Review of Andrew Rillera’s ‘Lamb of the Free’ | John Whittaker

Click here to read the full article at RENEW.org: https://renew.org/review-of-andrew-rilleras-lamb-of-the-free/  This is an audio version of a written Article from RENEW.org Check out other great articles on RENEW.org here: https://renew.org/articles/ The aim of Lamb of the Free (Cascade Books, 2024) is to argue against penal substitutionary atonement (PSA). This shouldn’t surprise anyone. It has become in vogue to question or to dismiss PSA, even to the point of labeling it divine child abuse. It’s true, there have been poor formulations of PSA, but the basic idea is that in his death, Jesus bore the penalty for our sins. That’s a pretty basic and fundamental understanding of one of the atoning purposes of Jesus’ death. In fact, nothing is more central to the Christian faith than the atonement which is why evaluating this book is so important. What’s more, this book has attracted all sorts of attention, especially online among YouTubers and podcasters. In fact, just last year John Mark Comer created quite a stir when, to be provocative on his Instagram, he raised the question if this book was the final blow against penal substitutionary atonement. The reaction Comer received was so great that he had to issue a restatement and clarification on his Instagram. You can find a number of mostly positive reviews of Lamb of the Free on YouTube. Spoiler alert: I have been spending a lot of time in the books of Exodus and Leviticus for recording the latest episodes for The Listeners Commentary. As a result, I found the reading of this book combined with the number of glowing popular reviews of it online to be a frustrating and head-scratching experience. The book makes a number of errors that seem so obvious that I find it hard to understand how those errors can be missed or ignored. Listen for more... Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ Join RENEW.org at one of our upcoming events: https://renew.org/resources/events/ Get the RENEW.org App -- https://renew-app-page.bolt.host/  Be sure to like, subscribe and follow on social media!  You can find us on: Instagram: @the.renew.network  Facebook: Renew.org  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RENEWnetwork Twitter: @therenewnetwork TikTok: the.renew.network  Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/RENEW