"THOU SHALT SURELY DIE!" (PART 15)

 

 

“We call attention to one other deeply important value of the types and the use to which they may be put: they furnish an infallible rule by which can be tested any man’s (our own included) interpretation of the New Testament Scriptures concerning the Atonement. He who denies the penal and vicarious nature of Christ’s death, repudiates the clear testimony of the types; he who sets aside the efficacy of His sacrifice by reducing it to a merely ‘making possible’ the salvation of men does likewise, FOR THE TYPES KNOW NOTHING OF AN INEFFECTUAL SACRIFICE.” Believing anything contrary to this is to pervert what the Old Testament teaches, through the sacrifices performed by the high priest, about what the coming great High Priest would do. The New Testament teaches that Jesus Christ is the great High Priest of His people (see Heb. 4:14). Many say that the Old Testament sacrifices were for Israel, but the sacrifice of Jesus was for all, despite the fact that this ‘for all’ sacrifice IN NO WAY RESEMBLES what the Old Testament high priest did! His sacrifice benefited all those for whom it was performed. The Arminian’s fictional sacrifice for every individual does not do that! The sacrifice of the Arminian jesus is totally unrecognizable from the Old Testament sacrifice and, therefore, is not a true reflection, or realisation of the Old Testament type, and subsequently of what the True Christ would do.

 

The types are what pointed to, and foretold what Jesus the Messiah would do. The types are not to be overlooked, or passed over as something restricted to the Old Testament, and not relevant to New Testament Christianity, for as with the Law, the types are like “…our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ…” (Gal. 3:24). “So too, in them we see plainly the limitation of God’s love to His elect people, for no lamb was provided for the Egyptians, nor did Aaron make any atonement for the sins of the Midianites and Ammonites!” Does that sound anything like the ‘sacrifice’ of universal atonement? Of course not. The Old Testament sacrifice, which foretold what Christ would do, was an exclusive sacrifice. There was nothing general about it! Christ’s substitutionary death was not on the behalf of the non-elect. It was not for those who were not among God’s chosen ones whom He had given to Christ to make atonement for, but only, and exclusively for those elected by God to be His sheep, His children and the sole benefactors of Christ’s work of salvation. After all, God saves only those whom He has called and predestinated to be justified by Christ’s death (see Rom. 8:30 & Isa. 53:11). The result of Christ’s sacrifice did not hinge on those who would ‘choose Him’ but was a foregone conclusion, because it was made, it was performed, it was done, for the benefit of all those whom God pre-chose Christ should die for. As with the Old Testament sacrifice, so too, Christ’s sacrifice was not for any other people apart from God’s chosen people, which is the strongest evidence yet that there was a single specific purpose in His death, and belief in any other purpose for His sacrifice amounts to not believing in His death according to the Scriptures, and, therefore, not believing in HIM. The sacrifice of Christ was for the purpose of benefiting all those for whom it was made, and none other. The Pelagian, semi Pelagian and Arminian doctrines of universal atonement are utterly indefensible, for they can never be matched, or aligned with these clear and unmistakeable teachings and Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament.

 

When one says that Christ died for those for whom God had chosen before the foundation of the world, one is saying: (1) By His death, Christ redeemed ALL those for whom He died; (2) His death was wholly triumphant, in that it fully accomplished what Christ set out to do, which was to save His people from their sins; and, (3) Not one person for whom His precious blood was shed will fail to be saved, and end up in the confines of Hell. The Arminian gospel refutes all this! The doctrine of universal atonement is a massive lie which denies the true Savior, and replaces Him with an impotent counterfeit who can do nothing, but watch powerlessly as the majority of people he died for fall hopelessly into Hell. His death accomplished nothing, and the blood in this false savior’s veins was no more capable of saving a person than any sinful man’s blood is. Far from being just a doctrinal thing, a matter of personal opinion, or an issue of particular theological persuasion, which has no bearing on a person’s spiritual state, such teachings are a corruption of God’s Truth, and those who adhere to such rot stand in denial of the Gospel of God, and are at this moment, in an accursed state. The Arminian doctrines insist that Christ’s death did not save everyone for whom He died, but that many, if not most, would, despite allegedly having their sins atoned for on the cross, still end up in Hell. In other words, even what God the Son Himself has done under the direction of the Father, was not enough to secure the salvation of all for whom He died, or in fact any, if they do not, of their own accord, of their own ‘free will’, choose Him, and accept what He has done. The Arminian doctrine of universal atonement teaches that Christ’s death for all was potentially completely in vain if no one accepted what had been done for them! Can you imagine such a scenario? Christ dying for the sins of man, this being the very centre point of history, and the great centrepiece of God’s salvation plan, and then just sitting there hoping that someone would accept what He had done lest it all have been done in vain! Please do not scoff at this, for this is precisely what the doctrine of universal atonement holds to have been a very real possibility, for it says that Christ has made atonement for all without exception, but unless we accept it, the entire undertaking was in vain. Can you imagine sinful man having the last word on whether or not Christ’s death would in any way be successful? The Word of God knows of only two ways Christ’s death could have been for nothing, in vain, and they are: “…if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain” (Gal. 2:21), and “…if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins” (1 Cor. 5:17). Why would the Father tell the Son to die for a people He did not give Him—a people who would not believe? Why would the Father send the Son to die for a people who would reap no benefit from what He did? Why would the Father send the Son to die for a people He did not predestinate to be called, and justified through Faith? Moreover, why would the Father send His Son to die for a people whom He had appointed to Wrath, and not to obtain salvation through Christ’s death? (see 1 Thess. 5:9,10). What kind of a death would this be? Christ dying for those appointed to Wrath could not be an atoning death, for their sins remain unatoned for. It could not be a substitutionary death, for their sins have not been taken away, and they have not been charged with the Righteousness of Christ and been made righteous. Are we to believe that Christ’s blood was shed in sacrifice for them, but their sins are not remitted? (see Heb. 9:22). Nothing has been accomplished, for nothing has been done, for those who are appointed to God’s Wrath. Christ came as God's Lamb, God's only Sacrifice for His own people (see Jn. 1:29). Christ would come, the Scripture says, to save HIS people from THEIR sins (Matthew 1:21). These people, whose names are all written in the Lamb's Book of Life, were all chosen before the foundation of the world (see Eph. 1:4ff; Rev. 21:27).

 

"Job said, 'I know that my Redeemer liveth' (Job 19:25), and the Hebrew word there for 'Redeemer' signifies one who is a redeemer by right of affinity or kinship—not only a Redeemer in act, but in office." Christ says: "I am the Good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine....and I lay down My life for the sheep" (Jn. 10:14,15). The Scriptures also say that Christ "...was made like unto His brethren..." (Heb. 2:17). Christ is the Redeemer of HIS brethren, HIS people, HIS seed: all those whom God has given Him, which is why "...He is not ashamed to call them (those that are sanctified) brethren (Heb. 2:11). "The brotherhood of Christ with us was voluntarily assumed, and was for the purpose of redeeming His brethren." Christ the Savior did not lay down His life for anyone other than His sheep, His kinsmen, those whom He foreknew, and with whom He had affinity and kinship, for they had been given Him by the Father, and were His to grant eternal life to (see Jn. 6:37 & Jn. 17:2, 9,10). Those for whom He would die are called "...His seed..." (Isa. 53:10). Christ did not die for anyone other than His sheep, for it is with them that He has affinity, it is with them He is related, for He was made like unto THEM. Christ said: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (Jn. 10:27; cf. Jn, 10:14). "...the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is our Redeemer ('Goel'), the word here used, our near kinsman, and so our kinsman Redeemer, ('the word means to redeem, receive or buy back'), to whom the right of redemption belonged; and Who was spoken of by all the holy prophets, from the beginning of the world, as the Redeemer of His people, Who should redeem them from all their sins; from the law, its curses and condemnation; from Satan, and his principalities and powers; from death and hell, and everlasting destruction" (see Lev. 25:48ff; Lev. 25:25; Ruth 4:4,6). "Wherefore, in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest, in things pertaining to God, to made reconciliation for the sins of the people" (Heb. 2:17; cf. Heb. 2:16). Which people? The whole world? No, but for His people, His sheep, His brethren whom He was made like unto. The word reconciliation means propitiation, or satisfaction. This irrefutable doctrine of the kinsman redeemer is the elephant in the room which cannot be ignored. It is the capstone on the Scriptural evidence which shows Christ to be the great High Priest of His people and the Redeemer of His brethren. Like the elephant in the room, these biblical doctrines must not be ignored, for they cannot be denied. One cannot escape the room, and one cannot get the elephant out of the room. It is a fact which cannot but be acknowledged, and once accepted will be shown to be the glue that holds together all the other teachings which have to do with Christ's death for the people God has given Him. All of Scripture points to Christ’s dying for His people.

 

The Scriptures ask: "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth" (Rom. 8:33). The apostle here makes a clear distinction between the elect of God, for whom the Son was delivered up by the Father and to whom none can rightly charge with sin, and those who are not among the elect of God whom the Father did not give unto the Son to be delivered up for. The called and justified ones are those whom God has appointed to obtain salvation through the death of Christ for them (see 1 Thess. 5:9,10). It is the Atonement which has made satisfaction. It satisfied the Law and Justice of God, and was effectual in every detail for those on whose behalf the sacrifice was made. There is nothing potential about something effectually being done for a specific number of people. "Even when applied on an individual level, the work of atonement was not considered potential. For example, God set forth that if a person sins against one of their fellow Israelites, confession of the sin should be accompanied by a payment of restitution and a ram sacrificed to work atonement. This was said to bring atonement between God and the sinner as well as between the sinner and the person he offended - in fact, the one offended did not have recourse to come back and sue for a higher restitution payment. God considered the matter over with and expected people to follow suit in their interactions with each other (see Num. 5:5-10). The atonement was actual as well as definite."

 

(For further study on Christ's High Priesthood as Redeemer of His brethren please see my book 'Jesus Did What for Whom? at www.godsonlygospel.com).

 

Several Scriptures which teach the sacrificial and substitutionary death of Christ are: "...I lay down My life for the sheep" (Jn. 10:15); "...Christ...loved the Church and gave Himself for it" (Eph. 5:25); encouraging the elders of the church at Ephesus, Paul the apostle wrote: "...feed the Church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood" (Acts 20:28); writing to the saints at Ephesus, Paul the apostle said: "Christ...hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God" (Eph. 5:2); writing to the church at Thessalonica Paul said: "For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us..." (1 Thess. 5:9,10); to the church of God at Corinth Paul wrote: "...Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Cor. 5:7). Writing also to the churches at Galatia, Paul said of Christ “Who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father” (Gal. 1:4). These, and many other Scriptures like them, are an outworking of that which we find in John 17 where Christ spoke of the Father entrusting Him with His people. Christ Jesus the Lord is the great High Priest, not over all of mankind, but "...an High Priest over the House of God" (Heb 10:21; cf. Heb 3:6). What Christ did as High Priest was for the House, or people, of God EXCLUSIVELY! The world does not have this High Priest, for its god is the Devil!! (see 2 Cor. 4:4 & Rev. 12:9). I know that there are some who would dispute the meaning of House of God and to what it makes reference, but these doubters and troublemakers are all silenced when Scripture speaks and subjugates all who oppose it: "...the House of God, which is the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the Truth" (1 Tim. 3:15; cf. Eph. 2:19-22; Heb. 3:6; Heb. 4:14; Heb. 5:1-3; 1 Pet. 2:5). To add further confirmation that the House of God is filled only with true Christians, Peter the apostle says: "For the time is come that judgement must begin at the House of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1 Pet. 4:17). Obviously, those who are in the House of God do obey the Gospel of God. Peter shows clearly that the House of God is made up of all true believers in the only Gospel of God.

 

Christ Jesus is the great High Priest over the Church of God. But what is this Church of God, and who is it that make up the Church of God? The word church is mentioned 77 times in the New Testament in 76 verses. The word church comes from the Greek word ekklesia, made up of ek (meaning 'out of') and klesis (meaning 'a calling'). The Church of Christ is made up of all those people whom God has called out of the world. Christ said "...I have chosen you out of the world..." (Jn. 15:19; cf. 1 Pet. 2:9). And, who are those who have been called out of the world? They are the chosen of God whom He has predestinated from before the foundation of the world (see Eph. 1:4-9). So, we see that Christ Jesus the Lord is not High Priest over any other people apart from those ordained by God to be His people, and to believe His Gospel. This means that Christ has sacrificed Himself, not for all of humanity, but solely for those of the House of God, the Church of God, the ones called out of the world by God to become part of the Body of Christ. This absolutely seals the deal, if you will, as to who Christ died for and what He did for them. The Lord Jesus is "Christ, Prophet, Priest and King over the House of God. He is the Son and owner of it....He was also a Son, Lord and Heir, as Moses was not; and He is over the House of God, as King, Priest, and Prophet in it, and as the firstborn, Son and Heir, and as the Master and Governor of it; and which is called His own, because it was given Him by the Father, purchased by Himself, and which He has built, and in which He dwells..."

 

Notably, the True God states: “…before Me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after Me. I, even I, am the Lord; and beside Me there is no Savior….That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside Me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace and create evil: I the Lord do all these things” (Isa. 43:10,11; Isa. 45:6,7). “There is no God else beside Me; a Just God and a Savior; there is none beside Me….I am God, and THERE IS NONE ELSE; I am God, and THERE IS NONE LIKE ME…MY Counsel shall stand, and I WILL DO ALL MY PLEASURE” (Isa. 45:21; Isa. 46:9,10). Interestingly, God says that there are none LIKE Him. If there are none like God then what you say about God, what you believe about Him, is very important, for if you are in error about what God is like, you cannot possibly be describing, and, therefore, believing in the True God. The God of the Gospel is nothing like the false gods of false gospels. God’s Gospel teaches grace alone in salvation, false gods and false gospels teach man’s works in salvation. Nothing distinguishes the True God from the false gods more than the doctrine which identifies Him: what He is like and what He is not like. He alone is God, and, therefore, what He has said is the Truth. The Lord, He is God, and there is none else. God goes on to describe Himself: "...there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure: Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth My counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it" (Isa. 46:9-11; cf. Isa. 40:13,14). What is God doing here? He is defining, thereby identifying, Himself—Who He is—by telling you what He is like, and what He is like by what He does. In doing this, God has distinguished Himself from all others, He has set Himself apart from all others, and simultaneously ruled out Who He is not, and what He is not like by what He does not do. The Lord Jesus Christ did not die for His people, and for all mankind. He either died for one or the other. What you believe Christ did identifies the Christ you believe in. You cannot for one moment separate Who Christ is from what Christ has done, and for whom He has done it. Christ died for the people whom the Father gave Him, and if you believe that He died for all, you deny what Christ actually did, the entire meaning of atonement, and, therefore, Who Christ is. How can anyone in their wildest imagination think that to not believe the above Scriptures about what God says of Himself, to not believe God's record of Who His Son is, what His Son has done and for whom He has done it, is to still believe in the One Who spoke those words!

 

If Jesus Christ has suffered the punishment for all the sins of every individual, which is what most people have been, and are being taught in most so-called ‘Christian’ denominations, would you think it fair for a Just and Holy God to again visit punishment upon those very same sins by sending people to Hell for whom Christ has already paid the penalty? If you say, ‘But Christ did not pay the penalty for the sins of those who die in unbelief', you make Christ’s work upon the cross some great fiction where something was done, but not really done if it is not accepted and believed. They say, 'Christ took the punishment  for your sins so you don't have to', yet those who do not 'accept' what He has done will also have to be punished for their sins. Christ has paid the price, but His payment is rescinded if one does not accept Him! The Arminian savior is, quite clearly, the savior you have when you haven’t got a savior. The following illustration shows with crystal clarity the nonsensical nature of such a teaching, and how utterly unscriptural it is: if someone tells you that they have paid your electricity bill, then either they have paid it, or not. They cannot say to you, ‘If you accept what I have done then I have paid your bill'. Either they have paid it, that is, handed over the money, made the transaction, and the bill has been stamped PAID, or they are lying! This is in fact a perfect illustration, for the Bible says that the sins for which Christ has paid the penalty have all been NAILED to His Cross (Col. 2:14), alluding to the middle eastern tradition which is even used in many western countries, of driving a nail through an account thus signifying payment/satisfaction made, and that no further payment is required or necessary. The account is paid, and the company to whom it was paid is satisfied, and demands nothing, no further satisfaction to be made from the one for whom it was paid. How many times must one pay an electricity bill in order for the electric company to be satisfied? What has your acceptance got to do with this transaction done on your behalf? Your acceptance is not that which validates, or gives legal force to, the transaction, IT IS THE PAYMENT MADE WHICH CANCELS THE DEBT! Is it not the sole business of the one who has paid the debt, and the one to whom the debt was owing? The one who has had his bill paid is merely the beneficiary of what was done on his behalf. How many times must God punish sin in order to be satisfied? Surely God’s Wrath towards the sin of those Christ suffered punishment for, was exhausted on the cross. Surely God’s method of dealing with sins was successful, and absolutely fulfilled by Christ’s blood poured out on the cross, for this was the method God designated to deal with the sins of His people. This was God’s perfect solution to their sin problem.

 

Scripture teaches that Christ so loved the Church, not the entire world, but the Church, and that He gave Himself exclusively for it: "...Christ...loved the CHURCH, (the ones whom God called out of the world, and gave to His Son) and gave Himself for IT; that He might sanctify and cleanse IT with the washing of water by the Word, That He might present IT to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that IT should be Holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:25-27). Christ died for those whom He loved, and He loved those for whom He died. The beginning of Ephesians 5:25 is a command for husbands to love their wives as Christ loved His Wife/Bride: the Church. It would have made no sense for the Scripture to command that a husband love his wife—to the exclusion of all others—if Christ excluded no one from His love. There would be no sense in such an analogy. God the Father has chosen the Bride for God the Son, and it is She who is loved, and for whom the Son laid down His life and has given eternal life to (see Jn. 17:2). No other people, no one outside the Church of God—those whom God has called out of the world and given to His Son—were among those for whom Christ died. He loved, and died for His Bride, that He might sanctify Her, and cleanse Her and that He might present Her, His Church, a glorious Body of people without blemish, to the Father. Referring to Christ the Lord, Paul the apostle addressing his fellow believer, Titus, wrote: "Who gave Himself for US, that He might redeem US from ALL iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar (special, one’s own) people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:14). Notice here that those for whom Christ died were those who would be redeemed from all iniquity, and made a special people. In illustrating the love of God for His people, the apostle John, writing to Christians, said: "...He laid down His life for US..." (1 Jn. 3:16). One of the most telling, and vitally important verses in all of Scripture may be seen in Paul's Letter to the Galatians. Paul the apostle, writing to the churches at Galatia, said: "Christ hath redeemed US from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us..." (Gal. 3:13). Christ took the blame for the sins of His people. He took the pain of suffering for their sins, which is why there is now NO condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1), they for whom He suffered, and made atonement. The following Scripture passage is also pivotal to a proper biblical understanding of who Jesus Christ has made atonement for: "For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him THE SEED OF ABRAHAM. Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be MADE LIKE UNTO HIS BRETHREN, that He might be a merciful and faithful HIGH PRIEST in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people" (Heb. 2:16,17; cf. Heb. 3:1,2). Which people? HIS PEOPLE! HIS BRETHREN! THE SEED OF ABRAHAM! The Lord Jesus is the High Priest of His people. “Wherefore, holy BRETHREN, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus” (Heb. 3:1; cf. Heb. 3:14; Heb. 4:14,15; 1 Tim. 6:2). Christ prayed: "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me; FOR THEY ARE THINE" (Jn. 17:9). The high priest of the Old Testament could have said the same thing, for the people he was given to make sacrifice for, were the people of God. The Father's people were all given to the Son, and they are the people for whom He died, and gave eternal life to. Christ was not High Priest for all mankind but for the seed of Abraham, God's true people, those Christ called His brethren (see Rom. 9:6-8). Who are the seed of Abraham? "...if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Gal. 3:29; see also Rom. 4:16). These are the seed of Abraham and Christ’s brethren (see Matt. 12:49,50). "...They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed" (Rom. 9:8). Hebrews 2:11 declares "...both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren". "...Behold I and the children which God hath given Me" (Heb. 2:13).

 

Why then do some He allegedly died for—became a curse for—remain in unbelief, and still go to Hell in a cursed state? If Christ became a curse for them, how could they possibly remain in an unbelieving, and cursed state? If Christ lifted the state of cursedness from them what could stop them from coming to Him? Unbelief? HOW? How could the sin of unbelief remain to the end of a person’s life, for whom Christ became a curse? On what basis would anyone remain dead in sin, to the end of their lives, if Christ took their sins out of the way by becoming a curse for them? If Christ did not become a curse for them, which is obvious by their unbelief, then He simply did not die for them. If you say, ‘They die in unbelief because they did not choose Him’, I ask: how could they have died in unbelief when Christ took away every obstacle, including that of unbelief, which could prevent them from being saved? Christ’s death was about removing the curse, and in no way, or to any degree, was it an act of indifference towards it. Christ’s death was for a specific purpose: HE TOOK AIM AT THE SINS OF HIS PEOPLE AND BLASTED THEM OUT OF EXISTENCE! Surely the reader does not believe that Christ has failed in some way to deliver safely to the Father all those whom the Father gave Him, and for whom He died? Arminians would say, 'Oh no, they remain in a cursed state because they failed to believe in, and accept Him'. It is true that all those who perish in eternal fire failed to savingly believe in the Son of God, but in light of this, how could it be that these ones who fail to believe in Christ were ever among those whom the Father gave to the Son for the express purpose of dying for their sins, and obtaining eternal redemption for them. Christ says all those whom the Father gave unto Him, WOULD ALL COME to Him, believe and be saved. Moreover, the Arminian does not merely shoot himself in the foot by such a statement, he completely blows it off, because if a person remains in a cursed state it shows that Christ did not die for them at all. No atonement was made for them. It is not a case of atonement being made but failing because it was not accepted. According to this line of reasoning one would be saying, 'He atoned, paid the price for your sin, but at the same time, He did not pay the price for your sin if you do not accept and receive what He has done for you'. On one hand Arminians teach that Christ has done something, and on the other, that He has not done it if we fail to accept it. What happened on the cross was a transaction between God the Son and God the Father. Christ paid the price for the sins of all God’s chosen, and the Father accepted His payment for them. Christ’s work is done, the Father is satisfied with what the Son has done, and the will of the Lord has been accomplished. Eternal redemption has been accomplished and established for all those for whom Christ died. THAT is biblical reality, which is a far cry from the fantasies and fictions of the Arminian gospel. What the Arminian christ has done is something that hangs in limbo—inbetween reality and fantasy—which awaits a touch from the magic wand of our belief and acceptance in order to make it ‘really real’. Arminianism denies the very meaning of the word atonement, and the reader will not find anything of the kind in God’s Word. The word atonement means 'exchange, reconciliation, "...and is the result of the redemption, the Divine act of salvation, the ceasing of God’s Wrath" through the imputation of the sins of His people to Christ, and of Christ’s Righteousness to His people. Christ’s work of atonement was about EXCHANGING the sins of His people for His Righteousness. Imputation is a two way street: one cannot separate the act of the taking away of sins from the charging of His Righteousness. The Lamb has taken away the sins of those for whom He died, and His Righteousness is/will be imputed to them. It is all the Work of God in order to save all those for whom it was done.

 

When the follower of Arminian doctrine says that he believes Christ died for all, he is saying that Jesus did not die exclusively for the elect of God, and, therefore, that Christ’s death, His precious blood, did not atone for the sins of all for whom He died. How then can the Arminian possibly conclude that anyone who believes Christ died exclusively for the elect, is saved? Universal atonement teaches that, for the most part, Christ’s death was a miserable failure, for the majority He died for still go to Hell regardless, for they died unbelievers. This is one of the keys which unlocks the ‘mystery’ of who Christ died for and what He did on the cross: If all sin has been atoned for, would it not be right to conclude that the sin of unbelief has also been taken out of the way? For what good would it have done, and what sense would it have made, for Christ to atone for every sin EXCEPT that ultimate and unpardonable sin which keeps a man out of Heaven, the sin of unbelief? Therefore, is it not right to conclude that every person who ends up in Hell, obviously in unbelief, could not possibly have been among those for whom Christ died, seeing that those for whom Christ died all end up believers in Him! (see Jn. 10:26; cf. Jn. 6:37; Jn. 8:47). If it is not in accord with Scripture to believe that the sin of unbelief was amongst those sins which were nailed to Christ’s cross, then the sin of unbelief has not been done away for ANY man, moreover, there is no atonement for it. The penalty it incurs has not been paid, and, therefore, no one can possibly come to God, via God’s will or man’s, for the sin of unbelief reigns supreme, being untouched by the atoning blood of Christ. Can you see how this horrible doctrine of universal atonement is so opposed to what God says about His Son? How it is the complete antithesis of what Christ actually did do and accomplish on the cross, and how it is so utterly against the blood of Christ? There is nothing in this universe that Satan attacks more than the blood, the death, of Christ. He will pervert it; he will try and diminish its importance; he will try and replace it with false doctrines such as ‘God loves everyone' and 'Jesus died for everyone’. The reason why such doctrines dishonour God, is if God loved everyone then it would not be His love and Christ’s death which makes the difference between saved and lost. God’s love would be nothing more than an emotion, rather than the reason, the motivating factor, He elected a people, and Christ’s death would be reduced to only a contributing factor to a man’s salvation, rather than the ONLY means by which one is eternally redeemed. Satan’s hatred of Jesus’ blood is evidenced in the false teachings of religion, which either places Christ’s blood below the position it rightly holds in the Gospel Message, asserting that something must be added to what Christ has done, such as a man’s free will decision, or our ‘good works’, or completely does away with Christ’s death as being in any way effective for the purpose of redemption, as the doctrines of Christian Science claim.

 

Abraham’s seed are the many whom Christ Jesus came to save (Isa. 53:8,10,11). The called of God are a special people, God’s own people, who will not experience the Wrath of God, for the Lord Jesus laid down His life for them; He experienced God’s Wrath on the behalf of God’s elect: "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us..." (Gal 3:13; see also Isa. 53:10). Also, "...for the transgressions of MY people was He stricken" (Isa. 53:8). CHRIST BECAME OBEDIENT UNTO DEATH, HE LAID DOWN HIS LIFE FOR THE JOY THAT WAS SET BEFORE HIM, NOT FOR THE MISERY OF KNOWING THAT MOST HE DIED FOR WOULD GO TO HELL ANYWAY! (Heb.12:2; cf. Isa. 53:10,11; Psa. 21:1). "Christ underwent so much disgrace, and such sufferings; namely, for the sake of having a spiritual seed, a numerous offspring with Him in Heaven, who are His joy, and crown of rejoicing; for the sake of the salvation of all the elect, on which His heart was set; and for the glorifying of the divine perfections, which was no small delight and pleasure to Him." "Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, SEEING He ever liveth to make intercession FOR THEM" (Heb. 7:25; cf. Jn. 17:9; Rom 8:27). Who are they who come unto Him? Jesus reveals the answer in John 6:37: “ALL THAT THE FATHER GVETH ME shall come to Me…” Who are the people of God? All those whom Christ prays for. As we see in Hebrews 7:25, these are the ones, the only ones, whom Christ makes intercession for. Christ is the Advocate of the people the Father gave Him, and it is for them He pleads to God on the behalf of. Christ does not make intercession for everyone ever born. He does not pray for the world, so how could He have died for the world? Christ intercedes, He prays, only for those that come unto God by Him, which are all those whom the Father has given Him. Again, Christ says: "I pray for them: I PRAY NOT FOR THE WORLD, but for them which Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine" (Jn. 17:9; cf. Jn. 17:2; Rom 8:27). Christ may just as well have said, 'I die not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me, for they are Thine'. We see clearly from this verse of Scripture the distinction made between those God has given to His Son, and those who are of the world. The word world here clearly does not mean everyone ever born; otherwise, Christ would pray for no one. Christ prays for, He is High Priest over, and He offered Sacrifice to God for those the Father gave Him out of the world. The only ones that do come unto the Lord Jesus are those to whom it is given by the Father. "And for this cause He is the Mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death...they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance" (Heb. 9:15). Addressing his Letter to the Church at Thessalonica, the apostle Paul wrote "For God hath not appointed US to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for US..." (1 Thess. 5:9,10; see also 1 Cor. 5:17). This verse shows clearly that Christ died representing all those whom God had not appointed to receive His Wrath, but only those whom He had appointed to obtain salvation through Christ by His dying for them. These are the people God gave to His Son, for they were His chosen people. What God did with the Old Testament high priest, He did with the New Testament great High Priest: He ordered that sacrifice be made for His people, and His people only. The us spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 5 clearly sets this group of people apart from those who have not been appointed by the Sovereign God to obtain salvation. The ones Christ died for come to God, not on their own initiative, but because God has elected them from before the foundation of the world, and predestinated, appointed, them to obtain salvation made possible by the obedience and death of Jesus Christ, Who is their great High Priest. The elect have an appointment with salvation made by God Himself!

 

The Word of God is replete with Scripture, after Scripture, after Scripture which teach that Christ's Sacrifice was for the people of God, the ones He had chosen to be His people, and whom He entrusted to His Son to make up His New Nation. Curiously, it is rare to find any so-called Christian writer referring to the people Christ died for as those whom God has given to His Son. In John 17:2, Christ, praying to the Father, speaks of giving eternal life, not to those who choose Him, but, "...to as many as Thou hast given Him". Jesus the Lord also speaks of those for whom He exclusively prays. Christ says "...I pray not for the world but for them which Thou hast given Me..." (Jn. 17:9). If the Father had given all mankind to Christ, why then did Jesus not pray for everyone? Christ here distinguishes those whom the Father gave Him, for whom He died and prays, from those of the world for whom He does not pray, and did not die. No other people were included in Christ's prayers, or among those He laid down His life for, than those the Father had given Him. Natural man looks at this, and counts this God as being one who is unfair. It is a very curious thing to this author that most, if not all, Arminians have no problem at all accepting the Old Testament sacrifice for sin, offered by the shadow high priest, being exclusively for the nation of Israel under the direction of God, but cry foul when they hear of the same thing done, in terms of exclusivity, by the sacrifice of the great High Priest, Jesus Christ, Who is the Substance of the shadow, being made solely on the behalf of the chosen people of God. Such an outcry makes absolutely no sense, for in accepting what the shadow did in the Old Testament, one should have no problem with the fact that the shadow of the Old Testament did precisely what the Substance would do in the New Testament. Why do these people get all up in arms over Christ dying for His people, being the High Priest over His own House—the Church of God—and no other, when they are fully accepting of the Old Testament sacrifice made exclusively for God's people. Indeed, why do any claim injustice over Christ's death being exclusively for those Whom God has chosen, and given unto Him, when, as we have seen, Christ does not even pray for those He did not die for. Nothing can explain all this other than the fact that those who resist God's Truth are dead to it. The whole doctrine of Christ dying for all of humanity has no precedent in the types, and shadows and examples of the Old Testament which pointed to what the Messiah would do, but gains its only ‘strength’ from the misinterpretation of Scripture, coupled with the carnal understanding of lost people, mixed with a torrent of misinformation provided by blind leaders.