Propitiation

INTRODUCTION:

1. Illustration
Prince Paris had carried off Princess Helen to Troy. The greek expeditionary force had taken ship to recover her, but was held up halfway by persistent contrary winds. Agamemnon, the Greek general, sent home for his daughter and ceremonially slaughtered her as a sacrifice to mollify the evidently hostile gods. The move paid off; west winds blew again, and the fleet reached Troy without further difficulty.
2. The nature of pagan 'gods' -
often angry and tempermental. Wrath at the 'slightest provacation' - over the most trivial matters.
3. Only way to 'appease' was to humor and mollify them by an offering.
a. The bigger the offering - the better they treated youl.
b. Appears as callous commercialism of religion - buy off the gods.
4. Bible -
shows us a different God - one that acts from holy principle, according to truth which he has revealed to mankind. He is good, holy, just, and he abhorrs ALL evil.
5. BUT - there is still 'propitation' -
the offering of sacrifices for sins committed to avert the wrath of God!

OLD TESTAMENT:

1. 'trespass-offering (KJV) or 'guilt offerings - when one had sinned, Lev. 4:1 - 6:7, 16:1-34.

2. The day of atonement -a clear example of such for the whole nation,

3. Num. 16:41-40,

when Korah, Dathan and Abiram had rebelled against Moses' leadership, God was ANGRY and in His wrath sent a plague upon Israel -
Numbers 16:46-48
46 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the LORD; the plague is begun. 47 And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people. 48 And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed. (KJV)

NEW TESTAMENT -

1. 4 times the word appears -

2. God's rational in justifying sinners -Rom. 3:21-26,

3. God's rationale of the Incarnation -Heb. 2:17;

4. The heavenly ministry of Jesus - 1 Jn. 2:1-2;

5. Definition of God's love - 1 Jn. 4:8-10

Propitiation vs. Expiation.

a. Expiation = the covering, putting away or rubbing out of sin so that it no longer constitutes a barrier to friendly fellowship between God and man.

b. Propition = all of the above PLUS the pacifying of the wrath of God! Does the gospel deal with the WRATH of God? It is core to this whole subject! It is the context from which the sacrifice of Christ is given meaning.

Rom. 1:18 - the WRATH of God against ALL ungodliness...

Rom. 1: the listing of the sins of mankind -

Rom. 2: the listing of the sins of Israel - which MUST bring the day of judgment and the WRATH of God, vs. 5-6, 8, 16

Rom. 3: = ALL HAVE SINNED = ALL UNDER THE WRATH OF GOD!

THEN - those who were SINNERS have found acceptance, pardon, and peace. those who were ENEMIES of God are now 'reconciled' - WHAT HAPPENED? PROPITIAION!

Rom. 3:21-26
a. all under sin -
b. some now 'justified' (declared just through forgiveness)
c. This is through the BLOOD of Christ (his sacrifice of himself)
d. He is set forth as a propitiation for sins -

1. Propitiation is the work of God

a. In paganism, man comes up with some sacrifice to appease the wrath of the offended gods..... b. In TRUTH - God propitiates his wrath by his own action -
1. God sent Jesus -
2. God set forth Jesus as the propition
3. God's good pleasure was to redeem us by the blood of his own son -
c. This is the 'grace of God' - that which has appeared unto all men bringing salvation (Tit. 2:11) - d. 1 John 4:10
10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (KJV)

2. This propitiaion was made by the blood of Jesus

a. In OT - Lev. 17:11 - the 'life was in the blood' - hence the giving of the life is the sacrifice that was offered -

b. So in the NT - the 'blood of Jesus' = the offering of his very LIFE.

1. It is NOT his teaching, his holy life, his moral perfection - but his LIFE (sacrifice through death)

c. Made by representative substitute -

1. OT = sin offering,
a. Lay hands on - then sacrifice, identify with the sacrifice, Lev. 4:4, 24, 29, 33
2. Day of Atonement - 2 goats,
a. one slain as a sin offering (above)
b. Scape-goat, 'sins' put on him and carried away, Lev. 16:21-22
3. Gal. 3:13 -
4. 2 cor. 5:14, 18-21,

3. Propitiation Manifests God's Righteousness -

a. Rom. 3:25-26, Just and the Justifier -

b. God NOT acquit the guilty - Exodus 34:5-7 (?)

c. But thru the offering of Christ, the law fulfilled, rom. 4:25

THOUGHTS:

1. This the driving force of jesus' life - he KNEW he would be OFFERED as sacrifice for SIN.

2. The destiny of those who reject this sacrifice - seen in Jesus and the cross - FORSAKEN of God.

3. This is the gift of God - for he did not HAVE to, but freely gave his son.

4. This is the dimension of God's love - that he gave his son as such a sacrifice

5. This the meaning of God's glory -