Limited atonement


Limited atonement is a doctrine accepted in some Christian theological traditions. It is particularly associated with the Reformed tradition and is one of the five points of Calvinism. The doctrine states that though the death of Jesus Christ is sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world, it was the intention of God the Father that the atonement of Christ's death would work itself out in only the elect, thereby leading them without fail to salvation. According to limited atonement, Christ died for the sins of the elect alone, and no atonement was provided for the reprobate. This is in contrast to a belief that God's prevenient grace enables all to respond to the salvation offered by God in Jesus Christ so that it is each person's decision and response to God's grace that determines whether Christ's atonement will be effective to that individual. A modified form of the doctrine exists in Molinism.

History

The second century document Martyrdom of Polycarp said that Christ "suffered for the world of the saved", which can be interpreted to support an idea like limited atonement, however it is not certain to teach a form of particular redemption and the book can also be understood in other ways, which do not necessate the view of limited atonement.
The elements of the doctrine to be known as limited atonement were held by Gottschalk of Orbais, Thomas Bradwardine, and Gregory of Rimini, though there was less precision regarding the extent of the atonement before the Reformation period.
The Synod of Dort was convened in 1618 in order to decide a controversy between the followers of Jacobus Arminius, and other Calvinists. One of the issues involved had to do with the reason for the limitation of the efficacy of Christ's satisfaction for sin. Both sides of the controversy agreed that this efficacy was limited to the elect. The disagreement had to do with the grounds for this limitation. For Arminius, the ground was the free choice of people to believe, foreknown by God, with God predestining people based on this foreseen faith. For the opponents of Arminius, whose views are represented in the Canons of Dort, this efficacy was limited based on God's predestination, without any foreknowledge of human choice. Calvin clearly taught this second view, and it is also the view of Reformed theologians following the Synod of Dort.
The doctrine of limited atonement also includes the claim that the purpose for which Jesus gave his life was limited to the elect – the atonement is limited in its purpose. For this reason, the so-called "four-point Calvinists", such as the 17th century English Puritan Richard Baxter, reject the doctrine of limited atonement and instead believe that the atonement is available to all who will believe in Christ. They also argue that it was never endorsed by Calvin or the Synod of Dort. They refer to both Calvin's claim that "It is also a fact, without controversy, that Christ came to atone for the sins 'of the whole world'" and to Article 3 of the Second Main Point of Doctrine of the Synod of Dort which states that "This death of God's Son is the only and entirely complete sacrifice and satisfaction for sins; it is of infinite value and worth, more than sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world.". Others, however, claim that Calvin and the Canons of Dort are somewhat vague on this issue and accept the claim of limited atonement that the efficacy of his death was limited both in purpose and scope to the elect, though they believe his death was sufficient payment for the sin of the whole world.
With regard to the limited purpose or intent of the atonement to save only the elect, another argument was put forth later in the 17th century. Moses Amyraut and several others proposed a system called hypothetical universalism, which taught that in God's decree for Christ to be a sufficient atonement for all sin, his intention was to save all on condition that they believe. This decree was prior to his decree to elect some people for whom the atonement was to be efficacious, and so the efficacy of the atonement was still limited to the elect. Most of the Reformed rejected this view because it envisioned a decree of God that was intentionally not realized.

Theology

The doctrine of the limited scope of the atonement is intimately tied up with the doctrine of the nature of the atonement. It also has much to do with the general Calvinist view of predestination. Calvinists advocate the satisfaction theory of the atonement, which developed in the writings of Anselm of Canterbury and Thomas Aquinas. In brief, the Calvinistic refinement of this theory, known as penal substitution, states that the atonement of Christ pays the penalty incurred by the sins of men—that is, Christ receives the wrath of God for sins and thereby receives in himself the penalty of the sins of men.
The doctrine of limited atonement is often argued from the theological argument of double jeopardy. In the limited view, Jesus Christ has taken the penalty of the elect – that Jesus died for those who would believe, so that those for whom Christ died must be saved and cannot be damned as it would be unjust for God to punish the same sins twice. If Jesus died for all, they argue, then all must be saved. The penal theory of the atonement is therefore the basis of the necessity for a limited atonement.
The Calvinist view of predestination teaches that God created Adam in a state of original righteousness, but he fell into sin and all humanity in him as their federal head. Those elected to salvation were chosen without a view to their faith or good works but by the sovereign will of God.
The Calvinist atonement is called definite by some because they believe it certainly secures the salvation of those for whom Christ died, and it is called limited in its extent because it effects salvation for the elect only. Calvinists do not believe the power of the atonement is limited in any way, which is to say that no sin is too great to be expiated by Christ's sacrifice, in their view. Among English Calvinistic Baptists, the doctrine was usually known as particular redemption, giving its adherents the name Particular Baptists. This term emphasizes the intention of God to save particular persons through the atonement, as opposed to mankind in general as General Baptists believe.

Biblical passages

The classic Bible passage cited to prove a limited extent to the atonement is in which Jesus uses shepherding practices as a metaphor for his relationship to his followers. A shepherd of those times would call his sheep from a mix of flocks, and his sheep would hear his voice and follow, while the sheep of other flocks would ignore any but their own shepherd's voice. In that context, Jesus says, "I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,...and I lay down my life for the sheep," and he tells the Pharisees that they "do not believe because are not part of flock." He continues, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand." Since Calvinists believe that not all have eternal life with God, Calvinists conclude that there are only two possibilities: either Jesus was wrong in saying that he would lose none of his sheep, or Jesus must not have laid down his life for everyone, as they understand John 10 to imply. Formally, the Calvinist position can be expressed this way:
  1. Jesus lays down his life for the sheep.
  2. Jesus will lose none of his sheep.
  3. Many people will not receive eternal life.
Additionally, in the high priestly prayer, Jesus prays for the protection and sanctification of those who believed in him, and he explicitly excludes praying for all: "I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.". Paul instructs the elders in Ephesus "to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood," and he says in his letter to the same church that "Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Likewise, Jesus foreshadows that he will lay down his life "for his friends," and an angel tells Jesus' earthly father Joseph that he "will save His people from their sins". Calvinists believe that these passages demonstrate that Jesus died for the church only.
Opponents to Calvinism often cite passages such as those below they believe clearly contradict limited atonement:
  1. Jesus promises that whosoever believes in him has everlasting life. John 3:16
  2. Peter proclaims that everyone who calls upon Jesus will be saved.
  3. God calls all people everywhere to repent. ,
  4. God desires all people to be saved.
  5. Jesus is a ransom for all.
  6. Jesus is the propitiation "for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world."

    Confessional positions

Chapter 3, paragraph 6 of the Westminster Confession of Faith says, "Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only."
The Canons of Dort assert that "This death of God's Son is the only and entirely complete sacrifice and satisfaction for sins; it is of infinite value and worth, more than sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world". Article 8 of the same section says

For it was the entirely free plan and very gracious will and intention of God the Father that the enlivening and saving effectiveness of his Son's costly death should work itself out in all his chosen ones, in order that he might grant justifying faith to them only and thereby lead them without fail to salvation. In other words, it was God's will that Christ through the blood of the cross should effectively redeem from every people, tribe, nation, and language all those and only those who were chosen from eternity to salvation and given to him by the Father; that he should grant them faith ; that he should cleanse them by his blood from all their sins, both original and actual, whether committed before or after their coming to faith; that he should faithfully preserve them to the very end; and that he should finally present them to himself, a glorious people, without spot or wrinkle.