What exactly was going on when Jesus died at Calvary is a question that has occupied great minds through the ages. Within much of the modern western church, there is a single accepted explanation of what Christ accomplished on the cross. I’d like to suggest, however, that the question of the atonement can be approached from a different angle which, to me, makes much more sense both scripturally and theologically.
I’d like to set out two possible explanations for what Jesus accomplished at Calvary. I’ll begin by painting a brief portrait of the events of Jesus’ passion, then I’ll set out two alternative explanations as to what was happening at the cross. In conclusion, I’ll quote a couple of scriptures and leave you with a question.
Jesus’ passion: a synopsis
Jesus came to earth as the perfect embodiment of God. The three years of his public ministry he spent teaching about and demonstrating the love of God through stories, signs and miracles of healing. But he got on the wrong side of the religious and political authorities by openly flouting the intolerance of the religious elite and making the treasonous claim that he was the Messiah, which means nothing other than king.
In the last week of Jesus’ earthly life, the crowds that had cheered him on soon turned into an angry mob when it became clear that he was not going to lead the hoped-for victorious uprising against Rome. He was arguably accused and condemned to death not once or even twice, but three times: once by the religious court of Caiaphas, once by the political court of Pilate and once by the court of public opinion. He died the shameful death of a convicted criminal, hanging bloody and beaten from a cross outside the city walls.
Then, in a totally unexpected move, he rose from the grave on the third day.
Explanation 1
It’s clear that Jesus – the perfect, sinless one – died at the hands of sinners. He was the innocent victim of the pride, anger and violence that lies at the root of all sin. You could say that Jesus bore the weight of all of humanity’s sin in the sense that he was the target of it.
God, being absolutely holy and just, cannot look upon or have fellowship with sin. He therefore allowed his Son Jesus to become sin and die a sinner’s death upon the cross, so that He could once and for all pour out and extinguish all of his righteous anger upon Jesus, the perfect sacrifice. Jesus thus took God’s punishment in our place, offering us his righteousness in exchange for our sin.
In his final moments, Jesus cried out in anguish as he quoted from the opening of Psalm 22, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” As he became the focal point not only of man’s anger and violence but also of God’s wrath against sin, the Father turned his face away and Jesus knew, however briefly, what it was to be separated from the Father whose fellowship he had enjoyed from eternity.
Explanation 2
It’s clear that Jesus – the perfect, sinless one – died at the hands of sinners. He was the innocent victim of the pride, anger and violence that lies at the root of all sin. You could say that Jesus bore the weight of all of humanity’s sin in the sense that he was the target of it.
God had observed the cycle of violence down the centuries, and knew that just another scapegoat, however innocent, would not be sufficient to break it. He therefore allowed His perfect, innocent Son to die a sinner’s death, not to perpetuate sacrificial religion but to subvert it by replacing the sacrifice of a victim chosen by the people with the self-offering of a willing and obedient servant. In contrast to a scapegoat, you might call him a lamb.
As Jesus hung upon the cross, bearing the brunt of our anger and violence, he was in that moment revealing not the burning heat of God’s righteous anger but the tender, compassionate and forgiving heart of Abba Father. What overcame sin was not sacrifice but unilateral, unearned forgiveness.
In subjecting himself to religious and political justice, Jesus proved beyond doubt that it was our wrath he endured, not the Father’s. He quoted from Psalm 22 not because he felt abandoned by God but because he knew that this was precisely a Psalm in which the one who appeared to abandoned by God was, in fact, preserved and vindicated by God.
Two scriptures
Having read the above two explanations of Jesus’ work at Calvary, consider now these two texts:
So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.
(2 Corinthians 5:17-19, emphasis added)
God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. […] There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us.
(1 John 4:16b, 18-19)
A question
Finally, then, let me leave you with this question: which of my two explanations for Jesus’ atoning death on the cross best makes sense in light of the two scriptures referenced above?
[ Image: Rennett Stowe ]
