What God is really after
MacLeod Campbell has taught us that the purpose of
Christ's atoning and reconciling work is best seen in the way Christ
went about it. It's purpose and nature are one. How he accomplished
it and what he wanted to accomplish aren't different in character.
The cross (death) of Christ is not just the termination point of his
sinless life; it is the completion of that life freely offered. In his
death Christ deliberately drew a line under all he did and might have
done in his life on earth. His death was accomplished as well as
endured. From one angle it had an historical contingency and on the
other it was eternally purposed and carried out through and under
contingent responses. (Beyond the historical inevitability there was no
necessity for men to have murdered the Christ. That is, given the world
as it was, the death of Christ was inevitable but the world didn't have
to be as it was.)
So the death of Christ is to be taken up into the fullness of his
life of holy obedience to his Father. But the death without the holy and
sinless life would have no meaning. His life and death belong
inextricably together in the atoning and reconciling work of God. There
is no atoning life that is not poured out in an atoning death.
Having said that, the life of Christ (his death included) is not only
the sacrifice that works atonement and reconciliation, it expresses the
nature of the reconciliation that God seeks to accomplish. It is not
just "some sort" of appeasement God is looking for. It isn't a mere absence
of overt hostilities that he's pursuing. What he wants is shown in the
whole Incarnation and Cross-experience of Christ. He demonstrates in
Christ's living before him what it is he is after. In Christ he finds
what he wants from and for humanity. In Christ, his living and his
dying, God spells out the nature of "reconciliation" and spells out what
it means to be at peace with him. And it is in Christ's atonement for
sin that forgiveness is made possible so that reconciliation is freely
offered to humans.
In the atoning life and death of Jesus Christ God makes it clear that
his purpose is broader than any one of the rich blessings that is part
of the full reconciliation enterprise in which he is engaged.
Whatever God is after is part and parcel of his atoning and reconciling work in Christ.
He isn't after a host of pardoned people.
He isn't after a host of people he can bless.
He isn't after a host of people he can take to heaven with him.
He is after a restored relationship with those who estranged themselves.
Therefore he is after a realignment of their hearts and lives with his.
Therefore the atoning/reconciling work of Christ is relational and realigning.
Therefore bringing us to the obedience of faith is part of his reconciling work.
Therefore bringing us to faith in Christ is realigning our hearts to God.
Therefore "faith" is ethical in character as well as a confession of
dependence. (This might help in working with Romans 4 and James 2.)
Therefore to denude faith of its ethical character is a serious reductionism.
©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.
Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.