Penal Substitution: Did Jesus Die in My Place?

By Bob Myhan

Penal Substitution is that theory of the atonement which demands the pay­ment of the penalty for sin by a sub­stitute in order for God to re­main just while justifying man. In other words, God cannot justly for­give man unless the pun­ishment for sin is suffered by a substi­tute for man. And, according to the theory, Jesus is that substi­tute. He died in your place and in mine that you and I might be for­given.

It seems to this writer that, if the theory were true, either Calvinism or Universalism would follow because salvation would then be un­conditional.

Calvinism posits that all hu­mans are born totally and hereditarily de­praved, that God unconditionally elected certain individu­als to salvation, that the atonement was lim­ited to the elect and that all the elect will perse­vere to the end. Universalism holds that all will be saved, since Jesus died for all. Both af­firm that all those for whom Jesus died will be saved because their sins were punished in the person of Jesus.

This theory is held by some who are neither Calvinists nor Universalists but these seem to this writer to be inconsis­tent. If Jesus was punished for the sins of anyone, then those for whose sins He was punished will not be punished. Nor would those, whose sins have already been pun­ished, need forgive­ness. If this is not the case, why is it not?

The Role of Jesus’ Death

What one is will­ing to sacrifice for a per­son or cause is an indicator of the love he has for that person or cause. The life of a living thing is in the blood thereof (Lev. 17:11). Therefore, to shed the blood of a living thing is to sacrifice the life there­of. The sacrifice of Jesus’ life is the ulti­mate demon­stration of God’s love (Rom. 5:1-11; 8:31-39; John 3:16) and Christ’s love (John 15:13; 1 John 3:16) for man­kind.

If the Son of God had come into the world immediately after the sin of Adam and Eve, there is no way anyone could ever have ap­preciated the love of God. And one could hardly reciprocate a love that he does not ap­preciate. For this reason, God incorpo­rated the idea of sacrifice into religion so that, in the fullness of time, His love could be demonstrated—through the sacrifice of His Son—so that man could appre­ciate it and would be motivated to recip­rocate it.

The Old Testament was taken out of the way and the New Testament was dedicated by the pouring out of Christ’s blood and the sacri­fice of His life (Col. 2:14; Heb. 10:1-10; 9:16-18).

The shedding of Jesus’ blood in His death on the cross also reveals “the goodness of God” that “leads you to repen­tance” (Rom. 2:3-4), it provides a focal point for man’s faith in God and in His Son (Rom. 3:21-26) and only the shedding of the precious blood of Jesus the Lamb could demonstrate the mag­nitude of sin (Rom. 8:1-4). &

Good Examples

By Gilbert Alexander

Christians are to live a manner of life which is exemplary to others. "Be thou an ensample to them that be­lieve," Paul said (1 Tim.4:12). This calls upon all Christians to guard their lives in or­der to avoid wrongdoing and in order to live fruitful, holy, circumspect lives. Just as this passage clearly states the duty to be an ex­ample for others to follow, it necessarily im­plies the converse that good exemplary lives are to be imitated. As Christians are to be examples to others, so Christians are to fol­low good examples.

Whose examples are worthy to be fol­lowed? Jesus is the great, perfect Example (1 Pet.2:21). The apostles are set forth as examples for us (Phil. 3:17). Faithful elders are worthy examples (Heb.13: 7; 1 Pet.5:3). Godly Christians are worthy to be followed in their manner of life (1 Thess. 1:6, 7). We cannot be the Christ or His apostles, but we can be faithful Christians, setting forth a manner of life worthy of the gospel (Eph.4: 1-3; Col. 1:10: 1 Thess. 2:11, 12).

Our plea is that Christians be willing to sacrifice selfish interests for the sake of the souls of others upon whom they have an in­fluence. It seems that some are so wrapped up in self that they do not care that others are discouraged by them. Some are stub­bornly negligent of spiritual duties, unwilling to be stirred from their apathy. Please, let us not be blinded to the course of life we are setting before others. If others live as you live, how will they and the church fare?

Is it a good example to be zealous toward God? Is one being a good example by stay­ing clear of dangerous things? Is one a good example if he attends every service of the church? Is one a good example if he lives a clean, holy life and seeks to save others? If we can answer these questions affirmatively, how can we neglect these du­ties of life?

On the other hand, is one a good exam­ple if he simply neglects to attend the ser­vices of the church, excusing himself for reasons that would not even keep him from his job during the week? Is one a good ex­ample if he lives a daring life, flirting with sin and walking in temptation's way? Is one a good example if he callously disregards the effect he is having on the lives and atti­tudes of others? If we answer these ques­tions nega­tively, how could we possibly pur­sue that manner of life?

Before we embark upon a course of ac­tion, we must consider its consequences in our own lives and its possible or probable effect on the lives of others. Only then can we be the good examples we ought to be. (Via the Pathfinder, Vol. 17, Number 9, Sep­tember, 1985) &

The God of Nature

By Bob Myhan

Deists claim to believe in the God of nature but not the God of the Bible. But if the God of na­ture is not the God of the Bible, there is no right or wrong. One need not feel there is anything he ought or ought not to do.

A deist cannot say that you ought to honor your father and mother or that you ought not to murder, commit adultery, steal, bear false witness against your neighbor or covet your neighbor's wife, etc. There is no explana­tion for why humans are civilized but dogs and cats are not. One person could no more judge another person mor­ally than he would judge a dog or a cat to be immoral.

In short, a deist cannot say you are wrong, no matter what you choose to do. He cannot say you are wrong even if you mur­der your own father and rape your own mother.

Such a person has no reason to comply with the “two commandments [on which] hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:35-40).

Men such as John Wayne Gacy, Jr., and Jef­frey Dahmer, may have broken the law but have done nothing morally wrong if the God of nature is not the God of the Bible. Nor may Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler be judged to have been immoral.

If the God of nature has not spoken—there is noth­ing wrong with child abuse or child molestation. Pedophilia would not be a sexual aber­ration but merely a sexual pref­erence.

The God of nature—as the Creator of mankind—must possess of all man’s best characteristics. And, since man obviously has the capacity for love, the God of nature must also. But where is the evidence of any love on the part of the God of nature, if He is not the God of the Bible? How can a lov­ing God allow such men as Dahmer, Gacy, Lenin, Stalin and Hitler to exist, often elud­ing authorities for years? The Bible answers this question. God has given man the freedom to choose whether to do the right or the wrong thing, has given him a moral standard by which to determine that which is right and will one day hold him accountable for how he has conducted himself (2 Cor. 5:10).

It is sometimes argued that the God of the Bible can­not be a God of love because He is said to have ordered the massacre of entire nations, including innocent children. But the God of nature—even if He is not the God of the Bible—is no respecter of per­sons, either. He allows tornadoes, hurri­canes, earth­quakes and other natural dis­asters to destroy hundreds, yea, thou­sands at a time, including innocent children.

It is also argued that a God of love would not have created man knowing that the ma­jority of mankind would reject Him and be lost forever. But this, of course, no man can know and only a willfully igno­rant man would argue. For the God of the Bible has warned man time and again of the consequences of living a life of dis­obedi­ence. And only a fool will not heed these warnings. &