christ’s atoning death copyright by norman l. geisler 2007

Christ’s Atoning DeathChrist’s Atoning Death

Copyright by Norman L. Geisler 2007Copyright by Norman L. Geisler 2007

The Essential Orthodox Doctrines 1. God’s unity 2. God’s tri-unity 3. Human depravity 4. Mary’s virginity 5. Christ’s purity 6. Christ’s deity 7. Christ’s humanity 8. God’s mercy 9. Faith’s necessity 10. Christ’s atoning death

11. Christ’s bodily resurrection 12. Christ’s bodily ascension 13. Christ’s priestly session 14. Christ’s second coming [15. Bible’s infallibility] [16. Literal interpretation]

The Essential Orthodox Doctrines 1. God’s unity 2. God’s tri-unity 3. Human depravity 4. Mary’s virginity 5. Christ’s purity 6. Christ’s deity 7. Christ’s humanity 8. God’s mercy 9. Faith’s necessity 10. Christ’s atoning death

11. Christ’s bodily resurrection 12. Christ’s bodily ascension 13. Christ’s priestly session 14. Christ’s second coming [15. Bible’s infallibility] [16. Literal interpretation]

OutlineOutlineI. The Biblical Basis

II. The Creedal Statements

III. The Doctrinal Importance

IV. Some Objections Considered

I. The Biblical Basis




OutlineOutlineI. The Biblical BasisEx. 12:5,7—“Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male

of the first year…. The whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the lintel of the houses where they eat.”

Lev. 17:11—“The life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.”

Isa. 53--

I. The Biblical BasisEx. 12:5,7—“Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male

of the first year…. The whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the lintel of the houses where they eat.”

Lev. 17:11—“The life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.”

Isa. 53--

The Dead Sea Isaiah ScrollThe Dead Sea Isaiah Scroll

(From 100 B.C.)

“Who has believed our report and the arm of YHWH to whom has it been revealed. And he shall come up like a suckling before us and as a root from dry ground there is no form to him and no beauty to him and in his being seen and there is no appearance that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and knowing grief. And as though hiding faces from him he was despised and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he is bearing and our sorrows he carried them and we esteemed him beaten and struck by God and afflicted and he is wounded for our transgressions, and crushed for our iniquities, the correction of our peace was upon him and by his wounds he has healed us. All of us like sheep have wandered each man to his own way we have turned and YHWH has caused to light on him the iniquity of all of us. He was oppressed and he was afflicted and he did not open his mouth, as a lamb to the slaughter he is brought and as a ewe before her shearers is made dumb he did not open his mouth. From prison and from judgment he was taken and his generation who shall discuss it because he was cut off from the land of the living. Because from the transgressions of his people a wound was to him. And they gave wicked ones to be his grave and rich ones in his death although he worked no violence neither deceit in his mouth. And YHWH was pleased to crush him and He has caused him grief.

“Who has believed our report and the arm of YHWH to whom has it been revealed. And he shall come up like a suckling before us and as a root from dry ground there is no form to him and no beauty to him and in his being seen and there is no appearance that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and knowing grief. And as though hiding faces from him he was despised and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he is bearing and our sorrows he carried them and we esteemed him beaten and struck by God and afflicted and he is wounded for our transgressions, and crushed for our iniquities, the correction of our peace was upon him and by his wounds he has healed us. All of us like sheep have wandered each man to his own way we have turned and YHWH has caused to light on him the iniquity of all of us. He was oppressed and he was afflicted and he did not open his mouth, as a lamb to the slaughter he is brought and as a ewe before her shearers is made dumb he did not open his mouth. From prison and from judgment he was taken and his generation who shall discuss it because he was cut off from the land of the living. Because from the transgressions of his people a wound was to him. And they gave wicked ones to be his grave and rich ones in his death although he worked no violence neither deceit in his mouth. And YHWH was pleased to crush him and He has caused him grief.

If you will appoint his soul a sin offering he will see his seed and he will lengthen his days and the pleasure of YHWH in his hand will advance. Of the toil of his soul he shall see [light] and he shall be satisfied and by his knowledge shall he make righteous even my righteous servant for many and their iniquities he will bear. Therefore I will apportion to him among the great ones and with the mighty ones he shall divide the spoil because he laid bare to death his soul and with the transgressors he was numbered, and he, the sins of many, he bore, and for their transgressions he entreated.” [He/him/his 57x]



Note: Words and phrases indicating a plurality of people are distinct from “he,” “him,” and “his”—the individual suffering Messiah.

1. “His people” 5 . “Great ones”

2. “His generation” 6. “Wicked ones”

3. “All of us” 7. “Transgressors”

4. “Sins of many” 8. “Many” and “their”


Note: Words and phrases indicating a plurality of people are distinct from “he,” “him,” and “his”—the individual suffering Messiah.

1. “His people” 5 . “Great ones”

2. “His generation” 6. “Wicked ones”

3. “All of us” 7. “Transgressors”

4. “Sins of many” 8. “Many” and “their”

I. The Biblical BasisI. The Biblical BasisZech. 12:10—”I [the LORD] will pour on the house of

David…the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me [the LORD[ whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.”

Mark 10:45—“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

1 Cor. 15:1-4—“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the Gospel...that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.”

Zech. 12:10—”I [the LORD] will pour on the house of David…the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me [the LORD[ whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.”

Mark 10:45—“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

1 Cor. 15:1-4—“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the Gospel...that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.”

I. The Biblical BasisI. The Biblical Basis2 Cor. 5:21.—“For He [God] has made Him [Christ] to be

sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Hebrews 9:22,26—”…without the shedding of blood the is no remission…. But now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”

1 Pet 2:24—He “Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes we were healed.”

1 Pet 3:18—“For Christ Himself also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God….”

2 Cor. 5:21.—“For He [God] has made Him [Christ] to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Hebrews 9:22,26—”…without the shedding of blood the is no remission…. But now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”

1 Pet 2:24—He “Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes we were healed.”

1 Pet 3:18—“For Christ Himself also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God….”

The Apostles’ CreedThe Apostles’ Creed• I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the

Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried…. The third day He arose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

• I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried…. The third day He arose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

The Nicene Creed (325) The Nicene Creed (325) We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only

Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God.... For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven….. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures…. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God.... For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven….. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures…. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

• The Chalcedonian Creed (451)• Following, then, the holy fathers, we unite in

teaching all men to confess the one and only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ…. Before time began he was begotten of the Father, in respect of his deity, and now in these "last days," for us and on behalf of our salvation, this selfsame one was born of Mary the virgin, who is God-bearer in respect of his humanness.

• The Chalcedonian Creed (451)• Following, then, the holy fathers, we unite in

teaching all men to confess the one and only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ…. Before time began he was begotten of the Father, in respect of his deity, and now in these "last days," for us and on behalf of our salvation, this selfsame one was born of Mary the virgin, who is God-bearer in respect of his humanness.

III. The Doctrinal ImportanceIII. The Doctrinal ImportanceReasons for the Substitutionary Atonement:1. God’s absolute justice demands it (Hab. 1:13; Rom. 3:26).2. Our complete depravity demands it (Rom. 3:19).3. OT sacrificial lamb prefigures it (1Cor. 5:7).4. Isaiah 53 explicitly teaches substitutionary atonement5. Jesus was presented as the Sacrificial Lamb (Jn. 1:29).6. Jesus presented His death as a ransom (Mk. 10:45).7. Jesus dying “for” (huper) us implies substitution (Jn. 10:15).8. Christ being sacrificed “for” (anti) means “instead of” (Mk. 10:45).9. God being “satisfied” (propitiated) implies substitution (1 Jn.

2:2).10. Transferred righteousness implies it (2 Cor. 5:21).

Reasons for the Substitutionary Atonement:1. God’s absolute justice demands it (Hab. 1:13; Rom. 3:26).2. Our complete depravity demands it (Rom. 3:19).3. OT sacrificial lamb prefigures it (1Cor. 5:7).4. Isaiah 53 explicitly teaches substitutionary atonement5. Jesus was presented as the Sacrificial Lamb (Jn. 1:29).6. Jesus presented His death as a ransom (Mk. 10:45).7. Jesus dying “for” (huper) us implies substitution (Jn. 10:15).8. Christ being sacrificed “for” (anti) means “instead of” (Mk. 10:45).9. God being “satisfied” (propitiated) implies substitution (1 Jn.

2:2).10. Transferred righteousness implies it (2 Cor. 5:21).

IV. Some Objections to GraceIV. Some Objections to GraceA. Objection that it is unjust It is unjust because it releases

the sinner from His debt to God because of His sin.

Response: It is not unjust because the debt is paid by Christ who died “the just for the unjust” (1 Pet. 3:18) and God is “satisfied” (1 Jn. 2:2) with it.

A. Objection that it is unjust It is unjust because it releases

the sinner from His debt to God because of His sin.

Response: It is not unjust because the debt is paid by Christ who died “the just for the unjust” (1 Pet. 3:18) and God is “satisfied” (1 Jn. 2:2) with it.

IV. Some Objections to Grace

IV. Some Objections to Grace

B. Objection that it is unjust It is unjust because it punishes

another for our sins (Eze. 18:20).Response: 1) Christ was willing (Jn.

10:17) to pay for it. 2) He is not charged with the guilt (which would be unjust); he merely paid for it (2 Cor. 5:21).

B. Objection that it is unjust It is unjust because it punishes

another for our sins (Eze. 18:20).Response: 1) Christ was willing (Jn.

10:17) to pay for it. 2) He is not charged with the guilt (which would be unjust); he merely paid for it (2 Cor. 5:21).

IV. Some ObjectionsIV. Some ObjectionsC. Objection that it is a kind of double

jeopardy It is unjust because sinners are punished again

for sins for which Christ already paid the price.Response: 1) The atonement is not automatically

applied to all persons. 2) The payout is conditional on the sinners accepting it.

3) Christ put more than enough money in the bank to cover everyone’s sins. But they must draw on it (by faith) for the pay out to occur.

C. Objection that it is a kind of double jeopardy

It is unjust because sinners are punished again for sins for which Christ already paid the price.

Response: 1) The atonement is not automatically applied to all persons. 2) The payout is conditional on the sinners accepting it.

3) Christ put more than enough money in the bank to cover everyone’s sins. But they must draw on it (by faith) for the pay out to occur.

IV. Some ObjectionsIV. Some ObjectionsD. Objection that righteousness is not

transferable Like guilt (Eze. 18:20), righteousness

can’t be transferred.Response: 1) A person cannot suffer for the

actual guilt of another but only the consequences of that guilt. 2) The payout is conditional on the sinners accepting it. 3) The transfer of righteousness is only judicial, not actual (2 Cor. 5:21). 4) Our perfection is “in Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17), not in ourselves.

D. Objection that righteousness is not transferable

Like guilt (Eze. 18:20), righteousness can’t be transferred.

Response: 1) A person cannot suffer for the actual guilt of another but only the consequences of that guilt. 2) The payout is conditional on the sinners accepting it. 3) The transfer of righteousness is only judicial, not actual (2 Cor. 5:21). 4) Our perfection is “in Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17), not in ourselves.

christ’s atoning death copyright by norman l. geisler 2007

Documents

christs purity

christs deity

christs humanity

christs bodily resurrection

christs bodily ascension

christs priestly session

gods unity

biblical basis