Theology Of Paul

THEOLOGY OF PAUL
M.M.NINAN
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fatted animals I will not look upon. Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of
your harps. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
The Penal-Substitution Theory:
This view was formulated by the 16th century Reformers as an extension of Anselm's Satisfaction theory. Anselm's
theory was correct in introducing the satisfaction aspect of Christ's work and its necessity, however the Reformers
saw it as insufficient because it was referenced to God's honor rather than his justice and holiness and was
couched more in terms of a commercial transaction than a penal substitution. This Reformed view says simply that
Christ died for man, in man's place, taking his sins and bearing them for him. The bearing of man's sins takes the
punishment for them and sets the believer free from the penal demands of the law: The righteousness of the law
and the holiness of God are satisfied by this substitution.
Substitution in sacrifice is often presented as God’s Love Allows man to pay the Price of his sin by the death of a
Substitute. Since I am under the curse of death, I will allow someone else to be killed instead of me. It is
claimed that this was the basis of the Old Testament Sacrificial system. In this way God is satisfied that he was
avenged the sin and Man is satisfied that he escaped the punishment of death on himself. Is God’s justice
satisfied? As Thomas Paine (1737-1809) the celebrated writer and critic points out, the doctrine of the atonement
sacrifice is not based on justice for a crime committed, but rather on the notion of paying a debt, which anyone
can do. However justice, he said, cannot punish the innocent for the guilty without destroying the very notion of
the thing itself, which is justice. It is just another criminal act which will be unpardonable. Do we believe that God
is fooled by that?
“The impossibility of apostasy is demanded from a belief that Jesus died as a substitute. To reject the impossibility
of apostasy yet accept substitution is to not know what one is saying. Certain beliefs and doctrines have logical
consequences. Spurgeon was exactly right: if Jesus is our substitute, then God cannot hold any punishment
against man, regardless of our actions for God would be unjust to punish twice for the same sin. The problem is
that if Jesus is our substitute, as most suggest and teach, then all people are saved. Christ died for the sins of the
whole world. Substitution teaches that Christ bore the punishment for all sins. If so, there is no need for faith, no
need to obey Gods commands, and no need to respond to Jesus because Christ has already bore the sinners
punishment and no one can be charged with sin. Substitution eliminates the need for faith, belief, repentance,
confession, baptism, or obedience to God. This is a major problem that cannot be ignored by those who advance
the teaching of substitution…… To teach obligations, commands, or conditions is to violate the very premise of
substitution.” Brent Kercheville, Christian Monthly Standard , Did Jesus Die In Our Place?
The Moral-Example Theory (or Moral-Influence Theory):
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