WHAT BAPTISTS BELIEVE
and
Why They Believe It

CHAPTER II

THE ATONEMENT

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Baptists believe in the atonement made by Christ as the only basis of salvation, the only means of reconciliation, the only ground of justification. Man is by nature a sinner, guilty, condemned, lost, and but for the atonement made by Christ, helpless and hopeless.

God is holy and just and must punish sin, is Almighty and able to punish sin, he cannot lie and has said that sin shall be punished; but God is also merciful, hence a willing, all-sufficient substitute is provided, and Jesus "bore our sins in his own body." God "made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." "Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." "Being justified fully by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God, to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." The law is not made void, but through faith we establish the law. Jesus kept, made honorable, magnified and satisfied the law, becoming our accepted substitute, his righteousness, his right-doing, is imputed to us by faith and so we through him have kept the law. He took the sinner's place, bore his sins, met the penalty, and offers the sinner a child's place, and lets the sinner, who trusts him go free.

Justice is not bribed nor cheated but fully sustained, and God is still just though he justifies the believer in Christ. Because Jesus has rendered perfect satisfaction by his life and atoning sacrificial death, God says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Here is the sinner's only hope, Jesus and his atonement, "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins."

He must not, dares not trust anything else. His penance, church, baptism, the Lord's Supper, not even his repentance and faith, but only Jesus. Baptists believe that no man cometh to God except through Jesus Christ.

Venture on him, venture freely,
Let no other trust intrude.
None but Jesus, none but Jesus,
Can do helpless sinners good.

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