What Christ Bought!

[Van]

Christ bought, paid the ransom, for all mankind, thus becoming the means of salvation for the whole world, 1 John 2:2. However, only when God credits our faith in Christ as righteousness and places us spiritually in Christ, do we receive the reconciliation provided by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Lets call this second transaction redemption. Thus mankind was bought with a price, but only those placed in Christ are redeemed

So for clarity's sake, "propitiation" = means of salvation = Christ.

Redemption refers to being spiritually transferred out of the realm of darkness, in Adam, and placed within Christ's spiritual body, His kingdom. In short to be redeemed is to be transferred into Him, our Redeemer.

Scripture tells us we are chosen through being set apart in Christ by the Spirit, and through or on the basis of faith in the truth. You can't have one without the other.

So Christ suffered and died to buy our opportunity for salvation, our means of reconciliation with God, when He paid the ransom for all humanity. But each of us individually must still be granted mercy by God alone in order to be chosen, He must credit our faith, as worthless as it may be, as righteousness, in order to choose us on the basis of faith in the truth.

 

[Van]

How does someone, lost and unregenerate, seek salvation in Christ? They put their faith fully in Christ, and not superficially, because the faith must be deeply rooted, and not here today and gone tomorrow. The full commitment also means Christ becomes our overriding priority, rather than just one of our priorities, along with our worldly treasures, whether relationships, or comfort, or security.

Last point, we not only need to believe in Christ, but also in the One who sent Him! Christ bought the opportunity of salvation for those who are exposed to the gospel and whose heart has not been hardened such that they cannot understand the gospel.

In order to "receive the reconciliation" we must believe fully and then only by the grace of God. The opportunity was bought with the blood of Christ, don't tread on it. Hebrews 10:29

 

[Van]

The opportunity purchased with His blood was for everyone in general, everyone who heard and understood the gospel, and not just for those whose faith God credits as righteousness.

2 Peter 2:1 NASB
But false prophets also appeared among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

 

[Martin Marprelate]

What did Christ buy?
First of all, He bought bought or purchased the Church of God. Acts 20:28. 'Therefore take heed to yourselves and all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased [NIV 'bought'] with His own blood.' Notice that the church is equated with the 'flock.' John 10:11. "I am the good shephered. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep." Vs. 26-29. "But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you......." Note that He does not say, "You are not My sheep because you do not believe." No one becomes Christ's sheep by believing; he believes because he is one of Christ's sheep, given to Him by the Father (Heb. 2:13b). "..... My sheep hear My voice, 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 [c.f. John 6:37, 39; 17:2, 24; 18:9], is greater than all...." Christ's flock are beloved of the Father and have had a kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world (Matt. 25:34).

He bought believers. 1 Cor. 6:20 (c.f. also 7:23). 'For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.' Whom is Paul addressing? Christians. 'To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ our Lord' (1:2. c.f. also vs. 4-9). If there was anyone in the church at Corinth who was not sanctified in Christ Jesus and calling on His name, Paul wasn't writing to him. If there are those anywhere who are not calling on the name of the Lord Jesus, Paul wasn't writing to them either.

That leaves us with 2 Peter 2:1, which @Van quoted in post #3. It is certainly a difficult text to square with the verses that I have given above. These people are certainly apostate and will bring destruction upon themselves. But Scripture cannot contradict Scripture. These false teachers were obviously not recipients of God's saving grace for they repudiated Christ. The broader context helps us. They said that they knew Him and the way of righteousness (vs. 20-22). They made it known that the Lord Jesus had bought them, but eventually they rejected Him and left the Christian community. 'They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us' (1 John 2:19). Hence their denial of Christ showed that they were not redeemed. Therefor Peter must have been speaking of their (false) profession rather than their actual state.

 

[Van]

What did Christ buy?
First of all, He bought bought or purchased the Church of God. Acts 20:28. 'Therefore take heed to yourselves and all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased [NIV 'bought'] with His own blood.' Notice that the church is equated with the 'flock.' John 10:11. "I am the good shephered. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep." Vs. 26-29. "But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you......." Note that He does not say, "You are not My sheep because you do not believe." No one becomes Christ's sheep by believing; he believes because he is one of Christ's sheep, given to Him by the Father (Heb. 2:13b). "..... My sheep hear My voice, 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 [c.f. John 6:37, 39; 17:2, 24; 18:9], is greater than all...." Christ's flock are beloved of the Father and have had a kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world (Matt. 25:34).

He bought believers. 1 Cor. 6:20 (c.f. also 7:23). 'For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.' Whom is Paul addressing? Christians. 'To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ our Lord' (1:2. c.f. also vs. 4-9). If there was anyone in the church at Corinth who was not sanctified in Christ Jesus and calling on His name, Paul wasn't writing to him. If there are those anywhere who are not calling on the name of the Lord Jesus, Paul wasn't writing to them either.

That leaves us with 2 Peter 2:1, which @Van quoted in post #3. It is certainly a difficult text to square with the verses that I have given above. These people are certainly apostate and will bring destruction upon themselves. But Scripture cannot contradict Scripture. These false teachers were obviously not recipients of God's saving grace for they repudiated Christ. The broader context helps us. They said that they knew Him and the way of righteousness (vs. 20-22). They made it known that the Lord Jesus had bought them, but eventually they rejected Him and left the Christian community. 'They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us' (1 John 2:19). Hence their denial of Christ showed that they were not redeemed. Therefor Peter must have been speaking of their (false) profession rather than their actual state.

There is absolutely no difficulty to square Christ died as a ransom for all, with Christ died for the church. The ransom for all includes the church.