By Joseph Rios
One of the most volatile conversations centers around the question of whom Christ died for. Some will say that he died for all individuals without exception, and others say that he died only for the elect. One of the problems in trying to resolve this question comes down to terms that are largely borrowed from those that came before, but the terms themselves are wielded by those who have often not looked into the historical development of the terms. What ends up happening is often a caricature of opposing views, straw men, and an unwillingness to work out biblically what is taught on the topic. What I hope to do here is look at the language the bible uses to answer the question, and each part of the question. To do this, under consideration will be what His death, burial, and resurrection accomplished, but in light of the biblical language specifically.
The Bride
The book of Ephesians 5:22–33 paints a beautiful picture of marriage, how it ought to be, roles, and the relationships therein, but what can easily happen is the practical application swallowing up the beautiful theological realities that inform Paul’s admonitions for husbands and wives. Paul, to encourage men, says,
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. Ephesians 5:22–33
The grammar here is amazing, as we see the purpose of Christ giving Himself for the church was “that he might sanctify her and cleanse her with the washing of the water by the Word.” Another way to translate word here is message, and for Christians we recognize that the sanctifying message, the cleansing message is the gospel, or good news, itself. Who did Christ give himself for? The church. Why did he do that? So that the church might be sanctified, set aside as holy, and washed, or cleansed by the ordinances of baptism and the message. I think that any good understanding of the church is that the universal church is called by one Spirit into one body, for the body is one, not many (1 Cor 12:13; Col 3:15). This is the body that God composed (1 Cor 12:23). So, Christians are individual members, yet one in Christ (1 Cor 12:27).
Going back to Ephesians, a man is to love his own wife, not all women, his own wife this way. This love that men are exhorted unto is a love that is set on the particular, which is his own bride, like Christ’s bride, and not others. It would be inappropriate for a man to love everyone else whom he is not married to the same as the one to whom he is married, and Christ’s sacrificial love was for his own bride, as a man’s sacrificial love ought to be for his own bride.
The Sheep
In John 10:11-18, we see that Christ is the good shepherd. If we are staying with the way the Scripture answers this question, then another way is to say that Christ died for the sheep, for Christ Himself said,
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father. John 10:11–18
Here we see the same idea that is in Ephesians, the giving of himself; here it says the giving of his life, the laying down of his life, and the taking it up again. It is amazing here that he narrows it down to the fact that “he knows his sheep,” the ones that belong to him, and of them it is said, “(I) am known by my own.” It may be that it is overlooked, but Jesus is using language that recognizes that those who are his are his sheep, and those are the sheep he lays his life down for. It is these sheep, the ones that are his, who will hear his voice to be that one flock, under the one shepherd, much in the same way there is one bride with Christ as the one bridegroom. Following this, Christ, in responding to Jews who refused to believe in the good shepherd (John 10:22–30), says something that is astounding! He condemns them, saying,
“I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” John 10:22–30
Jesus, as he was in the midst of public teaching and proclamation told to the faces of those who would question his preaching that they do not believe because they are not his. Forgoing the nature of unbelief and how those who believe come to faith, as it is an important topic, but not the point of the answer the initial question is seeking, we must recognize that Christ Himself has furnished us with a category of those who are not his sheep in contrast to what he just said a few verses prior to having laid his life down for his sheep. His sheep are the ones who believe, who follow, and who are given eternal life, who will never perish, and he just declared to unbelievers that they are not those people. They are not those who hear the voice, whom he knows, who follow him, whom he grants eternal life, who will never perish, who will not be snatched out of his hand. The phrase, “as I have said to you,” is a startling condemnation.
Believers
One of the most controversial passages in determining who Christ came to save is John 3:16, but it is rarely referenced in light of the surrounding verses. It is important to keep passages in context to understand their intended meaning, so we will consider John 3:1–21.
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” – John 3:1–21
What is meant by “for God so loved the world” is a huge point of debate. Without going too deep into the languages, it is important to recognize that the word so here is not referring to how much, but is probably best understood from the Greek “in this manner.” Generally, other languages translate this more accurately, and the CSB/HCSB translates it “For God loved the world in this way.” The word ‘so’ in English can refer to how much/little or the manner of the love, but the Greek is straightforward, that it is the way in which God loved the world. Despite where you might land on what comes next in terms of loving the world, what that means, the following helps to understand what God did to demonstrate this manner of love. He sent his only Son so that all who believe in Him would not perish, but have eternal life. That he who believes in him would not be condemned, God sent His son as a demonstration of his love so that believers would not perish but have eternal life. So another biblical way of saying it is that Christ died for believers. This makes sense in light of the fact that it is only believers who do not perish, and only believers who have eternal life; all who believe will be reconciled to God, for it is the believers who are the sheep, and believers who are the church.
The Purchased
There are two outstanding references to being property of God, without leaning too heavily on the mere use of the possessive relationship seen in his bride or his sheep. Paul links being the church as being the purchased people of God, saying, “Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). We can clearly say that Christ died for those whom he purchased with his precious blood. Likewise, referring to the same activity, he says, “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Cor 6:19-20). There are two appeals here, but both are based on Christ’s purchase and payment. The latter is the appeal to live the sanctified life, for we are not our own, but we are owned by Christ. The former is clear in the sense that overseers are to be good stewards, good shepherds, good pastors, because it is not their church, not their bride, not their sheep, but Christ’s and they are to oversee his position as those who are responsible and have to give an account (Heb 13:17). It is not for no reason that Paul referred to himself as a slave (δουλος, commonly translated bondservant or servant) in some of his greetings (Rom 1:1; Phil 1:1; Titus 1:1). The word does not mean employee as we see it today, where a man can walk away if he is dissatisfied with the expectations of his employer, but human property. The root of this word is used more than 65 times in Paul’s epistles. Paul stated that if there were a people pleaser, he would not be a slave, property, purchased, of Christ (Gal 1:10), and of those who are called the Lord’s freedmen because they are no longer slaves to sin (1 Cor 7:22), but rather slaves to righteousness (Rom 6:15–23). Christians, the church, believers, and the sheep are all property of Christ Jesus purchased by His precious blood.
Adopted
Some have argued that everyone is a child of God, but how does that square up with the apostle John when he said,
He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. – John 1:11–13
To become a child of God, it must be the case that one was not previously a child of God. Those who receive Christ are those who believe. A curious aspect of this passage is that it is not man’s efforts that are considered how this comes about: “who were born, not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man.” In contrast, they are born of God. Additionally, it is the might, the power (as it is translated in the Revelation of John, Rev 9:19), that is given to those who receive him, those who believe, or the believers. Adoption is closely related to the new birth, and the power, it seems, is the Spirit. Later in John 3:9 where Nicodemus asks how these things can be, how being born again, since as he said in v.4 we we can’t be physically born a second time, Christ responds, saying, “The Spirit blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). The mystery of adoption, becoming a child of God, is a work of the Spirit, in contrast to our efforts, which is the point Christ is making to Nicodemus. You might ask what you contributed to your physical birth, and the answer, if we are being honest, is pain and resistance, discomfort in the bearing process, and if natural birth, even more so until the glorious moment where the parents rejoice, much like how heaven and earth rejoice when a sinner repents (Luke 15:7-10). Moreover, this adoption was always part of the plan, in accordance with His will (Eph 1:5), through the Spirit of adoption (Rom 8:14–17). Just like marriage is a picture of Christ and the church, Adoption is a picture of the Father making us his children according to His will.
The Chosen
Perhaps the most controversial way to refer to those whom Christ died for is the chosen. There is no denying our need to choose God, to choose to follow Jesus, to choose on this day whom we will serve, to choose to call upon the name of the Lord, so without denying any of these truths, we will look at how the bible speaks of Christ dying for his chosen. Before the passage is assessed, it is likely already apparent that this concept of choosing has already been hinted at. A shepherd chooses his sheep; the object purchased is chosen before the payment of blood is given; the bride is chosen before the wedding feast. If we say that God has the prerogative to choose, then the idea would be consistent with the other references to those for whom Christ died. So, sticking with our theme of using biblical language to answer the question of for whom Christ died, we will end with focusing on God’s prerogative of choice, his plan of redemption, for His glory. Paul writes to the Ephesians,
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. – Eph 1:1–14
It doesn’t seem that there is an overt need to go into detail how the chosen applies to the church, how it is according to His will, which is an essential aspect of choosing, that his counsel was internal, not as if he consulted us, for as he said to Job he has no need to counsel men (Job 38:1–5). There is an element that must be admitted in light of the fact that we recognize our own choosing of God, which is that we must recognize his prior choosing of us. We are a chosen priesthood (1 Peter 2:9) much like the people of Israel were the chose people of God amongst all the nations (Deuteronomy 7:6). The brothers, those who are beloved by God are chosen by Him (1 Thess 1:4), and in Paul’s admonition that we be clothed by compassion, it is on the basis of being God’s chosen people (Col 3:12). Christ says we are chosen to bear fruit (John 15:16), and God’s choice is not based on our inherent goodness, nor anything we contribute, he choses individuals because he freely chose to set his Love upon them (Deut 7:7–8), as it written in 2 Thess 2:13–14“But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Conclusion
Was this a comprehensive treatment of the topic? Clearly, it is not. Did it answer the questions of predestination, how God applies grace, and the order in which regeneration, faith, and a new nature are carried out? No. Those things were beyond the scope of what this short paper could accomplish, but it seems that if we are going to answer the question of for whom Christ died, we should feel comfortable recognizing the language of Scripture, and that should inform how we speak. We can just as easily say that Christ died for His bride, that is, the church, or that He laid his life down for the sheep, or that the Son was given by the Father for whoever will believe in Him, those who are adopted, and ultimately those who are chosen. Christ, the perfect Savior, accomplished this work of redemption, lost none whom the Father gave him, and saved perfectly whom he came to save. Therefore, we ought to preach repentance unto faith in the person and work of Christ Jesus, that in believing those who hear would have life in His name, become part of His church, under the protection of the good shepherd, and of one faith as believers. We preach the need to submit to Christ, to trust in his perfect work, that all who believe are indeed those who are chosen of God, adopted, His bride, while recognizing that His ways are beyond our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8–9).