The Atonement: How We Are Justified

I have taken a great deal of time getting to the writing of this particular post, at least in finishing it. I suppose the reason for that is that I am not one who enjoys conflict, especially conflict among Christians, whatever it may be. However, this is something that is quite important, as it addresses the very work of Christ and what He has accomplished on the cross for people, and, more specifically, for all who would believe.

This isn't an article about how God views someone as righteous; that is, my point here is not to contend with the errors of Rome with regard to what Justification actually is. Though I'll cite verses that speak of the wonder of justification by faith, I'll do so as statements to the reality of it rather than arguing for it for the most part. This article is for Christians, and any true believer in Christ will indeed affirm that God views us as righteous by faith, and that apart from works.

The point of this particular post is instead the question of where faith comes from, and what is the ground of it. That is to say, how is it one comes to believe? On what basis does God produce faith, a wondrous righteousness, in the lives of wicked sinners?

The origin and source of faith is the question I shall address, and, by the grace of God, answer from the Scriptures as I complete this long overdue post.

Recently, I have discussed this matter via blog posts with Tony Byrne and via email with David Ponter. Mr. Ponter has been quite gracious in his responses and answering of the questions I've posed to him, and Tony's wealth of information and historical/theological citations have contributed to all that I've needed to make this post accurate and thorough. It is with one of those aforementioned citations that I shall take issue to bring out the differences between us (that is, between me and what Mr. Ponter and Mr. Byrne, both of whom agree with each other against me in this) and to shed some biblical light on what the work of Christ has done with regard to bringing faith to God's elect.

Some time ago,[1] Tony posted this article about faith and the Atonement, citing Henry James Carpenter and something he had to say about this matter. I have reproduced the quote below:

"But I proceed to notice another objection, and one very commonly urged against this doctrine [general redemption]. It is objected, that if our Lord died for all, then it would be unjust to punish any one, for this would be to exact a double penalty for the same offence—to punish the same sins twice over.

No doubt it would be unjust to punish the sinner if Christ had borne his sins, with the stipulation that his sins should be absolutely forgiven—that, in consequence of his sacrifice, all men should be unconditionally pardoned, irrespective of their state of mind, irrespective of their believing or not believing, of their receiving the Gospel or rejecting the Gospel.

But nothing like this doctrine can be discovered in the Bible; the death of our Lord is nowhere in Scripture represented in this light. There we read, as I observed before, that a certain medium is necessary before the benefits of Christ's death can be actually applied to any man. Men must have faith; they must believe on Christ—they must trust wholly in his atoning sacrifice, that they may be forgiven their trespasses. "He that believeth shall be saved; he that believeth not shall be damned." The Lord Jesus is "set forth to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood."

It is undeniable that our Lord could have annexed what condition he, in his wisdom, thought fit, in order that man should receive the benefits of the sacrifice he was about to offer; and it is no more unjust to punish the sinner who rejects Christ's offer of salvation than to treat an imprisoned debtor as still liable to his debt, because he refuses to send a petition to his rich benefactor, who freely paid his debt, but stipulated that the benefits of his generous payment should only be enjoyed by those debtors who would comply with his condition, and petition him for their release."

Henry James Carpenter, Did Christ Die For All Men, Or For The Elect Only? A Letter To A Friend In Ireland (London: T. Hatchard, 1857), 21.

This quote from Henry James Carpenter makes reference to John Owen's double payment argument. I thought it wise to dig up the original quote,[2] since it is often referenced and almost never quoted. So then, here it is:

God imposed his wrath due unto, and Christ underwent the pains of hell for, either all the sins of all men, or all the sins of some men, or some sins of all men. If the last, some sins of all men, then have all men some sins to answer for, and so shall no man be saved; for if God enter into judgment with us, though it were with all mankind for one sin, no flesh should be justified in his sight: “If the Lord should mark iniquities, who should stand?” Ps. cxxx. 3. We might all go to cast all that we have “to the moles and to the bats, to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty,” Isa. ii. 20, 21. If the second, that is it which we affirm, that Christ in their stead and room suffered for all the sins of all the elect in the world. If the first, why, then, are not all freed from the punishment of all their sins? You will say, “Because of their unbelief; they will not believe.” But this unbelief, is it a sin or not? If not, why should they be punished for it? If it be, then Christ underwent the punishment due to it, or not. If so, then why must that hinder them more than their other sins for which he died from partaking of the fruit of his death? If he did not, then did he not die for all their sins. Let them choose which part they will.

From John Owen's The Death of Death in the Death of Christ, pages 173--174.

Tony has observed with some measure of frustration that people tend to toss John Owen's double payment argument around, assuming that it settles the matter of the Atonement in and of itself. He, that is, Tony, makes it very clear with the quote he provided by HJC that he does not believe that Dr. Owen's argument settles the matter of the Atonement in and of itself, as he has disagreed with it publicly on more than one occasion. In fact, there is more discussion on the internet (at least according to Google) that disagrees with and critiques Dr. Owen's argument than agrees with it!

I like John Owen's argument as stated above and in his work The Death of Death in the Death of Christ. I find it helpful and useful. However, I also agree with one point that Tony has in his objecting to people using the double payment argument as if it is the end-all argument on the Atonement. I think it is significant that Dr. Owen waited until pages 173 and 174 in his work to put forward this particular assertion. Dr. Owen didn't lay it out without a foundation on which to set it; he had already written over 150 pages of text leading up to this point in his work. For Dr. Owen, it was the conclusion of much arguing from Scripture on which it was founded. Failure, then, to put forward the Scriptures to buttress this "double payment argument" written by this amazing theologian is often a failure to use it properly. The particular section of the argument I address here, and my point of contention with Mr. Ponter, Mr. Byrne, and also Mr. Henry James Carpenter, is that of faith. I do indeed believe that faith is something obtained by Christ in the Redemption, the Atonement that He made, for those He purchased on that tortuous cross, that is the elect, and for no one else. Therefore, the Atonement, the propitiation that Christ made on behalf of the elect, is for them alone, and not for every single person who has ever lived. He provided faith for their unbelief.

This assertion is contrary to what Mr. Carpenter said in the quote Tony provided from him. In the quote from the letter Tony provided, Mr. Carpenter said (emphasis added):

No doubt it would be unjust to punish the sinner if Christ had borne his sins, with the stipulation that his sins should be absolutely forgiven—that, in consequence of his sacrifice, all men should be unconditionally pardoned, irrespective of their state of mind, irrespective of their believing or not believing, of their receiving the Gospel or rejecting the Gospel.

The problem with the above statement is, well, that it doesn't address the argument. It is indeed unjust for God to punish sins that are borne by Christ. That was Owen's point -- but it isn't irrespective of their faith, their receiving the Gospel. It rather guarantees that some men will have faith and receive the Gospel! The work of Christ makes certain that minds will indeed be changed and set aright to embrace the One True God through Jesus Christ -- that such would truly have genuine faith. The sins of the elect are to be absolutely forgiven, including that of unbelief, and the reason for it must be that the provision to remove that unbelief is sealed up in the work of Christ itself.

Mr. Byrne and Mr. Ponter clearly believe that faith is a gift that God provides. In this blog post that Dr. White put up at Alpha and Omega Ministries we can see Tony affirming it as he talks to "brig" and "conviction", using the name "Polhill":

(Polhill) brig, faith is a gift, but it is also the act of the renewed man, as Spurgeon said.

(Polhill) Conviction, the bible doesn't speak of "faith" as a gift that must be accepted. Rather, it is Christ who is the gift that must be accepted through our act of faith.

As Tony seems to suggest here, and as Mr. Ponter clearly affirmed in an email to me, they do not believe that faith is something that Jesus obtained [edit 5-18-2010] and secured for the elect on the cross, though they do understand it to be a gift from God. Those who agree with Owen on the Atonement, however, would insist that faith is something Jesus obtained [edit 5-18-2010] and secured for the elect, as I have stated earlier. Yet, all of this stating this or that is nice, but what does the Scripture say? What does the Bible teach about this aspect of faith? That is where we must turn. Only the Scriptures can decide between us, and lest I run the risk of falling into the error I have already warned against with regard to Owen's double payment argument, it is to the Word of God that we shall now go! First we shall "turn" to Ephesians 2:8-9 and address the issue of faith as a gift before we look more intently into Paul's argument about from where it springs.

Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, (9) not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

This is an absolutely beautiful passage that demonstrates quite well that our salvation comes to us not as a result of works. Most people would rightly maintain that this passage teaches that salvation is not of works, but rather of grace -- for Paul says clearly that we are saved by grace. He says this is "through faith," as well in verse eight, and then goes on to say that "this is not your own doing." Now, to what was Paul referring when he used the word "this"? It is a (near)demonstrative pronoun, and all pronouns have antecedents. So then, what is the antecedent, that is, the word or words that the word "this" replace(s)?

The Greek language is quite exact, a good deal more so than English. Pronouns agree with the nouns they replace in gender as well as number. In English, words don't have gender; that is, they are not considered masculine or feminine (or neuter for that matter), but in Greek, all of them are. It helps us to determine which words modify what in a given context.

In this case, in verse eight, we have the word "grace" which is a feminine noun. We also have "faith," another feminine noun. Lastly, we have "saved" which is a masculine participle. So, it would make sense for the "this" to be masculine we might think, that it would modify saved....or perhaps feminine, that it would modify one of the two nouns mentioned. However.... we do not have either. The word "this" is a neuter demonstrative pronoun, so it doesn't match any of the three candidates we've given in gender. Yet, all is not lost! Sometimes in Greek, a neuter is used as a catch-all; that is, it is employed to refer back to all of the preceding nouns in a sentence, regardless of their gender.

This is what we have here. Paul is saying in no uncertain terms, that the whole of our salvation proceeds from God -- all of it. Grace, faith, being saved -- all of it is a result of God's work in the lives of the elect to bring about the latter's salvation. The text is quite clear.

That being established, we now move on to the origin of this salvation, the reason God can grant it at all. How is it this grace through faith salvation comes to undeserving sinners? I'm glad you asked, and Paul doesn't leave us without an answer as he wrote the very words breathed out by God:

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (24) and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (25) whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (26) It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (27) Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. (28) For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

In the quote that Tony provided by Mr. Carpenter, we find this statement:

The Lord Jesus is "set forth to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood."

This is of course, true. This particular rendering that Mr. Carpenter provides is slightly more literal than the one given by the ESV translators. The word order seems to fit better with it. That being said, however, we have a serious problem, a problem that often arises when a verse (or in this case, part of a verse) is removed from its context:[3] we arrive at a misunderstanding at best, heresy at worst. [4]

One of the greatest doctrines of Scripture recovered in the Reformation was that of Justification by Faith Alone. That is, the means by which God declares someone to be righteous is faith, and that alone. It is a forensic act, a legal declaration. Here indeed, as well as elsewhere in Paul's writings (some of the other places in Romans I'll address here, at least by way of footnote), we see this great doctrine put forth in verse 28: we are justified by faith apart from works. The word translated apart is the Greek word choris which means "separate from" and also "without." This is why we as "Protestants" (and anyone who would claim the title "protestant" for himself must hold to this) insist on the word alone in understanding faith's role with regard to justification. Rome insists that works done in a state of grace merit grace. Yet, Paul makes it clear that we are justified by faith apart from, or without, works. So then, if faith (which is something we do, that is, we are the ones believing) is not a work,[5] then it must be the only thing that is not a work -- it MUST be a grace!

As you the reader I am sure noticed (if not, please read it again!), this fact has not escaped Paul in Romans 3:23-28. In verse 24, we have this statement, the statement that provides the corrective understanding to the quote Mr. Byrne provided by Mr. Carpenter:

and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
-- Romans 3:24, emphasis added

First we see that we are justified by grace. Justification comes by the grace of God, yet as we have seen, it is by faith[6]. Faith is part of the grace of God that comes to us in salvation! It is right to say then, as Paul does, that we are justified by grace,[7] and also justified by faith. Given that the inspired apostle is the one writing is, such is a given.

Now, however, is where the real meat of the argument comes, and why Mr. Carpenter's interpretation, as well as that of Mr. Ponter and Mr. Byrne must be rejected. Through what does this justification by grace/faith come? How does any grace come to us? Paul tells us that it is "through the redemption" that is in Christ Jesus. To unpack this and get the fullest understanding, we must discern what is meant by the word translated "through" and that of "redemption."

Paul says we are justified by grace through the redemption that is in Jesus. The word rendered through is the Greek preposition dia. Making a theological case on a preposition is shaky ground most of the time; prepositions in Greek (and in English for that matter) are notorious for having a myriad of meanings; pinning them down to one particular understanding can sometimes be difficult. Here, though, I think we tread fairly safely.

The word is used 509 times in the New Testament according to Bibleworks (and my addition). Of those 509 times, the top two meanings are "through" (225) and "because" (111). If something happens "through" something else, then that something else is the means by which the first thing happens. If I speak through an interpreter, then my message is not understood by my audience without that interpreter; he or she is a necessity, and is the means by which the message goes forth. When Paul says we are justified by grace "through" the redemption, he is saying that we are justified in this manner "on account of" or "because of" or "through the agency of"[8]. This justification by grace/faith comes to us by means of the redemption -- that is where it comes from. Faith comes out of the redemption!

So then, what is this "redemption" then? It is "a release effected upon payment of a ransom." What Jesus did on the cross was to guarantee the setting free of the elect by the payment of a ransom! They would indeed be released! A redemption is a releasing as much as it is a payment. When Jesus provided this redemption, He achieved propitiation (next verse), absorbing and satisfying the wrath of God on behalf of all who would believe. I say it that way because of what we've already seen: justification by grace (or say it justification by faith; Paul as we have seen, does both) comes on account of the redemption. It doesn't happen apart from it. This means then that faith is something Jesus obtained in His work on the cross, and since not all have faith, then not all are released. Since not all are released, then (given the meaning of redemption) not all have had payment made for them. Since not all are released and not all have had payment, then God's wrath has not been satisfied on behalf of every single individual, but only against those who will believe -- the elect.

That being the case, the phrase "set forth to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood" needs to be understood as how God applies this propitiation to the elect. Before the point of salvation, even an elect person is not justified. God applies the work of Christ to that person, and the grace that He uses to do so is the faith we've been talking about for some time now. :)

I welcome interaction on this issue, on this text. Please, however, if you comment and wish to take issue with what I've said, bring your exegesis with you. Man's opinions ultimately carry no weight, but only what God has said.


May God use this to the glory of His Name and the edification of His Church!
sdg,
david b. hewitt


_____________________________________

1. When I started this post I could have said "recently" but well, such is not the case now. :)

2. Ok, I confess: it was actually TurretinFan who found the link for me. :) I am indeed indebted to God for men like him.

3. This, of course, is not to say that we can never cite a verse or two (or even part of a verse) to make a valid theological point. What I am trying to draw attention to here is what tends to happen when we do this. Extreme care must be taken to avoid error when quoting verses without their contexts.

4. For the record, I believe this situation to be of the former, not of the latter.

5. Paul brings this out beautifully in Romans chapter 4 with his discussion of Abraham:

Romans 4:2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. (3) For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness." (4) Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. (5) And to the one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, (6) just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: (7) "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; (8) blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin."

Please note that the one who trusts God to justify the ungodly is the "one who does not work." If faith is something that one hasn't worked to get, then faith must be of a different nature than works. Faith must be of grace; it necessarily follows.

6. Another oft quoted verse to describe justification by faith is from Romans 5:

Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

7. Paul mentions being justified by grace elsewhere in his corpus, Titus to be exact:

Titus 3:4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, (5) he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, (6) whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, (7) so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

8. This is another way the word dia is translated, though admittedly only once. I put it forward here as part of the argument to suggest more connotation than denotion. If someone were to ask, "What does Paul mean by 'through,'" then one could respond, "He means 'through the agency" of," in response.