改革宗信仰基础16：基督的死Basics of the Reformed Faith:The Death of Christ

作者：Kim Riddlebarger   翻译：牛泓

http://wscal.edu/blog/basics-of-the-reformed-faith-the-death-of-christ

http://www.reformedbeginner.net/basics16-christ-death/

随着救赎历史在圣经中逐渐展开，上帝拯救计划的叙事经历了令人惊奇的百转千回。新约圣经以一位天使向一位童贞女宣告在经过了漫长的等待上帝所应许的救赎主终于来到祂的百姓中来拯救他们。耶稣由马丽亚所生，并且长大成人，在由施洗约翰为他施洗（太3章）后开始了祂的公开侍奉。正如我们在《马太福音》所读到的，“耶稣走遍加利利，在各会堂里教训人，传天国的福音，医治百姓各样的病症。”（太4:23 和合本）

最终，耶稣的公开侍奉将祂带到了耶路撒冷。因为正如耶稣之前所告诉门徒的，“看哪，我们上耶路撒冷去，人子要被交给祭司长和文士。他们要定他死罪，”（太20:18）。正如施洗约翰第一次见到耶稣时论到祂所说的，“看哪，神的羔羊，除去（或译：背负）世人罪孽的！”（约1:29）。既然耶稣以以色列的弥赛亚和圣约中保的身份来到世上，并且成全了受膏的先知、祭司和君王这三重职分，那么祂受死的必要性就多少让人感到惊奇——尽管那预言上帝的弥撒亚也将是一位受苦的仆人的以赛亚先知早就清楚地预告了（赛52:13-53:12）弥撒亚的死。当耶稣在棕榈主日荣入圣城耶路撒冷之时，似乎对所有人来说祂将最终登上以色列的宝座来恢复这王国昔日的伟大荣耀。但是，在礼拜五的下午，耶稣死了，被挂在罗马人的十字架上，祂以一种十分痛苦的方式死去。为何我们的救赎故事会发生如此黑暗和不祥的逆转？耶稣为何要死？

纵观整本新约圣经，圣经的作者一直在告诉我们耶稣为何要死及其对我们的意义。首先，耶稣的死被说成是“为我们的罪”（代赎论），同时，祂的死实质上转离上帝对祂百姓的忿怒，因为耶稣亲自承担了上帝的忿怒（满足）。从根本上来说，耶稣的死因着为我们的罪付上了完全的赎价，从而满足了上帝圣洁的公义的要求。

当我们查考圣经作者用来解释耶稣的死的词汇时，祂的死亡的意义和目的就会变得非常清晰。耶稣的死被说成是为罪人作了代赎，就是说耶稣在罪人的地位上而死。在可10:45节我们读到，“因为人子来，并不是要受人的服侍，乃是要服侍人，并且要舍命作多人的赎价。”在写给以弗所教会的书信中保罗讲到，“也要凭爱心行事，正如基督爱我们，为我们舍了自己，当作馨香的供物和祭物献与神”（弗5:2）。在约10:14-18节中，耶稣用如下的话谈论自己的死：“我是好牧人，我认识我的羊，我的羊也认识我。正如父认识我，我也认识父一样，并且我为羊舍命……我父爱我，因我将命舍去，好再取回来。没有人夺我的命去，是我自己舍的。我有权柄舍了，也有权柄取回来。这是我从我父所受的命令。”耶稣描述祂的死是为了祂的羊。

在新约圣经中我们还可以找到另外一个词来说到耶稣的死，那就是为我们的罪作“挽回祭”，即一个可以有效地转离上帝对祂为之而死之人的忿怒的祭物。论到耶稣的死，保罗在罗3:25节这样说，“神设立耶稣作挽回祭，是凭着耶稣的血，藉着人的信”。使徒约翰说到耶稣的死是一个挽回祭，并且祂的死向我们显明了上帝对罪人的爱。“不是我们爱神，乃是神爱我们，差祂的儿子为我们的罪作了挽回祭，这就是爱了。”

在另外一些经文中，耶稣的死被说成是与上帝隔绝的罪人同这位圣洁的上帝和好的方法。保罗在《罗马书》告诉基督徒说，“因为我们作仇敌的时候，且藉着神儿子的死，得与神和好；既已和好，就更要因祂的生得救了。”在《哥林多后书》保罗又补充道，“一切都是出于神；他藉着基督使我们与他和好，又将劝人与他和好的职分赐给我们。 这就是神在基督里，叫世人与自己和好，不将他们的过犯归到他们身上，并且将这和好的道理托付了我们。”（林后5:18-19）

在其他地方，保罗用赎回（在罗马帝国为了给予奴隶自由而买下他们所付上的价钱）来讲论基督的死：“基督既为我们受了咒诅，就赎出我们脱离律法的咒诅，因为经上记着：‘凡挂在木头上都是被咒诅的。’”彼得也以同样的方式描述耶稣的死：“知道你们得赎，脱去你们祖宗所传流虚妄的行为，不是凭着能坏的金银等物，乃是凭着基督的宝血，如同无瑕疵、无玷污的羔羊之血。”（彼前1:18-19）

尽管当我们顺着救赎历史的进程看下去会发现耶稣的死让人感到有些意外，但是当我们仔细查考，就会发现祂的死是真正的救赎的“朱红色线”。整本旧约都在预言我们的主为我们的罪而死，并且新约圣经对基督的死作了充分的描述与详细地解释。十字架的意义再清晰不过了。“神爱世人，甚至将祂的独生子赐给他们，叫一切信祂的，不至灭亡，反得永生。”（约3:16）

Basics of the Reformed Faith: The Death of Christ

Kim Riddlebarger

As redemptive history unfolds in the Bible, the story of God’s saving purposes takes a number of surprising twists and turns. The New Testament opens with an angel announcing to a young virgin that God’s promised Savior was at long last coming to visit his people with salvation. Jesus was born of Mary, he grows to manhood, and begins his public ministry after his baptism by John (Matthew 3). As we read in Matthew’s gospel, “and [Jesus] went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people” (Matthew 4:23).

Eventually, Jesus’ public ministry took him to Jerusalem, because as Jesus informed his disciples, “The Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death” (Matthew 20:18). As John the Baptist said of Jesus upon first encountering him, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Since Jesus came as Israel’s Messiah, the mediator of the covenant, and fulfilled the anointed offices of prophet, priest, and king, the necessity of his death comes as somewhat of a surprise–although this death was remarkably foretold by the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 52:13-53:12) who predicted that God’s Messiah would also be a suffering servant. When Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph on Palm Sunday, it appeared to all as though he would at long last take his place on Israel’s throne to restore the nation to its former greatness. But by Friday afternoon, Jesus was dead, hanging on a Roman cross, having died an agonizing death. Why did the story of our redemption take such a dark and foreboding turn? Why did Jesus need to die?

Throughout the New Testament, the biblical writers tell us why Jesus died and what his death means for us. First and foremost, Jesus’ death is said to be “for our sins,” (a “substitutionary atonement”) and his death effectually and actually turns God’s wrath away from his people, because Jesus takes God’s wrath upon himself (a “satisfaction”). In a fundamental sense then, Jesus’ death satisfies the holy justice of God by making a full and complete payment for the guilt of our sins.

When we look at the terms which the biblical writers use to explain the death of Jesus, the meaning and purpose of his death becomes clear. Jesus is said to die as a substitute for the sinner, in whose place, Jesus is said to die. In Mark 10:45, we read, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” In his Epistle to the Ephesians, Paul notes that “Jesus Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). In John 10:14-18, Jesus speaks of his death in the following terms: “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep....the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” Jesus describes his own death as “for his sheep.”

Another term we find in the New Testament is that Jesus’ death is said to be a “propitiation” for our sins, that is, a sacrifice which effectually turns aside the wrath of God toward those for whom he is dying. Paul speaks of the death of Christ as “a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:25). John says of Jesus that his death is a propitiation, and that his death shows us the love of God toward sinners. “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).

In yet another set of verses, Jesus’ death is set forth as the means through which sinners are reconciled to a holy God from whom they are estranged. Paul tells the Christians in Rome, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life” (Romans 5:10). In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul adds, “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18-19).

Elsewhere, Paul describes Christ’s death in terms of redemption–the price paid in the Roman world to purchase slaves, granting them their freedom: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree” (Galatians 3:13). Peter describes the death of Jesus in much the same way–“knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot” (1Peter 1:18-19).

Although the death of Jesus comes as a bit of a surprise as we follow the curse of redemptive history, when we look carefully, we see that this death truly is the “scarlet thread” of redemption. Our Lord’s death for our sins was foretold throughout the Old Testament, and that death fully described and carefully explained in the New. The meaning of the cross is clear. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).