A Ransom for Many
BY WALTER CHANTRY
Mark 10:45
Many people preach that Jesus Christ died for all people without exception and that for a person to become saved, he has to make a free-will decision to receive Him. These people demean our Lordís sacrifice on the cross and deny the essential deity of Christ. But they do more than that. They are presenting a gospel that offers absolutely no hope for salvation, because it is not the gospel of the Bible.If Christ died to redeem all people and not all people are saved, then the determining factor in salvation is not His finished work on the cross, but the will or work of the sinner. And if our Lord failed to do what He made an effort to do, then He is not God. Thatís blasphemy.
The truth is, anyone who reads and searches the scriptures honestly will agree that Christ died not for all men, but for a special group of people. Thatís why whenever the inspired writers of the Bible describe the people for whom Christ died, they typically refer to ìusî, not to all people. This is significant because these writers are not talking about something that they read in some theological textbook, they are testifying to a reality that they personally experienced.Us, the redeemed. Paul writes in Romans 5:8, for example, ìGod commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for usî, and in Galatians 3:13, ìChrist hath redeemed us from the curse of the law.î And Titus describes the Lord Jesus as the One ìwho gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good worksî (2:14).
In Revelation 5, where the Apostle John gives us a picture of all the redeemed gathering around the heavenly throne, he says in verse 9: ìAnd they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of (not along with) every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.î
And Revelation 14:3: ìThey sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from (not with) the earth.î
From these five scriptures, three truths are obvious: (1) The atonement that Christ made was for a specific group of people redeemed from among men, folks that were redeemed out of the earth. (2) The atonement accomplished and secured specific resultsóHe purifies unto Himself a peculiar people zealous of good works. (3) All those for whom the atonement was made shall be singing the praises of the Lamb in heaven.Who Are the Redeemed?
Who are the ìusî that Christ redeemed? In Mark 10:45, we have an answer: ìthe Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.î The redeemed are those many for whom He gave His life a ransom.
I hear preachers say, ìGod loves people and Christ died for them all, some are going to be lost after all.î Folks going to be lost from Godís purpose to save? Does that sound like Bible to you? No! God says, ìMy purpose shall stand.î I will do all my pleasure.
Letís look at the Bible and see what God Himself has to say about the ìmanyî for whom Christ gave His life a ransom.I. Those ordained to eternal life
Acts 13:48: ìAnd when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.îThose who deny the doctrine of Godís electing grace often say, ìGod with His great wisdom looked out through the tunnel of time and saw that you would believe, and He therefore ordained you to eternal life.î Blasphemy! Thatís causing God to operate on the basis of what He suspects man will do. But notice that the scripture does not say, ìas many as believed were ordained to eternal life.î It declares flatly: ìas many as were ordained to eternal life believed.î The cause of faith is Godís sovereign predestination.
People say that predestination shuts the door of hope. Oh no. Thatís what opens the door for believers. Had God not ordained anyone to eternal life, no one would have believed. It is an impossibility for any fallen man to believe on his own. Only because God had ordained some people to eternal life that these people believe when Godís Spirit applies the gospel to their heart.II. Those given by the Father
John 17:1,2: ìThese words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee. As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.îBefore time began, we learn from Psalm 2:8, the Lord God said to His Son, ìAsk of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance.î The Father promised to give Jesus a group of people upon the fulfillment of His obedience to the covenant of grace.
Now, finishing His work, Jesus knows that God has given him power over all fleshóthatís universal dominion. For what purpose is He given this universal dominion? To give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.The many for whom He gave His life a ransom are the many who were given Him in covenant election before the world began. And these are the many whom He came to save, the many for whom He gave His life a ransom. Can any one of them fail to become saved? No. ìAll that the Father giveth me shall come to meî (John 6:37).
Iíve heard preachers talk about election as a damnable doctrine. They say itís not fair that God didnít choose the unbelievers. Any man who knows Godóand I choose my words deliberately hereówonít talk like that. How can people who refuse to properly worship their Creator accuse God for being unfair? How dare they complain about God not having elected them when they have no interest in being made righteous by God to start with?
III. Those whose sins Christ bore
Hebrews 9:28: ìChrist was once offered to bear the sins of many.î Why did He bear their sins? Listen to Isaiah 53:11: ìHe shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.î Christ bore the iniquities of many in order to satisfy the justice of the Holy God for those many. That same justice now demands that all of those many must go free. No one can be punished twice for the same sins.Men who preach that Jesus Christ died for the sins of all men and that some men will nevertheless have to pay for their sins in hell are effectively charging God of engaging in such a hideous injustice as double jeopardy.
Our God is holy and just. He will never collect a second time for the debt that has already been paid by Christ. We owe nothing to the justice of God. A debt of gratitude? Yes. A debt of love? Yes. A debt of thanksgiving? Yes. A debt of praise? Yes. But a debt to justice? Not one cent do we owe.
IV. Those whose sins have been remitted
Matthew 26:28, ìThis is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.î The many for whom the Lord Jesus shed His blood are those whose sins have been remitted, or forgiven.Redemption and forgiveness are the same thing. The apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 1:7: ìIn whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.î The second part of that verse is explanatory. So, if Christ has redeemed you, you are forgiven.
The same is found in Colossians 1:14: ìIn whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.î So, redemption and forgiveness go to the same people. Thus, the many for whom Jesus Christ shed His blood to redeem are exactly those many whose sins have been put away forever.
V. Those who are made righteous
Romans 5:19: ìFor as by one manís disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.î
Reckon why the apostle says ìmanyî were made sinners by one manís disobedience, instead of all were made sinners? Thatís because not all sinners are men. Some angels also sinned against God, Satan and the other fallen angels. But unlike human beings, they are not represented by Adam.The human race was created under the federal headship of Adam. God made it that way. He is our representative. So, when Adam sinned, we sinned. When Adam died, we died. When Adam became a sinner, we became a sinner. Thus, when Paul says that many were made sinners by Adamís disobedience, He is referring to all the offspring of Adam.
The Lord Jesus Christ is another federal head, another representative man, another Adam, so to speak. And by His obedience, even obedience unto death, the many who are in Christ shall be made righteous. Here, the many refers specifically to those who are made righteous by Christ
When Adam sinned against God, we could not choose whether we want to be a sinner or not, could we? Our sinnerhood did not become just a possibility; it became a reality. When Adam sinned, we sinned. Thatís what Romans 5:12 says: ìWherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.î
Likewise, when Christ satisfied the justice of God, righteousness did not become just a possibility for those whom He represented at Calvary. It became a reality for all of them. How? By divine imputation. Speaking of Abraham, the father of all believers, James 2:23 says, ìAnd the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.î
Divine Imputations. Imputation, as it is used in the Bible, means to charge (or credit) one person with something that another person owes (or owns). The scripture tells us that Adamís sin was imputed to us. So, even before we have committed any sin of our own, we sin in Adam. We became sinners in Adam, our representative head.
Similarly, the Lord Jesus Himself never committed any sin. But as Isaiah says, ìAll we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us allî (53:6). Our sin was imputed to Him.
Thankfully, God took the perfect righteousness of His Son and imputed it to us, thereby making us perfect and holy. We didnít do anything righteous. But by an act of gracious imputation, we are made the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ.Missing Word
Before I close, Iíd like to look with you Hebrews 2:9, a verse that free-will proponents rely heavily upon to prove their point. At first glance, it does seem to suggest that Christ died for every human being, because it reads in our English Bible, ìWe see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.îLook in any Greek text, however, and you will find that the word ìmanî is not there. It was added by the translators because to read ìhe by the grace of God should taste death for everyî in our language is awkward. But there was really no need for them to add any word there, as God Himself fills in the blank in the ensuing verses.
Verse 10: ìFor it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.î This statement shows that Christ tasted death for every son whom He brings to glory.
Verse 11: ìFor both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.î Christ tasted death for every brother.
In the same manner, we can see further that Christ tasted death for every child that God had given Him (v. 13), for every person that He had delivered from the power of death, (v. 15) and for every seed of Abraham (v. 16).
Now, this doctrine that Iím preaching is called Limited Atonement. Thatís because the atonement that Christ provides is limited in its design and intent. It is limited to only the many who were saved by it. This is the only doctrine that gives hope to sinners who can do nothing to save himself. And it is the only gospel that gives a biblical basis of assurance to helpless sinners.
How do I know that I am saved? I know because Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died in my place. He bore my sins and put them away. And He has justified me by His imputed righteousness and Heís bringing me to glory.The doctrine of limited atonement also limits all the glory for our salvation to the Triune God, the Lord Jesus Christ, in particular. Jesus only. Thatís it. Heís the Savior. He is the author and finisher of our faith. Who gets the credit? He does. Who gets the glory? He does. Who gets the honor? He does. Is there room for man to boast? Not at all.
I pray that you are among the many for whom Christ gave His life a ransom on the cross so that, like us, you too give Him all the honor and glory and credit for your salvation. o
Rev. Donald S. Fortner is pastor of Grace Baptist Church of Danville, 2734 Old Stanford Road, Danville, KY 40422.