Atonement

Atonement is the act through which God and humans (who are alienated or separated from God because of our sin) are brought together in a personal relationship through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. According to Baker’s Encyclopedia of the Bible, the theological term atonement comes from Anglo-Saxon words that mean “making as one.” In the Old Testament, animals “without defect” (Leviticus 14:10) were sacrificed annually to make atonement for sin (16:34). When Christ came, the sacrificial system became obsolete through the “precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect,” who “was led like a lamb to the slaughter” (1 Peter 1:19; Isaiah 53:7). Jesus, “the Lamb of God, . . . takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). All who believe in Him receive forgiveness and new life (Ephesians 1:7). One day, His followers will celebrate with Him in the New Jerusalem at “the wedding supper of the Lamb!” (Revelation 19:9).

Alyson Kieda