Dan Chapa

The topic of Justice is central to Owen’s view of the atonement. Book 3, chapters seven , eight and nine primarily deal with justice. The general idea with justice and the atonement is that we broke God’s law and therefore are due punishment. Justice gives one what is due him, so our punishment for sin is just. Punishing sinners simultaneously upholds God’s law and gives the sinner what is due him. ( Revelation 16:5 , Romans 6:23 ) The controversy is 1) how Christ’s death satisfies God’s justice and 2) how the atonement relates to justification and imputation. Owen built his model off his idea of the sin-bearer . His view was: 1) God shows mercy to the elect by transferring their sins to Christ 2) God punished Christ for our sins on the cross, which satisfies justice 3) When an individual believes, he realizes what Christ has already done In contrast, my view is: 1) Christ died on the cross desiring everyone’s salvation 2) An individual believes 3) Christ intercedes for the...

Without question, one of Owen’s favorite themes in the atonement is that of Christ as the Sin-Bearer. Owen quotes 1 Peter 2:24 and Isaiah 53 throughout much of his book. This concept undergirds his whole concept of the atonement, but I think Owen’s understanding of Christ’s bearing sins is mistaken. Owen organizes his thoughts on Christ’s bearing sins as follows: 1. The elect’s sins transfer to Christ, making Him the Sin-Bearer 2. Christ carries the elect’s sins on the cross 3. God justly punishes the Sin-Bearer in our place Owen mistakenly conflates the sacrificial aspect of the atonement with the sin-bearer. Thus Owen relates the sin-bearer with punishment, even going so far as even going as far as equating “sin-bearing” with undergoing punishment. But scripture teaches a different concept for sin-bearer: taking away sin. In opposition to Owen’s concept of sin-bearer, I will offer my own. 1. Christ offers Himself as Sin-bearer 2. Christ intercedes for the believer 3. Th...

Systematic Theology is like connect-the-dots. One takes biblical data points and draws relationships between them to form a complete picture. This process helps people understand scripture, because they see the big picture. The more biblical data points one has, the higher degree of certainty they can have regarding the accuracy of their picture. Conversely, the less biblical data points, the less certain they can be regarding their picture. The challenge for systematic theology is that at times the data points are less than clear and could be seen many different ways. This can lead to drastically different pictures. It’s the role of the exegete (not the systematic theologian) to clarify the data points, and the role of the systematic theologian to draw the lines and clarify the big picture. But exegesis is hard and people make mistakes. The processes of 1) determining which aspects of a context are most relevant and also 2) how to apply an author’s theme to understanding a ...

As some may know, I have been on break from blogging while I re-write my analysis on Romans 9-11. I am doing so in preparation for my debate with Turretinfan. I look forward to getting back and finishing up the Owen/Atonement topic, but I realized I couldn't effectively blog and prepare for the debate simultaneously. But I thought I would pop in and mention why I debate Calvinists. I have debated Calvinists either in person or over the web for many years. It's not to convince Calvinists to switch to Arminianism. If that happens, God be praised, but that's not my goal. I don't debate them to clear up misconceptions about Arminianism. Many hold mistaken notions of Arminianism, which I am happy to correct, but that's not why I debate. It's not because I think Calvinism is dangerous, walking a tight rope over hell with banana peels for shoes. While I would like the reformed to reform a tad bit more, I am happy to say they are dead center in the middle of o...

Mercy Me’s wonderful song, I Can Only Imagine, invites us to imagine what it might be like when we meet Christ Jesus our Lord. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3LUc78vbDk Here goes… One day, after living a long and peaceful life, I find myself laying in my bed. My two sons are looking at me and I look back at them with joy of what they have become. This is my last memory of this world before I died. Immediately, I was rushed away into a great hall. There are people everywhere, waiting in line. I am given a number and am told by an angel to wait in line. The line is organized alphabetically by first name, so amazingly I am standing right next to Daniel the Prophet. “What was it like in the Lions den? Did you get to pet a lion’s tummy? I always wanted to do that.” Daniel chuckled and we chatted for a while. At length I came to ask a question that I have mulled over often. “Does my name mean God is my Judge in the sense of telling other people off in that they have no right to judge me or ...