says that you are guilty but suspends the penalty of that guilt. Justification declares you to be righteous and without guilt. How can God do that? By Christ paying the price of redemption. If God were to simply pardon or forgive based on our bits of penance then that would say that the sins weren’t really all that bad and that God was not really all that holy. Think about Islam and Allah in light of this. Because for them, Allah just forgives: not only there is no payment for our sins, there is none needed. However, if God can forgive without payment for sins, then he's no god. If God is not holy and just, then He does not deserve any worship. But the angels cry holy, holy, holy.

Propitiation is set against the flawed notion of penance. Penance is used to pay for the bad we have done, or to offset the bad we do. In other words, since we are going to do bad, it is justified by the good we do, kind of like how many people who do bad things think they can get off the hook because they start a foundation or give to charity or whatever. It is kind of like the carbon offsets of today, it is the old medieval idea of penance brought forward to today, and so many religions do this same thing. These things may appease our conscience but they do not appease God’s wrath. Your payment isn’t enough. Penance never excuses your own excess.

In the New Testament, the act of propitiation always refers to the work of God and not the sacrifices or gifts offered by man. The reason for this is that man is totally incapable of satisfying God’s justice except by spending eternity in hell. Even there he cannot make a full payment and that is why it must continue on. This is also why the notion of Purgatory is false. Purgatory lessens the value of God; it diminishes the level of His holiness, His wrath, and the severity of sin. It makes His judgment arbitrary, and His mercy just kindness.

There is no service, sacrifice or gift that man can offer that will appease the holy wrath of God or satisfy His perfect justice. Psalm 51:17 – the sacrifices God wants are a broken spirit and a contrite heart, but these are repentance not propitiation. The only satisfaction, or propitiation, that could be acceptable to God and that could reconcile man to Him, had to be made by God. For this reason God the Son, Jesus Christ, came into the world in human flesh to be the perfect sacrifice for sin and make atonement or “propitiation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:14-17). The old song has it right: He paid a debt, He did not owe, I owed a debt, I could not pay

8 comments:

Taliesin said...

If God were to simply pardon or forgive based on our bits of penance then that would say that the sins weren’t really all that bad and that God was not really all that holy.

Amen. I'm reminded of a quote, maybe someone will remember who: "Even my repentance needs repenting of." (Luther?)

Anonymous said...

Our lack of fully comprehending what you've said here is why we can make statements like, "I'm basically a good person" and "I'm not as bad as _____" and "I volunteer 20 hours a week to______" and "I'm at church every time the doors are open" and on and on.

"Even my repentance needs repenting of".......I like that!

Unknown said...

JD,

Thanks for this excellent post. I love reading, pondering, preaching anything that has to do with propitiation. A buddy of mine has the coolest T-shirt that says...

"PROPITIATION"- Teach your kids its not a dirty word

Even So... said...

Yeah, it is the heart of the good news...a bloody yet beautiful thing that proves God's worth, not ours...

Craver Vii said...

(grinning) Propitiation is not a four-letter-word.

donsands said...

"These things may appease our conscience but they do not appease God’s wrath."

I remember back when I was first a Christian, I went to the priest and confessed my sins.
He then told me to say 5 "Our Fathers" & 5 "Hail Mary's".

I got through about 4 Our Father's when I thought this seems so wrong.

I was on the way to become a Protestant.

Even So... said...

I will always protest in the loudest terms possible whenever and whereever someone denies the penal substitution aspect of the atonement...

Even So... said...

Truthfully, it isn't that most people actively deny it, but that they haven't considered it and don't as yet understand it and the implications of it...but for those who do and still deny it, they are denying the heart of the gospel...and therfore I would and do deny them being in the faith, from our perspective...