There has been a tendency in recent years to talk about “models of atonement”. The tendency came to the forefront during the 2003 controversy over Penal Substitution. Evangelical Christians have historically tended to talk about Jesus’ death as paying the penalty for our sin. Steve Chalke and Alan Mann in their book “The Lost Message… Continue reading What atonement means
Tag: Atonement
Does the parable of the prodigal son rule out penal substitution?
This was other “Threads take” that I referred to the other day. In the parable of the prodigal son, a father has two sons, the younger demands his share of the inheritance and then leaves home, wasting his share until famine hits and forces him to recognise his folly. He returns home to throw himself… Continue reading Does the parable of the prodigal son rule out penal substitution?
Paul and the supposed lost message of love
I promised that I’d pick up on the substance of a couple of recent social media debates. Here’s the secind one. Readers will recognise immediately that this is a pretty old misconception. It’s been doing the rounds as long as I can remember. Some of my readers are significantly older than I am and I… Continue reading Paul and the supposed lost message of love
The victory of God’s people
The day comes which was meant to be the day of death and destruction. However, the Jews are ready and prepared. The enemy are still there but it is the Jews who go on the offensive, there is a sense in which victory has already been won, the ringleader has been dealt with and the… Continue reading The victory of God’s people
The Harrowing of Hell and the filling of silence
Over the last few years, I’ve noticed two particular trends at Easter and I suspect they are linked. The first, that seemed to start earlier was that some Christians began to start making a bigger deal of the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Comments include that we shouldn’t be in a rush to… Continue reading The Harrowing of Hell and the filling of silence
Atonement in Isaiah
At the heart of Isaiah’s message is the promise that God will deal with the problem of evil, sin, rebellion and idolatry in a way that enables him to be reconciled to his people, to bring about new life and indeed a new creation. Exile can be seen as a form of death, so that… Continue reading Atonement in Isaiah
Betrayed, Denied, Accused (Mark 14)
We are now reaching the culmination of the Gospel. Jesus is about to be betrayed and handed over to death. The leaders are hesitant, not wanting to cause a disturbance during the festival, and yet the focus on Passover is exactly the time when God has planned these events to come to pass (14:1-2) It… Continue reading Betrayed, Denied, Accused (Mark 14)
Life after life
I’ve just finished watching the 4 part drama series “Life after life” adapted from Kate Atkinson’s 2013 novel. I found the premise fascinating but Sarah reckons the book isn’t all it’s made out to be, so this seemed like the easier way of getting a better feel for the story. The story focuses on the… Continue reading Life after life
In Christ alone
Every so often I pick up on a complaint/objection to Stuart Townend’s hymn “In Christ alone.” Here is one such example. There are people who would be happy, they say, to sing the hymn but are deeply distressed by the line “Til on that Cross, as Jesus died The wrath of God was satisfied.” Now,… Continue reading In Christ alone
“Crushed” (Expository Worship a worked example)
I mentioned in the last post about a song that we had started to sing at Bearwood Chapel a few years back. The song is called “Jesus Thank you (The Mystery of the Cross).” In the first verse, you have the line “You the perfect Holy One crushed your Son.” Some people have expressed discomfort… Continue reading “Crushed” (Expository Worship a worked example)
Faithroots 