“I felt it necessary to write to you, to appeal to you to Contend Earnestly for The Faith, which was entrusted to God’s holy people, once for all time.”
(Jude 1:3)

The Old Ransom Atonement Theory

For the first 1,100 years of the Church, the Ransom Theory was the most widely held view on the Atonement, as Augustine of Hippo wrote in the 4^th Century, “The Redeemer came and the deceiver was overcome. What did our Redeemer do to our Captor? In payment for us He set the trap, His Cross, with His blood for bait. He [Satan] could indeed shed that blood; but he deserved not to drink it. By shedding the blood of One who was not his debtor, he was forced to release his debtors.” God GAVE the Ransom to the devil, because HE LOVES US. “For God loved the world so much, that He gave his only born Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in him wouldn’t perish, but have eternal life. “ (John 3:16) "God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) Love was the reason for the Atonement. But the New Testament doesn’t explain “Why Jesus had to die” nor does  it explain “How Jesus’ death freed us from captivity,” but I’ll try to answer these questions in a few moments.

The Penal Atonement Theory

In the 16^th Century a New Atonement Theory was proposed by Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Jacobus Arminius, it was called The Penal Atonement Theory,  it was the brain child of Martin Luther: but Luther admitted that it was only a Theory; but Calvin and others propagated it as The Undeniable Truth.

The Penal Atonement Theory teaches: God is always angry because of our sins. So God vicariously poured out his wrath on Jesus on the cross, by punishing Him for our sins. And Jesus by allowing the Father to punish Him instead of us, appeased the Father’s Wrath against us. And so Divine Justice was satisfied, because sin was punished. (This teaching is not only incorrect, it’s blasphemous!) Because the Parable of the Prodigal Son reveals that God feels no need for retribution, He just wants us to return to Him. (Luke 15:11-32) Plus, how could killing an innocent person ever satisfy Divine Justice? But even worse, it turns God the Father into a sadist who derived satisfaction from torturing His Son on the Cross.

Also this false gospel does not agree with how GOD describes Himself, “I AM! I AM! A COMPASSIONATE and GRACIOUS God, slow to anger, and ABUNDANT in LOVING KINDNESS and truth, watching over thousands with loving kindness. forgiving iniquity and disobedience and sin; but who will by no means cleanse [the unrepentant]." (Exodus 34:6-7) And it most certainly doesn’t agree with the Apostle John’s description of God in 1 John 4:8 & 4:16, “God is Love!”

Therefore, I feel it’s necessary to remind the Church of what the Apostle Paul said in Galatians 1:8-9, “If we, or a messenger from heaven, proclaims any other gospel to you; other than that which we have proclaimed to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone proclaims any other gospel to you; other than that which you have received, let him be accursed."

But today we have 2 different Gospels & 2 different Gods, instead of 1 God & 1 Gospel: The Gospel of God’s Love & The Angry God Gospel, and an Angry Father & a Compassionate Son. And because of that most Christians have a Schizophrenic View of God; because they have believed parts of both Gospels. But both of these Gospels cannot be True! (But The True Gospel will agree with everything that is written in The Book.) So please take a look at these 2 Gospels side by side: because this Angry God Gospel dishonors God: by making Him appear more vengeful and angry than He actually is, and less merciful and compassionate than He actually is, and thereby it diminishes His Love and Glory.

How Do You Picture God?

How do you see Father God? Do you see Him as a strict lawgiver or someone who is like Jesus? If you see Him as a strict lawgiver, you need to have a paradigm shift; because Jesus said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14:6) The devil doesn't want the world to know that Father God is just like Jesus, and Jesus is just like Father God. Therefore, for Centuries "the god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." (2 Corinthians 4:4) lest “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ should shine on them." (2 Corithians 4:6) The way the devil did this, was he created a false gospel that sounds Scriptural; so that Christians themselves would believe it, and propagate it. That's why we must, "Test all things; and hold on tightly to that which is good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21) "Examine yourselves to see if you are in The Faith.” (2 Corinthians 13:5), because a person who is deceived, doesn't know that they are deceived.

How we picture God is very important: because if we picture the Father as always being angry, we’ll hear everything He says in an angry tone of voice; but if we picture the Father as being just like Jesus, we’ll hear everything He says in a more balanced tone of voice.

“The Restored Ransom Atonement Theory”
Why I believe it is the True Gospel.

Let me first share how I came to this conclusion: back in the 70’s as a young Christian I enjoyed going to Lithia Park and sharing Jesus with those in the New Age Cults, and Mormons and Jehovah Witnesses; because they were seeking God. But sometimes what they said sounded so close to the truth, I would question my own heart, “Do I believe this because this is what the Bible says? Or because this is what I've been taught?” So I bought a Greek/English New Testament Interlinear and a Strong Concordance and looked up every verse I could find on the topic, and checked the Greek and Hebrew meanings of words to find the interpretation that agreed with everything that was written; this helped my faith and understanding to grow. Therefore, I never read Bible Commentaries, because I don’t want to know what people think, I just want to know what God actually said.

As a young Christian, who Loved the Lord, I really wanted to understand, “Why did Jesus have to die?” So I read the Bible from cover to cover to try to piece together the reason Jesus had to die. And the following are the things the Lord taught me. But because I didn’t read commentaries, I didn’t know that what I believed was called ‘The Ransom Atonement Theory’ (I just thought it was our common belief, since it’s what the Bible teaches). But when I was rewriting my ‘Jesus Revolution 3’ article a couple of months ago, and doing some research, I discovered there was another theory called ‘The Penal Atonement Theory’. As I read about this Theory, I realized all the bad doctrines I’d written about in ‘Jesus Revolution 3’ grew off the trunk of ‘The Penal Atonement Tree,’ but I was even more shocked to find out that my view of the Atonement is the Minority View today, especially since it was the common belief held by Christians for the first 1,100 years of the Church. So for that reason I’m sending this letter out to as many Pastors as I possibility can, because I truly believe: We need to return to   “The Faith, which was entrusted to God’s holy people, once for all time.” (Jude 1:3)

The Restored Ransom Atonement Theory

Why did Jesus have to die? That we might “come to their senses and escape from the devil’s trap, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:26) Because, “Don’t you know? That to whomever you present yourselves as obedient slaves, you are the slaves of the one whom you obey.” (Romans 6:1) But a slave doesn’t own anything, his life and everything he has belongs to his Master! So by rebelling against God, Adam & Eve handed the Title Deed to the Earth over to the devil, and that’s why Satan could basically boast to Jesus, “If you want the Earth back, bow down and worship me!”      (See  Luke 4:5-7 & Matthew 4:8-9) Jesus didn’t dispute the devil’s claim, because Jesus knew that our souls and the whole Earth had been taken captive by the devil to do his will. (See 2 Timothy 2:26, Ephesians 2:2-3, 1 John 5:19, & Colossians 1:13) So the devil and our rebellious hearts are the problem, not God.

God gave us a free will, and of our own free will we chose to rebel against God, so the only way that we could be restored to God was if of our own free will we chose to return to God. So, "God demonstrated his own Love toward us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

How Did Jesus’ Death Defeat Satan?

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the (Hilasmos) Ransom Sacrifice for our sins.” (1 John 4:10) In Ancient Greek culture “a hilasmos” was a sacrifice given to satisfy a pagan god. So literally Jesus was the “Satisfying Sacrifice” Father GOD GAVE to Satan, “the god of this age,” to purchase us back from the devil. (2 Corinthians 4:4) “Because God loved the world so much, that HE GAVE his only born Son, so that whoever trusts in him wouldn’t perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) If you GIVE something, you GIVE it to another. So God didn’t pay the ransom to Himself as the Penal Theory claims.

How did Jesus’ death “Satisfy” Satan? God hide an obscure passage of Scripture in the Law of Moses (one that had never been implemented, until the day Jesus died on the Cross). But when the devil became aware of that passage, he thought he had finally found a way to get rid of Jesus; but it back-fired on him; because this was part of God’s Secret Plan!

That Passage is found in Deuteronomy 21:22-23, and it reads, "If a person has committed a sin deserving of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body is not to be left overnight on the tree, but you must bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is cursed by God)." So because God said it, and because Satan knew, "You have magnified Your word above all Your name." (Psalm 138:2) The devil thought that if he could crucify Jesus, the Father would have to curse His own Son; because God honors His word above everything else! And the devil was right about this; but what the devil didn't realize was that this was part of God's Secret Plan!

Therefore it is Now written: "He made Him who knew no sin, to become sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21) Jesus “became sin” by allowing Himself to be “hung on a cross.” But because He did, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; because it's written, 'CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE.'" (Galatians 3:13) So because the Father honors His word even above His name, the Father had to turn His face away from His Son, when Jesus became sin for us. But those who embrace the ‘Penal Atonement Theory’ claim, “God poured out His Wrath on Jesus on the Cross.” But Jesus didn’t cry out, “My God, my God! Why are you pouring out your Wrath on me?” but rather, “My God, my God! Why have you have you forsaken me?” because for the first time since eternity past, fellowship with His Father was broken. But no supernatural judgment from the Father came against Jesus that day, the only supernatural event that happened; was the heavens became as black as night, when the Father turned His face away.

Here’s how it happened: "The chief priests... said, “What are we going to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him continue on like this, everyone will believe in him." (Luke 11:47-48) Satan realized this too; so Satan entered Judas, and Judas went to the High Priests to betray Jesus. Satan and all the demons rejoiced the day they crucified Jesus, and “Satan was satisfied”, because he thought he’d finally gotten rid of Jesus. But what the devil didn’t realize until 3 days later, was that the Father had tricked him into taking the Hilasmos (the Satisfying Sacrifice). Therefore, “We are speaking about the wisdom of God’s secret plan, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, Which none of the rulers of this age knew: for had they known it, they wouldn't have crucified the Lord of glory.” (1 Corinthians 2:7-8) God had to hide His plan to ransom His children back from the devil, because had the devil known, the prophecy in Genesis 3:14 would never have been fulfilled: "He will crush your head, and you will bruise his heel.” The devil bruised Jesus heel on the Cross, but Jesus Crushed the dragon’s head at the Cross; because, it’s written 3 times in Scripture, "Life for life." (Leviticus 24:18, Exodus 21:23, Deuteronomy 19:21) So since the devil murdered the innocent Son of God on the Cross, Satan’s Sin is now greater than anyone’s sin in the entire Universe, and he owes a debt which he cannot pay: “LIFE FOR LIFE!” So he now must release from captivity even the worst sinner when they call on the Name of JESUS!

Therefore, I’m convinced that this Angry God Gospel was born out of the pit of Hell, and that Satan himself is its author: because this false gospel leaves the devil completely out of the equation, and instead makes the Father’s supposed wrath against us the problem.

A New Law Written in Our Hearts

The other thing that Jesus did on the Cross; was He taught us the True Meaning of Love, and Won our hearts, for Jesus said, "THIS IS MY COMMANDMENT: Love each other, just as I have Loved you. No one has Greater Love than this; that someone should lay down their own life for their friends." (John 15:12-13) And then Jesus did just that, Jesus laid down His life for us on the Cross, and then 3 days later He rose from the dead.

And now the Father also has just One Commandment, “THIS IS HIS COMMANDMENT: that we believe and trust in the name of His Son Jesus Christ; and Love one another, just as He commanded us.” (1 John 3:23) Because the Ten Commandments were only designed to be temporary, until God could send His Son to teach us God’s True Law of Love.

God  gave  the  Jews  the Ten Commandment  in  the  wilderness, not  because  it  was  His  Eternal  Standard, but because the people were rebellious and didn’t want to hear His voice! (See Deuteronomy 18:16) Therefore God gave them the Ten Commandment instead, so that at least they would stop wronging one another, and have a form of godliness until He could send His Son.

That’s why God told Moses, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you, from among their brothers.   I will put my words in his mouth, and HE WILL TELL THEM EVERYTHING THAT I COMMAND HIM.” (Deuteronomy 18:18) Therefore, "GOD said, 'THE DAYS ARE COMING, when I will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—Not according to the Covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt...  But this is the Covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My Law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.'" (Jeremiah 31:31-33)

AND THOSE DAYS HAVE COME! For Jesus said, “THIS IS MY COMMANDMENT: Love each other, just as I have Loved you… EVERYTHING THAT I HAVE HEARD FROM MY FATHER, I HAVE MADE KNOWN TO YOU… These things I command you: you’re to Love each other.” (See John 15:12-17) So we no longer have any need for the Ten Commandments, "Because since LOVE does no wrong to a neighbor; LOVE fulfills the Law." (Romans 13:10) And NOW we have GOD’S LAW written on the Tablets of our Hearts, instead of on Tablets of Stone. (See Jeremiah 31:33 & 2 Corinthians 3:3-11) 

Please read ‘Jesus Revolution 3’ because there are many things wrong with the Penal Atonement Theory, and the doctrines that sprang off it; and those things have corrupted the true beauty of the True Gospel. But I didn’t want to deal with those things here, because in this article I wanted to focus on “The Beauty of the Ransom Atonement Theory: That, God LOVED the World SO MUCH, that He GAVE His Son!”

So, we need to stop proclaiming the Angry God Gospel:
and begin sharing The Good News of God’s Love, once again.
If we do, we will see the same kind of Harvest the First Century Church saw.     

Please download "The Restored Gospel of Love" and share it with others:  tlwbible.com/ransom.pdf
For more on this: Read “Jesus Revolution 3”