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Language couldn’t be plainer!However, that "free grace" of "acquittal" raises a problem—the logical charge of injustice on the part of God "because in His forbearance He had overlooked the sins of the past." He must "demonstrate His justice now in the present," (vss. 25, 26, NEB; "declare" it, KJV). That demonstration must show that the legal justification of the whole world is not in vain, but is made "effective through faith." In other words, if Christ’s objective, legal justification of "all men" is not validated by a subjective experience of justification by faith in a remnant who believe, God cannot be demonstrated to be "just," nor can the plan of salvation be proven a success. Christ must not die in vain. Therefore the justice which the universe demands requires this demonstration. Our experiential justification by faith must display that God can be both "just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus" (Rom. 3:26, KJV). Thus experiential justification by faith rests upon the foundation of a legal justification. The subjective cannot exist without the "once for all" universal objective which precedes it. There are not two justifications; there is one—effected at the cross. And what happened at the cross must apply equally unto "all men," otherwise God is a respecter of persons. Justification by faith is its effective demonstration. Incidentally, herein comes of age the unique Adventist concept of "the final atonement." Christ will be honored and vindicated at last by a people who evidence in full that "effective" atonement, through a deeper appreciation of "Christ and Him crucified." Thus they will witness that God can "be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus" (Rom. 3:26). Dr. Kane invokes what he sees as "the context" of Romans 5 to deny that the "justification" in verse 18 can apply to "all men," because verse 1 speaks of our "being justified by faith." However, there is a closer context. In verses 6-8 Paul reverts to the aorist (past) tense in speaking of the objective sacrifice of Christ. Thus the immediate context of verses 12-18 is in the aorist tense (with the exception of verse 17 which speaks in the future tense of reigning with Christ). The aorist, speaking of a punctiliar event in the past with present consequences, directs our minds to the cross. There a universal sacrifice was offered as the basis for present justification by faith. Is this "wholly at odds with the rest of scripture," as Dr. Kane says? We need to allow some other Bible texts to speak, with Ellen White illumination: Isaiah 53:6: "The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Some questions must be settled: is this only provisional, or is it actual? Does the "us all" mean only those who believe? Did the Lord also not lay the iniquity of unbelievers on Christ? Were there any believers even in existence before He "so loved the world that He gave …"? On the answer to those simple questions this issue rests. If what Isaiah says is only provisional (Arminianism), the text is forced to contradict itself and to say that Christ did not bear the iniquity of those who do not believe in Him. There the circle comes full, bringing us back into Calvinism again. But if it is true that Christ actually bore the iniquity of us all, believers and unbelievers alike, then we are forced to recognize a legal justification for "all men." There can be no double jeopardy. If "the Lord hath laid on" us the iniquity of us all (as Dr. Kane’s position implies), then it cannot be true that He "hath laid" that same iniquity upon Christ. When Ellen White notes that the Lord has laid on Christ the iniquity of the repentant believer, she is in no way denying the larger application. In her full context, she does not teach a limited atonement, which is logically Dr. Kane’s position. 2 Corinthians 5:14, 15: "If one died for all, then were all dead; and … he died for all." Is the "all" only those who "accept" or "believe"? Calvinism says yes—only the elect. But if He died "for all" by "one just act" on Calvary, it had to be the world for which He died. Paul makes this clear a few sentences later in verse 19: "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." Unto whom did He impute their trespasses? Unto Christ. Otherwise, no human being could live for even a moment. This is the "temporary universal justification" that Dr. Wallenkampf recognizes. Someone must bear the guilt of those "trespasses." If the sinner bears it, he must perish in a moment. Therefore it follows that every human being who lives owes even his physical life to that sacrifice of Christ, because of that legal imputation, whether or not he believes. He is already infinitely, eternally, in debt to Christ. The honest heart cannot resist the resultant motivation—to live "henceforth unto Him which died for us and rose again" (verse 15). Here is the truth that annihilates Laodicean lukewarmness. This is why it is so important to understand what Christ accomplished on His cross. If one denies the obvious import of these texts, his position must logically eventuate in that of Romanism—Christ has to die afresh every time a sinner takes the initiative to "accept." But in truth, He died "once for all," a mighty event that precedes our response to it. 1 John 2:2: "He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." Only thus can the "judicial verdict of … acquittal" of Romans 5 become real. Is He never such a "propitiation" for any sinner until he "accepts"? To take that position would deny what John says, and turn the plan of salvation on its head. 1 Timothy 2:6: He "gave himself a ransom for all" (a related word to "redemption" in Romans 3:24). What was ransomed was the world itself. The 1888 message recognizes that all physical life is the purchase of Christ’s sacrifice, as well as eternal life. Yes, by all means, we gladly insist that this realization is a powerful motive toward heart-devotion to the Lord who bought us with His blood. To appreciate what happened on the cross produces practical godliness! Thousands testify to the power of this gospel truth, especially youth privileged to hear it. 1 Timothy 4:10: Christ "is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe." In what sense can He be the Saviour of those who do not believe? The text does not say that He would like to be, or perhaps may be, or possibly could be, if the sinner does something first; He is already "the Saviour of all men." We must never tell the sinner that Christ is not his Saviour until he first elects Him to be such. (But we as a church have long given that impression). Christ is not like a political candidate who does not become president or governor until he is elected. He became our Saviour at the cross. When we "elect" Him so by faith, then He becomes "specially" so, unto eternal life. He is already "the Saviour of all men" in that He has already died their second death, paid the penalty for their sins, and thus legally justified them, even though the vast majority may spurn Him. 2 Timothy 1:10: Christ "hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." The reason is given in Hebrews 2:9: "that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." What "death" did He "taste," and then "abolish"? The second. If the reality of this stupendous truth sinks into our consciousness, we begin to see that He accomplished a gigantic feat on His cross. Jones’s and Waggoner’s conclusion becomes inevitable: "There is not the slightest reason why every man that has ever lived should not be saved unto eternal life, except that they would not have it." No human being should have to die the second death unless through unbelief he rejects the grace of Christ who is already his Saviour (Waggoner on Romans, p. 101). The Lord is just; He will never put any human soul in double jeopardy. His punishment was inflicted on Christ; therefore the legal debt has already been paid. The resultant motivation to the honest person who understands and believes this truth becomes phenomenal. Ellen White agrees fully. Her illustration of President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation is beautifully precise. The moment the president signed the document, every slave in the Confederate territories was legally free; but none knew experiential freedom until he heard the good news and believed it. Christ "has signed the emancipation papers of the race" (MH 90). "He restored the whole race of men to favor with God," and "made satisfaction for the guilt of the whole world" (1 SM 343, 392). |
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