Atonement
Much ink has been spilled through the centuries concerning the atonement-the At-One-ment accomplished through the blood of Jesus. The theology goes basically like this:
God is HOLY. That means unholiness doesn’t fit in His presence, not even necessarily because He hates unholiness, but unholiness is undone wherever God is. For this reason, Isaiah was terribly uncomfortable when he had a vision of God seated on the throne in the temple. He said “woe is me, for I am undone (I’m falling to pieces) for I am a man of unclean lips & I live among a people of unclean lips, & my eyes have seeing the King, the LORD Almighty!” He said this because in God’s presence Isaiah recognized his need for cleansing-he fell apart. He knew he wasn’t in the right place. So the question is, what has to happen in order for us to feel at home in the presence of the Holy God?
One thing is forgiveness (God’s part) the other is cleansing (also mostly God’s part). For Isaiah, a cherub got a burning coal from the altar and touched it to his lips. This, I think, would be painful. For us, the price paid for our sin, that makes forgiveness possible, and the cleansing of any wrong from the past and present are both accomplished by the blood of Jesus. The idea is that you go to court because you’ve committed a crime. Punishment is deserved & the demands of justice must be met. Jesus took the punishment for our crimes. He voluntarily laid down his life, the ultimate penalty for any ultimate sin (how much worse punishment can we meet out to a human than death?), blood for blood.
I think this theology is biblical. Some animal would be sacrificed for sins in the Old Testament, and their blood really was not sufficient to either atone or cleanse, they became a substitution for our blood. In the New Testament, the blood is Jesus’.
Love
I accept the validity of this age-old presentation of the atonement. But today, can we just take a moment to think of the aspect of relationship? Have you ever doubted someone’s love? Stated more dismally, have you ever felt someone’s actions proved they simply hated you? Has anyone ever simply turned his or her back on you, snubbed you, disregarded and distained you? Have you ever been mistreated by someone? My guess is that unless you’re about 4 years old and reading this you have experienced all of these things from more than one person. What if that enemy saw you in distress, say a train is approaching and you are snagged to the tracks. What if your enemy knew that without intervention you would die, and intervened, saving you, but willingly dying as a result? Would you change your opinion of that person? Would you no longer view him or her as your enemy, but instead as your savior?
I think it’s a bit like this with God. He knows that by nature there is no way in our limited psychology that we can feel comfortable around him. But if we knew He loves us supremely, so much He would willingly, gladly, in today’s vernacular, “take a bullet” for us, we would be overwhelmed with a sense of connection-with a certainty that we can not only be comfortable in His presence, we can come to Him immediately, any time, for any reason, and know, “God! Since You are willing to die for me, I know you don’t mind if I bring this little problem to you.” He has proven His love. He longs to be one with us. He is waiting for us to come to Him and embrace Him wholeheartedly. He has shown His love in a way that cannot be denied and should not be ignored or shunned.
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to die on our behalf. He wants to be one with us that much. He loves us with an everlasting love.
Prayer for Today
Father,
Remind me today, and every day of my life, of the extent of Your love. Help me. Show me that in Your estimation I’m worth dying for. Teach me to accept Your love. Teach me to live like a person who is loved supremely by the coolest Lover that ever existed. Today, let me experience fully the joy of my salvation, made all the greater because I belong to the One who saves me, and You belong to me. And, my Lord, teach me to love others as You have loved me.
