The heart of the cross is God’s substitution of himself in our place. We move on in Part Three to think about what this self-sacrifice achieved under the headings of salvation, revelation and conquest. In this chapter, the author discusses four complementary word-pictures used by the Bible to describe the meaning of salvation.
The first image is that of propitiation. What does it mean? Why have some people been unhappy with it as a way of describing the effect of Jesus’ death (pp.197ff.)? How would you answer their objections?
Secondly, there is the image of redemption. Why is ‘ransom’ a more appropriate term than ‘deliverance’ (pp.205ff.)?
By what are we held captive (p.208)? Why is it important to affirm that ‘even our release from these captivities does not complete our redemption’ (p.208)?
What was the price paid for our redemption (pp.209f.)? What does this mean?
What are the practical implications of the fact that ‘the person of the redeemer...has proprietary rights over his purchase’ (pp.211f.)? How far do you acknowledge this in your life?
Justification is the third image, recalling the picture of the lawcourt. What is the difference between justification and forgiveness (p.212)? Why is it ‘the heart and hub...of the whole economy of God’s saving grace’ (p.213)?
What objections are there to this notion (pp.214f.)?
Why was the Reformers’ teaching on justification by faith rejected by the Roman Catholic Church (pp.214f.,218)?
What do ‘justification’, ‘regeneration’ and ‘sanctification’ mean (pp.216f.)? Why is it important to distinguish clearly between them?
How would you answer someone who said that ‘justification by faith is merely a “legal fiction”, with God pronouncing us righteous when we are not really righteous at all’ (pp.219ff.)?
The author summarizes Paul’s teaching on justification (pp.221ff.). Why is it important to maintain that our justification a) has its source in God’s grace, b) is grounded in the shedding of Christ’s blood, c) has its means through faith, d) brings about a personal relationship with Christ?
The fourth image is of reconciliation. What are the results of our being reconciled to God (pp.225ff.)?
Read 2 Corinthians 5:18–21. What does this passage teach about reconciliation (pp.229ff.)?
Why is it misleading to talk of substitution as a ‘theory of the atonement’ (pp.236f.)?
Session Eight
Chapter 8: The revelation of God (pp.237–264)
The cross was God’s decisive means of acting on our behalf and securing our salvation. It was also an event through which he made himself known to us, an aspect which we consider in this chapter.
What do you understand by the word ‘glory’? In what ways is the cross a demonstration of the glory of God (pp.237ff.)?
What does ‘theodicy’ mean (p.241)? Can you think of any times when you have experienced the ‘apparently unjust ways of God’?
Read Acts 17:30–31. What perspective does this give to your answer to question 2 (p.242)?
Although God’s justice will be fully made known at the end of history, it has in fact already been revealed. Read Romans 3:21–26. What three main explanations have been given for what Paul means by ‘a righteousness from God’ in verse 21 (pp.243ff.)? With which do you agree?
According to this passage, why did God present Jesus as the ‘sacrifice of atonement’? What does this mean and how does it help in the search for a theodicy (pp.244ff.)?
Read 1 John 3:16 and 4:10. ‘If we are looking for a definition of love, we should look not in a dictionary, but at Calvary’ (p.247). In what ways does the cross reveal the nature of true love?
How do you know that God loves you? Read Romans 5:5, 8. What do these verses tell us about God’s authentic love (pp.247ff.)?
The author quotes Moltmann: ‘The Son suffers dying, the Father suffers the death of the Son. The grief of the Father here is just as important as the death of the Son. The Fatherlessness of the Son is matched by the Sonlessness of the Father’ (p.251). In the light of this statement, how might you answer the claim that, in view of the world’s suffering, God’s love is an illusion?
Summarize Abelard’s view of the atonement (pp.252ff.). How would you answer him?
Some people assert that ‘forgiveness without atonement’ was taught by Jesus himself, for example in the Parable of the Prodigal Son (pp.257ff.). Is this view justifiable?
Read 1 Corinthians 1:17 – 2:5. In what ways is the message of the cross ‘foolishness to those who are perishing’ (pp.261ff.)? How did the Christians at Corinth know that the cross is ‘actually the greatest manifestation of God’s wisdom and power’ (p.262)?
Are you ever embarrassed by the message of the cross? Why do you think this is? Discuss possible solutions to this problem.
Session Nine
Chapter 9: The conquest of evil (pp.264–292)
The Christian claim is that, despite the appearance of total defeat, the cross of Christ was ‘the throne from which he rules the world’ (p.265). This chapter examines the basis for this claim.
What is Aulén’s view of the atonement. Why does he call it a) ‘dramatic’ and b) ‘classic’ (pp.265ff.)? Is he right?
What are the six stages by which God, through Christ, has won the victory over the devil (pp.268ff.)?
Read Colossians 2:13–15. How does Paul describe the conquest achieved by Christ on the cross (pp.271ff.)?
Why is it wrong to ‘regard the cross as defeat and the resurrection as victory’ (pp.274ff.)? What is the correct relation between Jesus’ death and his resurrection?
Why is it important to say that the parallel between our victory and Christ’s victory is only partial (pp.278ff.)?
‘The victory of Christians...consists of entering into the victory of Christ and of enjoying its benefits’ (p.279). What does this mean?
In connection with Christian victory, what is wrong with a) triumphalism and b) defeatism (pp.279f.)? How can we avoid each of these positions?
The author identifies the law, the flesh, the world and death as the four tyrants from which we are set free through Christ. What difference does being a Christian make to your attitudes to these things (pp.281ff.)?
What is misleading about the statement that ‘Christ bore our sicknesses in the very same way that he bore our sins’ (pp.284ff.)? What then is the effect of Christ’s death and resurrection on our physical bodies (pp.286)?
‘What the book of Revelation does...is to lift the curtain which hides the unseen world of spiritual reality and to show us what is going on behind the scenes’ (p.287). Read Revelation 11:15 – 12:12 to get a taste of the perspective which sees the church’s continuing conflict with the devil in the context of the victory of the Lamb. What does the author identify as the devil’s allies in this conflict (pp.289ff.)?
In what ways do you wage war against these things? How can they and their master be overcome (pp.291f.)?
