Assuming that a person believes that Jesus is God in the flesh and has committed their life to following Him, it seems that the most important question relating to matters of faith becomes: How is it that Jesus has corrected the problem of sin thereby allowing rebellious people to turn in faith to God?
I recently wrote a five-page biblical plotline paper, and as I tried to strip away everything that is periphery to the Christian faith and consider what constitutes the basic storyline of the Bible, I realized that it is the answer to this very question; so it follows that the way you answer this question will effect the way you read the entirety of Scripture and understand every facet of the Christian faith.
These are not new thoughts, two years ago I began reading the book "Four Views on the Atonement" which centers on this very question, but I have once again realized how important it is for Christians to understand how sin is conquered and communion with God made possible (my basic definition of "atonement"). Not only does this affect how we read and understand Scripture, it has an inestimable impact on how we live each day in a broken world, how we worship the Almighty Creator, and how we approach sharing our faith with those around us. This question of the atonement, the nature of sin and salvation, is of utmost importance.
So, I have decided to dedicate a series of blogposts to this topic. I realize from the start that I am biting off more than I can chew, but I will set out to chew it anyways. My goal is to take a passage of Scripture each week (some weeks that may be 5 verses, other weeks it may be 5 chapters) and consider what implications it has for our understanding of atonement, starting in Genesis and going through Revelation. There are 1189 chapters in the Bible and 52 weeks in a year, so if I am actually faithful in doing these every week and if I average a chapter each week, it will only take 23 years to complete. As I said, I'm biting off more than I can chew, but chew I will.
If you've read this blog for any length of time you may realize that, while I am dedicated to thinking and writing, I am not consistent. I started this blog in order to have a place to write my thoughts about God and life as I walk in faith with Jesus. There have been times with many thoughts and much writing and times with little thought and no writing. While I will be writing my findings as I search the Scriptures concerning the atonement, this is ultimately a personal goal to continue to grow in my faith and relationship with God.
May we be near God always, as He is near to us.
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