Is substitutionary atonement the only biblical view?

Of course not. Is it a necessary, vital biblical view of the work of Christ? Of course it is. Anyone who can rightly see this will skirt safely away from most debates on the subject. That is, the either/or’s are wildly outnumbered by the both/and’s. Despite this the bulk of the arguments that I’ve seen against penal, substitutionary atonement consist of little more than arguments in favor of the Christus Victor view or the moral example view. The bulk of the arguments I’ve seen in defense of penal, substitutionary atonement consist of little more than arguing that if you give up penal, substitutionary atonement you give up the gospel. I say woot and huzzah to both arguments in what they affirm, and give two thumbs down to the arguments they deny.

Jesus suffered the wrath of the Father in our place. It pleased the Father to bruise Him (Isaiah 53:10) and it pleased the Son to do the will of the Father (Luke 22:42). The entire Old Testament sacrificial system is built on the concept of penal, substitutionary atonement. To deny this truth is to reveal a presuppositional bias against the plain teaching of the Bible. If Jesus didn’t suffer God’s just wrath for me then I will face God’s just wrath for me.

Jesus likewise triumphed over the forces of evil in His death for us. The devil, fool that he is, no doubt danced a jig when Jesus commended His spirit to the Father. Satan danced until he felt the heel of Jesus crush his head. In His resurrection Jesus, the first born of the new creation, began the process of making all things new, reversing the destruction of the fall. He planted the flag of the new heavens and the new earth as He stepped out of the tomb and into the Garden. We ought never to lose sight of this greatest of all victories.

Jesus also gave us an example of what it looks like to love our neighbor. His silence, like a lamb to the slaughter, His prayer that the Father forgive them for they knew not what they did, His refusal to speak on His own defense, these are all examples given for us. That said, as we follow Him, taking up our cross daily, walking the via Delarosa, we must be mindful that we are not able to drink the cup that He drank, that we cannot atone for others, needing atonement ourselves.

It may be that one of these tends to resonate more with you than others. If you tend to see yourself as a saint, the moral example will ring true. If you see yourself as a soldier, the Christus Victor view may sound like a clarion call to battle. If you see yourself as a sinner, then the penal, substitutionary atonement will be your balm. The truth is, however, that just as all three views of the atonement have merit, albeit non-exclusively, so to do all three views of ourselves have merit. We are saints, because He is our guide. We are soldiers, because He is our Captain. We are sinners, because He is our Redeemer.