Christ Obtained Salvation for Himself to Obtain it for Us

• God’s plan of salvation involved sending his son Jesus to be our representative as a mortal man with the same mortal sinful nature as us in need of salvation himself. The purpose of this was to provide a way out of this mortal death state, both for himself and for his brethren, through death and subsequent resurrection.

• As our representative, Christ was himself saved from mortality and raised to immortality through his sacrifice for us, so that we can be saved from sin and death in and through him by faith.

  Jesus obtained eternal redemption “through his own blood” for himself and us, Hebrews 9:12, 13:20. Redemption is a metaphorical figure of speech used to describe God’s deliverance of salvation. In Hebrews 9:12 (KJV), the words “for us” are not in the original Greek text. The Greek verb is in the middle voice, signifying a unique action where one performs something upon oneself, “having obtained in himself eternal redemption.” The purpose of Jesus’ sacrifice was to obtain eternal redemption (deliverance) for us, and he did so by obtaining it in and for himself as our representative.

• The “holy place” in Hebrews 9:12 symbolises heaven which Jesus could only enter after being made immortal by God, Hebrews 9:24. Jesus is specifically said to have entered the “holy place” “by means of his own blood”, which signifies that the literal fulfilment of the symbolism is that it was through the blood of his sacrifice that Jesus obtained eternal redemption (deliverance) for himself in order to obtain it for us.

  As our representative, Jesus has opened up the way of salvation from sin and death to immortality for those who have “faith in his blood”. Symbolically, we also can enter the holy place (ie God’s salvation of immortality) “by the blood of Jesus” because he opened a new and living way for us by opening the way through the curtain (the veil) that blocked the way, which represents his flesh or mortal human nature, Hebrews 10:19-23, Matthew 27:50-52, Mark 15:37-38.

  Hebrews 9:12, 24, 13:20, 2:9, 5:7-9, 4:14-15, 12:2, Romans 1:1-4, 5:17-19, 6:9, 8:17, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15, Philippians 2:5-9, 1 Peter 2:24.

Christ Obtained Redemption Through His Own Blood by Faith

• Jesus was sinless and needed no reconciliation to God or forgiveness through his sacrifice as we do, but he did need saving from his mortal human nature with its impulses and tendencies to sin. God redeemed and saved Jesus from mortality “through his own blood” (Hebrews 9:12, 13:20) by raising him from the dead and giving him immortality on the basis of his “faith in his blood” Romans 3:25 (KJV).

Jesus’ shed blood was efficacious to redeem or save him from mortal human nature through his “faith in his blood”, Romans 3:25, viz his faith in the principles of God’s righteousness and the condemnation of sin that the sacrificial shedding of his own blood demonstrated.

Jesus’ faith in the principles of God’s righteousness and the condemnation of sin that his sacrifice demonstrated, was evident in his life of perfect righteousness and obedience of faith, even unto the death of the cross. His sacrificial death was the literal exhibition of his faith in the righteousness of God and the condemnation of sin in himself. His “faith in his blood” is why God could righteously raise him from the dead to immortality, Romans 1:1-6, 5:19, 16:25-27, Acts 2:24, Philippians 2:8.

• Jesus’ baptism was an act of identification in faith with his sacrifice when he would completely “fulfil all righteousness” by demonstrating God’s righteousness to the fullest extent in himself, Matthew 3:15, Luke 12:50, Romans 3:25-26. Jesus exhibited his faith in the principles of God’s righteousness and the condemnation of sin demonstrated in his sacrifice literally in himself, whereas we do so symbolically by identification in faith by baptism.

Jesus’ obedience of faith unto the death of the cross was his willing submission to his Father’s will that salvation from sin and death for mortal mankind, including himself as our representative, is only available on the basis of faith and identification in the principles of God’s righteousness and the condemnation of sin as demonstrated in his sacrifice. As our representative and forerunner, Jesus went through this process himself literally whereas we go through it symbolically in baptism.

Hebrews 9:12, 24, 13:20, 2:9, 5:7-9, 4:14-15, 12:2, Romans 1:1-4, 5:17-19, 6:9, 8:17, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15, Philippians 2:5-9, 1 Peter 2:24.

Christ Was Included in His Sacrifice

• Christ himself was included in the sacrificial work which he did “for us”. It was for himself that it might be for us, for how otherwise could we obtain redemption in him as our representative if he had not first obtained it for himself, for us to become joint heirs of with him?

Jesus was not disconnected from the operation of his own sacrifice. His sacrifice was operative on himself first of all. For Jesus to be our representative, it was necessary that he should himself be the first to undergo the process and be the first to benefit from the results.

As a sufferer from the effects of the first sin that he inherited, (viz mortal human nature), Jesus had himself to be delivered from those effects and the mode of that deliverance was by death on the cross. That death was for himself first, not for sins that he committed, but for deliverance from mortal human nature which he suffered in common with his brethren. Jesus was made in all points like his brethren, partaking of their mortal flesh and blood nature for the express purpose of redeeming it in himself from the dominion of sin and death, and inviting them to build on the new foundation he laid, Heb. 2:11–17.

As our representative Jesus is the beginning of the new creation and the first fruits of those who sleep, the forerunner on our behalf, the firstborn among many brothers, 2 Corinthians 5:17, 1 Corinthians 15:23, Hebrews 6:19-20, Romans 8:29. He was the nucleus of eternal life for all who identify in faith “with him” in baptism and are “in Christ.”

Jesus' own deliverance was as necessary as that of his brethren. In fact, if Christ had not first been saved from death (Hebrews 5:7) - if he himself had not first obtained eternal redemption through his own blood (Hebrews 9:12) - there would have been no hope for us, for we obtain salvation only through what he has accomplished in himself. He overcame and we share his victory over sin and death by uniting with him in faith. This we do in baptism, in which we are made partakers of his death as well as his resurrection.

Hebrews 9:12, 24, 13:20, 2:9, 5:7-9, 4:14-15, 12:2, Romans 1:1-4, 5:17-19, 6:9, 8:17, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15, Philippians 2:5-9, 1 Peter 2:24.

Zechariah 9:9 - note Zechariah 9:9 (KJV) where the margin has an alternative translation of “saving himself” instead of “having salvation”.

• The offerings under the Law of Moses symbolically prefigured the sacrifice of Jesus. In particular, the annual offerings made by the High Priest on the Day of Atonement for himself and the people prefigured the one sacrifice that Jesus, as our High Priest, offered once to save himself and those whom he represented.

  Hebrews 9:6-15, 19-28, 1:3, 10:1-25, 7:23-28

Christ Did Not Die as a Substitute Instead of Us

• The death of Christ was not as a substitute to appease the wrath of an offended God. He did not pay our debt instead of us. If Jesus paid our debt by dying instead of us then logically we should not die and Jesus should not have risen from the dead. If Jesus died instead of us then our sins are not forgiven by God’s grace because a debt was paid.

• If Jesus paid our debt by dying instead of us then the redeeming power of his sacrifice was in his death, whereas Paul says his resurrection is essential for our forgiveness 1 Corinthians 15:17.

• If Christ died as a substitute instead of us and paid our debt, then there is no moral power in his sacrifice because we do not need to repent because we are already saved no matter what sins we commit.

• Mankind does not inherit any guilt from Adam’s sin that required a debt to be paid or removed by sacrificial purification, as the church doctrine of Original Sin teaches. The sacrifice of Christ does not meet any legal requirement or perform any function or transaction.

• God does not accept substitutionary sacrifices or the life of one forfeited as a payment for the life of another. Moses asked to be blotted out of the Book of Life instead of the people of Israel as an atonement when they sinned by worshipping a golden calf, but God refused because God holds those who sin against him responsible for their sins, Exodus 32:30-35. God will forgive sins if they are confessed and repented of by faith and recognition of his righteousness.

Adapted from extracts from various sources including “A Declaration of the Truth Revealed in the Bible”, “The Christadelphian Instructor”, “The Nature of Man and the Sacrifice of Christ”, “The Blood of Christ”, “The Law of Moses”, “The Christadelphian Magazine” by Robert Roberts