There are some things about substitutionary atonement that I don't get.
If I do something wrong and someone offers to take the punishment for me, then it is a very noble thing to be sure, but is it “right”? I deserve to be punished, not the other person, so to say that justice has been fulfilled feels a bit more like fancy accounting to balance the books than real justice.
I also don't get punishment. If my children do wrong they need to be taught not to do it again, and punishment is part of that, but its more to do with teaching than with settling a debt in justice terms. It is up to me, the law giver to decide whether the misdeed needs repayment, and usually I choose to write off the debt.
So why is God not like that? These are His laws, and he says what is just or not, so why can't he just write off the debt? Unless there is a higher law which says its unjust for him to do this, then there is no reason why Jesus had to die.
Please don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I'm not grateful for His death, I just don't understand the logic.
