dawkins, liberals, and the atonement

Unlike christian liberals, Richard Dawkins, in part, gets it. He at least understands that there is a Scriptural claim of the atonement and penal substitution. He simply rejects it because the Holy Spirit hasn't made his heart alive to Truth. The christian liberal on the other hand, because like Dawkins they don't like the doctrine, they simply reject either this in the Bible or that the Bible is inerrant.



"That God, the all powerful creator of the universe couldn’t think of a better way to forgive humanity’s sins than to have himself put on earth, tortured and executed in atonement for the sins of humanity? What kind of a horrible, depraved notion is that?" ~ Richard Dawkins (transcript)

HT:SA

For today, let's refer to Melinda's excellent reminder ...

On the cross, Jesus fulfilled the Law of Moses by satisfying the demands of it. By doing that He paid our certificates of debt we each earned.

The certificate of debt is a concept that lies behind Paul's comments about the certificate of debt in Colossians 2:13-14: "And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross."

In Roman times, this certificate was a list of crimes committed against the state that required "payment," much like an indictment in our legal system today. The Romans gave Jesus a certificate of debt when He was sentenced to die; it was nailed to the cross: "Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the Jews" (John 19:19). When the crimes were paid for, the certificate was canceled and was stamped with the word tetelestai, meaning "paid in full."

Paul says that Jesus "canceled out" (paid) our certificate of debt (v14).

Jesus' last words, His victory cry on the cross was, "It is finished!", literally in Greek was "tetelestai!" "He said, 'It is finished!' And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit." (John 19:30). "Paid in full." What was finished? His work of redemption paying for our certificates of debt against God.