From a pastor-friend:

I sometimes hear people saying that substitutionary atonement is an antiquated idea that doesn’t have any meaning to people in our day.

A few years ago I was teaching a CRE lesson to a Grade 4 class. It was the season of Easter and ANZAC Day so we were chatting about sacrifice. I asked: “Does anyone know why the Cross is special for Christians?”

A boy with some Sunday School experience answered: “Jesus died to pay for our sins.”

“Let me tell you how that works,” I said. “Suppose when I came in today your teacher told me that you had misbehaved so badly that she was keeping you in the classroom all lunchtime. What if I said: `Ms ____, I love this Grade 4 class. Keep me in to do the detention and let them go’.?”

Spontaneously several children called out: “Hooray for Mr _____!”.

I said: “That’s how Christians feel about Jesus and what he did for us.”

It seems to me that those Grade 4 children understood the concepts of substitution, grace, salvation and joyful thanksgiving. I sometimes wish more of us were more like they were at that moment. If Grade 4 kids can grasp substitutionary atonement, I reckon others can too.

PS By the way, I agree with the caution about absolutizing one view of the atonement. My concern is simply that we not lose the substitutionary one.

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