Article 8: Salvation Sermon 10/17/10

This week I followed my manuscript pretty closely so the following is a pretty good representation of what I shared on Sunday.

Article 8: Salvation – more than pie in the sky

October 17, 2010

BMC- Romans 3:19-25, 5:1-10

Introduction: Chile Miners

One of the big news stories this week has been the rescue of the miners in Chile that became trapped after a mining accident on August 5th. I know that some of you have been following this story, because I’ve heard a number of people discussing it at different points along the way. Certainly, it’s a pretty amazing story. In fact NBC’s Natalie Moralis, called the rescue a miracle of super human effort and the perfect plan.

For 69 days, 33 miners were trapped a half mile under ground in Chile. To rescue them, some 800 people including South Africans, Americans and even NASA worked at drilling a hole 28 inches in diameter that would carry a capsule with one trapped miner at a time on a 20 minute ride to freedom.

In all, it took 22 hours and 39 minutes to rescue all 33 miners with their captain coming out last. This man organized his men for survival during the first crucial hours; and after medical examinations, all were found to be in amazingly good health.

It is a remarkable story of salvation that is reflected in the quotes of people interviewed. "We have lived a magical night, a night we will remember throughout our lives, a night in which life defeated death," Pinera said early Wednesday. And speaking of her son, Mrs. Campos said, "Daniel will truly be born again. But before I hug him and tell him how much I love him, I will thank God for allowing it to happen."

This truly is a miracle story and we are captivated by the effort and the success in saving these 33 lives. And I don’t want to take away from that at all this morning. At the same time, it occurs to me that we know another story of salvation that is even more grand and on a tremendously larger scale; but that does not receive nearly the press coverage that each one of these miners has received coming out of this hole in the earth.

Article 8 highlights

Over the last 8 weeks, our story has been evolving. We began by reflecting on the person of the triune God and then upon God’s word that is revealed to us in scripture. We went on to consider creation and our part in it. It was a creation that was good, but that we took on a tragic turn when human beings brought sin into the equation. Last week, we dwelled with that reality; but thanks be to God that was not the end of the story.

Though we find ourselves surrounded by the death of sin because of our own choosing, we are not forever trapped by it. Because in the midst of our shortcomings and our outright attacks on God, God saw fit to provide a way out. God saw fit to send his own son down to the earth for 33 years and at the end, into the depths of the earth to rescue us from ourselves.

Article 8: Salvation attempts to put words to this miraculous rescue that is available to save the lives of every person on earth. “We believe that, through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God offers salvation from sin and a new way of life to all people.” Through Jesus we are given a way out. We are saved in such a miraculous and costly yet simple way. “We receive God’s salvation when we repent of sin and accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.”

The tunnel from heaven to earth has already been drilled. The capsule is at the bottom waiting for us to board. All that we have to do is repent of our sin and accept Jesus as Savior and Lord and we are saved. We are taken from the depths of sin and death to new life and this is significant for our eternal state of life with the father in heaven, but it is also more than a final pie in the sky.

As our article goes on to point out, “In Christ, we are reconciled with God and brought into the reconciling community of God’s people. We place our faith in God that, by the same power that raised Christ from the dead, we may be saved from sin to follow Christ in this life and to know the fullness of salvation in the age to come.”

Our salvation in Jesus Christ is about our eternal home. It is about what happens to us after death, but unlike much of popular American Christianity; we also recognize that it is also about our lives here and now. We will not know the fullness of our salvation until the final consummation of the age that is to come; but we are to begin living into that salvation in this present world to the best of our ability by the strength of the Holy Spirit. This is significant.

It is also significant, as our article points out, that God chose to act in human history. God has been offering a foretaste of the grace and mercy of salvation to God’s people throughout the Old Testament. God delivered the people from bondage in Egypt and made covenants with them. Then when the time was right, he sent his own son and through him provided the salvation that is not otherwise available to us.

In many ways, the working of this gift of salvation is a mystery to us. We know of our sin and our brokenness before God. We know that God came to dwell with us in human form in the person of Jesus Christ. We know that through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, salvation becomes available to us. But for centuries, theologians have wrestled to find words that fully explain the process of this miraculous reality.

In their searching of scripture and processes of reason, three primary models for atonement have arisen over the centuries. Atonement literally means “at-one-ment,” referring to the reconciliation that takes place with God.[1] As commentary #1 of our article suggests, each one has a basis in scripture and each one offers a different nuance of how these same events work to bring about the same results.

As Joel Green and Mark Baker attest to, this becomes important when missionaries evangelize in other cultures.[2] It also seems to me that as we have different metaphors or images of God that together give us a fuller picture of whom God is than any one could ever do; these three atonement theologies together paint a fuller picture of the power of the salvation that we find in Christ Jesus.

As Michele Hershberger suggests in her book God’s Story, Our Story, “None of these ways of explaining why Jesus died should be taken by itself. Together they all help us understand... All of these views are supported in the Bible, and like the Bible, we can embrace more than one explanation of why Jesus had to die.”[3]

Substitutionary Atonement[4]

The first and probably the most familiar to us is substitutionary atonement. This is the understanding that our sin causes a debt that we owe to God. We are not able to repay that debt and so Jesus had to die as a substitute for us. Jesus is the perfect, once for all sacrifice, that repays the debt for all those that believe in him. This approach draws heavily on the Old Testament sacrificial system that required the sacrifice of animals to atone for one’s sins.

In the New Testament, we see this model in the gospels in Mark 10:45 when Jesus speaks of giving his life as a ransom for many and in Mark 14:24 when Jesus speaks of his blood being poured out for many. We tend to see it more in the book of Hebrews (10:6, 8; 13:11) and Paul’s epistles (I Thess 5:10, I Cor. 8:11, Rom 14:15).[5]

For many this is a powerful and convincing explanation for how Jesus’ death restores us to God. For others, like all metaphors, there are limits here. This understanding of atonement was developed most fully by Anselm, a theologian who developed this without the support of scripture. He wanted a rational explanation that did not require scriptural support to make his case.[6]

This understanding is also one that focuses heavily on Jesus’ death to the exclusion of Jesus’ life and resurrection. If Jesus’ death is all that is needed to pay the debt, then Jesus’ life tends to become unimportant and his resurrection is just icing on the cake rather than an essential part of the equation.

And the death that is required is needed to change God’s heart rather than ours. God is the one who needs someone to die in order for God to be able to forgive us rather than our hearts being that which is changed by Jesus’ death on the cross.

We see this understanding of atonement very clearly within the story of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis. In the land of Narnia, Edmund has fallen into working for the White Witch. The only way that he may be purchased from her is by the willing sacrifice of Aslan on the stone table as a substitute. When he willingly sacrifices himself, Edmund is freed. Aslan then rises to new life and defeats the White Witch.

Moral Influence Atonement[7]

The next explanation of the atonement is that of Moral Influence. In this understanding, Jesus life, teaching and ultimately Jesus’ death reveal to us the evil of the world. We become so revolted by our evil and our violence that our hearts are changed and we turn toward God. Additionally, we witness the example of how we are to live nonviolently and with enemy love. Jesus death is a demonstration of God’s love.[8]

Within scripture, we read the prophets criticisms of sacrifices in the Old Testament. We also read of their call for ethical living and justice. In the New Testament, we hear Jesus echoing the prophets, proclaiming the kingdom, and forgiving love and grace. Thus gospel references for this theory are much more prolific. We also see this in Romans passages like the one that we heard read for us today.[9]

Abelard is best known for flushing out this approach and for those who struggle to embrace a God who would require death to appease His wrath, this understanding may help them to draw closer to God and to accept His love for them. For others, they wonder if it can really be enough to have the perfect example to follow.

This is the atonement theory that we would see underlying Charles M. Sheldon’s book “In His Steps” and the question, “What Would Jesus Do?”[10] In the book, the people are motivated to repent from their sins and to live a life worthy of Christ by following His example of love. His life, death and resurrection serve as a motivator for change that results in atonement with God.

This is not a works based salvation, but merely a salvation that becomes visible in the works that come from the hearts of the people that have been changed. They are not saved by their works, but their salvation which is a result of what Jesus did flows through their lives into the world.

Christus Victor Atonement[11]

The third understanding of atonement is the Christus Victor model. Probably the earliest understanding of Christian atonement, this view was reintroduced by Gustaf Aulen and portrays a cosmic struggle between God and the forces of evil. Jesus overcomes this by living a life of faith and total obedience, a life that ultimately leads to his death as well. It is in his death, a death that the world required to satisfy them[12], that his ultimate victory comes.

Through his choice not to retaliate, Jesus exposed evil for what it really is and broke it’s power. Overcoming death most fully in his resurrection from the dead, the ultimate victory. Thus humans are freed from the powers of death and sin.

In scripture we see hints of this battle in Jesus’ various encounters with demons as well as his wilderness experience with Satan and the taunting on the cross. In fact Greg Boyd asserts that “Jesus’ ministry was centrally concerned with defeating demons and the devil.”[13] We also see this in Acts 10:38 in which these healings free people oppressed by the devil and in Acts 3:13-15, 5:30-31, 13:27-30 in which Jesus’ resurrection is his vindication. And Paul’s many claims to Jesus as Lord also proclaim this victory motif; but this understanding of atonement becomes most visible and clear within the book of Revelation.[14]

Greg Boyd goes on to say that “In this view, what Christ does for us cannot be separated, even theoretically, from what Christ does in us. One either participates in Christ’s cosmic victory over the powers or they do not. If they do, their lives by definition will be increasingly characterized by the ability and willingness to overcome evil with good as they imitate the Calvary-quality life of Jesus Christ (Eph 5:1-2).”[15]

We see parallels to this understanding of atonement in The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkein. On their quest to destroy the one ring, the fellowship descends into the mines of Moria. While there, they must battle all manner of evil including a balrog. In this battle, Gandalf the wizard is killed when he sacrifices himself for the remainder of the fellowship. Yet he later appears in new life to aid in the final battles against the evil of Mordor.

Grace

Regardless of which of these understandings has meant the most to you or whether or not you find an understanding of all three most helpful, I would suggest to you this morning that how it works is not as important as the fact that it does work. Sin has separated us from God and from each other, but God has acted through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus to provide a way of reconciliation.

Moreover, any method of atonement requires the key element of grace. Without grace from God, none of this would be possible. As Mennonites, we tend to gloss over grace. We know that it is there and it is present in our article for today, but we don’t tend to emphasize that.

We focus in on the importance of discipleship and living out our faith. And these are certainly important dynamics. Jesus calls us not only to offer salvation to people but also discipleship as well. And James tells us that faith without works is dead, yet atonement without grace is impossible. Grace must be an essential component of our understanding of atonement and salvation.

We see this within our passages from Romans today. Romans 3:23-25 declares, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement.” And Romans 5:1-2 states, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.”

And this experience of grace should also be an essential component of our living out of salvation in our world today. As we share the grace that we have experienced from God with others that we encounter in our daily lives, we become reconciled to them as well and we testify to the grace that God has to offer them. Our salvation though not complete until our death, must not be only the pie in the sky to come, but also a way of living now. We must engage the world with the salvation that we have found in Jesus Christ by living it out in our relationships with others.

Conclusion

By the grace of God, sin and separation from God and one another is not the end of the story. Through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we can receive salvation by accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Through these three models for this salvation, we come to understand more fully the power and function of the salvation that is provided for us.

If you are worshiping with us this morning, and have not made this commitment of accepting Jesus as you Lord and Savior; I’d invite you to do so today. If you are feeling Jesus tugging on your heart, I would invite you to talk with me, Pastor Rick, or someone else that you are led to and ask them to pray with you about this.

May we go this day living into the salvation that we have received for eternity in our daily lives with one another. May we reconcile with one another and through that reconciliation, testify to the reconciliation that we have received with God. And may we be empowered with these understandings to share the love of God with others and to lead them to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ as well.

Amen.

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[1] http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/A86.html

[2] http://www.mbseminary.edu/resources/embracing-a-wider-cross-there-are-many-life-changing-ways-to-understand-christ-s-death-and-resurrection

[3] God’s Story, Our Story Michele Hershberger pg.82-83

[4] God’s Story, Our Story Michele Hershberger pg.82-83

[5] Christian Theology: an eschatological approach Vol. I Thomas N. Finger pgs. 308-309

[6] Christian Theology: an eschatological approach Vol. I Thomas N. Finger pgs. 305

[7] God’s Story, Our Story Michele Hershberger pg.82

[8] Keeping Salvation Ethical: Mennonite and Amish Atonement Theology in the Late Nineteenth Century . J. Denny Weaver pg.38

[9] Christian Theology: an eschatological approach Vol. I Thomas N. Finger pgs. 314-317

[10] http://cafesda.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-is-moral-influence-theory-of.html

[11] Keeping Salvation Ethical: Mennonite and Amish Atonement Theology in the Late Nineteenth Century . J. Denny Weaver pg.35

[12] “Forgiveness and (Non)Violence: The Atonement Connections” J Denny Weaver The Mennonite Quarterly Review April 2009 Vol. LXXXIII, No. 2 pg. 339

[13] http://www.gregboyd.org/essays/essays-jesus/the-christus-victor-view-of-the-atonement/

[14] Christian Theology: an eschatological approach Vol. I Thomas N. Finger pgs. 322-324

[15] http://www.gregboyd.org/essays/essays-jesus/the-christus-victor-view-of-the-atonement/