The real reason Jesus died (not what you think)

Have you ever heard or spoken these words?

“Jesus was punished in our place”

“ He paid our debt”

“ He paid the penalty for sin”

Yep…me too. I’ve since come to realise, these sayings belong to a certain theology named Vicarious Substitution.

According to the Miriam Webster dictionary, vicarious means…

“Performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to benefit or advantage another…”

There are three models of substitution:

1. Satisfaction
2. Penal
3. Moral Government

Before I get into describing these three models I want to examine the doctrine underpinning them.

In the 4th Century, a Catholic monk named Augustine of Hippo, created the doctrine of “original sin”, according to which mankind inherited a “sin nature” from Adam. 

If we put our thinking hats on…the idea that a “sin nature” can be inherited, suggests that sin is in our our DNA. 

However, scripture tells us that sin is not in our DNA, rather it is a moral choice. 

1 John 3:4

…sin is the transgression of the law.

A choice cannot be passed from one person to another (Ez. 18:20)

When we CHOOSE to sin, we simply identify with Adam. Similarly when we CHOOSE to do righteousness, we identify with Christ (Rom. 5:19)

Augustine pointed to “concupiscence” meaning strong desire or lust, as proof of a sin nature abiding within us.

However, the desires of our flesh are NOT sinful in themselves. 

They make us susceptible to temptation but temptation only “brings forth sin” when it unites with our will. 

James 1:14&15

But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin…

Furthermore, Adam and Eve had such desires BEFORE disobeying God in the garden 

Gen. 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, 

and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

Their fleshly desires were not the RESULT of having eaten from the wrong tree, hence “concupiscence” is not proof of a “fallen nature” passed upon mankind.

In formulating his ideas on “in-bred sin”, Augustine was inspired by Gnostic “dualism”, the teaching that our flesh is evil and our soul is saved through “gnosis” or illumination. 

“Dualism” originally came from Greek philosophy, such as Plato’s “theory of forms”.

Despite its Gnostic/Platonic roots, the doctrine of “original sin” was embraced by many reformers, from Martin Luther and John Calvin to John Wesley.

What is most harmful about Augustine’s teachings is the notion of “inability”. That as humans we are unable to live above sin due to our “fallen nature” and therefore require a “substitute” to die “in our place” and provide a magic cover for sin.

It’s in this sense that “original sin” underpins “substitution”.

Now let’s examine the three models of Substitution.

1. Satisfaction

Picture a set of scales.

On one end of the scale is mankind’s sin, the ultimate insult to God’s holiness.

On the other end of the scale is Christ’s death, the necessary offsetting sacrifice of infinite value.

According to Satisfaction, Christ’s death balanced the scales, enabling God to justly remit sin whilst upholding his honour.

Satisfaction was invented by Bishop Ansalem of Canterbury in 1098.

After Ansalem, came Thomas Aquinus (1225-1274)

Thomas Aquinus added a “substitutionary punishment” aspect to Satisfaction. He also was the first to conceive the idea that Jesus “paid the penalty” for our sins. 

This and Martin Luther’s “blessed exchange” (1483-1546), in which the believer’s sin is transferred to Christ and Christ’s righteousness transferred to the believer merely because he believes it to be so, laid the ground work for what was to come…

2. Penal Substitution

According to penal substitution, justice demands that sin be punished. 

Jesus therefore assumed our guilt and was punished in our place. He bore the full wrath of God in order to pay the penalty for our sins. With the “penalty paid” God is able to justly remit sin.

Penal substitution was invented by John Calvin (1509-1564)

It’s interesting to note that Calvin was a criminal lawyer thus he viewed the cross through that lens.

However, not everyone liked Calvin’s ideas, so along came the third model of substitution… 

3. Moral Government

According to Moral Government, Christ’s death served as a substitute for punishment, demonstrating that God takes his law seriously. This enabled God to extend mercy without undermining his moral government.

This theory came from Hugo Grotius (1583-1645)

What do all three models of substitution have in common?

• The purpose of Christ’s death was to APPEASE God and ENABLE him to forgive sin
• Christ’s death (in our place) is the BASIS upon which God forgives sin 

Ask yourself these questions…

Is God some pagan volcano god, that must be APPEASED through human sacrifice?

Did God, creator of the universe, have to be ENABLED to forgive?

Does God forgive on the BASIS of his son’s death, or does he forgive on the basis that we’ve forsaken our old life of sin?

Substitution turns the spotlight on God and away from us. He’s the one who needed to be appeased and enabled. He had to change.

So what’s missing from vicarious substitution? Us changing.

Being Crucified WITH Christ, DELIVERED from sin and inwardly PURGED.

It makes sense that deliverance and purging is left out of the equation when one considers that “original sin” underpins “substitution”.

If sin is in our DNA, how can we be delivered and purged from it? We can’t. All we can do is “trust” and “believe” that Christ’s death acts as a counterbalance to sin, or that he paid our penalty.

I now want to examine two words, Justification and Sanctification.

Justification 1347. δικαίωσις dikaíōsis declared a righteous or just person

Sanctification 38. ἁγιασμός hagiasmós holiness and separation unto God

Martin Luther, who spear-headed the reformation, is famous for saying we are justified “by faith alone”. To him, faith was a passive principle of the mind, disconnected from deeds.

Hence Substitution, influenced by Luther’s “faith alone” and “blessed exchange”, turns justification into a legal adjustment whereby we are “saved” in a “positional” sense only, with Christ’s righteousness imputed (not imparted) to us.

In this way, vicarious substitution utterly disconnects justification from sanctification and from salvation itself, for there can be no righteousness without holiness!

There is also no salvation without the indwelling Spirit (Rom. 8:9) and the Holy Spirit won’t enter a dirty vessel!

Why did Jesus die on the cross?

1. To deliver us from sin
2. To purge our conscience

Christ’s blood does not represent him being punished in our place to pay the penalty for sin.

Christ’s blood represents the spirit of his life whereby we are delivered from sin and inwardly purged.

The spirit of his life is how he lived his entire life, culminating in crucifixion.

Hence freedom and cleansing is found in following Christ’s example of self-sacrifice.

Rom. 8:2

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Penal Substitution claims that Christ died “in our place” to pay the “penalty for sin”.

However the bible teaches that Christ died to provide an example (1 Peter 2:21) that, when followed, ransoms us from bondage to sin (Titus 2:14)

Through obedience to the truth (1 Peter 1:22), Christ's blood (representing his Spirit) also purges our conscience.

Hebrews 9:14&15

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament…

Jesus was the mediator of the New Testament for “this cause”…to purge our conscience NOT to pay our penalty. 

Repentance is being “crucified WITH Christ” (Gal. 2:20) and this is the ONLY way (John 14:6) to be delivered from sin and inwardly purged.

Vicarious Substitution is believed by nearly all in Christendom, yet it is a two-dimensional counterfeit copy of the real, life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ.

Stir up the gift of God which is in you (2 Timothy 1)

2 Timothy 1 is an emotional chapter.

In vs 2 Paul calls Timothy “my beloved son”

In vs 3&4 Paul tells Timothy he’s been praying for him “night and day” and “greatly desires” to see him.

Also in vs 4 Paul recollects Timothy’s “tears”. 

I’m not sure what Timothy was in tears about. Perhaps it was the thought of Paul’s upcoming martyrdom. 

In 2 Tim 4:6 Paul said “…the time of my departure is at hand”. 

Indeed Paul was martyred by Roman Emperor Nero in 66 a.d., soon after writing this letter.

Perhaps Timothy’s tears were sorrow mixed with fear of being imprisoned and martyred himself. 

In any case, Paul reminds him in vs 6 to “stir up the gift of God which is in thee”. 

This gift was probably a gift for teaching.

“Stir up” means to revive a fire. 

My parents used to have an open fireplace with an old fashioned iron poker. Sometimes I’d use the poker to agitate the embers and keep the fire from going out. 

Sometimes we need to agitate our embers in a spiritual sense. 

Timothy’s tears and fears had nearly put out his passion for ministry. 

In vs 7 Paul went on to encourage Timothy, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”

Then in vs 8 he is told not to be ashamed of the gospel, or of Paul himself.

It seems that some were ashamed of Paul. 

In vs 15 Paul said “they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes”.

It’s sad that right at the end of Paul’s ministry, when alone in prison and facing martyrdom, many abandoned him. 

Perhaps they were fearful of meeting a similar fate to Paul if they associated with him. Thus they proved themselves to be “fair whether friends”.

Paul was passing his ministry on to Timothy.

What a weight of responsibility. Especially when Timothy would be left to deal with false teachers after Paul had gone. Judaism, Gnosticism and Greek philosophy all threatened to swamp the Ephesian church.

This last week I was contemplating how Augustine’s doctrine of “original sin” has its roots in Gnostic “dualism”, the teaching that our flesh is evil and our soul is saved through “gnosis” or illumination. 

I noticed how dualism grew out of Plato’s “theory of forms”, hence “original sin” is really rooted in Greek philosophy. 

This scripture came to mind…

Colossians 2:8 

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Paul’s epistles warn against philosophy, in fact any teaching that subtly subverts the gospel by shifting the focus away from godliness and towards something else. 

A ship only needs to go off course by a few degrees to end up at an entirely different location.

Little wonder Paul told Timothy in vs 13&14 to “hold fast the form of sound words” and to “keep” “that good thing which was committed unto thee”. 

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb Part 4 (New Wine)

The phrase “marriage supper of the lamb” is mentioned only once in the bible, it’s in the book of Revelation.

Rev. 19

7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

9 …Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb…

When we look at the New Covenant as a marriage covenant it makes sense that Christ’s blood paid the Mohar which means “bride price”

The concept behind the Mohar is not that of a “debt” being paid, rather a bride being “purchased”.

If you look through the New Testament you won’t find one verse that says Jesus paid our “debt” but you will find verses that say he “bought” or “purchased” the church with his own blood.

Acts 20:28

…the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

In ancient times the Mohar was meant to compensate the girls father for taking a useful worker out of his household and into the household of the groom’s father.

Hence being “purchased” implies being taken out of one household and brought into another.

Spiritually speaking this means being delivered from darkness and translated into the kingdom of God.

Col. 1:13

Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

In bible times it was traditional to drink a cup of wine at the betrothal and another cup of wine at the completion of the marriage.

Let’s keep that in mind as we read the following verses…

Matthew 26

27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;

28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

The last supper marked Christ’s betrothal to the church.

However he spoke of “that day” (a future day) when he would drink “this fruit of the vine” “new” with them in his “father’s kingdom”.

Jesus was about to go away. Upon his return, the church would enter his fathers kingdom to drink new wine with him in celebration of their marriage.

According to Jewish custom, a groom would go away to build an extension upon his fathers house.

After some time, the groom would return to receive his new bride into his fathers house where the marriage was consummated.

Immediately after the consummation, the marriage supper would begin in the same house.

With all that in mind, let’s carefully read John chapter 14.

John 14

2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

To understand this portion of scripture it helps to recognise that Christ and the Comforter are NOT two distinctly seperate persons. The Comforter is …the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9) 

When Jesus said “I will pray the father and he will send you another comforter…I will not leave you comfortless I will come to you”, he was identifying himself as the Comforter. 

“That day” was the day of Pentecost, when the Comforter filled those waiting for him in the upper room. “Ye in me and I in you” sounds way too intimate to be a mere betrothal.

In the last chapter of Luke, Jesus told his disciples… 

Luke 24:49

And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

This flows straight on to a description of Pentecost in Acts 2.

Acts 2

1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

13 Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.

14 But Peter…lifted up his voice…

15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose…

16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;

17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh:.. 

“New wine” was poured out at Pentecost.

Pentecost was when Christ and the church drank the “fruit of the vine” “new” in his fathers kingdom. 

Pentecost was “that day” when the marriage between Christ and the church was consummated through the Spirit and the marriage supper celebrated.

How is it possible for the the church to be in the father’s kingdom whilst yet in this world?

It is possible through the quickening Spirit.

Ephesians 2:4-6

But God…hath quickened us together with Christ, by (grace ye are saved;)

And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

The book of Colossians contains very similar language to Ephesians.

Colossians 2:12&13

Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him…And you, being dead…hath he quickened together with him…

Colossians 3:1&3

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.

The word quicken means…

2227. ζωοποιέω zōopoiéō To make alive…to germinate

Imagine a new plant emerging from a dormant seed, breaking through the soil, then shooting upwards towards the sun. 

Such is the quickening. 

When our old-man is “planted” in the likeness of Christ’s death through repentance, we are “raised up” in the likeness of his resurrection. Quickened to “newness of life” through the Spirit (Rom. 6:4&5).

Finally let’s go back to Revelation 19:9

9 …Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Now let’s continue to the next chapter in Revelation…

Revelation 20

6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection…

If we join the dots here we see that the marriage supper of the Lamb relates to the “first resurrection”. 

The first resurrection is not the “rapture” as some believe, rather it is the “quickening” described in Ephesians, Colossians and Romans. 

Whilst the initial marriage of Christ to the church occurred at Pentecost, God still invites ALL to be “buried" with Christ through repentance and “raised up” with him to walk in newness of life through the Spirit.

God still invites ALL to be delivered from darkness and translated into the kingdom of God. To drink “new wine” with Christ in his fathers kingdom. To sit in heavenly places IN Christ Jesus.

God bless.