The Extent of the Atonement Archives

Davenant’s Defense of God’s Sovereignty in the Atonement

By M.Ferris | January 13, 2022January 16, 2022 by M.Ferris

The Bishop of Salisbury insists God is sovereign to save anyone at any time. John Davenant is part of a rich heritage of “English Hypothetical Universalism.” That is, men who believed and taught that salvation was possible to any and every sinner while they yet lived. This was in contradistinction to definite atonement, that Christ died only for a collection of sinners whom God designated for salvation by his pretemporal decree. Davenant was also a…

Challenges with the Covenant of Redemption

By M.Ferris | August 14, 2021January 3, 2022 by M.Ferris

Within Covenant Theology, there is some diversity of views on whether there are two or three covenants. Most recognize a covenant of works, made with Adam, and a covenant of grace, which God establishes just after the Fall. However, many see a third, the covenant of redemption, that differs from these. The topic is large enough that I will only be able to capture highlights, but I hope to focus on those questions I believe…

John Owen’s Arguments Are Not Irrefutable

By M.Ferris | November 2, 2020April 25, 2021 by M.Ferris

The Oxford divine relies too much on a “logic of inevitability.” The extent of the atonement has a been a topic of study for me for years. On and off I have read various defenses of the definite atonement position, as well as those for unlimited atonement. While the 2013 publication of From Heaven He Came and Sought Her may challenge this, for a very long time many people pointed to John Owen’s Death of…

Can “World” mean “Elect” In John’s Theology?

By M.Ferris | October 30, 2020 by M.Ferris

Examining the Context of John 3:16 Of the several places in Scripture where Jesus is said to die for the sins of the world, John’s writings offer the most occurrences. Those who defend definite atonement have a challenge in explaining the meaning of this as something other than all sinners. The claim of the definite atonement position is that Jesus did not die for the sins of all, but only for those who will ultimately…

Is a “Purchase of Faith” Taught in the New Testament?

By M.Ferris | October 12, 2020June 23, 2021 by M.Ferris

Is faith our response to the gospel, or a substance given? A hallmark of definite atonement is the view that what God requires of people to be saved, he has provided to them. That is, that the faith which brings us into a right relationship with God has been purchased for us at Calvary. The atonement includes the purchase of faith, but only for the elect. How sure is the exegetical ground for this teaching?…

Atonement Views and Trinitarian Disharmony

By M.Ferris | October 2, 2020October 2, 2020 by M.Ferris

Among the arguments made in favor of definite atonement is that it represents a harmony among the persons of the Trinity. Unlimited atonement, on the other hand, undermines and indeed, destroys this harmony because it separates extent from application; that is, the collection of those for whom extent exists differs from those to whom the atonement is applied. The editors of From Heaven He Came and Sought Her make this argument. photo by Ali Arif…

The Double Payment Argument and Definite Atonement

By M.Ferris | September 28, 2020June 23, 2021 by M.Ferris

One of the more popular arguments for definite atonement—that Christ died only for the sins of those who will be saved, and not for mankind as a whole—is the double payment argument. John Owen, in his book The Death of Death in the Death of Christ makes this argument. In that Owen’s work is commonly held to be an unanswerable defense of definite atonement, we may regard his position as emblematic. “If the full debt…

The Atonement and the “Well-Meant” Gospel Offer

By M.Ferris | September 11, 2020April 25, 2022 by M.Ferris

It isn’t uncommon in discussions on the atonement to find those who hold to definite atonement appeal to an internal consistency of Scripture; to consider the logical implications of the evidence. This appeal comes with a kind of tacit acknowledgment that many verses of Scripture that speak of atonement do, on the face of it, seem to support an unlimited atonement. The editors of From Heaven He Came and Sought Her, state it this way.…

Discussing the Atonement As Co-Heirs of Life

By M.Ferris | June 16, 2020September 13, 2020 by M.Ferris

In discussions of the atonement, it is far too easy to lapse into lines of reasoning that have an appeal to emotion, or to what seems logical, but for which Scriptural warrant may be lacking. Some of this can be seen even in the terms used through the centuries. In this debate, there has been an evolution of terms: “limited atonement”, “particular redemption” and “definite atonement.” At various points in history throughout the discussions of…

Does the Passover Demonstrate Definite Atonement?

By M.Ferris | May 25, 2020September 13, 2020 by M.Ferris

At various point through the years, I have investigated the idea of “definite atonement.” As I’m now reading through From Heaven He Came and Sought Her: Definite Atonement in Historical, Biblical, Theological, and Pastoral Perspective a few reactions have come to mind. I recognize the topic is broad, and takes in many different aspects of theology, so I don’t want to diminish the complexity of it by coming to some summary conclusions in this post.…