Strange Atonement

Dennis Tuuri

Outline: Isaiah 53 Strange Atonemnt Sermon Notes for April 22, 2007 by Pastor Dennis R. Tuuri Introduction : Politics of Guilt and Enslavement Atonement: An Inescapable Concept – “Its nine o’clock in here.” Limited Atonement, Particular Redemption (See Next Page) Atonement, Redemption, Expiation, Propitiation, Justification, Salvation Acting as their substitute, Jesus Christ, bore the imputed sins of the elect, became a sacrifice for these sins, and thus provided full satisfaction of God’s justice, relieving the elect’s guilt and giving them true freedom unto responsibility. The Strange Fire of Nadab and Abihu I. The Strange Atonement of Arminius (See Next Two Pages) II. The Strange Atonement of Cho A. Sadism 1. False Imputation – Victim and Scapegoat 53:4, 6; Gen. 3; Romans 9 2. Wrong Sacrifice (“to make holy) 53:5, 7; Gen. 4A 3. No Satisfaction Isa. 53:11; Gen. 4B 4. Increased Blood-letting Gen. 4C 5. Escape vs. Responsibility 53:12-54:1ff B. Masochism - Self-atonement Self-punishment to pay for sins - the basic neurosis of all man. Psychosomatic Illnesses; Gamblers; Enabling Wives; Drunks; Injustice Collectors; Suicide Compulsive Hand-washing Bearing the burdens of everyone else (Africa, Prisons, Cho, etc.) and making sure you do too! Dog in the manger - the result is enslavement. Conclusion: Isa. 52:12, 13 Glorious liberty of the sons of God Synod of Dordrecht November 13, 1618 - May 9, 1619 SECOND HEAD OF DOCTRINE. THE DEATH OF CHRIST, AND THE REDEMPTION OF MEN THEREBY ARTICLE 1. God is not only supremely merciful, but also supremely just. And His justice requires (as He has revealed Himself in His Word) that our sins committed against His infinite majesty should be punished, not only with temporal but with eternal punishments, both in body and soul; which we cannot escape, unless satisfaction be made to the justice of God. ARTICLE 2. Since, therefore, we are unable to make that satisfaction in our own persons, or to deliver ourselves from the wrath of God, He has been pleased of His infinite mercy to give His only begotten Son for our Surety, who was made sin, and became a curse for us and in our stead, that He might make satisfaction to divine justice on our behalf. ARTICLE 3. The death of the Son of God is the only and most perfect sacrifice and satisfaction for sin, and is of infinite worth and value, abundantly sufficient to expiate the sins of the whole world. ARTICLE 4. This death is of such infinite value and dignity because the person who submitted to it was not only begotten Son of God, of the same eternal and infinite essence with the Father and the Holy Spirit, which qualifications were necessary to constitute Him a Savior for us; and, moreover, because it was attended with a sense of the wrath and curse of God due to us for sin. …ARTICLE 8. For this was the sovereign counsel and most gracious will and purpose of God the Father that the quickening and saving efficacy of the most precious death of His Son should extend to all the elect, for bestowing upon them alone the gift of justifying faith, thereby to bring them infallibly to salvation; that is, it was the will of God that Christ by the blood of the cross, whereby He confirmed the new covenant, should effectually redeem out of every people, tribe, nation, and language, all those, and those only, who were from eternity chosen to salvation and given to Him by the Father; that He should confer upon them faith, which, together with all the other saving gifts of the Holy Spirit, He purchased for them by His death; should purge them from all sin, both original and actual, whether committed before or after believing; and having faithfully preserved them even to the end, should at last bring them, free from every spot and blemish, to the enjoyment of glory in His own presence forever. ARTICLE 9. This purpose, proceeding from everlasting love towards the elect, has from the beginning of the world to this day been powerfully accomplished, and will hence forward still continue to be accomplished, notwithstanding all the ineffectual opposition of the gates of hell; so that the elect in due time may be gathered together into one, and that there never may be wanting a Church composed of believers, the foundation of which is laid in the blood of Christ; which may steadfastly love and faithfully serve Him as its Savior (who, as a bridegroom for his bride, laid down His life for them upon the cross); and which may celebrate His praises here and through all eternity. REJECTION OF ERRORS The true doctrine having been explained, the Synod rejects the errors of those: PARAGRAPH 1. Who teach: That God the Father has ordained His Son to the death of the cross without a certain and definite decree to save any, so that the necessity, profitableness, and worth of what christ merited by His death might have existed, and might remain in all its parts complete, perfect, and intact, even if the merited redemption had never in fact been applied to any person. For this doctrine tends to the despising of the wisdom of the Father and of the merits of Jesus Christ, and is contrary to Scripture. For thus says our Savior: "I lay down my life for the sheep ... and I know them. (John 10:15, 27)." And the prophet Isaiah says concerning the Savior: "Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand (Isa 53:10)." Finally, this contradicts the article of faith according to which we believe the catholic Christian Church. PARAGRAPH 2. Who teach: That it was not the purpose of the death of Christ that He should confirm the new covenant of grace through His blood, but only that He should acquire for the Father the mere right to establish with man such a covenant as He might please, whether of grace or of works. For this is repugnant to Scripture, which teaches that "Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant that is a new covenant ..." and that "it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. (Heb 7:22 ; 9:15 , 17)." PARAGRAPH 3. Who teach: That Christ by His satisfaction merited neither salvation itself for any one, nor faith, whereby this satisfaction of Christ unto salvation is effectually appropriated; but that He merited for the Father only the authority or the perfect will to deal again with man, and to prescribe new conditions as He might desire, obedience to which, however, depended on the free will of man, so that it therefore might have come to pass that either none or all should fulfill these conditions. For these adjudge too contemptuously of the death of Christ, in no wise acknowledge that most important fruit or benefit thereby gained and bring again out of the hell the Pelagian error. PARAGRAPH 4. Who teach: That the new covenant of grace, which God the Father, through the mediation of the death of Christ, made with man, does not herein consist that we by faith, in as much as it accepts the merits of Christ, are justified before God and saved, but in the fact that God, having revoked the demand of perfect obedience of faith, regards faith itself and the obedience of faith, although imperfect, as the perfect obedience of the law, and does esteem it worthy of the reward of eternal life through grace. For these contradict the Scriptures, being: "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood (Rom 3:24-25)." And these proclaim, as did the wicked Socinus, a new and strange justification of man before God, against the consensus of the whole Church. PARAGRAPH 5. Who teach: That all men have been accepted unto the state of reconciliation and unto the grace of the covenant, so that no one is worthy of condemnation on account of original sin, and that no one shall be condemned because of it, but that all are free from the guilt of original sin. For this opinion is repugnant to Scripture which teaches that we are by nature children of wrath (Eph 2:3). PARAGRAPH 6. Who use the difference between meriting and appropriating, to the end that they may instil into the minds of the imprudent and inexperienced this teaching that God, as far as He is concerned, has been minded to apply to all equally the benefits gained by the death of Christ; but that, while some obtain the pardon of sin and eternal life, and others do not, this difference depends on their own free will, which joins itself to the grace that is offered without exception, and that it is not dependent on the special gift of mercy, which powerfully works in them, that they rather than others should appropriate unto themselves this grace. For these, while they feign that they present this distinction in a sound sense, seek to instill into the people the destructive poison of the Pelagian errors. PARAGRAPH 7. Who teach: That Christ neither could die, nor needed to die, and also did not die, for those whom God loved in the highest degree and elected to eternal life, since these do not need the death of Christ. For they contradict the apostle, who declares, Christ: "loved me and gave himself for me (Gal 2:20)." Likewise: "Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died (Rom 8:33-34)", namely, for them; and the Savior who says: "I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:15)." And: "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends (John 15:12-13)." Children’s Notes for Strange Atonement 1. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ frees us from guilt. 2. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ makes us slaves. 3. In TULIP, the L stands for ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ atonement. 4. It was not limited in ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ but in purpose. 5. Jesus was our ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. 6. Jesus took our ___ ___ ___ ___ upon Himself. 7. He ___ ___ ___ ___ for the sins of His people. 8. Jesus ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ the Father’s justice. 9, He ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ us from guilt. 10. Nadab and ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ were punished by God. 11. Sinners try to make someone other than Jesus ___ ___ ___ the ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ for their sins. 12. It is wrong to ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ others for our sin. 13. Adam blamed ___ ___ ___, she blamed the ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. 14. They both really were blaming ___ ___ ___. 15. It is wrong to ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ others for our sin. 16. We can not ___ ___ ___ the ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ for our sins either. 17. Jesus atoned for our sins, and made us ___ ___ ___ ___. 18. We leave the ___ ___ ___ ___ and our ___ ___ ___ ___ behind.