The Atonement

by Loraine Boettner

The two great objectives to be accomplished by Jesus Christ in His mission to this world were, first, the removal of the curse under which mankind labored as a result of the disobedience and fall, and second, the restoration of men to the image and fellowship of God. Both of these were essential to salvation. The work of Christ in reconciling God and men we call the Atonement; and this doctrine, we believe, lies at the very heart of the Christian system.

In the nature of the case we are altogether dependent on Scripture for our knowledge concerning this doctrine and can know only what God has seen fit to reveal concerning it. Human philosophy and speculation can contribute practically nothing toward its solution, and should be held in abeyance. Our present purpose is to give a systematized account of what the Scriptures teach concerning it, and to show that this fits in perfectly with the longings and aspirations of an enlightened spiritual nature.

Genres: Theology

Nook

First published December 8, 2010

About the author

Loraine Boettner (1901-1990) was a Reformed Theologian, born on a farm in Linden, Missouri. After obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree from Tarkio College in 1925, he attended Princeton Theological Seminary where he studied Systematic Theology under Dr. Casper W. Hodge and received his Th.B. (1928) and Th.M. (1929). He taught Bible for eight years in Pikeville College, Kentucky. In 1933 he received the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity from Tarkio College, and in 1957 the degree of Doctor of Literature. He was a member of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.
From 1958 until his death in 1990, Dr. Boettner lived a quite life in Rock Port, Missouri. For the remaining 32 years of his life, he generously sold his books at cost to any who wrote to ask for them. In doing so, Boettner made good conservative theology readily available at a time when such material was often difficult to come by. Through his writings, he served to popularize the Reformed faith and influenced literally tens of thousands of men and women around the world.

Reviews

[Craig Turnbull · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent and succinct treatment of the Reformed position of the atonement of Christ.

Loraine Boettner (1901-1990), although having a woman's first name can be forgiven in that he offers up these gems of thought:

Nowhere outside the Trinity was there a person either capable or willing to take the place of another, no one capable of suffering and dying, the one for the many. Nor had man the slightest grounds on which to base a request that he be excused from the penalty of the law. Hence his condition was truly desperate.

In financial matters we readily see that there is no injustice when a creditor remits a debt, provided that he assumes the loss himself. Now what God has done in the sphere of redemption is strictly parallel to this. He has assumed the loss Himself and has set us free. In this case God, who is the offended party, took the initiative and (1) permitted a substitution, (2) provided a substitute, and (3) substituted Himself.

While the work of creation was accomplished through a mere exercise of power and wisdom, the work of redemption was accomplished only at an infinite cost of suffering on the part of God Himself. As man's soul is of incomparably greater value than his body, so the redemption of the souls of men was an incomparably greater work than the original creation of the universe.

It must be perfectly evident to every one that if God allowed sin to go unpunished, or if He dealt with it in a free and loose manner, it would mean that justice had been cast to the winds and that He was governed by weak sentimentality.

In the final analysis there are just two moral principles which may govern one's action: the first is that which has one's own interests as its final motive or supreme object, and is therefore the selfish principle; the second is that which has the interests of others as its final motive and is therefore the self-giving, sacrificial principle. This second is the principle which God manifests in His relations with His people. Consequently the greatest message that any one can hear is that "God is love," (I John 4:16) ; for that means that God's holy nature seeks to express itself actively toward him, and that he will therefore be fitted for the divine presence.

[Jacob London · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is pretty good, not great. What Boettner does well is describe the importance of the "passive" and "active" obedience of Christ and its implications in the atonement and Christian life. Essentially, this book is a short treatise on the Reformed understanding of the atonement with many quotations from men like Warfield, Hodge, etc,. Boettner pretty much regurgitates what those men already have said.

[Timothy Coplin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear and concise treatise on the doctrine of the atonement. Chapter headings:
1. The Atonement
2. The Significance of Christ's Death
3. The Satisfaction view of the Atonement
4. The Active and Passive Obedience of Christ
5. Christ As Our Ransomer
6. The Representative Principle

Easy to read. Easy to understand. Maybe a little more difficult to comprehend - due entirely to the subject matter. Boettner has communicated his heavy reliance upon Biblical Scripture, citing references throughout, and had has quoted and referenced several other solid sources of commentary and authority on the topic.

The electronic version which I read had several typos due, I would assume, to conversion from the original textual document. When encountered, reading with context in mind, these errors failed to be a distraction and in no way detracted for the books conveyance of solid doctrine.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boettner is not a name that is heard much today, but his works are some of the best books on Reformed doctrine available. "The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination" is a great work, and this shorter work on "The Atonement" is just as solid.

Boettner is a gifted exegete--sticking to the text and standing under its authority. Some of the best stuff in the book is toward the end as he shows the significance of federal headship--specifically the importance of the historical Adam, before the question even arose in theological debate. He settles it definitively here, though of course, the modern critics today would scoff at his "simplicity."

This is a very readable, insightful, and helpful examination of Christ's atoning work on the cross.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good--worth reading but only, I think, after first reading Boettner’s somewhat better-focused The Reformed Faith.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a Calvinist, but despite Boettners references to Reformed Theology, this is by far the best book I've ever read on the nature of the Atonement & exactly what Christ accomplished on the Cross.