An Equal-Accessibility Deity1
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Does God Have Different Rules for Different People in Different Periods?
pdf
Dr. Paul Manuel—2007
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Does God Have Different Rules for Different People in Different Periods?
Dr. Paul Manuel—2007
Does God have different rules for different people in different periods of history? Does the way they receive salvation change as His plan unfolds? ...No. God is an "Equal-Accessibility Deity," in that believers, both Jews and non-Jews, come to God the same way.
The internal cleansing (purification of the soul) God requires to counter the debilitating effects of sin, He accomplished for Israel as He did for others throughout history. Moral purification is the same for all people in every period.
God the Father: Scripture often depicts God the Father on His throne in the heavenly court,8 surrounded by angelic beings. Because God is holy (Isa 6:3), any who would approach Him must first be cleansed from sin—justified.
The Heavenly Priest: The basis for such cleansing is and always has been the offering of the heavenly priest, "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29b), the atoning death of Christ which God established "before the foundation of the world" (1 Pet 1:20). On that basis, God "passed over the sins previously committed" (Rom 3:25), leaving their atonement for the day of Jesus' sacrifice. There has never been any other means of forgiveness and justification, temporary or otherwise.9
The Ancient Pre-Jewish Believer: To obtain justification, God does not demand an animal sacrifice or any other act.10 Abraham illustrated the only requirement when he "believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness" (Rom 4:3).11
The Jewish Believer B.C.: When God established Israel's sacrificial system, the requirement for justification did not change. David knew that "God credits righteousness apart from works" (Rom 4:6). Repentance (an expression of faith), not sacrifice, is what God requires to produce "a clean heart" (Ps 51:10). Then—and only then, after repentance—would David's offerings be acceptable and appropriate, for God "delight[s] in righteous sacrifices" (Ps 51:19).12
The Earthly Priest: When God chose to dwell in Israel's midst, He ordained the priesthood to ensure the purity of His place and His people. The sacrificial system they administered, though, was ceremonial (ritual/external) only, for "cleansing of the flesh" (Heb 9:13). God did not intend it to be soteriological (moral/internal) also, to "cleanse [the] conscience" (Heb 9:14). He had already made provision for the kind of purification that gains access to heaven with a different kind of sacrifice.13
The Jewish Believer A.D.: In the mind of God, Jesus' sacrifice pre-dated animal sacrifices and did not conflict with them, because they had a different function.14 Consequently, the cross did not interrupt them, and the sacrificial system continued to be a relevant institution until the destruction of the temple (almost forty years later). Paul, for example, recognized that Jesus' sacrifice did not replace animal sacrifices, because God designed them to accomplish different ends, and that those who entered the earthly sanctuary still needed external, ceremonial cleansing.15 In other words, animal sacrifices were not a temporary means of atonement until Jesus' advent, and their purpose was not to prefigure Jesus' death.16 Animal sacrifices were essential to maintaining the sanctity of the temple, but they were also limited to the temple. They purified the body but could not purify the heart. Jesus' sacrifice alone provides internal, soteriological cleansing.
Bear in mind that for countless millennia, from the creation of the world to the exodus from Egypt, there was no sacrificial system, no means of atonement (in the levitical sense). During that period, before God localized His presence in Jerusalem, sacrifices were solely expressions of devotion ([whole] burnt offerings). Later, the sacrificial system of the tabernacle/temple, when God eventually instituted it, was in effect for a relatively brief period, fewer than 900 years, the time of Israel's sojourn in the wilderness and residence in the land. During the Babylonian captivity, when there was no temple, there was no need for the kind of atonement animal sacrifices provided—which was external and ceremonial, a "cleansing of the flesh"—and an entire generation of God's people passed in exile without sacrifice. Nevertheless, internal (moral) purification was still necessary in order to know God intimately, and the means of that purification was still available, as it had always been, by grace through faith. After Israel returned to the land, rebuilt the sanctuary, and resumed the sacrifices, that system lasted for another 600 years, until the temple was again destroyed (40 years after Jesus' crucifixion). New Testament writers use animal sacrifices to illustrate in the earthly realm what Jesus' sacrifice accomplishes in the heavenly realm, but that is not the purpose of animal sacrifices (i.e., to be illustrative). They are necessary whenever God chooses to localize His presence among His people in the place of His choosing, as He did earlier, when the temple stood, and as He will do again, when the temple is rebuilt in the Messianic Age.17
The Modern Non-Jewish Believer: Like all those who have gone before, from the pre-Jewish believer to the Jewish believer after the cross, the modern gentile believer has the same opportunity to be cleansed from sin through the atonement of Jesus' death. Like all those who have gone before, the modern believer's access to justification and salvation depends on faith in God, not on animal sacrifices or any other activity.18
Summary: While only those who are ceremonially (externally and temporally) clean may enter God's earthly home, a privilege He gives primarily to Israel,19 only those who are soteriologically (internally and eternally) clean may enter God's heavenly home, an opportunity He extends to all.20 God has established one way of salvation for all people in all periods of history.21
For the Endnotes, see the pdf here.
- People have always had contact with Him through prayer (without the need of additional human mediation)2
- People have always been justified by faith apart from works.3
- The place of God (sanctuary) must be pure, and
- The people of God (Israelites) must be pure.
- They are temporal, effective only on the physical plane, specifically in the temple service, and
- They are temporary, effective only for a limited period, when the temple stands.
The internal cleansing (purification of the soul) God requires to counter the debilitating effects of sin, He accomplished for Israel as He did for others throughout history. Moral purification is the same for all people in every period.
- The motivation for salvation is always God's grace;
- The basis for salvation is always Jesus' death;
- The requirement for salvation is always man's faith;
- The object of faith is always (and ultimately) God the Father;5 but
- The content of faith varies.
Key Elements
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| Ezekiel's Vision by Raphael |
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| The Lamb of God |
The Ancient Pre-Jewish Believer: To obtain justification, God does not demand an animal sacrifice or any other act.10 Abraham illustrated the only requirement when he "believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness" (Rom 4:3).11
The Jewish Believer B.C.: When God established Israel's sacrificial system, the requirement for justification did not change. David knew that "God credits righteousness apart from works" (Rom 4:6). Repentance (an expression of faith), not sacrifice, is what God requires to produce "a clean heart" (Ps 51:10). Then—and only then, after repentance—would David's offerings be acceptable and appropriate, for God "delight[s] in righteous sacrifices" (Ps 51:19).12
The Earthly Priest: When God chose to dwell in Israel's midst, He ordained the priesthood to ensure the purity of His place and His people. The sacrificial system they administered, though, was ceremonial (ritual/external) only, for "cleansing of the flesh" (Heb 9:13). God did not intend it to be soteriological (moral/internal) also, to "cleanse [the] conscience" (Heb 9:14). He had already made provision for the kind of purification that gains access to heaven with a different kind of sacrifice.13
The Jewish Believer A.D.: In the mind of God, Jesus' sacrifice pre-dated animal sacrifices and did not conflict with them, because they had a different function.14 Consequently, the cross did not interrupt them, and the sacrificial system continued to be a relevant institution until the destruction of the temple (almost forty years later). Paul, for example, recognized that Jesus' sacrifice did not replace animal sacrifices, because God designed them to accomplish different ends, and that those who entered the earthly sanctuary still needed external, ceremonial cleansing.15 In other words, animal sacrifices were not a temporary means of atonement until Jesus' advent, and their purpose was not to prefigure Jesus' death.16 Animal sacrifices were essential to maintaining the sanctity of the temple, but they were also limited to the temple. They purified the body but could not purify the heart. Jesus' sacrifice alone provides internal, soteriological cleansing.
Bear in mind that for countless millennia, from the creation of the world to the exodus from Egypt, there was no sacrificial system, no means of atonement (in the levitical sense). During that period, before God localized His presence in Jerusalem, sacrifices were solely expressions of devotion ([whole] burnt offerings). Later, the sacrificial system of the tabernacle/temple, when God eventually instituted it, was in effect for a relatively brief period, fewer than 900 years, the time of Israel's sojourn in the wilderness and residence in the land. During the Babylonian captivity, when there was no temple, there was no need for the kind of atonement animal sacrifices provided—which was external and ceremonial, a "cleansing of the flesh"—and an entire generation of God's people passed in exile without sacrifice. Nevertheless, internal (moral) purification was still necessary in order to know God intimately, and the means of that purification was still available, as it had always been, by grace through faith. After Israel returned to the land, rebuilt the sanctuary, and resumed the sacrifices, that system lasted for another 600 years, until the temple was again destroyed (40 years after Jesus' crucifixion). New Testament writers use animal sacrifices to illustrate in the earthly realm what Jesus' sacrifice accomplishes in the heavenly realm, but that is not the purpose of animal sacrifices (i.e., to be illustrative). They are necessary whenever God chooses to localize His presence among His people in the place of His choosing, as He did earlier, when the temple stood, and as He will do again, when the temple is rebuilt in the Messianic Age.17
The Modern Non-Jewish Believer: Like all those who have gone before, from the pre-Jewish believer to the Jewish believer after the cross, the modern gentile believer has the same opportunity to be cleansed from sin through the atonement of Jesus' death. Like all those who have gone before, the modern believer's access to justification and salvation depends on faith in God, not on animal sacrifices or any other activity.18
Summary: While only those who are ceremonially (externally and temporally) clean may enter God's earthly home, a privilege He gives primarily to Israel,19 only those who are soteriologically (internally and eternally) clean may enter God's heavenly home, an opportunity He extends to all.20 God has established one way of salvation for all people in all periods of history.21
- The motivation for salvation is always God's grace;
- The basis for salvation is always Jesus' death;
- The requirement for salvation is always man's faith;
- The object of faith is always and ultimately God the Father; but
- The content of faith varies.
For the Endnotes, see the pdf here.
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Jim Skaggs