“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God…” 1 Peter 3:18
Over the next two months our theology class at Redeemer Theological Academy will be discussing the atoning work of Jesus Christ and its application to our life. This is a very rich subject, and sadly it is oftentimes neglected in the realm of theological studies. Not so for us! We will be digging into many Bible texts in both the Old and New Testaments seeking to uncover all that the Lord has for us to learn. Once we have examined the work that Jesus accomplished for us on the Cross, we will then study its application in the life of the Believer–specifically, our justification, adoption, redemption, reconciliation, ongoing sanctification, and future glorification. These are exciting and encouraging doctrines, and I suspect we will all be invigorated in our faith as we reflect upon them!
Consider what Prof. John Murray of Westminster Theological Seminary wrote about the bitterness of sin and the atoning work of Jesus Christ
“It is true we bear the punishment of our sins and we may know something of the bitterness. We are subject to the wrath of God, and the sting of unremitted guilt can reflect the awful severity of divine displeasure. Our sins have separated us from God and we can know the dismal emptiness of being without God and without hope in the world. There is still more we can know of the bitterness of sin and death. The lost in perdition will everlastingly bear the unrelieved and unmitigated judgment due to their sins; they will eternally suffer in the exaction of the demands of justice. But, there was only one, and there will not need to be another, who bore the full weight of the divine judgment upon sin and bore it so as to end it. The lost will eternally suffer in the satisfaction of justice. But they will never satisfy it. Christ satisfied justice. “The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). He was made sin and he was made a curse. He bore our iniquities. He bore the unrelieved and unmitigated damnation of sins, and he finished it. That is the spectacle that confronts us in Gethsemane and on Calvary.” (Murray, Redemption: Accomplished and Applied, 76-77)
These insightful words are just a small sample of all that we will be studying in the months ahead. It is crucial for Christians everywhere to know that Jesus willingly laid down his life for the sake of sinners, and that the work he accomplished on the Cross fully satisfies the divine justice of the Father. Our sins have been forgiven! And, as a result we are now at peace with God because of the work of Jesus. The Apostle Paul notes, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). There is much to rejoice in as we embrace the reality of this statement, and come to realize that our sins have been forgiven and our destiny is to always to be with our Lord.
— Dr. Marcus J. Serven
Source of Information:
Murray, John. Redemption: Accomplished and Applied. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company, 1955.
