What is Atonement? And the Power of the Cross
Words by Laura Brett, our Evangelism Consultant
Thank You Jesus, for the blood applied
Thank You Jesus, it has washed me white
Thank You Jesus, You have saved my life
Brought me from the darkness into glorious light
Those words are the chorus from one of my all-time favourite worship songs, written and sung by Charity Gayle in 2021. I first heard it sung in Swedish a couple of years ago. I can hardly speak a word of the language, but it was surprisingly easy to make an educated guess at what the lyrics translated to in English because they spoke supernaturally to my innermost soul.
The sacrificial blood of Jesus is central to our faith
In Christian theology, atonement refers to the accomplished substitutionary work of Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God, who in His death on the cross at Calvary, suffered the full penalty of sin for the repentant sinner, allowing him or her to be truly reconciled to God.
Atonement is at the very heart of God’s redemptive purpose and plan for humanity and Jesus was and indeed, is, the Perfect Sacrifice – the Lamb of God.
Hebrews 10: 2-14 NASB says:
“but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies are made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified”.
The ultimate price
Easter is all about the Lord Jesus Christ paying the ultimate price for our sins through His suffering and death on the cross, the innocent shedding of His precious blood for the guilty in order that all of mankind might be pardoned and made free.
Sin is what made the atonement necessary and goes right back to The Fall in the Book of Genesis where the “Original Sin” entered the hearts of man for the very first time in the Garden of Eden. Since God is Holy and Righteous and cannot tolerate sin of any nature, the relationship between Adam and Eve and Him was estranged in that moment.
The atonement is God’s wonderous love for humanity, and it is fundamental to the Gospel message, as it makes the forgiveness for our sin even possible.
The blood of Jesus Christ has provided reconciliation between God and mankind. Adam and Eve’s sin alienated humanity from their Creator, but Jesus’ death made reconciliation available and possible for all the world.
Colossians 1:20 NASB says,:
“and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross”.
The words redemption, substitution, propitiation, and reconciliation all highlight the nature of Christ’s atonement.
The redemption offered by Jesus is not forced but is an act of love and grace. Everyone must choose to accept the provision He had made for their deliverance or pay the penalty for sin.
Jesus substituted himself upon the cross, He bore the punishment for our sins, and He endured the judgements of God against sin in our place. In 2 Corinthians 5:21 NASB, Paul writes:
“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him”.
Propitiation in New Testament writings, refers to the turning away of the wrath of God as the just judgment of our sin at the crucifixion. It expresses the concept of appeasement or reconciliation and in 1 John 2:2, the Apostle John writes:
“and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world”.
The rugged cross
As we gaze upon the rugged cross this Good Friday and the Resurrection Glory of Easter Sunday, let us take a moment to reflect on the blood of Jesus Christ – the redemption, substitution, propitiation, and reconciliation of His beautiful sacrificial atonement for us.
The Easter Story shows us God’s outpouring love for mankind, the final victory over sin and death, and the potential gift of new life through faith in Him.
In the words of another Easter Hymn –
What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus
Oh precious is the flow, that makes me white as snow
No other fount I know
Nothing but the blood of Jesus
(Robert Lowry, 1876)
