The Atonement: What is it and Why Does it Matter?

While justification and salvation are clear doctrines that answer the question of what is gained by the death and resurrection of Christ, the doctrine of atonement tries to answer the question, “Why did Christ die and how did such a death actually address and deal with the problem of sin?” When we turn to Scripture with these questions, what we get in return is a plethora of pictures of what happened at the cross.