Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Basic Theology
Last week we ended a brief discussion of the Trinity and the Deity of Christ. Before we discuss Salvation itself let's consider the meaning of the death of Christ. There are several "theories" of what the Atonement means. However, their is only one that is supported by scripture. Jesus died in our place as our Substitute taking the full punishment for our sins that we justly deserved. Biblical support includes: Mark 10:45 Says that Jesus died as a ransom "for" the many. The Greek word "ANTI" always means "in place of" or "instead of". The sacrifice of Isaac in Gen. 22 depicts Substitution as well as the Law of Moses in Leviticus 16. The apostle Paul's theology is in complete harmony as found in Romans 5 and II Cor.5:21. Liberal mainline churches weaken this truth by attributing "moral example" instead of Substitution as the meaning of the Atonement. This does not mean people need to understand theology before they can trust Christ for salvation but the motivation to present the Gospel with conviction is certainly compromised if a preacher rejects Substitutionary Atonement. The Roman Catholic view makes the R.C. Church itself the mediator of salvation through graces received from their sacraments. The Bible tells us plainly that Jesus Himself is the only Mediator between God and man. I Timothy 2:5. So before we even discuss the Gospel of Salvation we must understand the important root meaning of why Jesus put Himself in our place and poured out His life so that we might be forgiven and become the Righteousness of God in Him! II Cor.5:21
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment