Wednesday, October 12, 2005
THOUGHTS ON ATONEMENT
Christ died for sinners. That statement is at the very heart of the Christian faith. And of course the primary symbol of Christianity is a cross. But what exactly does it mean to say that Christ died for sinners? The biblical concept that can help us understand Christ's death is atonement. According to Romans 3:25, "God presented him [Christ] as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood...." We also read in 1 John 2:2 that "He [Christ] is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."
Atonement is so central to Christianity that biblical scholar Leon Morris has written, "The atonement is the crucial doctrine of the faith. Unless we are right here it matters little, or so it seems to me, what we are like elsewhere." An excellent thought. Since I am preparing a Bible study on the subject of atonement, I hope to blog a bit more about it in the coming days.
