THE VICARIOUS ATONEMENT While I have already made mention of this, I must again elaborate upon it. Salvation is not simplistic. The holy nature of God would not permit Him to simply take sinful man back to Himself. He could not ignore sin, or treat it as though it had not occurred. This is an aspect of His character that He revealed to Moses, who asked to see His glory. "Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and THAT WILL BY NO MEANS CLEAR THE GUILTY; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation" (Ex 34:7). Nahum took up the refrain as well: "The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and WILL NOT AT ALL ACQUIT THE WICKED: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet" (Nahum 1:3). -- Tomorrow:
"For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be save from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement." (Romans 5:6-11)
Devotion 2 of 28
God did not say He did NOT forgive the guilty. In fact, He declared His nature to be that of "forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin." However, he will not treat as innocent those who are really guilty! Sin must be punished – punished by the God against whom it is committed. Guilt must be removed, absolutely and finally. The nature of God demands this, and He will not back away from that requirement.
In salvation, therefore, there must be some provision for the punishment and cursing of sin. If God is going to justify sinners, He must be JUST, or righteous, in doing so. A salvation that
requires God to compromise His holiness is no salvation at all. When the Gospel is preached, this perspective must be declared: "To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that he might be JUST AND JUSTIFIER of him which believeth in Jesus" (Rom 3:26).
In the death of Christ not only were the needs of men satisfied, but the requirements of God were also addressed. Let it be clear in your thinking: God the Father needed Christ as well as ourselves. This was not because of any deficiency in God. Rather, it was in order that His righteousness might be satisfied. That way, no one would be able to condemn the one justified by God. As it is written, "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth" (Rom 8:33).
Speaking as a man, there was a serious dilemma that had to be addressed by salvation. Mercy wanted to pardon men, but truth testified against such a thing, for the guilt of man could not be overlooked. Peace cried out for the reconciliation of sinners to God, but righteousness forbade such a transaction, for the nature of fallen man could not be joined to a holy God. There must be some way in which the Scripture could be fulfilled: "Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other" (Psa 85:10).
What was required by fallen men, and demanded by a holy God, could only be accomplished through infinite wisdom. After four thousand years, not only had mankind utterly failed to correct its condition, there had been absolutely no progress in that area. God had provided a period without the Law – a segment of time lasting for 2,500 years. During that time, man was given ample opportunity to correct his condition, surrounded by a creation that testified to the "eternal power and Divine nature" of its Creator (Rom 1:20). An additional 1,500 years were provided during which the Law reigned. It provided men with information and direction, and that, in staggering detail. But after both of those periods had concluded, God stood on the precipice of His creation and surveyed the whole of Adam's offspring. His findings are stated in words that startle the human intellect. "There is NONE righteous, no, NOT ONE: There is NONE that understandeth, there is NONE that seeketh after God. They are ALL gone out of the way, they are TOGETHER become unprofitable; there is NONE that doeth good, no, NOT ONE" (Rom 3:12). Moral and spiritual decline had continued uninterrupted from man's expulsion the garden. The only favorable change that occurred in any person followed a Divine initiative. But more than this, no one knew what could be done about the human condition. David lamented, "None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him" (Psa 49:7). No man or group of men could suggest a proposal for the reclamation of sinners. The plan, and the execution of the plan, had to come from God – the offended Party. Was He equal to this moral challenge? Indeed He was!
God devised a salvation that successfully addressed every condition caused by sin. It was a salvation that would reach as far as the curse, abounding even more that sin. There would not be a defiled shore of this fallen race upon which the waves of grace would not crash with saving power. There would not be a challenge hurled from the "old serpent" himself that would not be dashed to the ground. Salvation is not simplistic!
The significance of the death of Christ is seen against the backdrop of the sacrifices commanded under the Law. There, God acquainted men with a substitutionary, or vicarious, sacrifice. The ideas of "atonement" and "reconciliation" through blood was introduced and developed. Apart from some understanding of these types and shadows, the death of Christ cannot be seen as precisely as possible.
Much preaching about Christ's death is from a sympathetic and fleshly viewpoint. Men are prone to compare God giving His Son for us to the impact of an earthly father giving up his son. Others present the death of Christ in such a manner as to lead men to view Christ as a mere martyr. I am careful to say these conclusions are not always preached. Rather, men are left thinking in this way because they have not heard the Scriptural representation of Christ's death. It is too often seen more as emotionally staggering than spiritually profound.
The passage with which these devotions will deal will show that Christ's death was not a mere favor, but a Divinely required substitution. His death was vicarious, and could not be avoided without all men perishing. It was endured by Christ in the place of, and for the benefit of, fallen humanity.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for drafting a salvational purpose that has endured the test of time, and will stand throughout all eternity.