Unlimited Atonement: Chirst Died For All Mankind

I was looking at 1 Timothy 2:1-6 yesterday and came to the conclusion that there's no way to see Christ's death as only for the elect, if you're reading the passage in context. I'm only covering this particular passage at this time and the exegesis will be simple, but it's an important Truth that requires illustrating.

What is Unlimited Atonement?

But before I go there, what is it? Unlimited atonement is the belief based on Biblical Truth that Christ died for the sins of the whole world. The opposite of that is the "L" in Calvinism's TULIP, which stands for Limited Atonement. Limited Atonement teaches that Christ only died for the elect. Those who agree with unlimited atonement would say that Christ died for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16, etc), but that this is only truly applicable to those who believe in Christ God's death and resurrection because sins can only be forgiven as a person believes. In other words, proponents of unlimited atonement do not teach universalism: that all men are saved regardless of whether they believe or not. Rather, they teach that Christ's death was for all of the sins of mankind, but truly only effective to those who believe, receiving that forgiveness.

Btw, check out http://www.gotquestions.org/calvinism.html if you're still unsure of what all this means. Or you can just google it... =P

"...I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may live a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. (1 Timothy 2:1-2 NASB)"

Firstly, Paul urges, commands, and exhorts believers to pray for ALL men (1), including those in places of authority (2), so that we can live Godly lives, resting on God for our hope and peace. This seems to denote a two part peace: External and internal. External because praying for those in power to know Him is something that can potentially affect our external circumstances (cultural, political, and otherwise) for more exposure to others for the Gospel. Internal because praying changes our attitudes, thoughts, and ideas and conforms them to God's standard so that we can love God and others in an increasingly excellent way for the glory of God to the conformity of His Son.

Secondly, praying for all people "is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior (3)".

Thirdly, God "desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (4)"

These last two verses answer the "what is this truth" question (the Gospel) and further demonstrate God's unconditional love for all of mankind by sending His Son to die for them:

"...For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimonygiven at the proper time... (5-6)"

While there's so much more to say, I want to bring light to the fact that every single use of the word "all", in this passage, covers all people including political leaders. Everyone. This isn't all the people at the church where Timothy's at or even just the people alive all over the world at that time. This "all" speaks of every person who has ever lived. And this isn't the only passage in the Scriptures that speaks about this, but this one's pretty clear. The basis for Christ's death for all people is that all would come to know Him! This is rooted in God's desire for the world and for people to love Him: The One True God, in whom men should find fullness of joy and satisfaction.

A few closing thoughts:

1. If I'm adding anything to the Biblical text, please call me out on it. I want to be dogmatic and sure about things that the Bible teaches and to attack those doctrines (Eph 6:12) which are not in conformity to the Word of God. Why? Because if I can only be sure about certain parts of the Scripture, it should bring doubt to all of the Word of God. It is a unit, inspired by God, and if the salvation parts are reliable (the Gospel, etc), so are these other parts which can get messy and which I may not even completely understand (election, the Trinity, etc).
   


2. I post this because the Bible says it and because I know it's a fairly controversial topic that 1 Tim 2 speaks of directly.


3. I do not post this because I want division and argument, but I want Biblical Truth- which, will probably bring on these former things. If God's Word really is inerrant we shouldn't be afraid to trust in what it says regarding these issues and more. I think God is big enough that He can put comprehensive text in front of the people He made.
   


4. Are your thoughts about God (theology) informed ONLY by the Word of God or also by your theological system, upbringing, and personal preference or opinion? I can be asked the same question, of course, but I've convinced myself already on most of the things I consider "Truth" to be so because that's what you get when you read the Bible just trying to understand what the author's saying (with a literal, normal hermeneutic). You shouldn't expect anything else.
   

Correct Thinking

This morning I went for a three mile run. Even though it was nine in the morning, it was already really hot (living in Houston, Texas). This was one of the hardest runs I have ever went on. The weird thing was, my body felt great. Legs were strong and the knees were holding up fairly well. The thing that started to fail me was mind. When things started to get harder and the heat was kicked up, I felt like I should stop. It was a mental battle to keep going. I questioned if I should stop because of the heat. I thought "there is no way I can keep going!" For most of the run I had these thoughts and this made things extremely hard. It's not like I was running a marathon or even a half-marathon, three miles should be pretty easy for a 21 year old guy. But, the incorrect thoughts I was having beat me down.

After the run I started thinking about how this relates to the Christian Life. Our culture these days puts so much emphasis on "running" (service, living for the Lord, community ect.), that thinking correctly takes the back seat. This, to me, seems backwards to all of the New Testament Epistles. Paul, in the majority of his letters, started the first half of the book with doctrine and how the believer should think about things (Ephesians, Galatians, Philippians ect.). Never, does he ask the believer to live a certain way, before instructing them on key doctrines that relate to living. Our Christian life, and service must be founded on correct doctrine or the end result will be failure.

This is not to say that serving the Lord isn't needed but the focus in most churches has shifted from doctrinal teaching to application only. We need doctrine to think correctly with the end result of living correctly.

This is a must read in addition to this post:

http://www.brenhambiblechurch.org/pastors-blog/doctrine-is-dead/.

Dr. JB Hixson cleverly portrays the Christian culture of the day. Very good! Article titled "Doctrine is Dead"

Ponderings from Sunday Morning

This post will be pretty informal, but I want to remind y'all of some key truths that I was reminded this morning at church.

During the main service, we were in 1 and 2 Kings. I attend Kingsland Baptist Church and we're going through all 66 books of the Bible in order. So this week brought us to these two books- which are actually one book in Hebrew Bibles so I think that's part of the reason why Pastor Alex divided it like this. Long story short, there is something we must remember from these stories in the OT (Romans 15:4), and specifically from what was discussed today: How easy it is for us to get distracted, to fall into sin, and not fully render our heart, soul, mind, and body to devotion to the One True God.

Salvation and sanctification are always by God's grace through faith no matter what dispensation we're looking at.

For the wise King Solomon, his sin was 1000 wives and concubines (1 Kings 11:1-8) who he not only loved, slept with, was enraptured by, but he was a worshiper of their gods! This is a reminder to us of...

1. The simple perspective of life God gives us (Love God and Love others in faith and obedience; Or don't and experience the sin and death involved with a life not rendered fully to God).
2. The choice we have daily to serve and obey Him in faith.
   
3. The ease of falling into sin. Solomon's was unique to his situation as it can be with ours. Whether pornography, drugs, alcohol, prostitutes, murder, business, busyness, family, or even being religious, the ways in which we can love ourselves are many. The way in which we can love God and others are few but rewarding and joyous.

So let us serve God this day: To seek Him in all things!

Secondly, let us never get comfortable in our situation. Whether married, single, divorced, or widowed- wherever God has us- do not fall into the trap of being idle or being content with what the world offers: The American Dream.

During Sunday School, Steve Hyde spoke to us for 45+ minutes on the opportunity for missionary opportunity throughout the world and especially in Cambodia, where he currently resides and serves alongside the government who's trying to reconstruct a broken society: Feeding the poor and homeless, rescuing the child from prostitution, drug dealing, and slave labor, and being love with flesh on it to people in whatever situation.

I want to emphasize to everyone reading that you are, as we will continue to expound upon in the posts on our identity in Christ, valuable because of what Christ has done/who He is. We have all been made in the image of God and Christ has died for all men because He loves them. And your life is defined not by what you do or who you are or who you think you are (unless it's Biblically accurate), but it is rooted in Christ! That being said, we have the opportunity to make much of our lives for the glory of God by faith and obedience to His Word.

God doesn't expect us to be perfect, but God does want us to be obedient in faith.

Lastly, after Hyde was done speaking, I asked him about how he does evangelism. I've been really turned off lately in how many do it. The message is, as I've seen, usually very clear and precise, citing what they're saying from the Scriptures (Christ died for our sins and rose again), but the actual presentation tends to be overly confrontational, argumentative, and extremely shallow. I don't doubt the need for people to know the Gospel, but I do wonder if the people who do it actually build life relationships with people when they do this.

It was refreshing to hear Steve Hyde tell me he builds relationships while providing for natural human needs when he's out ministering/on the mission field. He even went on to say that he will not talk with others about Christ unless he can commit to being there to disciple them and grow them in Christ.

I say this last point on evangelism because of two things missing from the American Church today:

1. Real community by deep friendships.
2. Discipleship. While evangelism is certainly emphasized, it's not always backed by a strong relationship and dedication to growing that person in Christ and teaching them what that looks like.

Identity (Part 1)

Humanity, since the creation of the world, has gone through life asking the question "who am I?". History has seen many different answers to that question. Whether it be fig leaves in the garden of Eden or a high-paying job, people usually define themselves by what they do/don't do and what they have/don't have.

For the believer, this question is usually answered by what we do/don't do for the Lord. Most of the time our sense of identity comes from our own feelings about ourselves. I don't "feel" loved by the Lord. I "feel" like the Lord will not bless me. My patterns of sin make me "feel" like I will never have victory. Or, the sometimes scarier perceptions can come as well. I have done so much for you Lord, You must like me more. I shared my faith today Lord, therefore you will bless me. I haven't sinned in three days (yeah right!), I must be acceptable in the sight of the Lord.

May I offer a different and Biblical way of thinking about our identity? The New Testament Epistles are very clear on this issue. Our identity rests solely "In Christ"! Not in the things we do/don't do. Not in how "good" we are. Rather, our identity is in the Risen Christ (who He is and what He has done). Paul makes this very clear when he writes in Colossians 3:3:

"For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God."

We must start viewing ourselves the way God sees us. It doesn't matter what others think about us. It doesn't even matter what we think about ourselves. What the Lord declares of us must be our focal point.

The Good News

I'm very excited about this blog and diving into issues related with the Scriptures, God, theology, culture, and a whole other smorgasbord of things; but I need everyone reading to understand something: The Good news of Jesus Christ.

1. This is foundational to why this blog exists.
2. This is the only hope mankind has. All Truth (may be) God's Truth, but God's Truth (as revealed to man in the Bible) is the only thing worth fighting or living for.

So, what is it and why does it matter?

What is the Good News?
The Apostle Paul defines it in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8...:

"Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. (italics mine; NASB)"

He also defines it elsewhere, but to summarize, The Good News (Gospel) is "Christ died for our sins and rose again". His resurrection is verified by nearly 1000 people who saw Him after He had been crucified, placed in a tomb, had the massive stone rolled away in front of a whole group of able bodied Roman warriors (they had "became like dead men (Matthew 28:4)"), and came back from the dead in the same body He died in: holes in hands, in feet, and a spear mark in His side.

Why am I telling you this?
As Paul notes, this Gospel has saving power. From what? Spiritual Death (Hell: Daniel 12:2; Matthew 3:12; Mark 9:44-49; Luke 16:23-24; Romans 3:23;6:23; 2 Thes 1:9; Rev 14:10-11, 20:10; etc). But also from the deadness of a life lived in the flesh without God (Gal 2:20, etc).

The Good news is not just about escaping eternal torment and separation from God. The Gospel is also about enabling men to walk in a life that God specifically designed for mankind. Yes, the Good news not only saves men from spiritual death, but also brings them to life in the Risen Son to live the life God designed for all men.

Christ is the way, the truth, and the life... And no one comes to know God except through and by believing in Him (John 14:6).

What does this mean to me?
I tell you these things so you will believe and be saved, able to live the life God will empower you to live by His Spirit (Romans 12:1-2).

The essential things to believe are what was stated previously: Christ died for our sins and rose again.

That brings me to my last point...

Why did Christ have to die?
Imagine a great chasm. God is on one side. Man is on the other. When sin and death entered the world (Gen 3) the creation of this chasm occurred. Sin separates man from God because God is Holy. Sin is anything that is contrary to God's nature/character as revealed to us in nature (Psalm 19:1-6; Romans 1:20) and in His Word (2 Tim 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:21). Because God cannot come close to sin and because men are inherently wicked, God sent His Son to die in our place. This allows us to know the One any Only God!

I pray this message is beneficial to all reading and will remind you of the Gospel (Christ died for our sins and rose again), encourage belief if you haven't already, and also remind you of the eternal power bound up in His death and resurrection. This isn't just about saving souls, but saving the whole man.

Be sure to send us a message if you have any questions, need any clarifications, or have believed today. This Good News is the only hope for man!

FOR HIS GLORY,
-Phil

New Blog

Hello all. This is a new blog created by myself and Phillip Yanda, who goes to Bible College with me. We wanted a place where we could write and discuss things relating to epignosis, which means "true knowledge" in the Greek New Testament. Many times people can view culture, life, world events, and theology without considering what the Bible (true knowledge) says about them. We desire this blog to be a place for open communication for topics on issues such as: theology, culture, doctrinal issues or anything pertaining to those things. Hopefully good conversations will flow from this blog and help to challenge others to dig deeper into the very Word of God!