THE TWO PARTS OF THE ATONEMENT OF CHRIST

His Death and Resurrection relate to the Two Parts of the Gospel. These two parts of the Gospel being: The Gospel of Grace/Redemption and The Gospel of Glory.

(Refer to the outline of drawing without much further detail until each subject is addressed.)

The Gospel of the “Grace” of God, that of the receiving of the gift of eternal life, is but one part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel of glory in His Kingdom is another, which unlike the gift, is the prize earned or won.

These then are two objects set forth in Scripture on which we set faith. 1.Initially, it is justification and eternal life as presented in, “the Gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:24) Also in…. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

2. The 2nd part of the Gospel is The Gospel of Glory as it is written in…. “Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. [2 Thessalonians 2:14; 2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 Timothy 1:11] Which has in view the “the Gospel of the kingdom.” [Matthew 4:23; 9:35; 24:14; Luke 4:18, 43; 8:1; 9:1-6; 16:16; Acts 8:12] The Kingdom is the Millennial kingdom of Christ (Revelation 20:1-6); and the entrance into it being degrees of worthiness (Luke 19:15-27) which is determined at the Judgment Seat of Christ. “ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” [2nd Corinthians 5:10]

“….it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heavens…” See Matthew 13:11 along with the declaration of Jesus recorded to the religious Jews in Matthew 21:43. “Wherefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.”

This mysterious kingdom of heavens is that which Christ has given to the Nation of the new man (Ephesians 2), that which we will have much more to say about in due time.

These two parts of the Gospel are independent one from the other; this point being wonderfully exampled and described in 1 Corinthians 3:15. “If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” Here the believer received the foundation of Christ’s Atonement, but afterwards built on it wood, hay, and stubble. And having stood before the Judgment Seat of Christ, he suffered great loss, and promised inheritance for faithful work, in that his works were found wanting; he was found unworthy of the kingdom. So this is seen again in…. “But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” [Read Matthew 24:46-51] So how will he be appointed with the hypocrites? In that his experience will not be to rule in Christ’s millennial kingdom, but to be with “… the rest of the dead (who) lived not again until the thousand years were finished…”[Revelation 20:5] But he himself is to be saved “…yet so by fire.” How so? “And when the thousand years are expired….I saw a great white throne…and I saw the dead small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged out of these things…” [Revelation 20:7a,11,12a] And so then, having been raised from the dead after 1000 years and making his appearance before that Great White Throne, where after examination, he is found with his name written in the Lambs book of eternal life, but having had lost the glory and the prize, and being relegated to the status of a merely eternally saved subject. So when Scripture speaks, one must determine to which of the two parts of the Atonement the Gospel speaks, in order to be correctly instructed.

The Gospel of Glory in the kingdom of Christ is set before us as the “rest” of Hebrews 4:1-2. “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.” The Gospel of Glory in the kingdom of heavens is dynamic. Although we have been redeemed out of the kingdom of satan, Scripture proclaims that attainment into the future kingdom of Christ is a battle that is now being fought for. “Put on the whole armor of God,

that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” [Ephesians 6 and 1 Timothy 6:12] ”Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life.…”

The Gospel of Glory is described as a reward for the race run well. See Hebrews 12:1-4, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author (Gospel of Redemption) and finisher (Gospel of Glory) of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

Se also 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

Scriptures are filled with the two sides or two-foldness on many subjects: Justification, Righteousness, Rest, Cleansing, Life, Grace, Forgiveness, Sanctification, Spirit Anointing, etc. ALL of them stem from the two distinct Parts of the Atonement of Christ. Both must be received as Scripture in order to find the Truth. As to what we have been speaking, we have for example the two sides of Justification. The Written Word declares in Romans 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.…” But it is also written in James, “Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.”

And in the two Forgivenesses…

It is written: “Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” [Hebrews 8:12; 10: 17] But is is also written, “For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. [Hebrews 10:26,27]

Also, it is written, “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin because he is born of God.” [1 John 3:9]

But that same epistle says: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” [1 John 1:8-10]

The Scriptural truth is, that the Christian’s standing in Jesus Christ is two- fold. And in this, as in most other cases, the two portions of the truth are

seemingly opposed without the revelation of the knowledge of the Gospel of Glory and “…the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 13:11) discovered in the understanding of The Gospel of Glory.

If we cannot reconcile the seemingly contradictory, two sides or parts of a Gospel subject, it is not our privilege to accept one side and reject the other. If we side up on one side and ignore or try to explain away the other, this is blinding unbelief.

If it is Written, then we must believe them both to be true although we don’t see how, until we get the light of understanding in the matter, as there is no contradiction in Scripture.

Much confusion centers around this ignorance; that the Atonement of Christ, being a far superior offering than an animal, as was necessary, * in that “man”, being a much higher level of creation, having fallen, to be restored, a “man” must be offered. But not just any man, only a sinless man, thus the incarnation and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This then provides two opportunities. The first has to do with being redeemed/saved/regenerated or born-again through Christ’s Blood Offering, which is the Gift of eternal life. This being through the “minor” grace or influence of the Holy Spirit. (Typed in Noah’s Ark and Israel’s redemption out of Egypt.)

And the 2nd opportunity is based upon a further work unto worthiness to rule with Christ in His coming Kingdom, the Great Prize by that “major” grace or influence of the Holy Spirit. In that future fullness in the Salvation Plan of God that is represented in the Scripture that says, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” What should be in view here for the Christian is the two thrones. The present accessible throne of mercy and grace (Hebrews), and the future throne and Judgment Seat of Christ. [Revelation 4:2] And as surely as the Scriptures above declare our past sins, before regeneration in the New Covenant, being forgiven as far as the East is from the West, the further work is surely equally declared in other Scriptures.

“Blessed are they that washed (being in the past tense as these are those worthies who have ascended into heavens above the earth) their robes (this cleansing in the Blood was habitual; as often as the defilement took place). [Revelation 7:14] “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb….” [Revelation 12:11]

“For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctify to the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of the Christ, who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to

God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living

God?” [Hebrews 9:13-14] In the greater Grace, the defiled conscience, now is to be cleansed, as often as the case occurs, by the blood of the Christ and the Washing of the Word in the power of the Spirit. Though the apostle was writing to believers, he puts their cleansing in this view as yet future. ‘The blood of the Christ shall purge your conscience.’ These are sure evidences of a further work of the Blood and Spirit after the initial work of the Blood.

This is the meaning and purpose of those two emblematic Rites; Communion and Baptism. In Communion, there is the examining of oneself (1 Corinthians 11) in the light of the habitual Blood application at the throne of Mercy and Grace. Now, not being under the Curse of Adam or the Law of Moses, (Romans 6-8) being free from their condemning, and being redeemed/justified solely by His Righteousness in the first part application of Christ’s Blood, we are free to exercise that Blood in the second opportunity. This is our own washing for our own righteousness, to stay in the race for the prize.

This is the meaning of the Baptism rite as well, in that we consider ourselves dead to the condemning law of Moses, which the righteousness of Christ answers to. [Philippians 3:9] As we are now under the Law of the spirit, Spirit of life in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:2), walking in provision of His Resurrection, the newness of life (Romans 6:4) in that new law which allows me to pursue my own righteousness through the forgiveness afforded in the ongoing cleansing provision outside the Law of Moses within the dynamic kingdom of heavens, that is to say in the Body of Christ. In that, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” [1st John

1:9-10] This is the same thing expressed in John 13 by Jesus, where He said, “If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.” This washing was in addition to that washing which He implied that they had already had, that of the minor grace of the Spirit in regeneration.

Types in Scripture that reveal the two parts of the Atonement of Jesus Christ: Abraham: In that first he was persuaded to come out of that wicked kingdom and was justified before God before circumcision, but then afterwards he was called into Circumcision where he was tempted and tried, and became fully persuaded, even unto the giving up of his only son. “Was not Abraham our father justfied by works when he had offered Isaac, his son, upon the altar? Seest thou that faith used to co-operate with his works, and by the works the faith was made

perfect?” [James 2:21-22] (Greek) So we see (in type) justifying faith leading to sanctifying faith. See Hebrews 11:8; Romans 4:3; Genesis 15:6, and all of James. So it is these works can only be the works of one who has first experienced the first part of the Atonement; being “justified” by faith. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can — do nothing.”

The further example is Abraham’s seed. In that they were also then Hebrews, they were brought out of Egypt, had faith in that Passover blood, and yet, using the Anti-Type, they did not remain in the vine after the first Grace of Redemption and lost the opportunity for Inheritance set before them. For God, by an oath, declared that none of those redeemed but full of unbelief should enter the Promised Land / the Kingdom of Christ. [Hebrews 3]

Another clear type for the Two Parts of the Atonement of Jesus Christ is Israel coming out of Egypt with its two parts. The justifying blood of the lamb being put upon and over the doorpost, protecting those inside from death. But note now the 2nd command, which was the elimination of leaven. “Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off form the congregation of Israel…” The penalty for not obeying the command of unleavened bread is not death. Again, it is to be cut off from their inheritance, this being that which Paul gives us the spiritual anti-type of in the Passover offering. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit

the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor reviles, nor extortioners, shall

inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye were washed,

but ye were sanctified, but ye were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” [1 Corinthians 6: 9-11] (Greek)

Another type is how Aaron and his seed were consecrated to God at first by the immersion of the entire body in water. (Exodus 29:4) That immersion was never repeated. But their hands and feet were constantly becoming soiled while in service. They were required therefore to wash their hands and feet when they go into the tabernacle of the congregation or drew near to the altar to minister. (Exodus 30: 17-2)

Now these things are “types of us”: 1 Corinthians 10:6a says, “Now these things were our examples…”

In summary, what is to be being conveyed in this lesson/chapter are these Scriptural points:

1. That Christ’s death was unnecessary for man to be born again, to have his name written in the Book, and to be anointed by the Holy Spirit and do mighty works. Read Luke 10:1-24. Especially verses 17-20 which was before Jesus went to the cross, “And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.”

* 2. That the Redemption of man by the Blood was not the full intent of the Salvation plan of God, but having new creation“sons” in mind (Hebrews 1-3), which meant a greater work upon the soul of man than mere regeneration.

Hebrews 9:14 calls it the Blood which is able to purge our consciences. A work that could not be accomplished with that Old Covenant propitiation blood; but a greater Blood offering then was necessary in meeting God’s Justice in Holiness, that being Christ’s Blood, thus the necessity of His death. A man must die in the place of men. To do this, he must be free from the law of sin and death. To be sinless and thus free from death, he must have a humanity distinct from that of fallen Adam, that is to say a sinful man cannot beget a sinless human nature, such a nature must be begotten of God. Thus the incarnation of the only Begotten Son of God, and the two-foldness of the Salvation plan being through the Resurrection, He became the First Begotten from the dead.

3.Comprehending the Two Parts of the Atonement from the two Comings: The first being as the Suffering Servant and secondly as the Victorious King. With the great “ruse” that then both sealed the fate of satan as well as met the Justice and Holiness of God for the New Creature/ spiritual sons inChrist.

4. That the other greater provision, besides eternal life, which was wrought in the Atonement was/is the Power to walk in the “newness” of life, by the enabling Power of the Holy Spirit from within. [John 7:37-39]

5. That those who are born-again/redeemed of the Holy Spirit possess the Holy Spirit as the seal of God marking them off as His children or property (Ephesians 4:30), but it is not every believer who is possessed by the Spirit, hence the exhortation is to “be filled in the Spirit.” [Ephesians 5:18, R.V.]
6. That a clear understanding that there are Two Parts of the Atonement answers to the confusion of those two polarizing doctrines of Arminianism and Calvinism.