atonement

Jesus died on the cross to give us atonement, which refers to the forgiving or pardoning of sin through the death of Jesus Christ. The implications of atonement for Christians are huge! 

Firstly, Jesus was our substitute (Hebrews 9:28, 1 Timothy 2:6, Mark 10:45). Part of atonement is justification, which is where God removes the sin of the guilty and counts them as righteous, because of Christ's obedience and death.

The next part of the process is reconciliation, which refers to the removal of enmity or sin between humans and God. This was done so we could have relationship with Him and He could “walk with us in the cool of the evening”, as He did in the garden with Adam and Eve.

Propitiation is the removal of Gods wrath with the gift of Jesus. God had wrath because of our sin, Jesus became our gift by dying in our place. (1 Thessalonians 5:9) Because of love and the offer of atonement, we swapped places.

Redemption is the last part. It is being set free from bondage, or sin, by payment of a price, Jesus. Because of redemption, we get union with Christ. We are redeemed by God, and are now able to live in obedience to Him out of our love for and gratitude to Him.