---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the…"
description: "\"The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as springing from the initiative of God Himself.\" — Geerhardus Vos"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg"
---

#  The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as…

![“The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as springing from the initiative of God Himself.” quote by Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg)

> “The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as springing from the initiative of God Himself.”

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Reconciliation is portrayed as God's initiative to restore humanity through atonement.

**In simple terms:** God initiates reconciliation through atonement.

Key Takeaway

Trust God's plan for restoration.

Themes

theology grace redemption

Mood

reflective reverent

Type

theological scriptural

When to use this quote

- personal reflection
- church teaching
- spiritual counseling

Key Concepts

Reformation soteriology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does divine initiative affect personal repentance?
- What role do we play after God's reconciliation?

A Different Perspective

Human effort cannot replace divine initiative.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Atonement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atonement/) [Atonement Springing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atonement-springing-3409353/) [Describes Atonement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/describes-atonement-3409354/) [Initiative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/initiative/) [Peacebuilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peacebuilding/) [Reconciliation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reconciliation/) [Reconciliation Describes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reconciliation-describes-3409355/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/)

## Related quotes

> [I take literally the statement in the Gospel of John that God loves the world. I believe that the world was created and approved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/i-take-literally-the-statement-in-the-gospel-of-john-that-god-loves/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

> [Lack of accountability weakens the environmental and health rights of citizens; it damages peace- building and reconciliation initiatives; impedes the implementation of global health…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/widad-akrawi/lack-of-accountability-weakens-the-environmental-and-health-rights-of/)

[Widad Akrawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/widad-akrawi/)

> [Contemplation does not ignore the 'historical Gethsemane', does not ignore the mystery of evil, guilt and its bloody atonement. The happiness of contemplation is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/contemplation-does-not-ignore-the-historical-gethsemane-does-not/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [God thank you for everything you've given us. For the time we have together. And for the miracle of Christmas. Thank you for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/god-thank-you-for-everything-you-ve-given-us-for-the-time-we-have/)

[Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/)

> [The cumulative weight of all mortal sins--past, present, and future--pressed upon that perfect, sinless, and sensitive Soul! All our infirmities and sicknesses were somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-cumulative-weight-of-all-mortal-sins-past-present-and-future/)

[Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/)

> [Jesus Christ was the only one capable of performing the magnificent Atonement because He was the only perfect man and the Only Begotten Son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-o-samuelson/jesus-christ-was-the-only-one-capable-of-performing-the-magnificent/)

[Cecil O. Samuelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-o-samuelson/)

> [The Atonement of Christ is the most transcendental event that has ever occurred or that will ever occur, since the sunrise of creation to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-r-mcconkie/the-atonement-of-christ-is-the-most-transcendental-event-that-has/)

[Bruce R. McConkie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-r-mcconkie/)

> [Jesus perfected his life and became our Christ. Priceless blood of a god was shed, and he became our Savior; his perfected life was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/jesus-perfected-his-life-and-became-our-christ-priceless-blood-of-a/)

[Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/)

> [If you feel guilty or quietly ashamed, seek the power of the Atonement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neill-f-marriott/if-you-feel-guilty-or-quietly-ashamed-seek-the-power-of-the-atonement/)

[Neill F. Marriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neill-f-marriott/)

> [“Beloved, no sin of a believer can now be an arrow mortally to wound him, no condemnation can now be a sword to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/beloved-no-sin-of-a-believer-can-now-be-an-arrow-mortally-to-wound/)

[Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/)

> [And the commencement of atonement is the sense of its necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/and-the-commencement-of-atonement-is-the-sense-of-its-necessity/)

[Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/)

> [The early Christians made it a part of their religion to look for his return. They looked backward to the cross and the atonement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-early-christians-made-it-a-part-of-their-religion-to-look-for-his/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The Atonement is an event that enables us to be reconciled to God. The word atonement, or 'at-one-ment,' means to restore or to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-c-tingey/the-atonement-is-an-event-that-enables-us-to-be-reconciled-to-god-the/)

[Earl C. Tingey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-c-tingey/)

> [I appreciate the written word and spoken word more, but Atonement sort of established so much of me. It was a character that didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/i-appreciate-the-written-word-and-spoken-word-more-but-atonement-sort/)

[Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/)

> [We cannot go back in time and change the past, but we can repent. The Savior can wipe away our tears of regret and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-cannot-go-back-in-time-and-change-the-past-but-we-can-repent-the/)

[Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/)

## More by Geerhardus Vos

> [In the resurrection there is already wrapped up a judging-process, at least for believers: the raising act in their case, together with the attending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/in-the-resurrection-there-is-already-wrapped-up-a-judging-process-at/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [“Magic is that paganistic reversal of the process of religion, in which man, instead of letting himself be used by God for the divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/magic-is-that-paganistic-reversal-of-the-process-of-religion-in-which/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [By raising Christ from death, God as the supreme Judge set his seal to the absolute perfection and completeness of his atoning work. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/by-raising-christ-from-death-god-as-the-supreme-judge-set-his-seal-to/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [“The Cloud of Unknowing is an anonymous work of Christian mysticism written in the latter half of the 14th century. The text is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-cloud-of-unknowing-is-an-anonymous-work-of-christian-mysticism/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [There prevails still a subtle form of legalism which would rob the Saviour of his crown of glory, earned by the cross, and would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/there-prevails-still-a-subtle-form-of-legalism-which-would-rob-the/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [The resurrection stands related to righteousness in the same way that death stands related to sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-resurrection-stands-related-to-righteousness-in-the-same-way-that/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [Biblical Theology...is that part of Exegetical Theology which deals with the revelation of God in its historic continuity...Biblical Theology, rightly defined, is nothing else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/biblical-theology-is-that-part-of-exegetical-theology-which-deals/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [The best proof that He will never cease to love us lies in that He never began.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-best-proof-that-he-will-never-cease-to-love-us-lies-in-that-he/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

> [Legalism lacks the supreme sense of worship. It obeys but it does not adore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/legalism-lacks-the-supreme-sense-of-worship-it-obeys-but-it-does-not/)

[Geerhardus Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

[Explore all 10 Geerhardus Vos quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/)

## More Atonement quotes

> [We cannot go back in time and change the past, but we can repent. The Savior can wipe away our tears of regret and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-cannot-go-back-in-time-and-change-the-past-but-we-can-repent-the/)

[Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/)

> [I appreciate the written word and spoken word more, but Atonement sort of established so much of me. It was a character that didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/i-appreciate-the-written-word-and-spoken-word-more-but-atonement-sort/)

[Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/)

> [The Atonement is an event that enables us to be reconciled to God. The word atonement, or 'at-one-ment,' means to restore or to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-c-tingey/the-atonement-is-an-event-that-enables-us-to-be-reconciled-to-god-the/)

[Earl C. Tingey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-c-tingey/)

> [The early Christians made it a part of their religion to look for his return. They looked backward to the cross and the atonement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-early-christians-made-it-a-part-of-their-religion-to-look-for-his/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [And the commencement of atonement is the sense of its necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/and-the-commencement-of-atonement-is-the-sense-of-its-necessity/)

[Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/)

> [“Beloved, no sin of a believer can now be an arrow mortally to wound him, no condemnation can now be a sword to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/beloved-no-sin-of-a-believer-can-now-be-an-arrow-mortally-to-wound/)

[Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/)

> [If you feel guilty or quietly ashamed, seek the power of the Atonement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neill-f-marriott/if-you-feel-guilty-or-quietly-ashamed-seek-the-power-of-the-atonement/)

[Neill F. Marriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neill-f-marriott/)

> [Jesus perfected his life and became our Christ. Priceless blood of a god was shed, and he became our Savior; his perfected life was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/jesus-perfected-his-life-and-became-our-christ-priceless-blood-of-a/)

[Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/)

> [The Atonement of Christ is the most transcendental event that has ever occurred or that will ever occur, since the sunrise of creation to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-r-mcconkie/the-atonement-of-christ-is-the-most-transcendental-event-that-has/)

[Bruce R. McConkie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-r-mcconkie/)

> [Jesus Christ was the only one capable of performing the magnificent Atonement because He was the only perfect man and the Only Begotten Son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-o-samuelson/jesus-christ-was-the-only-one-capable-of-performing-the-magnificent/)

[Cecil O. Samuelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-o-samuelson/)

> [The cumulative weight of all mortal sins--past, present, and future--pressed upon that perfect, sinless, and sensitive Soul! All our infirmities and sicknesses were somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-cumulative-weight-of-all-mortal-sins-past-present-and-future/)

[Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/)

> [God thank you for everything you've given us. For the time we have together. And for the miracle of Christmas. Thank you for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/god-thank-you-for-everything-you-ve-given-us-for-the-time-we-have/)

[Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/)

> [Contemplation does not ignore the 'historical Gethsemane', does not ignore the mystery of evil, guilt and its bloody atonement. The happiness of contemplation is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/contemplation-does-not-ignore-the-historical-gethsemane-does-not/)

[Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/)

> [Do you realize how marvelous it is that you can call upon the Atonement? The Lord effected the Atonement for our sakes. And there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyd-k-packer/do-you-realize-how-marvelous-it-is-that-you-can-call-upon-the/)

[Boyd K. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyd-k-packer/)

> [I would rather believe a limited atonement that is efficacious for all men for whom it was intended, than a universal atonement that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/i-would-rather-believe-a-limited-atonement-that-is-efficacious-for/)

[Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/)

[Browse all 327 Atonement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atonement/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as springing from the initiative of God Himself.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Geerhardus Vos"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-atonement-as-springing-from-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Atonement"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-atonement-as-springing-from-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/geerhardus-vos-41087_atonement_the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-at_1173043.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement as springing from the initiative of God Himself.” — Geerhardus Vos",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Geerhardus Vos",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geerhardus-vos/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The term ‘reconciliation’ describes the atonement...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-atonement-as-springing-from-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geerhardus-vos/the-term-reconciliation-describes-the-atonement-as-springing-from-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
