Becoming Guilty for Christ’s Sake

The Will of God Ep. 7. NOTE: We will be starting a new study next week through a short book by Robert Jenson called A Theology in Outline: Can These Bones Live? Each week we will take a chapter of the book for our class. I’m encouraging everyone to read along. You can find a PDF of the first chapter below. Bonhoeffer on becoming guilty for Christ’s sake…By turning our focus back to the origin of all responsibility, we come to understand what willingness to become guilty means. Jesus’ concern is not the proclamation and realization of new ethical ideals, and thus also not his own goodness (Matt. 19:17), but solely love for real human beings. This is why he is able to enter into the community of human beings’ guilt, willing to be burdened with their guilt. Jesus does not want to be considered the only perfect one at the expense of human beings, nor, as the only guiltless one, to look down on a humanity perishing under its guilt…He does not want to acquit himself of the guilt by which human beings die. A love that would abandon human beings to their guilt would not be a love for real human beings. As one who acts responsibly within the historical existence of human beings, Jesus becomes guilty. It is his love alone, mind you, that leads him to become guilty. Out of his selfless love, out of his sinlessness, Jesus enters into human guilt, taking it upon himself. In him, sinlessness and bearing guilt are inextricably linked. As the sinless one, Jesus takes the guilt of his brothers and sisters upon himself, and in carrying the burden of this guilt he proves himself as the sinless one. Now in this sinless-guilty Jesus Christ all vicarious representative responsible action has its origin. Precisely because and when it is responsible, because and when it is exclusively concerned about the other human being, because and when it springs from the selfless love for the real human brother or sister–it cannot seek to withdraw from the community of human guilt. Because Jesus took the guilt of all human beings upon himself, everyone who acts responsibly becomes guilty. Those who, in acting responsibly, seek to avoid becoming guilty divorce themselves from the ultimate reality of human existence…They place their personal innocence above their responsibility for other human beings and are blind to the fact that precisely in so doing they become even more egregiously guilty. They are also blind to the fact that genuine guiltlessness is demonstrated precisely by entering into community with the guilt of other human beings for their sake. Because of Jesus Christ, the essence of responsible action intrinsically involves…becoming guilty. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cameroncombs.substack.com