Thorvald the Far-Traveled Viking from Iceland

During medieval times, it was widely believed and taught that a pilgrimage to Jerusalem was the only way to atone for serious sins—and by serious, I mean murder and rape and such like. There was lots of sinning, so there were lots of pilgrims. 

By the tenth century, many Norse pilgrims were coming [to Jerusalem] even though most of their countrymen were still pagans. “Most Scandinavian pilgrims liked to make a round tour, coming by sea through the Straits of Gibraltar and returning overland through Russia.” Like the Franks, the Norse converts were “very devoted to Christ if not to his commandments.” Among them was Thorvald the Far-Traveled, who came all the way from Iceland. Thorvald was a renowned Viking who had converted to Christianity and then “tried to preach the new faith to his countrymen in 981.” He undertook a pilgrimage in 990 seeking to atone for having killed two poets who had mocked his faith and another man who had criticized his preaching. Following his pilgrimage he devoted his missionary activities to Russia and died there, presumably without murdering any Russian pagans. 

Just one of the intriguing tidbits from history in God’s Battalions: The Case for the Crusades by Rodney Stark.

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful God doesn’t need us; I am thankful he doesn’t need anything. I am thankful that God who needs nothing provides everything for us. I am thankful he is independent, so we can depend on him. I am thankful he has life in himself, so he can give life to us, both physical and spiritual. I am thankful for God’s aseity.

I am thankful for

• strawberries in season.
• blue hydrangeas.
• fresh farm eggs.
• the son who raked and mowed the front yard.
• good gifts in the mail.
• long daylight hours.
• work done and work to do.
• babies in general and a few babies in particular.
• time to read.

Substitution and Participation

Quoting from Pierced for Our Transgressions: Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution by Steve Jeffery, Michael Ovey, Andrew Sach:

In the theology of the Bible generally and particularly in Paul’s writings, there is a sense in which believers are ‘caught’ up in the death of Jesus, such that his death becomes theirs. In Romans this emphasis comes to prominence in chapter 6, where we are said to have ‘died with Christ’ (Rom 6:8; cf. v. 2) and to have been ‘crucified with him’ (v. 6). A similar point is made elsewhere, for example, Colossians 2:20 and Galatians 2:20….

Some writers, however, have mistakenly supposed that this emphasis on what is often termed our ‘participation’ in Christ’s death excludes the idea of substitution. Or to use other terminology, they claim Christ’s death was a case of ‘inclusive place-taking’ (he shared in our experience), and this is incompatible with ‘exclusive place taking’ (Christ experienced something in order that we might not share it).

These writers are right to affirm the place of participation, but wrong to think that this displaces substitution. The two perspectives sit alongside each other in Scripture. Thus the emphasis in Romans 6:8 and Colossians 2:20 that we have ‘died with Christ’ comes together with the earlier affirmations in both letters that is was through ‘his blood’ (and not ours) that we have been justified and have peace with God (Rom. 3:25; 5:1, 9; Col. 1:20). Similarly, 1 Peter 4:1 does not overturn the substitutionary emphases of 1 Peter 2:24 and 3:18.

The atonement, like so many of God’s works, is multifaceted. (And even the word multi-faceted comes up short.) We of the pea brains must look from one direction at a time, and the temptation is to look from one direction only ever, so that we see the cut diamond as one sparkling pane of glass and nothing more. 

But there’s always more. Not substitution or participation, but both; not wrath or love, but both; not expiation or propitiation, but both; not Christus Victor or penal substitution, but both—and more. 

Don’t let flat doctrinal thinking keep you from embracing the diamond.