Beyond the Book with Drs. Hammett and Quarles: “The Work of Christ”

In the following Q&A, Hammett and Quarles take some time to answer a few questions together about their new book.

What motivated you to write this book?

Hammett: A quick answer would be because the editors of the series invited me, but I was eager to accept because of the intrinsic importance of the work of Christ, because of the need to address some contemporary controversies (such as criticism of the penal substitutionary theory of the atonement), and because there were some aspects of the work of Christ that were of special interest to me and on which I thought I could make a helpful contribution.

Quarles: No doctrines are quite as precious to me as the doctrines of the person of Christ and the work of Christ. Nothing moves me to worship our Lord as powerfully as considering Jesus’s deity, glory, and majesty in conjunction with his sacrificial death.

No doctrines are quite as precious to me as the doctrines of the person of Christ and the work of Christ.

Why bring these two disciplines of theology into one book, considering them together instead of separately?

Quarles: Biblical theology and systematic theology are complementary disciplines. Biblical theology is the principal foundation of all good systematic theology since Scripture must be the primary source of all Christian doctrine. However, biblical theologians often focus on the theology of an individual biblical author or a single testament and fail to construct a theology of the whole Bible. Systematic theology helpfully demonstrates the coherence of the theology of the entire Bible and presents it in a memorable way. Biblical theologians and systematic theologians need one another. I have benefitted greatly from the work of Dr. Hammett, and I hope that my work has been helpful to him as well.

Is it best to consider theories of the atonement as complementary or exclusive?

Hammett: Without doubt, the differing theories must be considered as complementary, because all three are grounded in Scripture. That said, it is also clear to me that the objective theories (especially penal substitution) are of fundamental importance. Without the understanding that on the cross Jesus satisfied God’s justice and wrath in our place, the idea that the cross demonstrates a love that should melt our resistance (the subjective theories) makes no sense. And without the understanding that by enduring the cross Jesus was being obedient to God, the Christus Victor theories likewise have no answer as to why Christ had to die to conquer death.

Why did you choose to dedicate a significant portion of this book to Christ’s work in the Old Testament?

Quarles: Jesus’s sacrificial death has traditionally been the primary focus of the doctrine of the work of Christ. The cross was not a divine after-thought, but part of his eternal plan conceived before the foundation of the world. God revealed this plan throughout the Old Testament. We cannot fully appreciate the significance of Jesus’s death without carefully considering the Old Testament descriptions of the Messiah’s provision of atonement.

We cannot fully appreciate the significance of Jesus’s death without carefully considering the Old Testament descriptions of the Messiah’s provision of atonement.

What has given rise to some of the modern criticisms of penal substitution?

Hammett: There are various currents of thought that play a part, but I believe the major source has been the movement over the past two hundred or more years to elevate humanity and diminish God. If humans are basically good, the idea that human sin arouses a righteous wrath in God that must be satisfied makes no sense.

How does integrating biblical and systematic theology in the study of the atonement uniquely enable Christians in everyday ministry?

Hammett: I think we would argue that the use of both disciplines enables us to more completely understand biblical teaching, and anything that gives us a deeper understanding of Scripture powerfully impacts Christians in everyday ministry. We are sanctified by the word (John 17:17), and sanctification is necessary for effective ministry. The Scriptures teach us what we truly need and where those needs are met, and we cannot minister helpfully to others if we do not understand what they need and where those needs are met.

We are sanctified by the word (John 17:17), and sanctification is necessary for effective ministry.

How does this book help readers to better serve the church and fulfill the Great Commission?

Quarles: A better understanding of the cross will greatly benefit the church. Without the sacrificial death of Jesus, there would be no church. The old hymn “The Church’s One Foundation” rightly exclaims, “From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride; With his own blood he bought her and for her life he died.” And the cross is central to the gospel we must share in our efforts to make disciples in fulfillment of the Great Commission.

How has writing this book shaped you spiritually?

Hammett: I hope it has deepened my gratitude for the breadth and depth of the work of Christ. The cross is a jewel that we should never tire of marveling at, and I have found meditating on the work of Christ in the incarnation (he ‘emptied himself’) deeply moving. In addition to gratitude there is hope in recognizing there is still to come the future work of Christ, when he will make all things new. Finally, pondering the work of Christ is always a challenge to deeper devotion: “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all!”

The cross is a jewel that we should never tire of marveling at, and I have found meditating on the work of Christ in the incarnation (he ‘emptied himself’) deeply moving.

Quarles: Reflecting on the cross deeply humbles me. The cross unmasks the depths of my depravity. Only radical human corruption would demand a solution as extreme as the sacrifice of the Son of God. When Isaac Watts wrote his hymn “At the Cross,” he remembered how his Savior bled then asked, “Would he devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?” The cross reveals my complete unworthiness and moves me to “pour contempt on all my pride.”

The cross also inspires deeper gratitude for God’s great mercy to me. As Watts exclaimed, the cross reveals “amazing pity, grace unknown, and love beyond degree.” The book of Revelation discloses the heavenly praise and adoration of Jesus. The most frequent title for Jesus in that book of heavenly praise is “Lamb.” The recognition that Jesus is the sacrificial “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” prompts my praise more than anything else.

The cross also motivates me to sacrifice myself for Christ (Rom 12:1) as he sacrificed himself for me. Because Jesus did not shrink back from bearing my cross, I must not fail to bear his cross. In another hymn Watts asked, “Am I a soldier of the cross, a follow’r of the Lamb? And shall I fear to own His cause, Or blush to speak his name?” The believer who understands the cross will proclaim the gospel boldly even when it entails persecution. The disciple will not expect to be “carried to the skies on flow’ry beds of ease” since our own Savior was nailed to a rugged cross for our sakes. Reflecting on the theology of the work of Christ prompts me to live a cruciform life.