 |
God’s Plan of Redemption Fully Accomplished
In entering upon the second section of these studies it is necessary that the members of the class should have a fair understanding of the subjects presented in Section One. Otherwise the execution of God’s wonderful plan for the redemption of the human race will fail to be appreciated in its completeness.
The Suffering Trinity
The teacher should emphasize the fact that this Plan of Redemption is the manifestation of the suffering holy love of the Triune God and that this suffering antedated the historical manifestation at Calvary. Says Dr. Mabie in The Divine Reason of the Cross,
In a deep sense God “tasted death” upon the Cross- there was a Cross in heaven ere it was set up on Calvary; a sword pierced the heart of the Heavenly Father, long before it entered the heart of Mary, Jesus’ earthly mother. This pre-mundane anguish in God was the very fount and source of the entire sacrificial life of Christ, as well as a part of it. “God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son.”
This view of the suffering Trinity renders impossible the acceptance of the erroneous teaching that God in His holiness is kept from destroying the sinner only through the atoning work of the Son. Dr. Mabie continues,
(top)
Has it been anything short of a calamity to the evangelical system that God the Father has often been shown as a distinct impassable abstract majesty, and that the Son has been set over against Him to protect the sinner from Him? Has not this conception destroyed the real Fatherhood altogether and made God to appear as chiefly concerned to preserve His abstract passionless honor, with Christ enduring all the pain of upholding this standard while man gets the benefit of it?
Let the following passages now be read to prove the foregoing statements: 2 Corinthians 5:19; 1 Timothy 3:16; Acts 20:28, last phrase. Notice the expression “which He (God) hath purchased with His own blood” -a statement proving the Deity of Jesus Christ as well as the unity of the Triune God. We are now able to better understand those passages that speak of “the Lamb foreordained before the foundation of the world” (1 Pet. 1:18-20; Rev. 13:8). Truly, “the atonement in principle and in God is dateless, but as taking effect on man it is historical though dateless” (Dr. Mabie).
The Lamb of God Foreshadowed
We shall now examine this historical event in detail. It is interesting to note that the Old Testament Scriptures foreshadow and foretell not only the fact of a Redeeming Achievement but also the very manner in which this is to be accomplished. The sacrificial element runs through its pages like a scarlet thread. It is first seen in Genesis 3:21. Have the class read this verse thoughtfully. What were these “skins” with which the Lord God clothed the sinful pair? Call attention to Genesis 4:2, 4 as furnishing a clue. Is it not reasonable to believe that the Lord God instructed Adam to kill a lamb to provide the necessary covering? Is it not a logical inference, considering the fact that throughout the entire Bible we see the lamb associated with the sacrificial offering for sin? We have every reason to believe that the Lord God instructed Adam to take a lamb-perhaps a choice lamb-the one upon which he had lavished the most tender care; his in a peculiar sense-and with his own hands plunge the sharp flint into the body of the innocent, trusting animal that had done nothing worthy of death. Can we imagine the emotions of the man as the life blood flowed forth? Then, as he proceeds to fashion from its skin the covering necessitated by his sin, does he need to be told the meaning of this sacrificial death? May we not believe that he knew in the depths of his being that the life which had been sacrificed for his sin was a type-a figure of a more precious life that should be sacrificed not only to cover the results of his sin, but which should effectually deal with it?
(top)
Is it not altogether probable that the promised “seed of the woman” was now associated with the slain lamb in the mind of Adam? Did he not now understand the “crushing of the heel” to mean sacrifice upon the part of the Promised One, and the crushing of the “head” of the serpent a victorious consummation which the “seed of the woman” should realize? And as he clothed himself with the covering of the slain lamb, did he not thereby perceive that he might become identified with the Promised One, in His sacrificial work and His complete victory over sin and Satan? We do not know how much of God’s Plan of Redemption was perceived by Adam and Eve, but we do know that through the illumination of God the Holy Spirit, they understood enough to put faith in God’s Slain Lamb.
From this time the thought of sacrifice for sin finds lodgment in the human mind: thus we see Abel bringing his lamb for a sacrificial offering as instructed by God; and later we read of the Passover Lamb in connection with the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, and we note the commemoration and continuance of this Paschal Offering in the tabernacle in the Wilderness and still later in the temple at Jerusalem. Indeed, throughout the Bible from Genesis to the Revelation, we find the Slain Lamb in symbol or in substance.
Man’s Created Right to the Tree of Life Forfeited
We now need to read Genesis 3:22-24, a passage, which if rightly understood, conveys the precious hope of Redemption and glorious sonship to the members of the human race. Let us read the passage from the Rotherham translation: “Then said Yahweh God-Lo! man hath become like one of us, in respect of knowing good and evil. Now therefore lest he thrust forth his hand and take even of the tree of life, and eat and live to times age abiding-So Yahweh God put him forth from the Garden of Eden, to till the ground wherefrom he had been taken. So He expelled the man-and caused to dwell in front of the Garden of Eden-cherubim-and a brandishing sword flame, to keep (or guard) the way to the tree of life.”
Yahweh God (or Jehovah Elohim) is translated Lord God in the A.V. This expression is not found in the Bible until after the creation of man. (See Gen. 2:4, 7.) It signifies the “Self-Existent One who reveals Himself” ; or the Manifested God; therefore indicates the Eternal Son. Yahweh, translated Jehovah, in the Old Testament, is the Redemption name of God. It indicates Christ of the New Testament. Elohim is a plural noun indicating God in His complete threefoldness, as shown in Genesis 1:26, “Let us make,” etc.; “Yahweh Elohim,” as used in this passage and at least one other (Gen. 11:7), indicates this same plural form, as shown by the personal pronoun us.
(top)
The expression “in respect of knowing good and evil,” indicates the fact of man’s choosing experimental knowledge as the result of independent activity, rather than to remain in absolute dependence upon God. It was another way of declaring that the members of the human race had “turned every one to his own way.” Verse 22 is an unfinished sentence,
The expression “in respect of knowing good and evil,” indicates the fact of man’s choosing experimental knowledge as the result of independent activity, rather than to remain in absolute dependence upon God. |
difficult to explain; yet if we carefully weigh all that we have previously considered in reference to the tree of life in its symbolic character, this difficult phrase becomes more intelligible. Possibly the following paraphrase will convey what was in God’s mind when He uttered these words: “Because man has chosen to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, instead of the tree of life-the eating of which would bestow Eternal Life and immortality-therefore must he be sent forth from Eden to realize the result of his choice.” Attention has previously been called to the fact that “lest” does not mean peradventure. God would not send man out of Eden to deprive him of that which the tree symbolized, but that He might avert the possibility of his presuming upon his created right to the tree of Life-a right which he had forfeited.
The Way to the Tree of Life Preserved
But now note the precious fact that although man has forfeited his created right to eat of the tree of Life, the way to that tree is to be kept open for him; so that if he chooses the way, he will have the right to the tree and be permitted to freely eat of its fruit. Carefully notice the wonderful provision made to guard this way to the tree of life. The Cherubim surrounding the tree and the revolving sword flame presented an awe-inspiring picture of God’s holiness and Love in providing a way whereby sinful man should partake of His Life. But perhaps one may ask, “Why the need of such constant keeping?” Because Satan would close the way if possible. He quickly perceived that if this way were kept open for sinful man, his hold over man would be gone forever. His purposes would fail of fulfillment. What was this way? The Sacrificial offering of God’s Lamb-God’s Plan of Redemption.
(top)
Satan Seeks to Close the Way to the Tree of Life
From the moment that Satan perceived the purpose of God, as symbolized by the guarded way to the tree which has been described, all of his corrupted wisdom and selfish power were concentrated upon one object: to frustrate the Redemptive Plan of God. We see his success in the case of Cain, the first child born into the world. He projects into his mind, already tainted by his
From the moment that Satan perceived the purpose of God, as symbolized by the guarded way to the tree which has been described, all of his corrupted wisdom and selfish power were concentrated upon one object: to frustrate the Redemptive Plan of God. |
sinful inheritance, the thought of substituting some other sacrificial offering than the slain lamb. Have the class read the account of the two offerings in Genesis 4:1-8 and explain the significance of each. The Rotherham translation of verses 6 and 7 is very helpful. “So then Yahweh said unto Cain, Wherefore hath it angered thee, and wherefore hath thy countenance fallen? Shall it not if thou do right be lifted up? But if thou do not right at the entrance a sin-bearer is lying.” This last phrase points to the fact that the Lord God calls attention to the fact that Abel would supply him with a lamb from his flock as an offering; indeed the Hebrew text seems to indicate that he was longing to do so, for he penetrated the symbol, and in offering his sacrifice, he manifested faith in God’s Lamb. (See Heb. 11:4.) Cain was given every opportunity to follow Abel’s example, but he deliberately refused, and in him we see the first sinner to refuse God’s Plan of Redemption and put faith in God’s Slain Lamb.
(top)
We next observe Satan’s attempt to prevent the execution of the Redemptive Plan, in the fact that he leads Cain to murder his brother, thus planning to make void the promise of the seed of the woman; for Satan could not look into the future and see the birth of this promised Seed in Bethlehem. Doubtless he, as well as Adam and Eve, expected this Coming One to be a child of Eve.
The major portion of the Old Testament deals with the history of the race, tribe and family from which the Redeemer should come, and it is interesting to notice the efforts of Satan in each generation to render futile the prophecies concerning the birth of this Promised One. There were times when the royal line of David seemed extinct, but God overruled as in the case of Joash. (See 2 Chron. 22:10-12.) Idolatry and wickedness of every kind brought disaster to the nation, yet God’s word concerning the promised Redeemer was literally fulfilled. After the birth of the God-Man, Satan sought to slay Him. After His baptism, he sought to master Him through subtle temptation. All through the earthly ministry of the God-Man, Satan sought to hinder, to render inoperative, to prevent the work given Him to do. In the garden of Gethsemane, Satan sought to take away that life which the God-Man had said He was to “lay down of Himself” for His sheep. (See John 10:14-18.) In every possible way Satan sought to prevent the execution of God’s Plan of Redemption.
God’s Redeeming Achievement—One Decisive Act
We have already spoken of the manifestation of God’s Love and Holiness in redeeming the human race as one decisive act. Let us examine this statement a little more closely. Would it not seem probable that if He undertook the settlement of the sin-question it would be completed in a single act, rather than to take the form of a process extending through centuries?
But the question might be asked, “How could He deal judicially with sinners of all ages and dispensations in a moment of time?” Only by dealing with their Federal Head, whose representative acts they would individually ratify through their power of choice. Therefore, after Jesus Christ, in His earthly walk, had manifested a dependent, holy, victorious
How could He deal judicially with sinners of all ages and dispensations in a moment of time? |
life as the Last Adam, living in the sphere of Uncreated (Eternal) Life, He was ready to act representatively in connection with the race of the First Adam, with whom He had identified Himself. He, the Sinless One, who lived in the sphere of Life, Holiness, Peace, Love, voluntarily permitted His humanity to descend to the sin-poisoned atmosphere of the sphere in which the descendants of the First Adam dwelt. Personally, He was without sin. Representatively, the sin of the whole race was laid upon Him, and thus His humanity came within the operation of “the law of sin and death,” which we have found to be absolutely inflexible. Representatively then, He must bear the stroke, the doom, the penalty that the sinful race deserved-that God’s Holiness demanded.
(top)
It is evident that the sinlessness of the Sin-bearer magnifies the Holiness of God. Sinners deserved the stroke. The Sinless One did not; therefore, “the death of Jesus was a more splendid vindication of righteous rule than the death of all the sinners would have been” (Dr. Mabie, in The Meaning and Message of the Cross).
The Mode of Christ’s Death Foreshadowed in the Old Testament
Let us now consider the mode of this judgment-death. We find this stated in Acts 2:23: “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” Was this mode of death indicated in the Old Testament Scriptures? The Passover lambs were offered on Jewish altars, but death by crucifixion is not a Jewish mode of putting to death. We know that at this time Rome was the proud mistress of the world and Palestine was under her domination; therefore
Personally, He was without sin. Representatively, the sin of the whole race was laid upon Him. |
God’s Lamb was crucified upon a Roman Cross which all the world could see, figuratively speaking. Had He been put to death in earlier times, before the conquest of Rome or during the rule of the Maccabees, His death would have been less spectacular and would have made less outward impression. God had chosen a fitting time in the history of our race for the execution of His Redemptive Plan; therefore even the mode of Christ’s death was such as most adequately met the requirements in connection with the execution of the same.
(top)
Wonderfully the whole redemption story has been written in the starry sky. Long before the creation of man, the constellations spoke of the serpent, the virgin, the child, and, brighter than all, blazed the Cross in the Southern sky.
It would seem that God gave many intimations of the Cross during the hundreds of years before the actual rugged beams were placed upon Calvary. Never did an Israelite prepare the Passover lamb without looking upon the cross formed by the wooden spits upon which the body of the lamb was placed before roasting. The longer of these extended vertically the length of the body; the shorter was placed horizontally from side to side. Startling indeed to our eyes would be the resemblance, although we cannot tell what impression was made upon the people of old.
We observe the form of the Cross in the arrangement of the furniture of the Tabernacle, while the serpent upon the pole also speaks of the Cross. (See Exo. 40:20-30; Num. 21:8-9.)
Psalm 22 is described by Dr. Scofield as a “graphic picture of death by crucifixion.” Have the class read this psalm and note that every detail of Christ’s crucifixion is described almost as perfectly as if the writer were an eyewitness of that scene, instead of writing hundreds of years before. Dr. Scofield adds, “When it is remembered that crucifixion was a Roman, not Jewish form of execution, the proof of inspiration is irresistible.” We plainly see, then, that the Cross, as well as the Lamb, was foreshadowed in the Old Testament, which is entirely consistent with the foreknowledge of God mentioned in Acts 2:23.
The Crucifixion Narratives
The sin of the entire race was laid upon Him, and for our transgressions “did the stroke fall on Him.” |
The class should now read the account of the Crucifixion as narrated in the four Gospels. Notice certain details in the account given by Matthew which are not found in the other narratives. Meditate upon the significance of these. Examine the words of Mark to see if they contain expressions not found elsewhere. Observe certain expressions in Luke’s account that are characteristic of that Gospel, and find details in the Gospel of John that are omitted in all the others. Put these narratives together until the whole scene stands out vividly before the mind’s eye. Arrange the various utterances of Christ upon the Cross in their order and meditate long and prayerfully upon their meaning. Have Isaiah 53:1-9 read and dwell carefully and reverently upon each phrase.
As verse 6 is read let the teacher place a black disc with circular opening, over the star upon the cardboard symbol of “The God-Man.” This opening should reveal the center of the star but must entirely cover the circles indicating “soul and body.” (See Fig. 6.)
Explain that sin could not be placed upon His essential Deity, but that His humanity was brought into the world for this very purpose. (See Heb. 2:9.) Call attention to the all in Isaiah 53:6. The sin of the entire race was laid upon Him, and for our transgressions “did the stroke fall on Him” (Rotherham translation). The proof of this is found in that awful cry, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” Only a little while before those same lips had uttered the words, “Father, I know that Thou hast heard Me and that Thou hearest Me always” (John 11:41-42). The latter expression was natural to His sinless humanity, but now He is uttering the cry of a race of sinners separated from a holy God.
(top)
Truly “He who knew no sin was made sin for us” (2 Cor. 5:21). It was at this moment that He was tasting death for every man (see Heb. 2:9); and death,
It was at this moment that He was tasting death for every man. |
let us remember, is a “falling out of correspondence with environment.” God was still His environment, but an awful something that He had never experienced before was pressing upon His human nature-a something that did not respond to God-a something that was causing untold agony-that something was the great mountain of human sin which was crushing His human soul.
The Vicarious Suffering of the God-Man
Can we understand this vicarious suffering of the God-Man?
Sin, laid upon His sinless nature, caused a pouring out of His soul even unto death. |
No, we can never fathom the mystery of that awful hour when God, in Christ, manifested His Suffering Love and Holiness. However, God has created us with a capacity for vicarious suffering upon a lower plane, that helps us to faintly appreciate this hour of agony. Many a person has suffered for another, and in some persons the vicarious element is so strong that they seem to enter the very atmosphere of another’s personality and actually feel that which another is experiencing. How often has this been true of a godly father or mother who has suffered agony over the wrongdoing of a wayward child? But such suffering even when most keen and sacrificial, fails in enabling us to understand the suffering of the Sinless One who actually felt the sin, not of a single personality, but of all the combined personalities of the human race. Notice that three times in Isaiah 53 we find the word soul used in connection with the suffering of the Redeemer. Read verses 10-12. We have previously found that the soul is the seat of self-consciousness. Very appropriate then, is its use in this passage-for His whole personality felt the awful shock of contact with sin. Psychologically He was experiencing the most terrible “complex.” Sin, laid upon His sinless nature, caused a pouring out of His
The vicarious suffering which brought us Redemption took place in the inner man of the human nature of our Lord. |
soul even unto death. He, whose constant expression of Love and Obedience had been “Lo, I come to do Thy Will,” now felt laid upon His human soul that awful enmity to God, which was the sin of the human race. Impress upon the class that the vicarious suffering which brought us Redemption took place in the inner man of the human nature of our Lord.
(top)
But not only was the human soul of the God-Man crushed by the sin that He vicariously bore; He was also surrounded by all the hostile forces of Satan. This indeed was the “hour and power of darkness,” of which He had spoken. (See Luke 22:53.) Satan and his host of fallen angels and demons compassed Him about. This was the strategic moment for Satan, and he put forth all the strength of his might against the Being upon the Cross, who hitherto had repulsed and overcome him, but who now hung as a sinner in the agony of separation from the face of God. “God hath forsaken Him, persecute and take Him,” was truly the language of his heart.
This moment was the fulfilment of the prophecy uttered so long before concerning Satan-” Thou shalt crush His heel.” Oh, the darkness of this hour! No wonder that the forces of nature responded to the awful conflict that was taking place in the invisible realm. (See Matt. 27:45.)
Suddenly a loud, triumphant cry comes from the Cross-” It is finished” ; and then peacefully the words, “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit” -and it is all over.
The pious Jews who had delivered up their Messiah to be crucified were very anxious that He should not remain upon the Cross upon their especially holy Passover Sabbath. They scrupulously avoided profaning the Sabbath, and doubtless they also feared a reaction among the people if they were permitted to gaze upon the dying agonies of One whom many had reverenced, and whose benefactions they had received. Therefore knowing that death by crucifixion is a slow lingering process, the crucified often living many hours upon the Cross, they obtained permission of Pilate to have the legs of the three victims broken to hasten their death. Accordingly the soldiers proceeded to break the legs of “the first and of the other that was crucified with Him; but when they came to Jesus and saw that He was dead already, they brake not His legs” (John 19:31-33). Notice that this was a fulfillment of prophecy, and let us also observe that even this detail was foreshadowed in connection with each Passover lamb eaten by an Israelitish family. Great care was shown in serving the lamb, that not a bone should be broken. (See Num. 9:12; Psa. 34:20.)
This death was caused by the actual rupture of the heart as a result of the awful agony that the God-Man experienced in being “made sin” for us. |
The soldiers were surprised to find Him dead already. This was something very unusual in one who was in the prime of young manhood. They could not account for His death, but that they might faithfully discharge their commands, “one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.” This is the testimony of an eyewitness, even John the beloved disciple, who seems to lay great stress upon this occurrence, for he adds concerning his testimony as a witness, “This testimony is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.” What is the value of this testimony? How does it establish the truth of the statement already made? A physician would be able to tell us. This death was caused by the actual rupture of the heart as a result of the awful agony that the God-Man experienced in being “made sin” for us.
(top)
The Physical Cause of the Death of Jesus
Dr. Wm. Stroud, in a very clear, scientific treatise upon the subject of the physical cause of the death of Jesus, after describing the heart and its functions, proceeds to portray the dilated condition of this organ resulting from powerful emotion. He adds, “In young and vigorous subjects the blood collected in the pericardium soon divides into its constituent parts, namely a pale watery liquid called serum, and a soft clotted substance of a deep red color termed crassamentum.” Thus the statement “came there forth blood and water” indicates a ruptured heart; but there are other indications also. In the Gospel written by Luke, who was a physician, we read of the bloody sweat which indicates rupture of the heart caused by mental agony: “Being in an agony He prayed more earnestly; and His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:44). Other physicians have noted these statements and know that they clearly prove the physical cause of Jesus’ death to be ruptured heart as the result of the most awful mortal agony, and at least one unbelieving physician, impressed by these physical proofs of Jesus’ sin-bearing for the human race, was led to put faith in Him as his Redeemer.
(top)
In the light of this knowledge of the physical cause of Jesus’ death, how increasingly sacred does the garden of Gethsemane scene become. There, the God-Man was beginning to enter the atmosphere of human sin, and as the agony became intense, He could feel the fatal distension of the heart, the coldness of the extremities, the difficult breathing-and He knew what these symptoms indicated. Still the agony increased and great drops of bloody perspiration fell to the ground and death seemed near; yet He must go to the Cross. He could not die in Gethsemane. His trust in God never wavered, “and there appeared unto Him an angel from heaven strengthening Him” (Luke 22:43). He calmly met the mob that came out to take Him, went through the weariness of the illegal trial, suffered indignities of various kinds, took up His heavy cross and turned toward the hill of Crucifixion. Oh, how our hearts go out to Him-” The Man of Calvary” -The Lamb of God!
The Burial
The lifeless body is now taken down from the Cross and prepared for burial. Those tender eyes that had looked with compassion upon the multitude again and again during His earthly ministry and
He who a little while before had said, “I am the Resurrection and the Life,” now lay quiet in death. |
had beamed lovingly upon the little children surrounding Him, were now closed in death. Those hands that had touched the leper, the blind, the deaf, the dumb, the diseased, hang limply at His side as the body is lifted from the Cross. That voice that had stilled the waves, cast out demons, raised the dead, uttered words of Life and hope, is now still. He who a little while before had said, “I am the Resurrection and the Life,” now lay quiet in death. Jesus was dead.
Then His body was placed in the tomb and a great stone was rolled to the door of the sepulcher (Matt. 27:57-60). Had Pilate cared to place an inscription upon the stone, he would have written, “Here lies Jesus, King of the Jews.” Had Satan written the inscription, it would have read, “Here lies Jesus of Nazareth, whom I have overcome” ; but if God had written the inscription, it would have been, ” Here lies the sinful human race.”
(top)
The Two Aspects of Christ’s Death
What was true of Jesus Christ as our Representative is true of us. |
The teacher will find it necessary again and again to call attention to the fact that what was true of Jesus Christ as our Representative is true of us. The two aspects of His death must clearly be seen if the members of the class are to possess an intelligent, adequate conception of God’s Redemptive Plan. The truths of Redemption should never be presented in such a manner as to lead the hearers to feel that Christ died for them that they might not die; that He suffered for their sins that they might escape punishment.
The stroke fell upon Him and upon all whom He embraced; and, as sinners, the entire human race disappeared from the horizon of God’s holiness. |
Rather should they be clearly shown that when the stroke fell on Him, they were executed; when He suffered death, they died in Him. This is the representative aspect as taught in the Bible. (See 2 Cor. 5:19 and Rom. 6:1-11.)
The sinless Last Adam gathered the entire sinful race of the First Adam in His arms and took them to Calvary. The stroke fell upon Him and upon all whom He embraced; and, as sinners, the entire human race disappeared from the horizon of God’s holiness.
(top)
A young Christian who had been meditating much upon the Redemptive work of Christ, found difficulty in perceiving how she, as a sinner, received what she deserved in Christ’s dying for her. She believed the facts as stated in the written Word of God, but her sense of justice said, “I ought to be punished for my sin. It does not seem fair for another to be punished for what I have done.” God very preciously gave her the illumination that she needed one night in a dream, in which she saw one whom she loved standing as a culprit before a stern, frowning figure representing Justice. The face of the wrongdoer wore a guilty, apprehensive look, as if the descending rod in the hand of Justice was about to administer a deserved yet fearful punishment. Just as the heavy rod was about to fall upon the extended hand of the culprit, the young woman herself, personifying love, rushed forward, and placing her upturned hand in the hand of the guilty one, caught the full force of the blow. The culprit’s face revealed the consciousness of having received deserved punishment and at the same time it manifested true sorrow for the wrongdoing; a sorrow that was awakened by love’s suffering interposition and substitutionary act. The young woman was then able to see that she had been punished; that personally, she received what she deserved as a sinner; but Christ had felt the force of the blow.
Here we see both identification and substitution. When we say, “Christ died for me,” we refer to an element of His death that we could not share—(the force of the “stroke” ): this is the Substitutionary Aspect of His death. When we say, “In Christ I died,” we refer to the fact of our identification with Him in His death as our Representative.
The Death That Christ “Tasted”
But now let us more seriously examine the substitutionary aspect of His death. What is meant by His “tasting death for every man?” (See Heb. 2:9.) Clearly this refers to something more than dissolution. What was this death? Let us again recall the definition of death as stated in our earlier lessons: “Death is a falling out of correspondence with environment.” It is the logical result of sin. Sinners cannot respond to God. This inability to respond causes a realized separation from Him. We have found that, so far as man is concerned, this separation would be of everlasting duration. Everlasting separation from God would mean everlasting death. This was the death that Christ “tasted.”
We see then very plainly that had He been the son of Joseph, and by a miracle the law of heredity had been set aside in order to render the child of sinful parents a sinless being,
Only a Being who possessed Uncreated Life could “taste” everlasting death without being held in its power. |
His benevolent attempt to become a sacrifice for the sin of His race would have involved Himself in this everlasting death; and it would not have effected any change in the status of the members of the race. Only a Being who possessed Uncreated Life could “taste” everlasting death without being held in its power. Only a Being who was under the “law of the Spirit of Life” could come within the sphere of the operation of “the law of sin and death” and render it inoperative by rising above it.
(top)
A very simple illustration will enable the class to grasp the meaning. An eagle is perched upon a crag overlooking a precipice. A serpent glides noiselessly towards the rock and fastens its coils upon the body of the bird. Both fall over the edge of the precipice, but before the bottom is reached, the eagle disentangles itself from the coils of the serpent and flies far up in the air, while the serpent falls to the earth below. The serpent is controlled by the force of gravity which draws it to the ground. The eagle feels the force of gravitation but overcomes it by the force of levitation.
The God-Man came into the world “with a death-bearing body and a Life-giving power” (Dr. Mabie); therefore, He could go down to the sphere of everlasting death, and rising above it in His Uncreated Life, He could take with Him those who should choose to go.
We are now able to perceive that something more than the death of Christ is needed to meet all the requirements of God’s Plan of Redemption. The claims of God’s holiness have been satisfied, but the claims of God’s Love must also be met. God wants sons-beings who shall share His Life; therefore the Last Adam must be manifested as the Head of a new order or race of righteous, holy, glorified human beings. This transformation of sinful human beings would seem to be analogous to the reconstructive work of God as narrated in Genesis 1:2, and might be fittingly termed a “new creation.” (See 2 Cor. 5:17.)
Christ’s Resurrection
Accordingly, upon the third day after the body of Jesus had been placed in the tomb, the stone was found rolled away. Christ had arisen. Oh, the glorious Resurrection Morn! What does it mean to us? The teacher should have the various passages recording this event read and compared. The first appearance of Christ after His Resurrection was to Mary Magdalene. (See John 20:14-18.) The second is mentioned in Matthew 28:9, and the other appearances are given in their order: third, Luke 24:15-32; fourth, Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5; fifth, Luke 24:36-43; sixth, John 20:19-25; seventh, John 20:26-29; eighth, John 21; ninth, Matthew 26:32; 28:16; tenth, 1 Corinthians 15:6; eleventh, 1 Corinthians 15:7[a]; twelfth, 1 Corinthians 15:7[b]; thirteenth, Acts 1:9-11; fourteenth, 1 Corinthians 15:8. Study each reference and note the numbers and classes of persons who were witnesses. Also carefully notice what Christ says about His glorified body. Note wherein it differed from His body before the Crucifixion.
(top)
The Resurrection is said to be the best attested fact of the Gospel Record and this indicates its importance, for without the Resurrection, there would be no positive proof of the efficacy of His death. (See Rom. 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:12-21.)
In the Resurrected Christ we behold the same Personality that walked and taught in Galilee. Those tender, searching eyes beam as of old, yet with a new luster. Those nail-scarred hands are the same that ministered in blessing to the sick and needy, yet their earthiness has disappeared. The disciples gaze upon their glorified Lord in amazement and awe, yet He convinces them that He is the “very same Jesus.” He permits them to handle Him; to examine the scars in His hands and the healed spear wound in His side (John 20:19-29). He eats before them (Luke 24:41-43); He enters into their daily needs and prepares their morning meal (John 21:1-14).
Can we understand this Resurrection power? No, for it belongs to God; but we shall experience it. The glorified body of our Lord shows us what our glorified bodies are to be. Not an atom is to be lost but changed. The teacher should now remove the black circle surrounding the star, and place over the white circles symbolizing spirit, soul and body, a gilt disc bearing similar circles and words. The star, denoting the Deity of the God-Man, is now seen over the gilt disc that symbolizes His glorified humanity. (See Fig. 7.)
Christ’s Ascension
Call attention to the fact that Christ remained forty days upon earth in His Resurrection body; then, after promising to send the “Comforter,” His Other Self, to them, He ascended to heaven, from which He told them that He would return in visible form, and requested them to watch for His appearing. (See Acts 1:9-11.)
Up through the realm of the defeated enemy-Satan, the usurper-the God-Man passed in triumph, having shaken off from Himself the hostile princes and rulers whom He “boldly displayed as His conquests, when by the Cross He triumphed over them” (Col. 2:15, Weymouth).
(top)
Up to “heaven itself,” the third heaven, went the God-Man, and having fully executed God’s Plan of Redemption, “He sat
God has corroborated the statement of Jesus upon the Cross—“It is finished,” by the display of His Resurrection and Ascension Power...Not a single thing remains to be done. |
down at the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting, till His enemies be made His footstool” (Heb. 10:12-13).
God has corroborated the statement of Jesus upon the Cross— “It is finished,” by the display of His Resurrection and Ascension Power. God’s Plan of Redemption for the human race has been fully executed. Not a single thing remains to be done. Eternal Life and everlasting sonship are ready for any human being who chooses to accept the same.
|
There is not a being that’s under the sun,
Nor above it, nor anywhere in the wide earth
Nor in the whole heaven
Not God nor Christ even;
Not all these combined can do aught, for ’tis Done!
Done thoroughly, gloriously,
Superbly, victoriously
As God’s Self would have it,
Done! there we may leave it;
Christ’s work on the Cross is of infinite worth
Meeting sin in its root
And through all its fruit;
And God rests; and Christ rests; and the man who believes
May rest as secure and established as They
And as happy, though heaven and earth pass away;
May rejoice to the full in the Life he receives.
|
Malachi Taylor
Main |
Figures |
Preface |
Foreward |
Plan of Redemption |
Plan Accomplished
Plan Appropriated |
Site Map |
Links
 |
