atonement
Definition
Atonement covers in the corpus two closely related but distinct concepts: the reconciling act of Christ that removes guilt and punishment (atonement proper), and the restored relationship between God and humanity that results from it (reconciliation). Contested in the corpus are its scope (for believers only vs. for all people) and its nature (forensic-substitutional vs. cosmic-restorative). The Greek term is ጱλαÏÎŒÏÏ (hilasmos, 1 John 2:2).
Usage in the Corpus
E.W. Bullinger
Bullinger connects atonement to the ጠÏαΟ structure: Christâs atoning offering is once-for-all, definitive, and unrepeatable. It is the foundation of monergistic redemption. [Bullinger, Number in Scripture]
George Warnock
Warnock defends the necessity of blood atonement without any concession to modernist critique: âthere is positively no acceptance for any man before God except by the shedding of the precious blood of Christ.â He also emphasizes its scope: âThat full and complete Atonement was made for the whole human race by Jesus Christ on the Cross, there is no doubt whatsoeverâ â but this requires personal appropriation through faith. Atonement is objectively universal but subjectively conditional. [Warnock, The Feast of Tabernacles, Ch. 2]
In Seven Lamps of Fire (SLF), Warnock expands with the typological significance of the mercy seat. He connects the mercy seat of the tabernacle (Ex. 25:17â22) as type with Christ as âpropitiationâ (1 John 2:2; Rom. 3:25). The mercy seat is not merely a lid over the law, but the point where Godâs grace and Godâs righteousness meet. Warnock writes: âAnd he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.â This universal scope â particularly the inclusion of âthe whole worldâ â is theologically grounded in the infinite value of Christâs blood offering. [Warnock, Seven Lamps of Fire, Soteriology]
Stephen Jones
Jones extends the scope of atonement to its maximum: Col. 1:20 (âreconcile all things to himselfâ) includes not only humans but the entire creation and spiritual powers. He adds that even Satanâs ultimate reconciliation is implied by Scripture â a distinctive element of his teaching that goes beyond the classic restorationist spectrum. Atonement for Jones is not only soteriological but cosmological. [Jones, Creationâs Jubilee, Ch. 5]
Watchman Nee & Witness Lee
Nee/Lee emphasize the atoning death as the âkilling powerâ of the Spirit: Christâs death acts not only juridically but actually works the death of the old nature in the believer through the Spirit. Atonement has a pneumatological-transformative dimension. [Nee/Lee, The Economy of God]