Understanding the Atonement
by Mihran Kulhanjian
Dear Friends,
What is atonement? What does this mean? The word atonement can be broken down to at-one-with or at-one-ment. We are brought to God as one with Him. This means we have peace with God, we are reconciled to God. We do not have strife, conflict or are we an enemy of God. You see, if we are not one with God we have enmity with Him. Either we are for Him or against Him. Either you believe in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, as a child of God or you do not. A child of the devil is one who does not believe in or follow the Lord. You are somebody's child. You can choose righteousness of God or evil. It's up to you.
The biblical definition of atonement is the work Jesus did on behalf of the human race. He voluntarily made Himself a sacrifice for the sins of all the human race so that all have the option of receiving peace with God and receiving eternal life. The Atonement is the reconciliation of the sinful returning [individually] to a relationship with God. The apostle Paul noted in Romans 5:11:
And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement [reconciliation].
Jesus made it possible for all who receive Him to be reconciled with God the Father. Jesus sacrificed Himself to the world, but the world will not receive Him. Only those who believe on Him, with repentance and faith are His, and He is theirs. The atonement is the work Christ did while He was in the world to save sinners from eternal death. No one else could have done this. No human being is capable of saving himself or others. God sent His only Son, Jesus, to save mankind from eternal death. He did not come to condemn man, for man is already condemned. It is only through the atonement of Jesus Christ that those who receive Him will be saved and called the children of God. He is the "way" to Father God; for He is God doing the will of God. Jesus was in complete obedience to God, doing the Father's work.
It is a truly rare privilege to be called a child of God, adopted by God, chosen by Him,. A child of God is a son or daughter of God not by blood but by the Spirit of God living in each of His children.
Jesus explains the reason He came into the world in John 3:16-20:
Do you believe on Jesus? Do you believe He came to save sinners? Jesus was crucified on the cross. He died. He was buried in a tomb. Three days later He rose from the death as He said He would. He rose to Heaven, where He is now seated at the right hand of God. The second person of the trinity [Jesus Christ the Son of God] became man. But He did not lose His godhead. Jesus was 100 person man and 100 percent God as He lived in the world. Jesus paid the penalty for man's sinfulness. He was the substitute. He stepped in and took the full punishment for man's sin giving man the opportunity to live eternally in Heaven with God. Jesus, by the atoning sacrifice brought man back into communion with God which was lost when the first man, Adam, broke the relationship with God by turning from God's word. Jesus brought us back. He brought us to God by voluntarily taking all the punishment for us. This is the New Covenant. The new and last agreement God set for us. God loved us so much to send His only Son as a substitute to save us from ourselves. Did God have to do this? No. Why did God do it and why did Jesus accept to do all this for us? There is only one answer. Love. Why does God love us? We don't deserve His love. The Bible does not tell us why God loves us. We could only assume the answer. Perhaps it is that we are His creation, exalted above all the other creations of the world. And perhaps it is because He made male and female in His image and in His likeness with a spirit, soul and body. A triune God made a triune man. Our ancestors, Adam and Eve, were created to live forever, having communion everyday with the Lord in the cool of the day in the Garden. Likewise, we [the human race] were created to live forever in fellowship with God.
We respond to God's offer by receiving and loving His only Son, the first born of many [John 3:16]. Jesus is the Advocate to God for all those who believe on He and receive Him as Lord and Savior, for this is what He came to fulfill. And He did what he came to do. He did it perfectly, completely.
The secular world asks the question: What did Jesus do that is so great? He came to save sinners. That is, every single human being has a chance to be saved and have fellowship with God if they want it. But, there are conditions to this salvation. What are the conditions? First, acknowledge and repent of your sins. Repent means to turn away from sin. Stop willful sinning. Confess your sins to God ask to be forgiven of your sins. Thank Him for forgiving you. Second, you must believe the Gospel. You must hear the Gospel and believe it is true. You must confess the Gospel. This means saying, repeating and believing the Word of God. Do you believe that Jesus came to this world to die, be buried, and be raised again to live in Heaven to have all authority in Heaven and earth given to Him by His Father, God? Do you believe we are saved for eternal life by God's grace through our faith in Jesus Christ [Ephesians 2:8-9]? We cannot please God without faith. "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God" [Romans 10:17]. Do you have faith in the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? Do you have faith to believe the work that Jesus did on the cross, by dyeing a cruel, inhuman death to save sinners? Do you believe this? Do you want to believe this?
Because the human race is sinful, death, the punishment for sin is deserving of all of us, because all of us are guilty of sin. In this life we die; our body dies. You are also dead in your sin without Jesus. With Jesus in us, we are dead to sin, if we want it. We all die. But after this world our spirit moves on to Heaven with God or to hell with the devil. Our old body with be raised from the dead. It will be perfect and new. You see, God created us not to ever die. Our body in this world will die, but by the atonement, Jesus made it possible for all who receive Him to live forever with Him and all the saints in Heaven. We will either continue in eternity in Heaven or in Hell. Sadly, many will choose Hell and fire and pain and suffering than Heaven because of their lack of the fear of Almighty God. Do not be deceived. Listen to God. Hear Him. Open the door when He knocks. Don't let pride and your selfishness keep you from knowing the true God. Soften your heart for truth and let Jesus in. He will not deny you. He will never abandon you.
There is only one God. He is not the god of Islam [which is the devil], nor the gods of Hinduism, nor the god of Buddha, nor any other god of false and perverted religions devised by the devil to steer men away from the true and only God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He is the Creator all. There is only one God and He is manifested in the Lord Jesus Christ, His Son and the Holy Spirit, He lives in all true believers. If you believe there are many ways to God and to the kingdom of God, you do not qualify to call yourself a Christian. Today, there are many so called Christians who believe that there are many ways to Heaven. Undoubtedly, they either know not God and are completely ignorant of the Word of God. Do not be deceived. There is only one way to God. And that way is through Jesus Christ {John 14:6).