Basics Series. Soteriology, part 13.

The Doctrine of Soteriology
(Salvation)

Salvation is
God’s complete work by which He
rescues man
from eternal ruin,
and bestows on him
the riches of His grace.

pay the penalty for sin.

remove the guilt of sin.

satisfy the justice of God.

end the enmity and restore peace.

The blood of Christ – His substitutionary spiritual death on the cross – provided redemption, expiation, propitiation, and reconciliation for every man.

REDEMPTION = the ransom or PRICE paid by our Lord Jesus Christ for our sins. It is the BONDAGE OF SIN side of the cross.

EXPIATION = CANCELLING the DEBT. To put an end to the guilt and penalty of sin. It is the GUILT OF SIN side of the cross.

PROPITIATION = SATISFACTION. The justice of God is completely satisfied with the Person and Work of Christ. It is the GODWARD side of the cross.

RECONCILIATION = the removal of the barrier between God and man. Man is restored to PEACE with God. It is the MAN AS ENEMY side of the cross.

JUSTIFICATION = It is the legal act of God whereby He declares the ungodly believer RIGHTEOUS because He has imputed to the believer His perfect righteousness.
It means VINDICATION.

Reconciliation is God’s peace treaty with the entire human race.

Reconciliation is the removal of the barrier that separated God from man and prevented man from approaching God.

The doctrine of reconciliation explains the removal of the barrier between God and mankind through the salvation work of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross.

Man is reconciled to God, not vice versa.
God is NEVER said to be reconciled to mankind.

2Co 5:18
Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,

Reconciliation flows directly out of propitiation.

In propitiation, God is satisfied with the work of Christ on the Cross.

In reconciliation, man is reconciled to God by the work of Christ.

Propitiation does not so much indicate that God is offended, but rather that God is holy and cannot be approached by sinful creatures without a remedy.

The blood of Christ witnesses at once the infinite holiness and righteousness of God, and also His fathomless love and grace.

In fact, the blood of Christ reconciled the love of God and the holiness of God when it came to the problem of sinful man.

Now the justice of God can provide blessing without compromising any attribute of
divine essence.

Propitiation is the
God-ward side of salvation. Reconciliation is the
man-ward side, and Redemption and Expiation are the sin-ward side.

The Greek word refers to a divinely provided place of meeting, a place of propitiation.

Rom 3:25-26 says that Jesus Christ was
publicly displayed as the mercy seat, the place of the propitiation (or satisfaction) of
God’s justice.

The Greek word for “propitiation” here in verse 25 is hilasterion.
Hilasterion means the place of propitiation, the mercy seat.

Here in Heb 9:5, hilasterion clearly refers to the mercy seat, the golden cover for the Ark of the Covenant.