“Forsaken” but NOT ALIENATED

Indeed, Jesus, the Messiah, the only-born Son of God was truly “forsaken“ by God–“My God”–but not “alienated” thereby from Him.  Having emptied himself (i.e., his entire contents–graciousness and troth) out of his heavenly form of deity in order to possess the form of a slave, i.e., a human body (Philippians 2:6-8), and then having that mortal body stripped off him (i.e., from his essential contents of deity) in the “circumcision” of the crucifixion (Colossians 2:11), instead of immediately re-entering his divine form, he joined all those human beings who had been “forsaken” by God previously by the alienation of their own sin, in death, and were now in the Unseen.  It was there (not in heaven) where he proclaimed his victory while he himself awaited the enactment of God’s just decree of resurrection in fitting response to His Son’s necessary yet only momentary forsakenness.  The original Psalm (22) prophetically foresees and proclaims this.

Yet none of this implies that Jesus ever suffered the abuse of God’s wrath, for all this forsakenness had not one particle of smoky divine wrath in it.  That, in fact, is the very point of his death from whatever aspect we may view it–it was wrongful, satanically perpetrated…but reversible by God’s justice, so that we may live in expectation of life everlasting!  [12/1/09]

“In this is love, not that we love God, but that He loves us, and dispatches His Son a protective covering concerned” NOT WITH HIS WRATH BUT “WITH OUR SINS.”  (1 John 4:10)  The penal substitution theory has switched the focus radically and wrongfully, ignoring the plainest Scriptures as well as the aggregate witness of the whole.  [12/4/09]

BELIEVING GOD’S DECLARATIONS WORKS LIKE POWER STEERING TOWARD SALVATION

Contrary to the deterministic error of Calvinism, our salvation is like POWER STEERING.  As soon as we turn the wheel, the power kicks in to augment our “free”(i.e., “self-authorized,” autexousi-) decision or choice.  The “power system” does not make the choice (“election”) for us, but only re-in-forces our TRUST, which is based on God’s declarations in the proclamation concerning Messiah Jesus, accompanied with its abundant testimony and proofs.  [12/8/09]

Every particle of graciousness that we receive through the Lord Jesus Christ is a credit to God’s justice to him because of the cross.  [12/9/09]

JESUS BECAME ACTUALLY WHAT BLOOD SACRIFICES WERE SYMBOLICALLY

Did the cattle, sheep, and goats sacrificed by ancient Israelites “become sin” for their sakes, at least symbolically, somehow?  For unless we can reason in that manner, it seems unlikely that 2 Corinthians 5:21 is saying this about Jesus either.  In any case, I have never heard or read such a rationalization regarding those offerings.  But if these Levitical rituals are meant to be prophetic of the reality that would eclipse and banish these substitutes, then we should expect (in terms of sound interpretation) that the antitype should fulfill the type.  If that is a fair hope, then Jesus actually “became” what those “flawless” sacrificial victims “became” only as metaphors:  A SIN OFFERING.  Accordingly, Christ’s sin offering did actually (i.e., by the power of the Holy Spirit) what those sin offerings could only do figuratively:  make righteous!  [12/13/09]

God’s “DELIGHT” in Jesus at his Baptism never departed from him, not even at the Cross.

God did forsake Jesus, His ever-beloved, ever–favored, ever-wrath-free Son…but in the ways  that Psalm 22 further elaborated prophetically.

“Let Him [Jehovah] rescue him [Jesus], since He delights in him” 22:8. YET GOD DELAYED!  God avowed His delight in Jesus at his immersion by John and there is no reason to suppose this favorable attitude was ever altered for any reason, even as he bore the curse of the Mosaic Torah.  IN FACT, GOD’S GRACIOUSNESS MUST HAVE SUSTAINED HIM THROUGH THIS DEEPEST OF ALL DISTRESSES THAT TRIED HIM (AT THE EVIL HAND OF THE TRIER, SATAN), EVEN AS HIS FATHER’S AFFIRMING WORDS AT HIS IMMERSION, “{THIS IS / YOU ARE} MY SON, THE BELOVED, IN {WHOM / YOU} I DELIGHT” (Matthew 3:17, Mark 1:11, Luke 3:22) SUSTAINED HIM THROUGHOUT ALL HIS INAUGURAL TRIALS (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13).  HIS RETURNING “IN THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT” (Luke 4:14) WAS BUT A SHADOW OF WHAT WAS TO COME WHEN HE WAS VICTORIOUS AT ENDURING THE CROSS TO THE “IT IS FINISHED!” LINE of John 19:30.  FOR THEN CAME PENTECOST!  [11/11/07]

It certainly didn’t do us any good for Jesus to experience “our” illnesses and pains (Isaiah 53:3-4) “AS OUR SUBSTITUTE” if that meant to imply, “so we don’t have to,” because obviously  WE DO  HAVE TO ANYWAY!

YET THE VERY SAME LANGUAGE IS USED IN SCRIPTURE CONCERNING “OUR” TRANSGRESSIONS, DEPRAVITIES, AND SINS!  So why do many theologians imagine that these passages are “substitutionary” either, any more than the first set?  This implication is not logical, but nor is the situation a “mystery”!

Jesus, God’s “Servant” and anointed Messiah, EXPERIENCED ALL THE BACKLASH OF SIN AND SICKNESS THAT DEATH HAD INJECTED INTO MANKIND AFTER SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD THROUGH ADAM AND BROUGHT WITH IT THAT DEATH SENTENCE, i.e., BEING BANNED FROM THE TREE OF LIFE.  MESSIAH BORE AND WAS BURDENED WITH THEM IN COMPLETE INNOCENCE.  IN EXCHANGE FOR SUFFERING THIS VOLUNTARY HUMILIATION ALONG WITH US IN OUR MISERABLE PLIGHT, IN COMPASSIONATE SOLIDARITY, HE WAS ABLE, i.e., EMPOWERED AND AUTHORIZED TO MEDIATE HIS CONSEQUENT AWARD FROM GOD TO HIS FELLOW HUMAN BEINGS.  [11/11/07]

As long as we remain in Jesus, the Messiah, there is no wrath of God against us, precisely because there is no wrath against him! Moreover, THERE NEVER WAS NOR CAN BE!  NOR, INDEED, NEED THERE BE.  FOR JESUS BECAME A PROTECTIVE SHELTER NOT BECAUSE HE “ABSORBED” OR “BOUGHT OFF” OR “SATISFIED” OR “APPEASED” OR “PACIFIED” OR “PLACATED” OR “MOLLIFIED” OR “PROPITIATED” GOD’S WRATH IN THE LEAST, BUT PRECISELY BECAUSE HE WAS PERFECTLY IMPERVIOUS TO ANY SUCH OUTPOURING, FOR HE HAD NO SIN, AND THE WICKED ONE HAD “NOTHING IN” HIM FOR WRATH TO TARGET!  THAT’S OBVIOUSLY WHY JESUS MADE THE PERFECT PROTECTIVE SHIELDING FOR MORTAL, SINFUL HUMAN BEINGS.

HOWEVER, WHEN THE VICIOUS FURY OF SATAN ASSAULTED JESUS, ESPECIALLY AT THE END, HE ALLOWED THE GREAT ADVERSARY TO TAKE HIM ALL THE WAY DOWN, FOR THIS WAS AN INDISPENSABLE PART OF THE PLAN TO TAKE DOWN THE DEVIL’S KINGDOM, IN TURN.  ONLY THE MAGNITUDE OF SUCH AN ENORMITY WOULD UNLEASH THE COSMIC CATAPULT OF RECTIFYING, RESTORATIVE JUSTICE TO SMASH A PATH THROUGH DEATH AND MAKE AGELONG LIFE ACCESSIBLE TO ALL WHO TRUST.  [11/11/07]