This is in response to a question from Marshal in the next post. I thought it worth promoting to its own post.
We were talking about the problems of Penal Substitionary Atonement (that God can forgive us because Jesus "paid the price" of our sin by "shedding his perfect blood" in order to "pay" for our sin.) Without this "blood atonement," the PSA folk reason, no humans could be saved because God has chosen that method through which to "forgive us..." And further, we imperfect humans who "miss the mark" (the literal definition of the term "sin" often used in the Bible) and are, well, imperfect, the "just" punishment (the PSA folk reason) is to be tortured for an eternity in hell (whether it's an actual flaming hell burning us alive forever or the figurative equivalent depends on the specific PSA proponent).
I suggested that when we are done wrong, we poor, flawed and imperfect humans often find it within ourselves to simply forgive. WITHOUT a blood sacrifice to "pay" for that forgiveness (a paid for forgiveness sounds much more like a business transaction than any actual loving forgiveness, doesn't it?). And we certainly are able to forgive without killing our own children to "pay" for that "forgiveness."
Marshal responded:
"It's a premise and you need to prove that this premise results in God
forgiving without having sent His Only Begotten Son to die in our place
in order that we might be redeemed."I'd say the reality that we
humans - imperfect though we are, created in the image of God, as we
believe - CAN and DO regularly forgive wrongs done to us - even great
wrongs AND that we do so without any "blood sacrifice" of another to
"pay for" that forgiveness is evidence (if not objective proof) that
simple forgiveness
is possible. Because of course it is. I've seen it.
Further, I'd say it's evidence of a perfect
all-loving God. For an actual example: HOW does the mother of a murdered child find a way to
forgive the killer? That's a lot. But I've seen it. I've been in the
homes of Nicaraguan families whose loved ones were killed by Contra
soldiers - and they were sitting next to, holding hands with one of
those Contra soldiers. That mother had forgiven that soldier. Glory,
what forgiveness!
HOW had she forgiven that killer? HOW had she
welcomed him to her table...
as a friend??! Well, this man was from a neighboring
village. She knew the struggles that all Nicaraguans were having at that
time. She also was aware of the anti-Sandinista propoganda being pushed
on to these subsistence farmers and she knew how flawed, imperfect
humans can be misled and misguided. She knew him well enough - took time
to know him and his reasoning - to find it within her to forgive him.
Why does that sound like a familiar description of great love?
If I speak in the tongues of humans or of angels, but do not have love,
I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal...
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails...
For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror;
then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part; then I shall know fully,
even as I am fully known.~1 Corinthians 13, often called the Love Chapter
The
almighty God of the universe, as some of us believe, knows us
personally. Loves us personally. In spite of our "missing the mark" and
shortcomings. IN spite of our deliberate misdeeds. God loves us and
loves us perfectly.
Why? Because God KNOWS us perfectly.
Like
that Nicaraguan mother who knew the killer of her family well enough
(if not perfectly) to understand his motivations and his mistakes and
what led to that.
And so, once that Contra soldier had cut off
his hand and offered her a blood sacrifice from his bloody stump, THEN
Dona Maria could forgive him.
Wait. That's not right.
No,
once that soldier brought his child to Dona Maria and KILLED that child
to "pay" for his own crimes, THEN Dona Maria could forgive him.
Wait! WHAT? No! That's not right. Ew! No! HOW would killing his own son in any way "pay" for HIS wrongdoing??!
No!
NO "blood sacrifice" was required. Little Dona Maria forgave that
soldier. She simply forgave him. And God and God's love won out. Love -
true love - never fails.
(And I'll tell you a bit more of that
story - Dona Maria had not only forgiven the poor neighboring
farmer/contra soldier... she had forgiven we US citizens who sat in her
house that day, as well. We, who helped pay for the weapons used by that
Contra soldier and who helped pay for the propaganda that had misled
that soldier. Dona Maria, imperfect human that she is, knew of
forgiveness, even over great wrongs. I'm not sure that she ever forgave
the Reagan administration - who had never repented - but she forgave a
lot.)
Love never fails, indeed.
