The penal substitution theory of atonement assumes that sin must be punished in order to satisfy divine justice. Christ's death, so the argument goes, was an act of Christ willingly submitting to divine punishment (penalized) on the behalf of humanity (substitution) to satisfy the divine justice, which demands sin be punished.
This is well done. Jesus paid the price of
our sins upon Him:
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
The Son was made willing by the Father to be sin and
esteemed as a sinner to sinful man, but never was He judged as a sinner to the righteous God, that was always pleased by Him.
Jesus Christ submitted willingly without sin, to suffer as a transgressor and blasphemer in the hands of sinful men and false accuser.
Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree,
He was not stricken by God, but by the rod of unjust men, and so
in His own body He bore our unjust marks and cruses and nails. Not just of that of Jews and Romans, but of all men that sinned against God.
He bore the griefs of sinners by suffering our unjust grievances upon Him. And He bore the sorrow of sinners when the Spirit forsook Him for season on the cross.
God did not reckon His Son a sinner and worthy of death on the cross, but only man did. God did not kill His Son on a cross, but only man did.
Jesus never became sin nor a sinner to God, because Jesus never sinned unto death, even with strong temptations of the devil to come down from the cross and revile them that were reviling Him.
The Flaws:
If this were the case, it would nullify divine forgiveness and grace. There is no possibility for forgiveness when justice has been exacted.
True, which is a pardon and stay of execution. If the death price is already paid, then there is no free pardon.
Is the prisoner who is put to death forgiven by the system that puts him to death? No, there is no forgiveness or pardon in that case. And, neither is there forgiveness nor pardon if justice has been satisfied by Christ's death.
Excellent. If the man Christ Jesus paid the price
for man sinning, then the price of man sinning
has been paid.
Some Christians sinners do teach all men past, present, and future have been forgiven, because they believe the price of
their own death for sinning, is already paid.
Until now, I never could understand that. They preach that their own sinning is no more condemned by God, and so their souls do not pay the wage of sinning. But now I see they are mistakenly teaching from a well-known and erroneous Christian tradition of Jesus paying the death wage of sinning on our behalf.
If that were true, then no sinner on earth would have ever been separated from God anymore by their sinning. Which indeed is what some Christians at least preach for themselves by faith alone.
They really believe they no longer pay the death penalty of separation from the Spirit of life. That's why they say Jesus 'did it all' on the cross.
Is grace being extended to humanity because of Christ's sacrifice? No, there is no grace given when justice has been exacted.
True again, else work is no more work.
Furthermore, there is no substitution if the sinners for whom Christ died are simply considered righteous (imputed righteousness).
Halleluiah. This is the basis for all teaching of dead faith alone. Imputed righteousness makes no man righteous
without do it. Imputed righteousness is God putting His
righteous will into the heart. But, if we do not His will, then we are not justified with God.
What was imputed is unimputed by disobeying God, even as the circumcision of Christ is made uncircumcision by transgression. (Romans 2:25)
In that case, the righteous is punished and the guilty go free without being made actually righteous.
Amen again and again. Only them doing righteousness are made righteous by God.
Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
So, despite the assumption, divine justice is not satisfied but perverted.
Divine justice is only satisfied by the death of the sinner, which is the death of the soul apart God.
It would be unjust for God to make the righteous to pay the price of
doing unrighteousness. God does not save sinners from their unrighteousness,
by condemning the righteous in their righteousness.
God's ends never justify His means. God never does unrighteously in order to produce righteousness. To have put His own righteous Son to death for our sinning, would have been most unrighteous.
God can however pardon execution of the unrighteous,
if they repent of their unrighteousness. God can have mercy upon our past unrighteousness. However, no man can do His righteousness, without the Son's faith and walk in the light.
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
That we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
God does not remember the iniquities of them
that repent and do righteousness, even as He does not remember the righteousness of them
that turn to do iniquity. God judges every man's work for what he is doing.
If the penal substitution theory of atonement were true, there would be no divine forgiveness, no grace, and no justice. Thankfully, such a theory cannot possibly be true.
I totally agree. It only leads to being justified by faith alone unto more ungodliness.
The price that Jesus paid in His own body, was the sins of unjust scourging and crucifixion by men. It was not the just punishment of God upon sinners.
Jesus Christ is not the payment for our sinning. The payment for sinning against God is still death from God.
His death was not a 'substitute' for ours. The only substitute for sinning, is doing good and not doing evil. Jesus is the 2nd Adam, who is the perfect substitute for Adam's bad example of transgression. In Christ Jesus, we substitute His holy living for our own sinful life.
For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God,
The one thing that makes Jesus life and death without sinning
a benefit to man, is the main thing faith alone Christians reject: Being now able to repent of all sinning, and like Jesus go and sin no more unto death.
Thanks very much for you exposure of the doctrine that "Jesus died for my sinning". Jesus only died on the cross,
because of man sinning, and God imputes it to all men that have sinned against Him. So that now all men everywhere are commanded to repent and believe from the heart to do the righteousness of His dear Son.