The Penalty Is Not Paid

John to the seven churches that are in Asia:Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood. – Revelation 1:4-5

No, the penalty of sin IS NOT paid, But sin and death dethroned The way of deliverance, once hidden in God, In Christ is now made known. By repentance and faith Washed in His blood New birth is bestowed from above. The work of redemption From start to end IS God’s labor of grace The light of His Righteous Love. Herein is the harmony of Law ,Gospel, and works As seen in Christ’s light That God himself though offended by sin In obedience to death, reunites the captives to life By the blood of the cross He liberates, purifies, and pardons Exposing the adversary as the true oppressor, liar, and tyrant Spoiling him and his cohorts openly stripping them of their power Refuting the slanderous defamation of the serpent in the garden and revealing himself in truth as our loving, gracious, and righteous sovereign Now the command we too proclaim Calling all to repent Liberated to obey His commands as a gift Believe the good news by obedient faith Freed from sin and adopted in Christ Abide in Him faithfully enduring to the end and reap the promise of eternal life.

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. – Mark 8:34-35

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What atonement provides
Power | Peace | Purification

The deliverance is not effected by the execution of penalty, satisfaction, or substitution – but God’s loving and righteous self disclosure, rescuing the captives from the power of the adversary, sin and death, cleansing them from iniquity, forgiving their sin, and counting them as righteous, adopting them into Christ – the firstborn and granting them an inheritance that is incorruptible and the promise of eternal life.

In the cross – God set forth (demonstrated) His righteousness, condemned sin in the flesh, as the author of life – conquered death, spoiled the powers, set the captives free, gave gifts to men, seated the redeemed in heavenly places above all the power of the adversary, and commands them that are His to continue His redemptive work.

Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. – Mt. 10:8

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  – Mt 26:18-20

Do NOT say…

Christ suffered and died ‘In our place’
Christ suffered and died  ‘Instead of us’
Christ paid our fine or penalty

But instead understand…

The atonement of Christ is a gracious amnesty in His blood.. Conditioned on repentance, faith, and faithfulness .. Which provides – deliverance from sins dominion, forgiveness of sin, and cleansing from sin’s corruption; all of which is ‘In Christ’ and reunites us to the life of God. Atonement (reconciliation) is ‘INSTEAD OF PENALTY’ it is not of PENAL SUBSTITUTION or SATISFACTION but of redemptive participation (relationally-juridical) and transformation (ontological). It was the same during the time of the temple, the korbanot or sacrifices was that thing ‘by which’ one drew near to God .

The Temple Offering on the Day of Atonement 1

Nachum Braverman, a Jewish Rabbi, describes the process, “You rest your hands on its head and you confess the mistake you made. Then you slaughter the offering. It’s butchered in front of you. The blood is poured on the altar. The fat is put on the altar to burn. How do you feel?

I’ll tell you how you feel. You feel overwhelmed with emotion, jarred by the confrontation you’ve just had with death, and grateful to be alive. You’ve had a catharsis. The offering on the altar was a vicarious offering of yourself.” (sounds a lot like – Gal. 2:20)

Vicarious from Christ’s side in the sense that HE was tempted in all points as we are yet without sin; so that He, being without blemish, did intercede for and rescue us. (1 Jn. 3:8 ) Vicarious for us, in that we affirm God’s righteous condemnation of sin in the body of His flesh (Christ) on the tzelav/stauros or cross .. That is, we in Christ died to sin, die to sin, and live to God (righteousness) and if we endure and abide in Him faithfully, will receive final salvation and eternal life with Him.

Therefore say…

Christ died for our sakes – Rom 4:25
We in Him died – 2 Cor. 5:14-15
I am crucified with Christ – Gal. 2:20
Christ loved us and freed us from our sins in His blood– Rev. 1:4-5 (ransom – the price of our freedom)
If we did not die with Christ, we have not life – 2 Tim. 2:11

You see, it is NOT a DEBT payment BUT a DEBT cancellation. Your debt is conditionally remitted and WHOSOEVER WILL may receive this gracious amnesty provided by our great God and savior – the Lord Jesus Christ. We were war criminals opposed to the Most High, but now we all may draw near by the blood of Jesus Christ and receive amnesty and remission of sins past and … if we continue in Him as faithful citizens of the Kingdom we are promised an inheritance incorruptible and eternal life at His coming!

1 Nachum Braverman, “Animal offerings—Slaughter of the Beast” from the Jewish website www.aish.com For a deeper study into the meaning of the sacrifices from a Hebrew perspective I would highly recommend the article by Rabbi Ari Kahn The Mystery of the Sacrifices also on aish.com.