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| Lenski the Scholar and Faithful Lutheran. Below, the free set of Lenski PDFs we have made available. LutherQuislings should open a few. Just wunst. |
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| Free Lutheran PDFs and Links to Luther and Keil-Delitsch |
Here is Lenski, at the conclusion of his discussion on 2 Cor. 5:19:
"We do not find the idea that Paul here says that when Christ died, when in and by his death God reconciled the world objectively, he then and there (or at the time of Christ's resurrection) forgave all sins to the whole world. αὐτοῖς = individuals and refers to their subjective reconciliation. The use so often made of this passage should be modified. On the question of universal and personal justification consult the author's Interpretation of Romans, 5:10, also 1:17."
Bethany Scholar:
Lenski took the view that reconciliation has an "objective" and "subjective" aspect. He basically grouped reconciliation with atonement. I think the whole "objective"/"subjective" division he is going along with is a bad idea, but he denied that justification or forgiveness are declared for anyone other than believers and that at the time time of their believing.
It is the poisonous hermeneutics of OJ that would cause someone to equivocate in this manner about reconciliation, since that is what they do with justification in similar instances in Romans. I don't think we can say that someone who is in rebellion against God has been reconciled to God in any sense. That is just ridiculous. With Chemnitz, I maintain that the work of reconciliation was being done at the cross, the work which is carried out solely through the preaching of the Word. That Paul says this is plain in the passage, until venomous snakes infect our thoughts with poison.
