"In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1 John 4:10, ESV)
"whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins." (Romans 3:25, ESV)
"Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people." (Hebrews 2:17, ESV)
What is Propitiation?
Merriam-Webster : to gain or regain the favor or goodwill of : appease
Collins Dictionary – appease, win the favor of. Adj intended to appease someone.
Moody Handbook of Theology - Concept meaning to appease or atone. And stresses that the holiness of God was fully satisfied, his wrath appeased and his righteous demands were met through the atoning death of Christ.
Whom does it encompass?
The term ‘Propitiation’ asserts that God is a person who can be offended as well as appeased. It would also assert that God is wrathful towards sin in the same magnitude of that of His love towards humanity.
Primarily, propitiation encompasses God the Father and Jesus the Son. Propitiation is God-ward. It is Jesus appeasing the wrath of God. It is fully satisfying the righteous demands of a holy God by the sacrifice of the innocent and sinless life of Jesus of Nazareth.
God the Father is the subject of propitiation. He is the one who has provided the sacrifice through the Son. It was the Father’s plan (or will) that Jesus come to earth. It was God’s love for us that Jesus came. God the Father is also the object of propitiation as He is the one who is satisfied. It is the love that Jesus has for the Father that drove Jesus to completing the work God gave to him.
Motivation and Misconception
We find the motivation behind the will of the Father to send Jesus the Son to be our propitiation encompassing two concepts. First, it is God’s love for humanity that has initiated the propitiation. Second, it is God’s justice which demands the propitiation. And we find God’s love and justice working perfectly and completely, with and through each other, to ensure that the propitiation is perfect, sufficient and powerful. For it is God’s justice demands that the sinfulness of humanity be dealt with in full and complete terms. And it is God’s love for humanity which ensured that a full and complete sacrifice be given on behalf of a rebellious and sinful creation.
One major misconception that we encounter is this; God is always opposed to us and full of wrath towards us and it is only Jesus who calms (placates) God. God the Father is seen as a reluctant and vengeful God while Jesus is portrayed as the one who has the task of convincing God to forgive. This may lead some to what might appear like a contradiction. The wrath of an all-loving and compassionate God towards the people he has created.
What can we do?
First we need to recognize that the issue of propitiation is not a matter of vengeance but of justice. If God is holy and all together completely righteous and cannot tolerate sin then the sinful state within man must be dealt with prior to reconciliation. But what can a sinner do to please God in order to be saved? Nothing. Everything has been done by God for Himself. He knows that a person cannot fulfill His law and commandments perfectly so he sent Jesus to live the life and die the death for us. In our place. The lost person only needs to believe with their heart and confess with their mouth that Jesus is Lord and they will be saved. Salvation is a gift from God.
Jesus’ propitiation accomplished four things for you and me;
1. It paid the penalty of sin.
2. It broke the power of sin and death from our lives.
3. It removed the pollution of sin from our hearts.
4. It destroyed the dividing wall of sin between God and ourselves.
Secondly, Jesus’ propitiation is efficacious (completely effective and adequate) to cover our sins. But is affected (given to) only when a person exercises faith in Jesus’ death on the cross (atonement) and his resurrection from the dead.
This is the message of the gospel – receive the Savior through his death and resurrection for you. If you want any hope for this life and the next.
“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
