Basis for Atonement

By Ronald R. Day, Senior

Unless stated otherwise, all Bible quotations are from The World English Bible  translation. God's Holy Name is presented as Jehovah throughout.

THE doctrine of the Atonement*, or reconciliation, lies at the very foundation of the Christian religion. Having thus the most important place in theology (aside from the glorification of God), a clear understanding of this subject is very essential, and this is generally conceded amongst Christian people. Nevertheless, the atonement, though believed in, is little understood; the various ideas and theories respecting it are disconnected as well as vague; and faith built upon these disconnected and vague views of such a foundation doctrine must, of necessity, be proportionately unstable, weak and vague. On the contrary, if this important subject be clearly seen, in all the grandeur of the proportions accorded it in the Word of God, as the foundation of the divine plan of salvation, it not only will firmly establish faith, rooting and grounding it upon correct principles, but it will serve as a guide in discriminating between truth and error in connection with all the minutiae of faith. When the foundation is well established and clearly discerned, and every item of faith built upon it is kept in exact alignment with the foundation, the entire faith superstructure will be perfect. As we will show later, every doctrine and theory may be brought in contact with this touchstone, and have its proportion of gold or of dross quickly determined thereby.

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*Atonement, or at-one-ment, is based on the Hebrew word Kaphar (Strong's Hebrew #3722). This word is given several meanings: "(1) to cover, purge, make an atonement, make reconciliation, cover over with pitch (a) (Qal) to coat or cover with pitch (b) (Piel) 1. to cover over, pacify, propitate 2. to cover over, atone for sin, make atonement for 3. to cover over, atone for sin and persons by legal rites (c) (Pual) 1. to be covered over 2. to make atonement for (d) (Hithpael) to be covered" (Brown, Driver, Briggs and Gesenius. "Hebrew Lexicon entry for Kaphar". The KJV Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon".. Another related Hebrew word is Kippur (Strong's Hebrew #3725). In the New Testament Greek, the atonement is referred under the words Katallage (Strong's Greek #2643), which appears at Romans 5:11; 11:15; 2 Corinthians 5:18,19, and Katallasso (Strong's Greek #2644; Romans 5:10; 1 Corinthians 7:11; 2 Corinthians 5:18,19,20). Three other related words in Greek are Hilasmos (Strong's Greek #2434; 1 John 2:2; 4:10), Hilasterion (Strong's Greek #2435; Romans 3:25; Hebrews 9:5) and Hilaskomai (Strong's Greek #2433, Luke 18:13; Hebrews 2:17). "The meaning of the word is simply at-one-ment, i.e., the state of being at one or being reconciled, so that atonement is reconciliation. Thus it is used to denote the effect which flows from the death of Christ." (Easton, Matthew George. "Entry for Atonement". Easton's Bible Dictionary.)

Three Views of the Subject

¶2 There are two general traditional views of the Atonement:

¶3 First View: What is labeled as the "orthodox" view, namely, that man, as a transgressor of the divine law, came under divine condemnation—"under wrath"; and that God, while hindered by justice from exonerating the sinner, has provided a just redemption for him, and thus provided for the forgiveness of his sins, through the sacrifice of Christ. This entire work of satisfying the claims of justice and making the sinner acceptable to God, is denominated the work of atonement.

¶4 Second View: What many have labeled as the "unorthodox" view of the Atonement (at one time represented chiefly by some Universalists, but which has since spread rapidly amongst the various church systems), approaches the subject from the opposite side: it presupposes no requirement on the part of divine justice of a sacrifice for the sinner's transgression; it ignores the wrath of God as represented in any special sentence of death; it ignores "the curse." It holds that God seeks and waits for man's approach, placing no hindrance in the way, requiring no atonement for man's sin, but requiring merely that man shall abandon sin and seek righteousness, and thus come into harmony with God — be at-one with God hence this view is generally styled at-one-ment, and is understood to signify harmony with righteousness regardless of the methods by which mankind may be brought into this state: atonement for sin being considered from the standpoint of expiation by the sinner himself, or else as unconditional forgiveness by God. From this standpoint our Lord Jesus and all his followers have part in the atonement, in the sense that they have taught and exhorted mankind to turn from sin to righteousness, and in no sin-offering or ransom sense.

¶5 A Third View: The view which we accept as the Scriptural one, but which has been overlooked very generally by most theologians, embraces and combines both of the foregoing views. Since the basic meaning of the word "orthodox" is "right view," the only true orthodox teaching is that of the Bible, God's viewpoint. The Bible doctrine of the Atonement, as we shall endeavor to show, teaches clearly:

¶6 {a} That man was created perfect, in the image of God, but fell therefrom, through willful disobedience, and came under the sentence of wrath, "the curse," and thus the entire race became "children of wrath." -- Ephesian 2:3.

¶7 {b} While God justly executed against his disobedient creature the sentence of his law, death, and that without mercy, for over four thousand years, yet, nevertheless, blended with this justice and fidelity to principles of righteousness was the spirit of love and compassion, which designed an ultimate substitutional arrangement or plan of salvation, by which God might still be just and carry out his just laws against sinners, and yet be the justifier of all who believe in Jesus. (Romans 3:26) By this plan all the condemned ones might be relieved from the sentence without any violation of God's justice, and with such a display of divine love and wisdom and power as would honor the Almighty, and prove a blessing to all his creatures, human and angelic -- by revealing to all, more fully than ever before seen, the much diversified wisdom and grace of God. — Ephesians 3:10, Diaglott.

¶8 {c} It was in the carrying out of this program of atonement to the divine law for its transgression by father Adam, that our dear redeemer died, "a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." — 1 Timothy 2:6, King James Version.

¶9 {d} But the sacrifice for sins does not complete the work of atonement, except so far as the satisfaction of the claim of Justice is concerned. By virtue of the ransom paid to satisfy God's justice, a transfer of man's account has been made, and his case, his indebtedness, etc., is wholly transferred to the account of the Lord Jesus Christ, who paid to God the price necessary to satisfy God's justice, thereby releasing condemned mankind from the claims of justice. Thus Jesus, by reason of this "purchase" with his own precious blood, is now, in consequence, the owner, master, "Lord, of all." — Acts 10:36; Romans 14:9; 1 Corinthians 15:27,47; Ephesians 1:20,21; Philippians 2:9,10.

¶10 {e} One object in this arrangement for Adam and his race was the annulment of their death sentence, which, so long as it remained, estopped love from any efforts to recover the condemned, whose privileges of future life under any circumstances were wholly abrogated — destroyed.

¶11 {f} Another object was the placing of the fallen race beyond the reach of divine justice in its demands of death resulting from Adam's sin, and under the special supervision of Jesus, who as the representative of the Father's plan proposes not only to satisfy the claims of justice, but also undertakes the instruction, correction and restoration of so many of the fallen race as shall show their desire for harmony with Justice. Such he will ultimately turn over to the Justice of the divine law, but then so perfected as to be able to endure its perfect requirements.

¶12 {g} Though originally the only separating influence between God and man was the divine sentence, now, after six thousand years of falling, degradation and alienation from God through wicked works — and because of ignorance, superstition, and the wiles of the Adversary — and because the divine character and plan have been misrepresented to men, we find the message of grace and forgiveness unheeded. Although God freely declares, since the ransom was accepted, that he is now ready to receive sinners back into harmony with himself and to eternal life, through the merit of Christ's sacrifice, nevertheless, due to the blinding and deceptive influence of Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 12:9; 13:14; 18:23), the majority of mankind are slow to believe the good tidings, and correspondingly slow to accept their conditions. Some have become so deluded by the sophistries of Satan, by which he has deceived all nations (Revelation 20:3), that they do not believe that there is a God; others believe in Him as a great and powerful adversary, without love or sympathy, ready and anxious to torment them to all eternity; others are confused by the Babel of conflicting reports that have reached them, concerning the divine character, and thus are bewildered regarding what to believe; and, seeking to draw near unto God, are hindered by their fears and by their ignorance. Consequently, as a matter of fact, the number who have yet availed themselves of the opportunity of drawing nigh unto God through faith in the blood of Christ is a comparatively small one — "a little flock." -- Romans 3:25; Ephesians 2:13; Luke 12:32.

¶13 {h} Nevertheless, the sacrifice for sins was not for the few, but for the "many," (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45) — indeed, "for all." (1 Timothy 2:5,6) "Through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous." (Romans 5:19, New American Standard Version) And it is a part of the divine program that he who redeemed all with his own precious blood shall ultimately make known to all men, "to every creature," the good tidings of their privilege under divine grace, to return to at-one-ment with their Creator.

¶14 {i} Thus far only those of faith have been benefited by the Atonement, except indirectly; but the teaching of the Scriptures is that the saints (Ephesians 1:18; Colossians 1:26) shall constitute a "Kingdom of priests" (Exodus 19:6; Daniel 7:22,27), "a kingdom and priests" (Revelation 5:10, New American Standard Version) and they are a "royal priesthood," (2 Peter 2:9) with Christ the Royal High Priest (Hebrews 3:1; 4:14,15; 5:1); during the Millennial age this Kingdom class, this royal priesthood, shall fully and completely accomplish for mankind the work of removing the blindness which Satan and error and degradation brought upon them (2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 12:9; Isaiah 2:2-4; 11:9; 25:7; Revelations 21:1-5; 22:2), and shall bring back to full at-one-ment with God whosoever wills, of all the families of the earth. -- Revelation 22:17.

¶15 {j} In harmony with this is the apostle's statement that we, believers, the saints, have received the atonement. (Romans 5:11) The provision for atonement was made, so far as God was concerned, eighteen centuries ago, and that for all; but only those of faith have received it in the sense of accepting the opportunity which the grace of God has thus provided — and the rest of mankind are blinded. "The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn on them." — 2 Corinthians 4:4.

¶16 {k} In harmony with this thought also is the statement of scripture, that the first work of Christ in connection with his Millennial reign, will be to bind, or restrain, Satan, and then to seal him up in the abyss so that he will deceive the nations no more for the thousand years. (Revelation 20:3) We also have the numerous statements of the prophets, to the effect that when the Kingdom of God shall be established in the earth, the knowledge of Jehovah will fill the whole earth, as the waters cover the great deep, and none will need to say to his neighbor, "Know Jehovah". (Hebrews 8:11; Jeremiah 31:34) Additionally, we have the petition of the Lord's prayer, "May your kingdom come. May your will be done, as in heaven, so on earth." — These scriptures agree with what the apostle expressly declares, that God desires all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. — 1 Timothy 2:4.

¶17 {l} Therefore, the Atonement is in two phases — the satisfaction of Justice, as well as the bringing back into full harmony or at-one-ment with God of all of Adam and all of Adam's descendants to the condition as Adam was before Adam sinned. Having been so reconciled to God, they will be given a full understanding of God's ways, so that they, aided, by the help then provided through God's spirit and the bride, and having full light and knowledge, may avail themselves of the privileges and opportunities of the New Covenant, and thus live forever. The atonement work continues until the close of the Millennial Age, when all who have willfully and intelligently rejected divine favor, offered through Christ, "will be destroyed from among the people," with "an everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power" — with a destruction from which there will be ransom offered for, and no hope of recovery by future resurrection. — Acts 3:23; 2 Thessalonians 1:9.

¶18 {m} Then the great work of the Atonement will be completed. All things in heaven and in earth will be found in harmony with God, praising him for all his munificence and grace through Christ. (Psalm 103:19-22; 148:3-10; Revelation 5:13; Philippians 2:9-11) There will be no more dying and no more sighing, no more pain there, because the former things will have passed away (Revelation 21:1-3) — as the result of the work of the Atonement, commenced by the propitiation of Justice by our Redeemer's sacrifice, concluded by the full reconciliation of all found worthy of eternal life.

¶19 However the word Atonement may be viewed, it must be conceded that its use at all, as between God and man, implies a difficulty, a difference, an opposition, existing between the Creator and the human creation — otherwise they would be at one, and there would be no need of a work of atonement, from either standpoint. And here particularly we discern the deadly conflict that exists between the Bible and the modern doctrine of evolution as the explanation of the origin of man, which, for the past century in particular, has been permeating the faith of Christian people of all denominations, and which shows itself even in many theological schools and pulpits of Christendom.

¶20 The theory that the first man evolved from lower forms of life denies the fall of man; denies that he ever was in the image and likeness of God; denies that he was ever in a fit condition to be on trial before the bar of exact Justice; denies that he ever sinned in such a trial, and that he ever was sentenced to death. It claims that death, so far from being a penalty is but another step in the process of evolution; it holds that man, instead of falling from the image and likeness of God into sin and degradation, has been rising from the condition of lesser sentient abilities into greater levels of sentient abilities. The logical further steps of the theory would evidently be, to deny that there could be any justice on God's part in condemning man for rising from a lower to a higher plane, and denying, consequently, that Justice could accept a sin-offering for man, when there had been no sin on man's part to require such an offering. Consistently with this thought, it claims that Christ was not a sin-offering, not a sacrifice for sins — except in the same sense, they would say, that any patriot might be a sacrifice for his country; namely, that he laid down his life in helping to lift the race forward into greater liberties and privileges.

¶21 But we find that the Word of God most absolutely contradicts this entire theory, so that no harmony is possible between the scripture teaching and the teaching of evolution of man from lower forms of life — science falsely so-called. (1 Timothy 6:20, King James Version) Whoever believes in the evolution theory as an explanation of the origin of man, to that extent disbelieves the Scriptural teaching; and yet we find a very large number of Christian people vainly struggling and attempting to harmonize these antagonizing teachings. To whatever extent they hold the theory of evolution to account for how man can be, to that extent they are off the only foundation for faith that God has provided; to that extent they are prepared for further errors, which the adversary will be sure to bring forward to their attention, errors presented so forcibly from the worldly-wise standpoint that they would, if it all possible, even lead astray the elect. (Matthew 24:24*) But the elect have in the scriptures "the faith once delivered to the saints"; by God through his holy spirit to aid them to hold to the doctrine of the atonement. Having also the holy spirit, if they submit to what the spirit has revealed, they will thus be aided to guard against every item and feature of the evolution theory respecting the origin of man, for the faithful will be willing to be taught by God through holy spirit, by means of the apostles and the prophets (Luke 11:49; Ephesians 2:20; 3:5; 2 Peter 3:2), especially upon this doctrine of the atonement, which lies at the very foundation of revealed religion and Christian faith.

¶22 The Scriptures unequivocally testify that God created man in his own image and likeness — mental and moral; that man, an earthly being, was the moral and intellectual image or likeness of his Creator, a spirit being. (Genesis 1:26,27; 9:6) They declare his communion with his Creator in the beginning (Genesis 2:16); they declare that his Creator approved him as his workmanship, and pronounced him "very good," very acceptable, very pleasing; they show that the proposition of life or death was set before the sinless and incorrupt Adam, and that when he became a transgressor it was an intelligent and willful act, inasmuch as it is declared that Adam "was not deceived." They declare the beginning of the execution of the death penalty. They record the progress for centuries of the death sentence upon the race. They point out how God revealed to faithful Abraham his purpose, his intention, not at once, but later on, to bring in a blessing to the race, which he declared he had cursed with the sentence of death. -- Genesis 1:31; 2:16,17; 3:23; 1 Timothy 2:14; Genesis 12:3; 18:18; 3:17.

¶23 Since the curse or penalty of sin was death, the blessings promised implied life from the dead, a life more abundant than the present short span of life. (John 10:10) The promise to Abraham was that in some unexplained way the savior who would accomplish this work of blessing the world should come through Abraham's posterity. (Genesis 3:15; 22:17,18; 26:40; 28:14) The same promises were, with more or less clearness, reiterated to Isaac Genesis 26:4), to Jacob (Genesis 28:14) and to the children of Israel. (Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Psalms 33:12) The prophets also declared that the Messiah coming should be a Lamb slain, a sin-offering, one who should "pour out his soul unto death," for our sins, and not for his own. (Isaiah 53:7; And they portrayed also the result of his sacrifice for sins, in the glory and blessing that should follow; telling how ultimately his Kingdom shall prevail, and, as the Sun of Righteousness, he shall bring into the world the new day of blessing and life and joy, which shall dispel the darkness and gloom and the sorrow of the night of weeping, which now prevails as the result of original sin and the fall, and inherited evil tendencies. -- Isaiah 53:7-12; 35; 60; 61.

¶24 The Apostle Peter, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does not tell us that man had been created on the plane of a monkey, and had risen to his present degree of development, and would ultimately attain perfection by the same process of evolution. No, instead, he tells us that Christ died for our sins, and that, as a consequence of the redemption accomplished by his sacrifice, there shall ultimately come to mankind, at the second advent of our Lord, great times of refreshing — times of the restoration of all things, which, he declares, "God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from ancient times." (Acts 3:19-21) Any who may think the apostle Peter was preaching a doctrine of evolution, when preaching the gospel of restoration, must be lacking in the ability to reason properly. Think: if the original condition of man was that of a monkey, or if it was anything whatever inferior to our present condition, the apostle would surely seem to be have been greatly foolish to hold out, as a grand hope and prospect, times of restoration, for surely such means a restoration of that condition which previously existed.

¶25 On the contrary, the Apostle's words are thoroughly out of harmony with and antagonistic to the theory of evolution, and in strictest harmony with the doctrine of the Atonement, reconciliation and restitution — in strictest harmony with the Scriptural teaching that mankind was sold under sin, and became the slaves of sin, and suffered the degradation of sin, as the result of father Adam's original disobedience and its death-penalty. Restitution, the good tidings which Peter preached, implies that something good and grand and valuable was lost, and that it has been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, and that it shall be restored, as the result of this redemption, at the second advent of Christ. And the Apostle's reference to the prophets, declaring that these restitution times were mentioned by all of them who were holy, distinctly implies that the hope of restitution is the true hope held out before the world of mankind by divine inspiration.

¶25 All the apostles similarly pointed backward to the fall from divine favor, and to the cross of Christ as the point of reconciliation as respects divine Justice, and forward to the coming rulership of Christ as the time for the blessing of all the world of mankind with opportunities of knowledge and help in their reconciliation to God. They all point out the present age as the time for the gathering out of the seed of Abraham by faith to be associates with Messiah in the Kingdom. The scriptures speak of those who belong to Christ as being his "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9) and "a people for his own possession." (Titus 2:14) These are also figuratively spoken of as being the body of Christ. (Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12) Those who attain the prize of joint-heirship with Jesus, are evidently pictured as becoming the bride of Christ in Revelation. (Romans 8:17; Philippians 3:14; Revelation 21:2,9) The bride, in effect, partakes of the work of bestowing upon the world the promised blessings of restitution which has been secured for them by means of Jesus' sacrifice at Calvary. -- Revelation 22:17.

¶26 We should give special attention to Paul's words: "sin entered into the world through one man" and "through one trespass, all men were condemned" (Romans 5:12,18) — and condemnation was death as a result of sin; and so death passed upon all men, for [by reason of inherited sin and sinful dispositions] all are sinners. The apostle reported nothing of the man as being the result of some process of evolution. Rather than presenting man as evolving to some higher plane of existence, he reports that man became degraded through sin.  Additionally, those who claim that Adam was simply a fable and that he never existed would not be in harmony with what Paul wrote, since he bases the whole idea of atonement in Christ on the fact that Adam existed and that he disobeyed.  It should be evident that the apostle Paul was not an evolutionist; he certainly did not believe that man evolved from lower life forms. Paul  pointed out the remedy of man's fallen condition in the Gospel (Good News) that he preached, as when said:  "God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us; much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him." (Romans 5:8,9) In this statement, Paul points out that the human race is under God's wrath, but that God, in his divine love and grace, has provided the means to save mankind from that wrath in the blood of Christ, which he had sacrificed on our behalf. Paul then continues to present the work of atonement, the restoration of what was lost in Adam, when states: "As through one offense [Adam's disobedience] sentence came upon all men to condemnation [the death sentence]; so also through one righteous act the free gift [the reversal of the sentence] came on all men unto justification of life. For as through the disobedience of one man [Adam] many were made sinners [all who were in him], so by the obedience of one [Jesus] many [all who ultimately shall avail themselves of the privileges and opportunities of the New Covenant] shall be constituted righteous." -- Romans 5:12,18,19

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¶27 The same Apostle, in many other of his masterly and logical discourses, presents the thought that the Atonement, so far as God is concerned, is a thing of the past — finished when "we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son," while we were yet sinners. (Rom. 5:10) In this he evidently did not refer to a work accomplished in the sinner, reconciling the sinner to God, because he states it in the reverse manner, and declares that it was accomplished, not in us, but by Christ for us, and while we were sinners. Note also that in various of his learned and logical discourses he points out a work of blessing to the world, to be accomplished through the glorified Church, under Christ, her divinely appointed Head, showing that it will consist in bringing the world to a knowledge of God's grace in Christ, and that thus so many of the redeemed world as may be willing can return to at-one-ment with their Creator during the Millennial Kingdom — a restitution of the divine favor lost in Eden.

As an illustration of this point note the argument of Rom. 8:17-24. Here the Apostle distinctly marks as separate salvation of the Church and the subsequent salvation or deliverance of the world, the "groaning creation." He calls attention to the Church as the prospective joint-heir with Christ, who, if faithful in suffering with him in this present time, shall ultimately share his glory in his Kingdom. He assures us that these sufferings of this present time are unworthy of comparison with the glory that shall be revealed in us by and by. And then he proceeds to say that this glory to be revealed in the Church after its sufferings are all complete, is the basis for all the earnest expectations of the groaning creation — whose longings and hopes necessarily await fruition in the time when the sons of God shall be revealed or manifested.

Now the sons of God are unrevealed; the world knows them not, even as it knew not their Master; and though the world, indeed, looks forward with a vague hope to a golden age of blessing, the Apostle points out that all their earnest expectations must wait for the time when the Church, the sons of God, shall be glorified and shall be manifested as the kings and priests of God's appointment, who shall reign over the earth during the Millennial age, for the blessing of all the families of the earth, according to the riches of divine grace as revealed by God in his promise to Abraham, saying: "In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed." Gal. 3:8,16,29

The Apostle proceeds to show that mankind in general, the intelligent earthly creation, was subjected to frailty ("vanity") by heredity, by the transgression of father Adam, according to divine providence, and yet is not left without hope; because under divine arrangement also, a sacrifice for sins has been provided, and provision made that ultimately mankind in general may be emancipated, set free, from the slavery of sin, and from its penalty, death, and may attain the glorious freedom (from sickness, pain, trouble, sorrow) which is the liberty of all who are the sons of God. It was from this plane of sonship and such "liberty" that mankind fell through disobedience, and to the same plane of human sonship they will be privileged to return, as a result of the great sin-offering at Calvary, and of the completion of the work of Atonement in them, reconciling them to the divine law by the Redeemer, as the Great Prophet, the antitype of Moses. (Acts 3:22,23) The Apostle also points out that the Church, which already has received the Atonement (accepted the divine arrangement) and come into harmony with God, and has been made possessor of the first-fruits of the spirit, nevertheless, by reason of the surroundings, groans also, and waits for her share of the completed work of the Atonement, in her complete reception to divine favor, the deliverance of the body of Christ, the Church, in the first resurrection. Rom. 8:23-25

These two features of the Atonement, (1) the righting of the wrong, and (2) the bringing of the separated ones into accord, are shown in the divine proposition of a New Covenant, whose mediator is Christ Jesus our Lord. When father Adam was perfect, in complete harmony with his Creator, and obedient to all of his commands, a covenant between them was implied, though not formally expressed; the fact that life in its perfection had been given to father Adam, and that additionally he had been given dominion over all the beasts and fish and fowl, and over all the earth as the territory of his dominion, and the additional fact that it was declared that if he would violate his faithfulness to the Great King, Jehovah, by disobedience, he would forfeit his life and vitiate all those rights and blessings which had been conferred upon him — this implied, we say, a covenant or agreement on God's part with his creature that his life was everlasting, unless he should alter the matter by disobedience, and bring upon himself a sentence of death.

The disobedience of Adam, and its death penalty, left him utterly helpless, except as the Almighty provided for the recovery of the race through the New Covenant, and the New Covenant, as the Apostle points out, has a mediator — God, on the one part, deals with the mediator, and not with the sinner; the sinner, on the other part, deals with the mediator, and not with God. But before our Lord Jesus could become the Mediator he must do for mankind a work which, in this figure, is represented as sealing the New Covenant with his own precious blood — "The blood of the New Covenant." (Matt. 26:28; Mark 14:24; Heb. 7:22; 9:15-20) That is to say, God, in justice, cannot receive nor deal with the sinner, either directly, or indirectly through a mediator, so as to give the sinner a release from the sentence of death, and reconciliation to God, with its accompanying blessing, the gift of eternal life — except first divine Justice be remembered and satisfied. Hence it was that our Lord Jesus, in paying our penalty by his death, made possible the sealing of the New Covenant between God and man, under the terms of which all who come unto God by him, the mediator, are acceptable.

Reconciliation with God, at-one-ment with him, was impossible until, first, the redemption had been secured with the precious blood, that the one seeking at-one-ment might approach God, through the mediator of the New Covenant: "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me." (John 14:6) It is for this reason that the highest privilege of the most favored of mankind, previous to the commencement of Christ's sacrifice, was that of "servants" and "friends" of God — none could be accorded the high privilege of sonship (with all that this implies of divine favor and eternal life), and none were thus recognized. (John 1:12; Matt. 11:11) Thus it will be seen that those who ignore the sin-offering and Justice-appeasement features of the Atonement are ignoring important and indispensable parts — primary and fundamental features. But not less do others err, who, while recognizing the sacrifice of Christ as the sacrifice of the Atonement for sealing the New Covenant, ignore a work of reconciliation toward men, by which men are to be brought, through the operation of the New Covenant, back into harmony with God.

Nor can this work of Atonement, so far as mankind is concerned, be accomplished instantaneously and by faith. It may begin in an instant and by faith, and at-one-ment may be reckonedly accomplished between the sinner and the Almighty through faith; but the scope of the At-one-ment which God purposes is grander and higher than this. His arrangement is that those of the human race who desire to return to at-one-ment with him (and his righteous law) shall be reckonedly accepted through their Mediator, but shall not be fully and completely received (by the Father) while they are actually imperfect. Hence, while it is the work of the Mediator (Head and "body") to proclaim to mankind the fact that God has provided a sin-offering, whereby he can be just and yet receive the sinner back into harmony with himself, and that he is now willing to confer the blessing of sonship and its eternal life and freedom from corruption, it is additionally his work to make clear to all mankind that this offer of salvation is a great boon and should be promptly accepted and that its terms are but a reasonable service; and additionally to this, it is the Mediator's work, as the Father's representative, to actually restore — to mentally, morally and physically restitute mankind — so many of them as will receive his ministry and obey him. Thus eventually the Mediator's work will result in an actual at-one-ment between God and those whom the Mediator shall restore to perfection.

This great work of the Mediator has appropriated to it the entire Millennial Age; it is for this purpose that Messiah's Kingdom shall be established in the earth, with all power and authority: it is for this purpose that he must reign, that he may put down every evil influence which would hinder the world of mankind from coming to a knowledge of this gracious truth of divine love and mercy; this provision under the New Covenant, that "whosoever will" may return to God. But while the great Mediator shall thus receive, bless and restore, under the terms of the New Covenant, all who desire fellowship with God through him, he shall destroy from among the people, with an everlasting destruction, all who, under the favorable opportunities of that Millennial Kingdom, refuse the divine offer of reconciliation. Acts 3:23; Matt. 25:41,46; Rev. 20:9,14,15; Prov. 2:21,22

The close of the Millennial age will come after it shall have accomplished all the work of mediation for which it was designed and appointed. And there the mediatorial office of Christ will cease because there will be no more rebels, no more sinners. All desirous of harmony with God will then have attained it in perfection; and all wilful sinners will by that time have been cut off from life. Then will be fulfilled our Lord's prophecy that all things in heaven and earth will be found praising God; and then will be realized the divine promise that there shall be no more dying, no more sighing and no more crying, because the former things (conditions) will have passed away. Rev. 21:4; Psa. 67

When the great Mediator-King shall resign his completed work to the Father, delivering up his office and kingdom as the Apostle explains (1 Cor. 15:24-28), what lasting results may we expect the great Mediator's redemptive work toward mankind to show?

It will have accomplished:

(1) The sealing of the New Covenant with his own precious blood; making its gracious provisions possible to all mankind.

(2) The reconciling or bringing back into harmony with God of a "little flock," a "royal priesthood," zealous of good works — willing to lay down their lives in God's service; who, because thus copies of their Savior, shall by divine arrangement be privileged to be his joint-heirs in the Millennial Kingdom and partakers of his divine nature. 1 Pet. 2:9,10; Titus 2:14; Rom. 8:29

(3) The reconciliation, the full restitution, of an earth full of perfect, happy human beings — all of mankind found desirous of divine favor upon the divine terms: these the Mediator turns over to the Father, not only fully restored but fully instructed in righteousness and self-control and full of the spirit of loyalty to God, the spirit of holiness and possessed of its blessed fruits — meekness, patience, kindness, godliness — love. In this condition they shall indeed be blameless and irreproachable, and capable of standing every test.

(4) The destruction of all others of the race, as unworthy of further favor — the cumberers of the ground, whose influence could not be beneficial to others, and whose continued existence would not glorify their Creator.

Thus, at the close of the Millennial age, the world will be fully back in divine favor, fully at-one with God, as mankind was representatively in harmony, at-one with God, in the person of Adam, before transgression entered the world: but additionally they will possess a most valuable experience with evil; for by it they will have learned a lesson on the sinfulness of sin, and the wisdom, profit and desirableness of righteousness. Additionally, also, they will possess an increase of knowledge and the wider exercise of the various talents and abilities which were man's originally in creation, but in an undeveloped state. And this lesson will be profitable, not to man alone, but also to the holy angels, who will have witnessed an illustration of the equilibrium of divine Justice, Love, Wisdom and Power in a measure which they could not otherwise have conceived possible. And the lesson fully learned by all, we may presume, will stand for all time, applicable to other races yet uncreated on other planets of the wide universe.

And what will be the center of that story as it shall be told throughout eternity? It will be the story of the great ransom finished at Calvary and of the atonement based upon that payment of the corresponding price, which demonstrated that God's Love and Justice are exactly equal.

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Last update: April 21, 2021; 9/11/2022.