Chapter 19: Redemption

1. Introduction
   • The Doctrine of Redemption
     • The doctrine’s foundation lies in the fact that we have in Jesus a singular case where human acts are done by a divine person.
       • The divine Son of God, was born as man, grew to manhood, was a carpenter, rejoiced, suffered, and died (268-3).
       • If it were not God who suffered and died in Christ, then no one suffered and died for our sins, and we have not been redeemed, for there was no other person in Christ but the second Person of the Blessed Trinity (268-3).
     • The phrase “God died” sounds shocking, at first, for it is God who holds all things in existence at every moment. The following questions immediately come to mind (268-3):
       • The universe was created from nothing by God, and He holds it in existence at every moment. If God were dead for only an instant, would not everything return to what it came from: nothing? Would not the universe be annihilated?
       • The apparent problem is resolved by recalling that Christ has two natures, one human and one divine (269-1).
         • It was in His divine uncreated nature that He brought the universe into existence and holds it in existence.
         • It was in His human nature, a created thing itself, that He suffered and died for our sins.
       • Death is the separation of two created things, the body and soul, but there is neither body nor soul in the divine nature, only uncreated spirit.
         • Hence, the separation of body and soul in the death of Christ necessarily left His divine nature unaffected (269-1).
     • The phrase “God suffered” may sound even more perplexing than the phrase “God died,” but we need to notice that His suffering did not take place in the divine nature, for the divine nature is utterly impassible.
       • The fear and agony He experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane was real suffering, but the suffering took place in the human nature of Christ, not in the divine nature (296-2)
       • The person who experienced the suffering was the second Person of the Blessed Trinity, a divine Person, but the suffering itself took place in His human nature (296-2).
         • “The philosophers speak of a person as the center of attribution in a rational nature” (93-1).
         • “Whatever is done in a rational nature or suffered in a rational nature or [in] any way experienced in a rational nature is done or suffered or experienced by the person whose nature it is” (93-1).
       • We can hardly know at all what it means for a divine person to experience suffering in His human nature (269-2).
       • Yet, “there are momentary flashes of light, glimpses and glances, in which we half see it . . . [and this is fruitful] not for sanctity only, but for plain human consolation” (269-2).
2. A Necessarily Effective Act of Expiation
   • Human Suffering of Infinite Value
     • Because the Messiah was a man with a true human nature, He could offer a human act in expiation for human sin, an act of perfect selfless love to compensate for humanity’s self-love (269-3).
     • Because the Messiah was God, the human act He offered was of infinite value, and could more than satisfy for the sins of man (269-3).
   • His Death as the Necessary Act of Expiation
     • Since every moral act of the Messiah was of infinite value, why are we redeemed by His death, and not by some other of His infinitely valuable human acts?
     • In one sense the answer is clear: He came to teach the truth, and the truth (as well as its presenter) is always rejected by the ever-present spirit of the world.
       • In particular, He came to teach the Jews (270-2):
         • That He is God
         • That the Messiah’s kingdom would be in the world, but not of the world
         • That the Messiah’s kingdom would include Gentiles as full members
         • That the leaders of the Jews would fail to grasp the essentials of their own religion
     • Barring a miraculous mass conversion to His teaching, His execution would be the natural result, and it would be fitting that this greatest of sacrifices would serve as the act of Redemption (270-2).
       • “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (Jn 15:13).
     • However, God was under no compulsion. He could have brought about our redemption in some other way. So, why did the divine plan include the death of the Redeemer?
     • Two answers immediately come to mind:
       • “Nothing could show the love of God so overpoweringly as His willingness to die for us” (270-4).
       • “Nothing could show the horror of sin so clearly as that it needed His death to expiate it” (270-4).
     • However, these answers are only valid if there is something in the nature of sin that required the death of the Redeemer, and this for two reasons:
       • First, the horror of Calvary would have exaggerated the horror of sin, rather than show it for what it really is (270-4).
       • Second, there “would be something profoundly unsatisfying in the notion of God‘s showing His love for us by a needless death” (270-4).
       • Hence, “there must certainly have been something in what Our Lord had to do which made His dying the best way to do it” (270-4).
   • Two Elements Necessitated His Death: Perfection and Glorification
     • First element: We find one of the two elements in the book of Hebrews (271-1):
       • “Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him” (Heb 5:8-9).
     • This is not to say that there was any disobedience in Him; there could not have been since He was God (271-2).
     • However, His obedience, prior to His death, lacked the perfection (i.e., completion) that can be had by having the actual experience of dying as an act of obedience, giving His obedience a “new and ultimate dimension” (271-2).
       • Notice that the merit of a virtuous act is relative to the act’s degree of difficulty and to the degree of charity in the intention of the one who carries out the act.
       • For this reason, the perfection of obedience can only be had when the instance of obedience presents the greatest difficulty, and the act is carried out with perfect charity in the intention.
         • The most difficult thing for human nature to face is death, for body and soul were made for one another, and God’s plan for man was that the two would never be separated. Hence, the soul has an intense aversion to death, an intense reluctance to being separated from the body.
       • Recall that there is no greater act of charity than for a man to lay down His life for His friends, as mentioned above (Jn 15:13).
       • Consequently, in the act of dying for all of mankind, according to the intention of His Father’s will, He exercises the perfection of obedience in the perfection of charity by way of His human nature.
         • In this we have the highest degree of perfection that is possible for a human (i.e., moral) act. Thus, it was through this most perfect of human acts that He became the source of our salvation.
     • Second element: We find the other element in the Gospel of John (271-3).
       • “He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.’ Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (Jn 7:38-39).
       • As we saw in the previous chapter, the glorification of Jesus comes about through His crucifixion and death (see Jn 12:27-28, 17:1, 21:18-19, Lk 24:26, Heb 2:9).
         • Note that this is a glorification before God and not before man. As far as man is concerned, the crucifixion of Jesus was an extreme humiliation, but in God’s eyes it was the ultimate glorification.
           • “For the wisdom of this world is folly with God” (1 Cor 3:19).
           • “What is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Lk 16:15).
       • Hence, the coming of the Holy Spirit was contingent upon the Passion and Death of Jesus, which brought about His glorification.
         • Note that “Jesus’ first action after the Resurrection was to breathe on the Apostles and say, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’” (271-3; Jn 20:22).
       • “In plain words, without the sufferings [that provided the opportunity for His most perfect act of obedience and charity] He could not have been the source of our salvation” (273-3).
   • The First Beneficiary of the Redeeming Sacrifice
     • “Jesus Himself . . . was the first beneficiary of His own redeeming sacrifice,” for he could now be the spiritual head of a reconciled human race, as Adam, in a lower order, is the physical (biological) head, of the human race (271-4).
     • Reborn with Christ, through Baptism, “we are united with His divinity, indwelt by Father [Son] and Holy Spirit. This is Redemption” (271-4).
3. The Effects of Jesus’ Sacrifice:
   • It is Finished
     • “After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the scripture), ‘I thirst.’ . . . When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, ‘It is finished’; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (Jn 19:30).
       • The completion of one thing sometimes ushers in the beginning of another thing (272-4).
         • For example, the completion of pregnancy is the beginning of life outside the womb for the child.
       • Sheed writes: “Something was completed. But something was beginning, too, and the something that was beginning . . . [was ] something with vast labor and anguish and the possibility of failure in it for men, and with work still for Christ to do” (272-4).
         • Sheed does not elaborate on this in this chapter. He is referring to the mission of the Church, which we will be discussed in the following chapters.
     • When Jesus said, “It is finished,” He was referring to the Redemption of the human race (273-2).
       • Note that “finished” means accomplished, completed, fulfilled, perfected, consummated.
   • His Redemptive Act Was Primarily Concerned with Three Things:
     • First, as a result of Adam’s sin, the human race lost its sonship with God, with the result that heaven was closed to mankind. Adam’s rejection of God created an infinite breach between God and man that finite man could not repair (273-2).
       • Following this life, there are only two terminal states: heaven and hell. With heaven closed, hell was the only option left open for us, apart from the possibility of God’s intervention.
         • “One man’s trespass led to condemnation for all men” (Rom 5:18).
     • Second, Adam’s sin incurred an infinite debt to justice for the human race. This was a debt that finite man could not repay
       • Note that in this chapter Sheed does not mention the infinite debt to justice as one of the elements the Redemption was primarily concerned with. He does mention it as something distinct from the infinite breach on pages 198 and 240.
         • The healing of the breach is certainly contingent on payment of the infinite debt, since the act that indebted man is the act that created the breach (198-2).
       • See the excursus below, “The Infinite Breach and the Infinite Debt,” for a review of these two effects of Adam’s sin.
     • Third, “The Devil had secured some kind of princedom over Adam’s race, so that he [i.e., the Devil] is called the Prince of the World. His princedom carried no legal rights but vast power” (273-2).
       • The Devil’s princedom was not something taken from man, it was something freely given away by Adam.
       • The Devil became the “lord of the world” in the way that alcohol can become the lord of a man, or, as Scripture says, for those who are “enemies of the cross of Christ . . . their god [i.e., lord] is the belly” (204-2, Phil 3:18-19).
         • “Adam . . . incurred . . . captivity under [the Devil’s] power” (Trent, Session V, Decree Concerning Original Sin).
         • “The Devil possesses a certain dominion over mankind by reason of Adam’s sin” (De fide) (Ott, 121).
         • “Christ designates the Devil as ‘the prince of this world’ (Jn 12:31, 14:30). St. Paul calls him ‘the god of this world’ (2 Cor. 4:4)” (Ott, 121)
       • Adam’s sin placed the “kingdom” of the human race in a state of chaos, due to the loss of integrity and its four attendant freedoms. As such, man’s kingdom could effectively do battle with Satan and his demons.
         • This disadvantage would be addressed when Jesus commissioned the Apostles for their mission to the world, as we will see in a later chapter (see Mt 28:18-20).
     • In summary, the principal effects of the Redemption are the payment of the infinite debt incurred by Adam’s sin, the healing of the breach between God and man, and the destruction of the Devil’s princedom over man: “This fundamentally is the redemption” (273-2).
       • “While we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Rom 5:10).
       • “You were ransomed . . . with the precious blood of Christ” (1 Pt 1:18-19).
       • “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 Jn 3:8, RSV)
         • “If the Son of God was revealed to us, it was so that he might undo what the devil had done” (1 Jn 3:8, Knox).
4. Excursus: The Infinite Breach and the Infinite Debt
   • The Two-Fold Problem Created by Adam’s Sin:
     • Adam’s sin was an act by which he rejected God for himself and for the human race. Thus, his sin resulted in an infinite breach between God and mankind, and created an infinite debt to justice for mankind.
       • “And the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them’ (1 Samuel 8:7).
   • The Infinite Breach between God and Man
     • At the time of Adam’s creation, God endowed him with a relationship by which he was an adopted son of God. As head of the human race, Adam’s relationship with God was also the relationship between God and mankind.
     • God commanded Adam not to eat “of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”
       • “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die’” (Gen 2:16-17).
     • Clearly, a violation of this command would constitute a grave offense, a mortal sin, because the punishment attached to the command’s violation is itself grave: “you shall die.”
     • When tempted, Adam chose to eat the forbidden fruit, thus, placing his finite autonomy above the infinite sovereignty of God. In this patently absurd and arrogant act of self-assertion against God, Adam spurned his creator, thereby turning away from his last end.
       • “Mortal sin is a turning away from our last end [i.e., God], is simply against the law, and is in itself irreparable” (Garrigou-Lagrange, Reality, 290).
     • To turn away from something is to no longer have a relationship with that thing, as we see in Scripture:
       • “O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you shall be put to shame; those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living water” (Jer 17:13; the same concept of “turning away” is stated in various ways in many other verses, such as Prv 3:7, 4:14-15; Ez 14:6, Dn 9:16, 2 Ti 4:4; 1 Pt 3:11).
     • If that from which one has turned away is infinite, the loss incurred is also infinite. Hence, in turning away from God, Adam, the representative man, lost for the human race the relationship between God and man with which he had originally been endowed; thus, Adam created an infinite breach between God and the human race.
       • “In so far as sin consists in turning away from something, its corresponding punishment is the pain of loss, which also is infinite, because it is the loss of the infinite good, i.e., God” (Summa I of II, q. 87, a. 4).
   • Man’s Infinite Debt to Justice
     • We know empirically that reality is ordered extraordinarily well. Now, order is contingent upon law, for without law there is only chaos. It follows, therefore, that law is the foundation of reality.
       • “God is not a God of confusion” (1 Cor 14:33).
     • For this reason, any act that is inconsistent with reality is an act of lawlessness, and, as Scripture tells us, acts of lawlessness are sins and they are contrary to justice.
       • “Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness” (1 Jn 3:4).
       • “Every sin, inasmuch as it implies the disorder of a mind not subject to God, may be called injustice, as being contrary to the aforesaid justice, according to 1 Jn. 3:4. . . . And thus the removal of any sin is called the justification of the ungodly” (Summa I of II, q. 113, a. 1, ad. 1).
     • Accordingly, sin creates a debt to justice; the size of the debt is commensurate with the degree of the offense. When the sin is a matter of turning away from our last end, the debt to justice is infinite.
       • “A sin [involving grave matter] committed against God [i.e., a turning away from our last end] has a kind of infinity from the infinity of the Divine majesty, because the greater the person we offend the more grievous the offense” (Summa III, q. 1, a. 2, ad 2).
       • When “turning away from the immutable good, which is infinite . . . sin is infinite” (Summa I of II, q. 87, a. 4)
       • “To repair this disorder [i.e., of Adam’s sin], an act of love of God of infinite value was necessary” (Garrigou-Lagrange, Our Savior and His Love for Us, 199).
     • It follows that, as head of the human race, Adam’s sin, by which he turned away from his last end, created for mankind an infinite debt to justice.
   • The Healing of the Breach
     • The healing of the breach is certainly contingent on payment of the infinite debt, since the act that indebted man is the act that created the breach (198-2).
     • In order for the healing of the breach to be brought about, it was necessary that the infinite debt to justice be paid, for man was in a state of injustice, and injustice is contrary to the nature of God. Since there is no commonality between justice and injustice, there could be no oneness between God and man unless man was first returned to a state of justice.
5. Jesus’ Preoccupation with the Devil
   • God Takes the Devil Seriously
     • “[It is] foreign to our habits of thought to attach any real importance to the Devil . . . But this is a defect in our mental habits. It can never be intelligent to take lightly anything that God takes seriously” (273-3).
       • From chapter 12: It is a pity that man is much more aware of the lower world than the higher world. Angels from the higher world (devils) can tempt him and insects from the lower world can bite him, but man is, unfortunately, more concerned about insects than the devils who can lead him to eternal damnation (164-1).
     • We see the seriousness with which God takes the Devil in the promise of a Redeemer that was spoken to the Devil almost immediately after Adam sinned. The promise conveyed the message that God would win a definitive victory over the Devil.
       • “And I will establish a feud between thee and the woman, between thy offspring and hers; she is to crush thy head, while thou dost lie in ambush at her heels” (Gen 3:15, Knox).
   • Jesus’ Pre-occupation with the Devil as His Hour Drew Near
     • Jesus was “intensely preoccupied” with the aspect of the overthrow of the Devil, as His “hour” drew near (273-4).
       • Early in Passion Week:
         • “Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast out” (Jn 12:31).
       • At the Last Supper:
         • “I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me” (Jn 14:30).
         • “The prince of this world is already judged [i.e., condemned]” (Jn 16:11, DR)
     • “[Perhaps this preoccupation with the Devil was] because He was restoring the order of reality against which Satan is the great protest, so that Satan’s power was ranged against Him at the peak of intensity” (274-1).
     • Or, perhaps He was making it clear to the Apostles that the primary opponent in their ministry would be the Devil, not man. If so, they got the message:
       • “Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pt 5:8).
       • “For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph 6:12).
     • Ironically, Christ’s redemptive sacrifice was precipitated by the Devil himself, for it was he who set off the final chain of events that resulted in his own overthrow (274-1):
       • “The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.”. . . “Then after [taking] the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, ‘What you are going to do, do quickly” (Jn 13:2, 27).
     • “It is some consolation to us to know that an enemy of intellect so powerful is not always well informed” and does not always draw the right conclusions from his observations (274-1).
       • “The unspiritual man does not receive the gifts of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor 2:14).
       • This also shows us that the Devil did not know that Jesus was God, for the Devil certainly had the intelligence to know that he could not prevail over God in anything:
         • “Mary’s virginity was hidden from the prince of this world; so was her child-bearing, and so was the death of the Lord. All these trumpet-tongued secrets were brought to pass in the deep silence of God” (Ignatius of Antioch, “To the Ephesians,” par. 19).
6. The Healing of the Breach between God and Man
   • Satan’s Overthrow Is Incidental
     • “The overthrow of Satan’s princedom is only incidental to the healing of the breach between the race and God” (274-2).
       • Sheed doesn’t elaborate on why he says Satan’s overthrow is incidental. Perhaps he means the following.
       • The primary aspect of the Devil’s princedom over man is that, heaven being closed, there was no place for man to go after death except hell.
         • Hence, the Devil, in a sense, reigned over mankind in that all of mankind would be his future subjects, barring an intervention by God.
     • The healing of the infinite breach and payment of the infinite debt opened the way to heaven for all mankind. Hence, the overthrow of Satan’s princedom was a “side effect” of Jesus’ redemptive act, and in this sense it can be seen as incidental.
   • Redemption for the Entire Human Race
     • What Jesus did in His redemptive act was done for the entire race, as we hear from John the Baptist (274-2):
       • “He saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (Jn 1:29).
         • Note the singular “sin.” It can be understood to mean both Original Sin, and, as a collective noun, all of the sins of mankind.
         • In the liturgy of the Mass we use “sins” to refer to the latter meaning.
           • Gloria: “You take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us”
           • Agnus Dei: Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us”
           • Communion invitation: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world”
     • “There was a sin of the world, and Christ died to destroy it” (274-2).
       • “At the end of ages, he hath appeared for the destruction of sin, by the sacrifice of himself” (Heb 9:26 DR).
     • As a result of His sacrifice, heaven was once again open to man (though not guaranteed to man), a man was enthroned where no man had ever been, and the man enthroned had gone to prepare a place for us (274-2).
       • “In my Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?” (Jn 14:2).
7. The Representative Men: Adam, Christ
   • The Superior Headship of Christ
     • The sin of the race originating in the representative man, Adam, was taken away by the new representative man, Christ (274-3).
       • “For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Cor 15:21).
     • “Each is our representative because of a real relation of us to him.” What is that relationship? (275-2).
     • Regarding Adam:
       • In the physical (biological) order, the human race is one family due to the relationship of each member to Adam and, through Adam, all the members are related to one another (275-2).
         • “[God] made from one [man] every nation of men to live on all the face of the earth” (Acts 17:26).
       • Because of this physical solidarity, our fate was involved in Adam’s in the physical (material) order (275-2).
       • Thus, Adam is the representative man in the physical order.
     • Regarding Christ:
       • He is entitled to act for us because of His double title of Son of God and Son of Man (275-2):
         • First, as the Son of God, He is the God by whom and in whose image man was created (275-2).
         • Second, as the Son of Man, He is the perfect man, so that where Adam was the first man in time, Christ is the “first man in value” (perhaps it would be better to say that Christ is first in everything but order of birth). Adam is the biological head of the race; Christ is its moral head (275-2).
           • “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the Church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent” (Col 1:17-18).
           • “By His Incarnation, He, the Son of God, has in a certain way united Himself with each man” (“Gaudium et Spes,” # 22).
     • “Adam represents humanity in that all of us come from him, Christ [represents humanity] in that there is no element of mind and will in any of us (Adam included) that is not better and richer and completer [sic] in Him” (275-2).
       • Now, the head of any organization is, ideally, the one most fit to be the head. In the criteria for headship, the timing of physical origin is of little, if any, importance.
       • In regard to headship of the human race, Christ is indisputably the most fit, for He existed before time began, He is a priest forever, He is a king whose kingdom is without end, He is the first-born of the dead and he is like us in every way except sin.
         • “Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am’” (Jn 8:58).
         • “O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days” (Mi 5:2).
         • He is “a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”” (Heb 7:17).
         • “He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there will be no end.”” (Lk 1:33).
         • “He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent” (Col 1:18).
         • “For we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb 4:15).
     • As the moral head of all mankind, “His act in compensation of Adam’s [act] is available for all men” (275-2).
     • Consequently, as a result of the superior headship of Christ, the barrier erected between God and man by Adam’s sin has been destroyed. “There is no longer a sin of the race to stand between God and man” (275-2).
   • Our Participation in Christ’s Headship
     • It is clear that Christ’s headship of the race is vastly superior to that of Adam’s, but it may not be so clear that we have a “real” participation in His headship, whereas it is clear we have a participation in the headship of Adam.
     • To see that we have a real participation in Christ’s headship, we need to recognize that our relationships to Adam and Christ are fundamentally different; one is physical, the other is spiritual.
     • Because the relationships are of different orders, there is a difference in the way we share in their acts; that difference is based on the way in which we are united to each (275-3).
     • “We fell in Adam inasmuch as we are united with him; we are restored in Christ inasmuch as we are united with Him” (275-3).
       • Adam’s act becomes our act because we are unavoidably united with him through biological descent (275-3).
       • On the other hand, Christ’s act becomes ours only when we become united with Him (275-3).
     • We are unavoidably incorporated with Adam through our birth (actually, conception); we are incorporated with Christ through re-birth.
       • “The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven” (1 Cor 15:47-48).
       • “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God’” (Jn 3:3).
     • “We fell as members of humanity stemming from Adam; we are restored as members of a new humanity stemming from Christ” (276-1).
   • Summary: What Was Completed on Calvary?
     • Complete satisfaction was made for the sin of the human race (276-2).
     • The debt incurred by Adam’s sin was fully paid, and even more than fully paid, since the sacrifice offered was of infinite value.
     • The breach between God and man was healed. The healing was done completely through one expiatory act done one time for all of mankind (276-2).
       • “And by [His will to do the Father’s will] we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Heb 10:10).
         • “Once for all”: this means one fully satisfying sacrifice offered for all of mankind, rather than last of a series of sacrifices (i.e., once and for all).
     • Because His sacrificial offering was of infinite value, due to it being offered by an infinite Person, He more than satisfied for the sin of the race. This super satisfaction “merited for all mankind an elevation to sonship of God (276-2).
     • The prince of this world was cast out.
       • “Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast out” (Jn 12:31, 14:30).
8. Christ Died for All; Not All Will Be Saved
   • The Human Race Has Been Definitively Redeemed
     • Though heaven was opened for all, we cannot assume that all will attain heaven (276-3).
     • Satan has been defeated in his quest for the condemnation of the race. But he has not been defeated in his quest for the condemnation of individuals (276-3).
       • In other words, salvation of the individual does not automatically follow upon the redemption of the race (276-3).
       • No one enters heaven apart from the atoning sacrifice offered by Christ, and no one enters heaven simply because of the sacrifice of Christ (276-3).
     • “His sacrifice availed both for the redemption of the race – satisfying for sin and meriting restoration – and for the salvation of the individual, but in different ways” (277-1).
       • It effected (brought about without exception) the redemption of the race (277-1).
       • It made possible the redemption of the individual (277-1).
       • “Redemption was won for all on Calvary; it is made actual in each person at baptism” (314-4).
       • A note on the distinction between redemption and salvation.
         • A hard and fast line cannot be drawn between the two, for their meanings overlap. Nevertheless, in Sheed’s opinion, Scripture tends to use redemption to mean what Christ did for the race and salvation to mean what He does for the individual (277-2).
     • The sacrifice on Calvary was a propitiation not only for the sin of the race, but also for all the personal sins of mankind (277-3).
       • “Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect . . . to make expiation for the sins of the people” (Heb 2:17).
       • “He is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 Jn 2:2).
       • “[He] has freed us from our sins by his blood” (Rev 1:5).
     • The redemption of the race was entirely His work and entirely accomplished. However, the salvation of the individual depends on the cooperation of the individual. This is why the phrasing in Scripture sometimes speaks of Christ having died for all and at other times as having died for some (277-3).
       • Redemption (i.e., salvation from unconditional condemnation) is unconditional:
         • “And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (2 Cor 5:15).
         • “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous” (1 Pt 3:18).
       • Salvation (i.e., beatitude, the Beatific Vision) is conditional:
         • “You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved” (Mt 10:22).
         • “We are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Rom 8:16-17).
         • “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church” (Col 1:24).
         • “Being made perfect He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Heb 5:9).
     • Though we cannot expect that all will be saved, “nothing must dim our realization of the truth that He died for all without exception” (277-3).
       • “[God, our savior] desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim 2:4).
       • “The Lord is not slow about his promise as some count slowness, but is forbearing toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Pet 3:9).
       • “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ez 18:23).
       • “As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ez 33:11).
   • The Salvation of Individuals is Conditional
     • “Though He died for all, yet not all receive the benefit of His death, but those only unto whom the merit of His passion is communicated” (Council of Trent VI:2)
     • The “merit of His passion” is communicated through sanctifying grace; hence, our salvation depends upon our receiving the supernatural life in Baptism, restoring it through the sacrament of Penance, when necessary, and dying with this supernatural life in our soul (278-2).
       • We do not receive the supernatural life automatically by being born, for in birth we are one with Adam, receiving as our inheritance from him that which he earned for us: a state of condemnation (278-2).
       • Rather, we receive the supernatural life by being re-born in Christ through Baptism and, thus, united to Him (278-2).
         • “‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God’” (Jn 3:5).
       • If we are not re-born in Him, or if we are born in Him but lose the supernatural life through mortal sin and die without it, we will not be saved (278-2).
     • St. Paul distinguishes between Christ’s death on Calvary (redemption) and our salvation by that death:
       • “God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us [redemption] so that whether we wake [justification] or sleep [salvation, beatitude] we might live with him” (1 Thes 5:9-10).
     • St. Paul also shows that not only is there “something to be done by us for our salvation, but that Christ’s own part in our salvation is not confined to His death on Calvary”: (278-3).
       • “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life” (Rom 5:10).
     • The death of Christ made our salvation possible; His living in us operates to make it actual in two ways (278-3):
       • First, by interceding before the Father for all who are now or will be living in this world.
       • Second, by His indwelling presence in our souls, which will be discussed in chapter 22.
     • “Christ our Lord is ever in the presence of His Father in that sacred humanity which He offered once for all upon Calvary: and by that continuing presence before God of that which was offered for us, our own continuance in the way of salvation is made possible” (279-1).
       • “He sits, now, at the right hand of God, annihilating death, to make us heirs of eternal life” (1 Pt 3:22 Knox).
         • The “annihilating death” phrase is found in the Vulgate but not the Greek manuscripts.
         • “[He] has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him” (1 Pt 3:22).
9. Excursus: He Intercedes for Us at the Right Hand of the Father
   • His Entry into Jerusalem
     • He entered Jerusalem riding on an ass, as foreshadowed by Solomon, son of King David (1 Kings 1:32-40), in order to take Possession of His Kingdom.
       • “So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’” (Jn 12:13). “And when he entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?”” (Mt 21:10).
       • “Pilate entered the praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ . . . Jesus answered, ‘My kingship is not of this world’ . . . Pilate said to him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice’” (Jn 18:33, 36, 37).
   • Crowned and Anointed by His Passion
     • He took possession of His Kingdom, not by force, but by the suffering of His Sacred Passion, and in His suffering He won the Crown and the right to intercede for us.
       • “There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them” (Jn 19:18).
       • “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34).
       • “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (Lk 23:24).
       • “Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek . . . “king of Salem [and] priest of the Most High God” (Heb 5:8-10; 7:1).
   • Seated at the Right Hand of the Father
     • Jesus ascended into heaven and took His place at the right hand of the Father. As the Son of God, He is eternally with the Father, but now that He has ascended into heaven He appears before the Father as the Son of Man:
       • “So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God” (Mk 16:19).
       • “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:56).
       • “[He] has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him” (1 Pt 3:22).
   • Inauguration of His Kingdom
     • “Being seated at the Father’s right hand signifies the inauguration of the Messiah’s kingdom,” according to the prophecy of Daniel (CCC 664):
       • “To him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed” (Dan 7:14).
       • “And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, ‘Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down” (Rev 12:10).
   • His Sacred Wounds
     • The scars of His Sacred Passion remain with Him for all time as an everlasting witness to His salvific act.
       • “And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, [looking] as though it had been slain” (Rev 5:6).
       • “When He pleads for us with the Father, He may always show the manner of death He endured for us [by the marks in His body]” (Summa III, q. 54, a.4).
   • Intercession of Our King and High Priest
     • As King and High Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and our one mediator, intercedes for us without end.
       • “There is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5).
       • “Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 6:20).
       • “The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently he is able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Heb 7:23-25).
   • Christ’s Intercession and the Heavenly Liturgy
     • His intercession continues unceasingly in the everlasting heavenly liturgy.
       • “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent [the heavenly sanctuary] . . . he entered once for all into the Holy Place” (Heb 9:11-12).
       • “Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten thee’; as he says also in another place, ‘Thou art a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek’” (Heb 5:5-6).
       • “‘As High Priest of the good things to come’ he is the center and the principal actor of the liturgy that honors the Father in heaven” (CCC 662, Heb 9:11, cf Rev 4:6-11)
       • “And lo, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne! And he who sat there appeared like jasper and carnelian, and round the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald. . . . And before the throne there is as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And round the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all round and within, and day and night they never cease to sing, ‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!’ And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, singing, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you did create all things” (Rev 4:2-3, 6-11).
   • Heaven and Earth United in Liturgy
     • The Book of Revelation is largely a book describing the heavenly liturgy in symbolic language. It interleaves the heavenly and the earthly liturgy, for they are the same thing. The earthly liturgy is a participation in the heavenly liturgy.
       • “And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all therein, saying, ‘To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might for ever and ever!’” (Rev 5:13).
     • The union of heavenly and earthly liturgies flows from the union of Christ and His Bride:
       • “Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready” (Rev 19:7).
       • “Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues, and spoke to me, saying, ‘Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb’” (Rev 21:9).
     • His bride is the Church, which is His body, and He is its head:
       • “The husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior” (Eph 5:23).
       • “He is the head of the body, the church” (Col 1:18).
   • He Is Our Only Door to the Heavenly Realities
     • We have access to the Father only through Christ:
       • “So Jesus again said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. . . . If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. . . . I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep’” (Jn 10:7, 9-11).
       • “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me’” (Jn 14:6).
     • More specifically, it is His sacred humanity by which we have that access:
       • “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way which he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh” (Heb 10:19-20).