Review:

MERCY FOR ALL; or, the. Great Propitiation for Man. An Argument and an Appeal.
London: Ward and Co., Paternoster-row.

AN American production, small in compass, but grand and comprehensive in its grasp. It is written in no gold. leaf letters, but in characters of living fire.
The aim of the author ill to set forth the atonement of Christ in all its unconfined fulness of grace and virtue; but while he luxuriates in the fact that the provision of Divine mercy on behalf of man ill, from the very nature of the case, unlimited and illimitable, he yet restricts its results to the positive enjoyment of that redemption which ill the mighty boon of those only who believe. In his own words:—

There is a distinction to be always carefully maintained between the work of atonement and the work of redemption. The one does not necessarily imply the other; redemption includes atonement, but it includes more; it includes its actual results; it is the application of the atonement issuing in final and complete salvation. The one, therefore, in its nature may be more extensive than the other. An unredeemed sinner has even now a deep interest in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and, whether eventually lost or saved. will feel that interest through the ages of his deathless being. With this understanding, redemption certainly is not general; and to affirm that it is limited is but stating the plainly revealed fact, that all men will not be saved.

In the new which we take of the subject, moreover, we separate the nature of the atonement from any secret unrevealed purpose of the Infinite mind respecting its application. We do not deny the existence of such a purpose; so far from it that we cannot conceive of an intelligent, all-wise Being acting in anything without design, and we cannot, without detracting from the honor and glory of Him who is no less wise than holy in all His works, suppose otherwise than that in this great plan, and I may add effort, of forgiving mercy, He had in view some certain specific results. We do not believe that the issue of the atonement is in the Infinite Mind an open question. The results of a Redeemer’s work are not contingent results. They are absolutely certain. It ill fixed, unalterably fixed, that the Savior is to be rewarded for his life of toil and ignominy, and his death of shame and agony. He is to ‘see of the travail of his soul ad to be satisfied;’ and a multitude greater than any man can number, of those ‘who have washed their robes, and made them while in the blood of the Lamb,’ sha1l give grace and glory to His triumph. But the ultimate design of the atonement, as it exists in the mind of God is a very different thing from the nature of the atonement itself as it is spread out before our view upon the pages of revealed truth. The question before us is not what God intends to accomplish by virtue of the sacrifice of Christ; not how far the efficacy of that sacrifice will, in point of fact, reach; for upon these questions God has thrown a veil of impenetrable darkness; but what is the great moral, revea1ed purpose of the atonement? what ill its intrinsic value and sufficiency? how far is it available in its own nature to the salvation of man? Did God mean to spread it over only a put, or the whole of the race? Are men, all men, as lost sinners, so interested in the atoning death of Jesus Christ that they may, if they will, be saved by it! This is the question, and we unhesitatingly take the affirmative. Our position is, that through the sacrifice of Christ God can be just, and yet forgive. Such is the character of the atonement, that ‘it would comport with the glory of the Divine character, the sustentation of God’s government, the obligation and honor of His law, and the good of the rational and moral system, to save all men, provided they are accepted of Christ.’ ‘Every legal bar and obstruction in the way of the salvation of all men is removed.’ Such is the nature and efficacy of the atonement of the Son of God, that the relations not merely of some men, but of the entire race, are totally different from what they would have been, had the Savior never suffered and died; different, I mean, in this sense, that since this great atoning sacrifice has been offered, God can upon the ground of it consistency pardon the sins of all, and nothing now shuts a man out from forgiveness and hope but his own unwillingness to accept of the offers of mercy made to him in the gospel. Such is the view of the fullness of the atonement which we desire to advocate, and which we would fain commend to the intelligent faith of our hearers.

Christianity addresses itself to the intelligence as well as to the faith of man. Being a revelation of the Infinite Mind, it must be in harmony with universal reason. But if reason has become blinded and perverted, as is the case with man, then it speaks to his heart as well as to his intellect. It meets him on the ground of his moral consciousness, and tells him how a Savior has been provided for him in his far-off distance from God; how expiation has been made for his sins; how the path has been laid open for his return; and how from the lowest depth of his misery he may rise into perfect life and endless joy. Of these facts the little tractate now before us is a successful exposition, which we cordially recommend to all our readers.

Review of Mercy For All; or the Great Propitiation sufficient for man. An Argument and an Appeal (London: Ward and Co., Paternoster-Row), The Evangelical Magazine and Missionary Chronicle 32 (1854) : 648-649 (New Series). [Some spelling modernized; some reformatting; and underlining mine.] [Note: According to Worldcat, only two cataloged copies of this work are available, and they are both in the UK.]

Lawrence:

The Atonement is a provision of salvation. and as such is co-extensive in its sufficiency, with human sin. Redemption is the application of the atonement, or the actual salvation of those who believe, the one being provisional and unlimited, the other being actual and limited by election and regeneration.¹

E.A. Lawrence, “Leonard Woods,” The Congregational Quarterly 1 (1859) : 521.

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¹Works, Vo1. 2. pp.499-527.

Mason:

In defining my own position, and stating what I consider to be the scriptural truth upon the subject, I must be permitted to exhibit what I consider to be the true state of the question, so as to prevent all possibility of misconception.

There is, I apprehend, a distinction to be always carefully maintained, between the work of atonement and the work of redemption. The one does not necessarily imply the other; redemption includes atonement, but it includes more; it includes its actual results; it is the application of the atonement issuing in final and complete salvation. The one, therefore, in its nature may be more extensive than the other. An unredeemed sinner has. even now a deep interest in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and whether eventually lost or saved, will feel that interest through the ages of his deathless being. With this understanding, redemption certainly is not general; and to affirm that it is limited is but stating the plainly revealed fact, that all men will not be saved.

In the view which we take of the subject, moreover, we separate the nature of the atonement from any secret unrevealed purpose of the infinite mind respecting its application. We do not deny the existence of such a purpose; so far from it that we cannot conceive of an intelligent, all-wise being acting in anything without design, and we cannot, without detracting from the honor and glory of him who is no less wise than holy in all his works, suppose otherwise than that in this great plan, and I may add effort of forgiving mercy, he had in view some certain, specific results. We do not believe that the issue of the atonement is in the infinite mind an open question. The results of a Redeemer’s work are not contingent results. They are absolutely certain. It is fixed, unalterably fixed, that the Savior is to be rewarded for his life of toil and ignominy, and his death of shame and agony. He is to “see of the travail of his soul and to be satisfied;” and a multitude greater than any man can number, of those who “have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb,” shall give grace and glory to his triumph. But the ultimate design of the atonement as it exists in the mind of God is a very different thing from the nature of the atonement itself, as it is spread out before our view upon the pages of revealed truth. The question before us is not, what God intends to accomplish by virtue of the sacrifice of Christ; not how far the efficacy of that sacrifice will in point of fact reach; for upon these questions God has thrown a veil of impenetrable darkness; but what is the great moral, revealed purpose of the atonement; what is its intrinsic value and sufficiency; how far is it available in its own nature to the salvation of men? Did God mean to spread it over only a part, or the whole of the race? Are men, all men, as lost sinners, so interested in the atoning death of Jesus Christ, that they may, if they will, be saved by it? This is the question, and we unhesitatingly take the affirmative. Our position is, that through the sacrifice of Christ, God can be just, and yet forgive. Such is the character of the atonement, that, “it would comport with the glory of the divine character, the sustentation of God’s government, the obligation and honor of his law, and the good of the rational and moral system, to save all men, provided they accepted of Christ.” “Every legal bar and obstruction in the way of the salvation of all men is removed.”¹ Such is the nature and efficacy of the atonement of the Son of God, that the relations not merely of some men, but of the entire race, are totally different from what they would have been, had the Savior never suffered and died; different, I mean, in this sense, that since this great atoning sacrifice has been offered, God can upon the ground of it consistently pardon the sins of all, and nothing now shuts a man out from forgiveness and hope, but his own unwillingness to accept of the offers of mercy made to him in the gospel. Such is the view of the fullness of the atonement which we desire to advocate, and which we would fain commend to the intelligent faith of our hearers.

Erskine Mason, “Extent of the Atonement,” in A Pastor’s Legacy Being Sermons on Practical Subjects (New York: Charles Scribner, 1853), 274-276. [Some reformatting; some spelling modernized; italics original; and underlining mine.]

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¹Associate Reformed Synod’s Report, p. 53.

Hall:

II. The Atonement of Christ.–From the fallen, depraved, and lost condition of man, arises the necessity of some method or plan, by which he can be cleansed from his pollution, and saved from the awful consequences of his guilt. He has violated the law, and incurred the displeasure of his Maker, and he must die. The decree has gone forth in righteousness and must be executed, unless justice can be satisfied, and God’s holy character vindicated. How can this be accomplished? Who will make satisfaction?  Will angels? If they would, they could not. They are created and accountable intelligences, required themselves, to love and serve their Great Creator, with all their power, and have, therefore, no surplusage of merit to bestow upon man.

“Call a bright council in the skies;
Seraphs, the mighty and the wise,
Speak, are you strong to bear the load,
The weighty vengeance of a God?
In vain we ask, for all around,
Stand silent through the heav’nly ground:
There’s not a glorious mind above,
Has half the strength, or half the love.”

Human reason can discover no way of escape for the sinner;  but infinite wisdom and goodness devised, and executed a scheme, in all respects suited to the occasion. “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him ,would not perish, but have everlasting life.” Christ, the anointed, so pitied our condition, that he condescended to leave heaven, assume human nature, obey the law, and die to make atonement for our sins. The original Hebrew word for atonement, it is said, signifies covering, and which was early and aptly typified by the clothing or covering, which God provided for Adam and Eve after their fall, from the skins of beasts. The atonement signifies that satisfaction, or expiation, which was made to divine Justice, by the sacrifice of Christ, commencing with his birth, and ending with his tragical death upon the cross. This sacrifice, or atonement, was exhibited in the various sin offerings made under the Mosaic dispensation; hence, says the Apostle, “Christ was made sin.” (or a sin offering) “for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” The atonement of Christ and the redemption of sinners, though often used synonymously, should not be confounded. There is more than a shade’s difference between them. They stand related to each other as cause and effect; the atonement having reference to God, as its object, and redemption to man. Atonement is the price paid for our redemption. “He was wounded,” says the Psalmist “for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our ‘peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed.” And thus sang also the four and twenty elders that John saw fall down, before the Lamb. “Thou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof, for thou wast slain and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and nation.”[ Rev. v: 9.] Atonement conveys the idea of expiation or satisfaction for sin; redemption of pardon and deliverance from punishment. “In whom we nave redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace.”–[Ephe. i: 7.].

Long, and violent, and we may add, unprofitable, has been the controversy among polemical divines, as to the extent of the atonement; some contending that the covering or propitiation thus provided, extended to the whole human family; and others, that It was limited to a definite number called the Elect; and that, Christ suffered just so much, and no more, with mathematical precision, as would atone for their sins only. May we not venture the remark, that the atonement is really both general and limited, as we may have reference in the expression to the particular application of our language. In regard to its sufficiency, it knows no limit: its provisions are adequate to the wants of every human being, and would all accept its provisions, the claims of eternal justice would be fully met, and satisfied. But that in its application, it really does cover the sins of all mankind, and thus screen them from punishment, is not true. Its benefits are limited to those who believe and obey the Gospel. Keeping up the distinction before made between the atonement and redemption, we conclude that the atonement, in its true signification is unlimited, being a provision for sinners generally; but that redemption can apply only to those who by faith embrace the Gospel scheme of salvation. In short, by this doctrine, we understand, that the cross of Christ furnishes ample satisfaction to the requirements of Divine justice, without the adventitious aid of human merit, whether in the form of obedience, penance or purgatory. As the result of the whole, therefore, we conclude, that as ministers of the Gospel, we should have no scruples whatever in inviting and urging all men, every where, to come and partake of the gracious provisions of mercy. relying at the same time upon the Holy Spirit to accompany the word and make it effectual in them that believe.

Addison Hall, “Christian Steadfastness,” The Baptist Preacher 3 (1844) : 201-203. [Some minor reformatting and underlining mine.]