BEMA Episode Link: 166: Hebrews — Atonement 101
Episode Length: 45:47
Published Date: Thu, 30 Apr 2020 01:00:00 -0700
Session 4
About this episode:

Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the many different theories and explanations of atonement that have arisen throughout the centuries—a very critical conversation for theology in our day and how we interact with the story.

Discussion Video for BEMA 166

A Better Atonement by Tony Jones

Did God Kill Jesus? by Tony Jones

The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Crucifixion of the Warrior God by Gregory A. Boyd

The Jesus Driven Life by Michael Hardin

A Community Called Atonement by Scot McKnight

Transcript for BEMA 166

Notes

*Note: The following notes are handwritten by me, Adam, and I reserve the right to be wrong.

BEMA Episode 166 Study Notes: Hebrews — Atonement 101

Title & Source Summary

Episode: BEMA 166: Hebrews — Atonement 101
Hosts: Marty Solomon and Brent Billings
Topic: This episode provides a comprehensive overview of various atonement theories that have developed throughout Christian history, examining their historical contexts and theological implications. The discussion centers on the book of Hebrews as the primary New Testament text addressing atonement, while critiquing the over-reliance on penal substitutionary atonement in modern evangelical theology.

Key Takeaways

  • Hebrews, not Romans, is the New Testament book that directly addresses atonement theology
  • Multiple theories of atonement have existed throughout Christian history, each reflecting the historical context of their development
  • Penal substitutionary atonement (PSA) is just one theory among many, developed during the Reformation era
  • The primary purpose of atonement is to cleanse the human conscience, not to satisfy divine legal requirements
  • God doesn’t need sacrifice - we do, for the cleansing of our guilty consciences
  • Each atonement theory serves like a “golf club” - useful for different situations but not comprehensive alone
  • The book of Hebrews incorporates elements from multiple atonement theories, suggesting none alone captures the full mystery
  • Jesus serves as temple, priest, and sacrifice simultaneously in Hebrews’ framework

Main Concepts & Theories

Historical Development of Atonement Theories

Ransom Captive Theory (Earliest Church)

  • Context: Early church persecution by Rome
  • Concept: Satan held the world captive; God traded Jesus as ransom payment, but Jesus’s resurrection left Satan empty-handed
  • Literary example: C.S. Lewis’s “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” - Aslan’s deal with the White Witch
  • Problems: Places power in Satan’s hands, makes God appear deceptive

Christus Victor Theory (Medieval Period)

  • Context: Plagues, crusades, and warfare
  • Concept: Jesus conquered the realm of sin and death, defeating the order of death and establishing the order of life
  • Modern renewal: Greg Boyd’s “neo-Christus Victor” theology
  • Problem: Doesn’t explain personal atonement for individual sins

Penal Substitutionary Atonement (Reformation Era)

  • Context: Legal contracts, court systems, lawyer-theologians like John Calvin
  • Concept: God’s justice demands death for sin; Jesus dies as legal substitute to satisfy divine justice
  • Problems: Makes God subject to external legal system; divides Trinity into “angry Father” and “loving Son”
  • Historical note: Reflects 16th-century legal thinking, not biblical Judaism

Moral Exemplar Theory (20th Century Liberal Theology)

  • Context: Textual criticism, secularism, liberal theology
  • Concept: Jesus’s death demonstrates ultimate self-sacrificial ethic, challenging corrupt religious systems
  • Historical precedent: Abelard (1000 AD) opposed Anselm’s satisfaction theory
  • Criticism: Often feels incomplete or “hollow”

Solidarity Theory (Contemporary)

  • Developed by: Tony Jones
  • Concept: God became human to join humanity in complete solidarity - experiencing our sweat, tears, blood, and death
  • Biblical connection: Aligns with Hebrews’ emphasis on Jesus sharing human experience

Scapegoat Theory (Rene Girard)

  • Developer: Late theologian Rene Girard
  • Concept: Jesus serves as ultimate scapegoat sacrifice, cleansing conscience once and for all
  • Biblical foundation: Levitical scapegoat system, fulfilled perfectly in Christ
  • Prediction: Will significantly impact evangelical theology in coming decades

The book of Hebrews repeatedly emphasizes that:

  • Old Testament sacrifices could not “clear the conscience of the worshiper” (appears ~5 times)
  • Animal blood provided external cleansing but not internal peace
  • Jesus’s sacrifice uniquely “cleanses our consciences from acts that lead to death”
  • The Levitical system actually reminded people of sin annually rather than removing guilt
God’s Relationship to Sacrifice

Key theological insight from Hebrews 10:

  • God commanded sacrifices but doesn’t need or want them (Psalms, Prophets confirm this)
  • Sacrifice serves human psychological and spiritual needs, not divine legal requirements
  • God could simply forgive sin, but humans would retain guilty consciences
  • The sacrificial system was God’s provision for human conscience issues, not divine satisfaction
The “iPhone Analogy” for Covenant Relationship

Marty’s analogy: Old covenant is like iPhone 5, new covenant like iPhone 11

  • iPhone 5 isn’t “obsolete” - it contains essential technology for iPhone 11
  • We wouldn’t return to iPhone 5 once we have iPhone 11
  • Old covenant remains foundational but has been superseded by better technology
  • Translation issues: “obsolete” should be “old” - the covenant aged out, wasn’t discarded
Jesus’s Triple Role in Hebrews

Jesus simultaneously functions as:

  1. Temple - The place where God meets humanity
  2. High Priest - The mediator who offers sacrifice
  3. Sacrifice - The offering that cleanses conscience

This unique combination makes his atonement work “once for all” unlike the endless repetition of Levitical sacrifices.

Examples & Applications

Historical Context Examples

Early Church Persecution

  • Ransom captive theory made sense when Christians were literally captives of imperial persecution
  • Imagery of God “buying back” his people resonated with lived experience of oppression

Medieval Warfare

  • Christus Victor theology emerged during crusades and constant warfare
  • Victory imagery appealed to societies experiencing perpetual conflict

Reformation Legal Systems

  • Penal substitutionary atonement developed when legal contracts and court systems dominated social organization
  • Lawyer-theologians naturally applied legal frameworks to divine justice
Literary and Cultural Parallels

The Chronicles of Narnia

  • Aslan’s sacrifice mirrors ransom captive theory perfectly
  • Deep magic requiring payment, surprise resurrection defeating the witch
  • Shows how atonement theories appear in popular culture

Golf Club Metaphor (Scot McKnight)

  • Each atonement theory serves specific purposes like golf clubs
  • Wouldn’t use a putter to drive off the tee
  • Forcing penal substitutionary atonement to explain everything is like playing entire golf game with one club
Contemporary Theological Problems

Trinity Division in Popular Evangelical Theology

  • “Angry Father, nice Jesus, helper Holy Spirit” destroys Trinity doctrine
  • Jesus supposedly convincing Father not to destroy humanity
  • This understanding permeates much contemporary preaching and teaching

The Sociopathic God Illustration

  • Marty’s disturbing church experience: preacher comparing God to workplace predator
  • Congregation nodding approval at deeply problematic theology
  • Shows how PSA can lead to destructive images of divine character

Potential Areas for Further Exploration

Theological Studies
  • Study Rene Girard’s scapegoat theory and its implications for understanding violence in Scripture
  • Examine how different atonement theories handle the Trinity doctrine
  • Research the historical development of satisfaction theology from Anselm through Calvin
  • Investigate Jewish concepts of atonement in Second Temple literature
Biblical Research
  • Compare Hebrews’ atonement language with Levitical sacrifice terminology
  • Study Paul’s atonement language in Romans versus Hebrews’ approach
  • Examine Old Testament passages where God says he doesn’t want/need sacrifices
  • Research the psychological and sociological functions of sacrifice in ancient cultures
Historical Theology
  • Trace how different historical contexts shaped atonement theories
  • Study the influence of Roman legal concepts on Christian theology
  • Examine how persecution, warfare, and social stability affected theological development
  • Research the relationship between political power and atonement theology
Practical Applications
  • Develop healthier ways to talk about God’s character in popular Christian teaching
  • Create frameworks for understanding atonement that preserve Trinity doctrine
  • Explore how guilt, shame, and conscience function in contemporary spiritual formation
  • Study how different cultural contexts might benefit from different atonement emphases

Comprehension Questions

  1. Historical Development: How did the historical context of each era influence the development of different atonement theories? Provide specific examples of how persecution, warfare, and legal systems shaped theological understanding.

  2. Biblical Foundation: Explain why Marty argues that Hebrews, not Romans, is the key New Testament book for understanding atonement. How does Hebrews’ emphasis on conscience differ from typical evangelical explanations of atonement?

  3. Trinity Doctrine: How does penal substitutionary atonement potentially damage proper Trinity doctrine? What theological problems arise when God the Father is portrayed as angry while Jesus is portrayed as loving?

  4. Sacrificial System: According to the episode’s interpretation of Hebrews, why did God institute the sacrificial system if God doesn’t need or want sacrifices? How does this understanding change our view of atonement?

  5. Practical Application: Using Scot McKnight’s “golf club” metaphor, when might different atonement theories be most helpful? How can understanding multiple theories lead to healthier Christian theology and practice?

Brief Personalized Summary

BEMA Episode 166 offers a crucial corrective to much of contemporary evangelical atonement theology by providing historical context and biblical foundation for understanding this central Christian doctrine. The episode’s most valuable contribution is demonstrating that penal substitutionary atonement, while containing some truth, is neither the only nor necessarily the primary way Scripture describes God’s salvific work.

The revelation that Hebrews focuses on cleansing the conscience rather than satisfying legal requirements fundamentally shifts the conversation from mechanical transaction to relational healing. This insight alone resolves many troubling implications of purely legal atonement models while maintaining the necessity and centrality of Jesus’s death and resurrection.

Perhaps most importantly, the episode provides tools for recognizing when our theological systems have become destructive. The illustration of the preacher comparing God to a predator shows how well-intentioned atonement theology can lead to deeply disturbing conclusions about divine character. The reminder that we need multiple “golf clubs” in our theological bag prevents us from forcing one theory to explain mysteries too large for any single framework.

The episode concludes with hope that future evangelical theology will incorporate insights from multiple atonement theories while maintaining Christ’s centrality. This approach promises both theological sophistication and pastoral sensitivity, helping believers understand God’s love without the psychological damage that can result from overly mechanistic or juridical understandings of salvation.

The call to think critically about inherited theological systems while maintaining faith in Christ’s atoning work provides a balanced approach to theological development that honors both Scripture and the ongoing work of the Spirit in the church.

Edit | Previous | Next