For it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God’s gift, so that no one can boast about it.
(Ephesians 2:8-9) Good News Translation
- As we still have to ask God/Jesus for forgiveness, as we always did, why was a crucifixion necessary?
Under normal circumstances you’d think that answering this question would be simple. Here’s one way to answer it.
The crucifixion was necessary to provide the propitiation needed for our redemption and justification.
If we owe a bank money and we don’t have it, the only way for us to pay the debt is if someone else has some money that they’re willing to let us use.
This money (propitiation) is available to anyone if we ask Jesus for it, because he has made it available to all who ask.
– Answer to Question 1
The problem is that the way in which the question was phrased tells us that the confused seeker is deeply entangled in theological spaghetti. The beauty of scripture is that it has everything in the correct relationship of cause and effect. The question demonstrates no comprehension of cause and effect.
He’s regarding the fact that people in the Old Testament only had to ask for forgiveness as superseding the entire narrative about Jesus Christ. The problem with this is that the OT saints may have been given grace, but they had to wait in sheol, the underworld realm of the dead, until the messiah came and was crucified to pay the propitiation for their sin.
The other problem is that he’s regarding the laws of the OT dispensation as still being valid. They aren’t. If he wants to live according to the laws of the OT good luck.
In an exchange like this it’s worthwhile to be mindful that a failure to acknowledge the correct relationship of cause and effect is a symptom of a reprobate mind. If this is the case no answer will be satisfactory and the confused seeker is simply wasting our time.
Regardless we’ve an obligation to give an answer. Go with the one above and when they complain that it’s not good enough politely decline to straighten out their theological spaghetti. Your job is done.
Do I Still Have to Ask? – Navigation
| Section | Title | Scripture |
| 1 | Introduction | Psalms 86:5 |
| 2 | A Simple Answer | 1 Peter 3:15 |
| 3 | Straightening out the Spaghetti | 2 Timothy 2:15 |
| 4 | Original Sin | Romans 5:12 |
| 5 | The Cursed Earth | Genesis 3:17-19 |
| 6 | My Sin | Romans 3:21-23 |
| 7 | Justification | Romans 3:24-26 |
| 8 | Redemption | Isaiah 44:6 |
| 9 | Propitiation | 1 John 4:10 |
| 10 | Answer 1 | Ephesians 2:8-9 |
| 11 | Answer 2 | 1 John 2:2 |
| 12 | Answer 3 | Genesis 8:1 |
| 13 | Salvation | Romans 10:9-10 |
Matty Lawrence 