What His death was doing is showing that sin deserves to be punished by the just governor of the universe, the King of the universe. The scapegoat theory, what its saying is that mans sinful way of solving conflict is to scapegoat. Translated from Latin, Christus victor means Christ as conquerer or Christ as victor, and that idea is at the heart of Aulns theory which has taken that name. When this sacrifice happened, the justice of God was satisfied. But maybe that group actually wasnt wrong in the first place. Thats from one of the articles I gave you in the show notes. R. Larry Shelton . McGONIGLE: Arminius and Wesley 97 way-house between the two systems, but on questions of free will and human sinfulness, leaning much more to Calvin than to Pelagius. So, lets start with ransom theory. What He did could not have been to pay the penalty, since if He paid the penalty, then no one would ever go into eternal perdition. Okay, this is an important point hes making from his theological perspective. This is according to the gospel coalition. It goes even further back than the atonement. 0000052954 00000 n Death is a punishment for sin, not the payment for salvation. A resurgence of moral influence atonement, however, came in the 19th century. Forde, in If youre tired of hearing the watered-down Christian teaching and youre hungry for a deeper spiritual life, I have something for you. And if youre ready to go deeper, God is just as ready to take you there. Five hundred years after Anselm posited the atoning work of Christ was substitutionary, the thinkers of the reformation, most notably John Calvin, would go even further. Heres a quote from one of the articles Ive sourced for you. He wrote extensively about God reclaiming humanity as His taking them from the enemys jurisdiction. I wont attempt to change your mind to what I believe, but I hope that as you read, youll thoughtfully and prayerfully reflect on your own answers. While the example theory is operative in Scripture, it is not the substance of what was accomplished in the atonement, but itself derives from the rest . Atonement is what God is doing through Christ, in which, this is according to him, the powers of sin, death, and the devil are overcome, and the world is reconciled to God. This is almost like ransom theory, but the person whos being paid back is God and not The Enemy. One thing again to notice is the cultural context of Anselm. You are at at one with God, you atone. Again, they would not have been using the exact terminology, and the terminology of Jesus paying the penalty for sin is just as prevalent as terminology for ransom and for satisfaction. But, its not the only answer. We are reconciled because the cosmos has been reconciled. Although Sanders concedes that there is indeed a mystery between Gods grace and human freedom. If they get rid of Him, then the tensions will resolve. Gregory, when he wrote about this, he said that Satan obtained legal rights over man due to the fall. In this view, Christ bore the penalty for the sins of man. You would probably think the man was a lunatic. There is biblical basis for seeing the crosses of victory over Satan. We are grateful for the steady leadership of Wesleyan districts and local churches that are setting the . 0000011872 00000 n A few months ago a post circulated Instagram in which Jesus was described as a victim of the cross. With ransom theory, the idea is that the thing thats being bought is humanity because of sin, and the thing that has them captured is Satan. The contributors include Andrew Louth (Eastern Orthodox View), Matthew Levering (Roman Catholic View), Michael Horton (Traditional Reformed View), Fred Sanders (Wesleyan View), and Tom Greggs (Christian Universalist View). We also see John talking about believers overcoming the devil, overcoming The Enemy because of the Word of God dwelling in them in 1 John 2. While the discussion didnt establish a new ecumenical consensus on atonement, students of theology will no doubt benefit from a book like this in trying to figure out what the debates are about and who stands where and why. Because despite of, or in fact because of, its mystery, this debate, and these endless questions, people still find the answer as they have for two thousand yearsin Jesus. The technical name for our church's theological heritage is Arminian-Wesleyan. How do we understand it? This idea has a lot to do with Gods honor and giving Him the honor that is due Him. What Ren Girard and other scholars believe is that the gospels, and actually the whole Bible, present this tension. Especially if you come from a background where its just Jesus died to take our penalty, it can be a little bit hard to understand. Im not going to flesh that one out as much as I am with these other six. That sounds really interesting. This theory is usually not in an orthodox context. In penal substitution, in this theory, the son is freely going to sacrifice. I hope you are as excited to learn more about atonement theories now as you were when you came in, [laughs] and I hope mostly that this helps you in your conversations and in discerning what you see online. The problem comes when God is depicted as in this bargaining relationship with The Enemy or deceiving The Enemy. I believe this is from a quote from Ligonier Ministries that said, The judgment is averted versus the judgment being absorbed. When Jesus took our penalty, He absorbed all the judgment that we deserved with satisfaction theory, that judgment is redirected or its. There also tends to be a general agreement that through Christ, humankind is somehow reconciled with God. I will have all the articles that I use for my research on these listed in the show notes on, and youll be able to read the quotes that I gave you in their actual context If youre interested in learning more about any of these atonement theories. Besides the same criticism of dualism in the ransom theory (making Satan equal to God), the most pressing question with this theory isnt why, but how? Man is totally depraved. What is it? TAMMY - For the next several decades the Wesleyan voices on the atonement were strong and consistent remaining the same. Anselm, when he was creating this theory that the crux of it is that Christ obeyed where humans should have obeyed. You could argue that with every single one of these theories though. But the people who held to government theory were almost universally orthodox, at least until recently. It might not be the one and done theory. I found two articles per atonement theory, so that you can check those out if you want to read more. This is the classical view of the atonement. For such an important question, the Bible doesnt really give a clear answer. We burn them at the stake, and when that person is roasted, when that person is removed from the community, we then say, Look, we can have peace. This actually, in studying this theory, I thought, Oh, my goodness, how many times did we see this happen in 2020 online. You direct all of this anger, all this tension towards the group thats considered the bad guy, the scapegoat, and when that person is rejected by the whole community, they have peace. The New Testament in several places calls Satan the ruler of this earth, and everything Jesus was about centered on vanquishing this empire, taking back the world that Satan had seized and restoring its rightful viceroys humans to their position of guardians of the earth, writes one theologian. And if youre ready to go deeper, God is just as ready to take you there. They kill Him. Okay, you guys, that was a lot. Fun aside: Boso is Anselms main foil in Cur Deus Homo, constantly getting it wrong and constantly being corrected by Anselm. Like we just talked about with satisfaction theory, when Anselm was saying Christ obeyed where we should have obeyed. Thats the argument for satisfaction theory. Now, before you get wiggly inside, lets follow this out. Salvation is a gift actually given to all people in their infancy. Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world. But God basically tricked him with Christ. Like Augustine, 1 Jacob Arminius' position was very similar to that of John Wesley and was less extreme than the Arminians that followed him. I also believe that Amy Gannett has a video on atonement theories saved on her IGTV if youre interested in following her. Then, God could forgive men on other grounds. Why would God have to pay Satan anything? But, as in Anselms theory, man has fallen so short of God that he cannot possibly come close to repaying God for his sins, only God can. Its different from penal substitutionary atonement or vicarious atonement, well talk about that in a second, because it has to do with Gods honor versus having to do with Gods law. This is Verity, where every woman is a theologian. We also see that Jesus describes His death as an illustration of love, which could even fall under the moral influence theory, though that one would not be considered orthodox. And just as every theologian has a Bible passage in support of their ideas, so to do the exemplarists (another name for this theory is moral example), notably 1 Peter 2:22, For this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps, as well as various passages in John (see John 13:1316 and John 15:917). I also believe that Amy Gannett has a video on atonement theories saved on her IGTV if youre interested in following her. The rest of society simply has to be convinced that Jesus is the problem. I ended up taking a four week break partially to research the atonement episode and partially because we just needed that time as a family during my social media break here in the middle of 2021, when this episode is being recorded. Ultimately the atonement for Horton is a matter for the triune God's purposes to save the elect. 0000004295 00000 n Martin Luther was also one of the primary formulators of this theory. Every woman should be a student of the heart of God. Its the combination of at one, as in, to be in harmony with. The resurrection proved that Jesus was Gods way, that God would not allow violence to be what won the day. We need to do something about this, and so he developed this atonement theory, this government theory saying, No, God is just, Hes Trinity, Hes whole, He is righteous, and you cant have a just God in a world where sin is not judged. So, while Jesus was not dying specifically for individuals, He was dying corporately to represent Gods just government of the world in His judgment on sin as a whole. This is different from pluralistic salvation where the cross is not needed since the particular Christian universalist sees in the cross the universal reconciliation of everything and everyone in creation. Calvin was saying Christ was punished where we should have been punished. Christ then becomes an example of mans best rather than the bearer of mans worst.. Jesus likely performed many more miracles than are listed in the Gospel accounts. The king had to send someone in the form of a slave to pay back himself, the king. In 2007, 221 out of 1,691 churches were non-Whitea 66 percent increase. This view of Christ's atonement leaves mankind without a true sacrifice or payment for sin. Ask all of the worlds two billion or so professing Christians and theyll most likely agree with that. With the early church fathers, what can be tough is, they werent just stating, I hold to the ransom theory of the atonement. No, these things are in development. Only a being that was both God and man could satisfy Gods honor and give Him the honor that was due, because the satisfaction had to pay for humanity, the person paying that satisfaction had to be human. 0000007376 00000 n God is essentially buying the children of God, buying humanity back from Satans dominion. Nothing in the Christian system, wrote John Wesley, is of greater consequence than the doctrine of the atonement. How we answer this questions fundamentally shapes how we see the world and how we live our lives. Like most of the theological topics we discuss here at Every Woman a Theologian, we have to stop and critically think about the views weve always held! You later learn he did this because he loved you. One of the highlights of the design, the water wall, has provided a moving opportunity for visitors to read the words of the Declaration of Sentiments, the revolutionary document created just steps away in July of . They could never pay back the king. This analogy is still perpetuated to today, where God is basically saying to Satan, Oh, look, you can kill Jesus, you can actually get rid of Him by crucifying Him. If youre tired of hearing the watered-down Christian teaching and youre hungry for a deeper spiritual life, I have something for you. Im going to talk about pursuing the truth of who God is and who we are in relationship to Him, how to study Scripture, how legalism, shallow theology, and false teaching keep us from living boldly as a woman of the word. This is Verity, where every woman is a theologian. Although typically an in-house Protestant dispute, the discussion is noticeable enlarged to include wider perspectives and approaches. 0000010373 00000 n Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2019. The main positive I found was that of expectation- the expectation that God will work in you to sanctify you. For Anselm, writes one historian, the notion that the devils originator, his creator, could ever be in his debt was absurd. You dont have to settle for watered-down Christian teaching. You can grab your copy on Amazon, or for more information, head to my website. This view that Hugh Grotius saw, he said, that wrong, thats heretical. He is a robber, a rebel, a tyrant, a usurper, unjustly laying hands on that which does not belong to Him. There are six or seven atonement theories. Pelagius and his followers in the 400s CE essentially argued that Christians could be saved by their good works without divine help (his main and most vocal opponent was St. Augustine). https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2018/29-march/features/features/is-there-one-doctrine-of-the-atonement-ransom-substitute-scapegoat-god, http://www.gracecrossingchurch.org/2013/09/atonement-ransom-theory/, https://fullerstudio.fuller.edu/christus-victor-the-salvation-of-god-and-the-cross-of-christ/, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/christus-victor/, https://www.ligonier.org/learn/devotionals/penal-substitution/. Knowing that, we can give a little grace for the fact that these theories were adopted and adapted within a cultural context. It was necessary, therefore, to have an atonement that would provide grounds for forgiveness, and simultaneously retain the structure of moral government.. I have a couple of interesting articles for you on this. St. Greggory of Nyssa, who lived in the 300s CE and profoundly shaped the way we still think of the Trinity, described it as sort of a bait-and-switch. It starts with understanding humanity as a whole and their propensity for conflict intention. 0000007203 00000 n Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! This one was founded by Peter Abelard in reaction to Anselm. What was it about the cross that defeated all the elements of evil throughout the universe? So, there is an element of substitution in government theory, but instead of being for specific individuals, its more of a corporate idea. The reprobate have no grace and cannot please God. It is a genuinely illuminating book. Levering points out that Catholic tradition is admittedly paradoxically committed to Gods efficacious predestination of certain rational creatures for salvation and God superabundantly loves without constriction every rational creature. Further, supporters point to many motifs found in various passages throughout the New Testament, like the power of Satan and his demonic hosts (example: Luke 13:1016) and our slavery to sin (John 8:34). Is the atoning work of Christ about the Son, the Father, or us? In this short essay, I will lay out five theories that have shaped (mainly Western) Christian thought. So, any salvation, in order for salvation to happen, it must be first free man from Satans dominion, and Ill have sources for this in the show notes. Theyre theories about the atonement. Our last theory today is scapegoat theory. He was very well acquainted with the feudal system, in which you had slaves who worked on an estate for an overlord, and so that overlord usually at night protected the estate, but the knight also had to honor the king. Gregory was the one who first established this analogy of Satan being tricked by God to take this ransom. Although this theory was firmly codified in all Protestant confessions of faith by the end of the Reformation, its further development was in large part a reaction to the Enlightenment. But man, being so much less than God, can never restore that honor on his own. For example, one Southern Baptist theologian who ardently supports penal substitution does not deny the cosmic significance of Christs victory on the cross, nor does he deny the importance of Jesus as an ethical model for all humankind. To avoid that, well, also honoring the atonement, you have government theory. Even though Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the only one of the five organizers to live in Seneca Falls, the Wesleyan Chapel was well known to them all.The church was a local haven for antislavery activity, political . What is happening in this atonement theory if Jesus is not being specifically punished? The most important concept in Christianity is accepting Jesus as ones savior. One of the people who really pushed this theory to the forefront was the Swedish theologian, Auln. Hes freely giving himself up to pay the penalty, and God judges his son with a judgment we deserved. 0000001817 00000 n Why would He be in debt to Satan? In his Galatians commentary of 1535, he evidences his departure Anselms satisfaction theory. 0000005591 00000 n Were going to be looking at six. The debt is total, the obligation to pay it, total, the power to pay it, zero. The answer then is found in the sacrifice of Christ: fully human, he can atone for man, fully God, he can restore Gods honor. Their way of explaining it though often had to do with a fear of universalism, because the people who held to this theory were not Calvinistic. The Governmental Theory of the Atonement cannot be called the "Arminian" view if Arminius himself did not hold to it. So, his example of love is one that we should be emulating. 0000001931 00000 n The theories we cover are: Phylicia: Welcome to Verity. However, I still think reading about it is interesting and helpful, because the theory is growing in popularity. Go back and listen to the discerning core doctrine episode if you want more on that, but its a question of how does the atonement work, not is the atonement true, which would be a core doctrine. The more noble the person you offended, the greater your reparation needed to be. Welcome to Verity. I will briefly explore the relational character of God. The slaves or serfs owed the knight a debt of honor for protecting them, and they served him in order to be protected. They cite specifically Romans 3:2126, which reads in part: All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement (or a place of atonement) by his blood., The difference between Anselms substitutionary atonement and the penal substitutionary atonement of the Reformation is slight but important. In fact, the expression, What Would Jesus Do? was born out of these thoughts, popularized by the 1896 novel In His Steps(again, 1 Peter 2:22). But no, I do not think we should stop pressing for details. If that sounds familiar, thats no surprise because that is exactly what most churches teach today. But unbeknownst to the devil, Jesus was also God. I think all of us have been at a womens conference where we were told you are a beautiful daughter of the Most High King, and its true, but its not the whole truth. The idea of this is that Jesus with His death paid off The Enemy. Nor is it the "Wesleyan" view if Wesley himself did not hold to it, nor the great Orthodox Methodist theologians: Watson, Summers, and Pope to name a few. This refers to the teachings of James Arminius and John Wesley. But as we know, humans could not pay the price, and therefore, Jesus had to pay the price in a human body. My own sentiment is that the extent of the atonement is really an in-house Protestant debate, Louth and Levering both point out that this topic is not one normally germane to their own respective traditions, it is just not on their radar. But if, on the other hand, you yourself were drowning in the ocean, and a man came out to save you, succeeds, but drowns himself, you would understand, yes this is love. It was just a repackaged version of Arianism, which is an anti-Trinitarian heresy. But in the show notes on the blog, you will have access to a series of articles that I have sourced for you on each atonement theory. When I was writing this episode, I kept thinking, I need to move this theory to the top. Johnsons essay elegantly notes that the discussion of the atonement is important because it is shaped by and in turn shapes other doctrines related to God, divine attributes, Christology, and predestination. They did not believe God was choosing who would be saved. Also, I think there are elements of the theory that are absolutely true. By far, the fastest growing segment of the North American church in the last decade has been Hispanics and Latinos. We do want to keep in mind that the vicarious atonement theory that Jesus is standing in for us that hes taking a penalty we deserved can possibly be held alongside other theories. Instead, theyre directing that violence to these animals, and then in Jesus, we see the ultimate overcoming of the scapegoat model. Progressive Christian, journalist and entrepreneur , the name for Bozo the Clown has originated. Theres a slight difference in the focus, even though the models are actually quite similar. Someone to blame for the conflict. Again, its important to understand the culture in which Anselm was writing. NPS. Keswick speakers and writers stress the reality of the sin nature and disavows the possibility of sinless perfection. This is one of those theories that can come alongside Christus Victor explicitly, though it differs fundamentally from ransom and satisfaction theory on several levels. But he also became human, lived, healed, taught, modeled, and was raised from the dead. Theres a dominion or capturing, and then theres a buying back imagery used in the Bible. Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan- Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles Wesley. We should not stop asking questions about or digging for answers to this, the most important question in Christianity. The beauty of being Gods daughter has some backstory, and its left out in a lot of messages preached to women. Satan had control over humanity since the fall of man, and only the soul of perfectly innocent Jesus would be an acceptable payment for the return of humanity to the Father. is a book about going deeper with God. In the end, I just left the first theory were going to talk about as the original one, and that is ransom theory. The next theory is government theory. Whats demonstrated on the cross here is that the suffering of Christ for sin, in general, should be enough to deter us from sin. The dualism demonstrated in that theory returns. "The Scope of the Atonement in the Early Church," Wesleyan Theological Journal 47.2 (2012), 26. His act of substitution, Him offering Himself as a sacrifice allows us to be atoned for. Thats the whole concept that Ren Girard was working with. It is an attempt to help us understand how we now can be at peace with God despite sin. In satisfaction theory, the judgment that we were supposed to receive is directed away from us because the wrath of God is satisfied. Okay, you guys, that was a lot. Jesus wasnt dying to specifically pay a penalty for Phylicia. And then, Jesus conquers Satan through the resurrection and ransoms humanity back to the Lord.. 0000007030 00000 n The word penal means penalty, and so thats the focus of this theory. Hes freely giving himself up to pay the penalty, and God judges his son with a judgment we deserved. 0000006379 00000 n 0000007558 00000 n Abelard developed quite a different view of the atonement, and its to his own theory we now turn. The adult made a choice out of love. So, the focus of penal substitution really is on that punishment. Because the rebel powers have been put in their place, we can be presented holy and blameless before God.. How does it work? Greggs majors on the universal scope of salvation and the omnipotence of divine love exercised in Christs cross. Basically, what this one is, its just that the cross changes our ethical behavior, because Christ is an example of love to us. In the Gospels, Jesus performed many miracles. But in penal substitution, the judgment is absorbed. As I reflect on all the possible theories of atonement (and I again admit there are more not covered here), I am in awe of the power of the cross and the atoning work of Christ. This view became dominant in the Wesleyan and Armenian Methodist tradition (even though, John Wesley himself did not hold to it) and also in some charismatic circles and among some open theists. You have to be a little bit more cautious with this theory, even if youre like, Oh, I really liked that. Really, what it does is, it removes the need for themes of atonement in general. Some have hypothesized its where the name for Bozo the Clown has originated. This is the idea that the atonement of Jesus is satisfaction or compensation for the Father. Its a how question. I believe this is from a quote from Ligonier Ministries that said, The judgment is averted versus the judgment being absorbed. When Jesus took our penalty, He absorbed all the judgment that we deserved with satisfaction theory, that judgment is redirected or its directed away from us, because Gods wrath is satisfied. Its all intertwined. While there are some really neat elements of scapegoat theory that I think are worth considering, as a general rule, this is a theory that is perpetuated within progressive theology, and in doing so, also will undermine other key doctrines regarding the deity of Christ or the Trinity or theology of sin, things like that.