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I
T lEOLOGIC'AL CNIOX
. <>l"
MOINT AlJ,IS().\ WKSLKVAN COI LHKiK.
S
FOU RTH
ANNUAL LECTt RE
A> I)
SERMON.
Dklivkhki) Jink, l>^82.
^i
SAINT JOHN, N.B.
J. it A. McMlM.AN, i».S I'KINCi: \Vll-l,lAM Sti!i:i,t.
1.S88.
^m:m«^i^^
M
Al
v..
TIIEOUKUCAL I'NION
OK
MOINT ALLISON WESLEYAN COLLEGE.
w
i:
FOURTH
Annual Lecture
ANI»
Sermon.
Delivered June, 1882.
i\
SAINT JOHN, N. B.
J. & A. ^^cMlLLAN, 98 Prince William Strkkt.
1883.
Ai\'
¥\
;i "1
V4i.
Foui
Saint Pauls doctrine
OK
The ATONEMENT:
BEINO THE
Fourth Annual Lecture before the Theological Union of
Mount Allison Wesleyan College.
DELIVERED JUNE, 1882,
BY
REV. HOWARD SPRAGUE, D. D.
nv !
LECTURE.
SAINT PAUL'S DOCTRINE OF THE ATONEMENT.
I
TITIIETHER it l)e wise or not to s|>Ofiilat<' upon a thcmo so
^^ mysterious as the rationale of Kedeniptiou, the Iniiuan
mind, ol)eying a native impulse, has speculated, with ahunchuit
and varied, if not with satisfactory results. Numerous theories
of Atonement, sanctioned hy illustrious names and supported by
ingenious reasoning, are otfered to inquiring Cliristians. Jt is
impossible to he indifferent spectators of the many-sided con-
troversy, in which the disputants deal witii the fundamental facts
of the Christian religion, and in which they freely charge each
other with mistaking the central truths of Revelation, and even
with misrepresenting and traducing the character of God. JJut
what hope is there tiiat we shall be able to decide which ofthc.se
theories is true, or whether any is ? Is it worth the effort to do
so? Or may we more wisely decline the tedious task, and repose
upon the simple facts which they profess to explain ?
There is a disposition to put the facts and the d(x;trines of
Christianity in contrast, the one as the objects of faith and the
basis of hope, the other as a field of curious and useless s|xu'ula-
tion, and to arrange the Gospels and Epistles in this order of
relative importance. But the facts of Redemption can be nothing
to us until we have some view of their nature and relations ; and
our view of their nature and relations is our doctrine of the
Atonement. It may be meagre, and it may be false; but if
Christ is our Saviour, and we are Christians, we hold some view
of what He has done for us.
DeQuincey, in old age, reports himself as having been always
unable to resolve this theme, and as having obtained no assist-
ance either from the philosophizings of Coleridge or the simpler
(5)
! :l
6
Saint Paul's Doctrink of tiik Atonkment.
i I
I' I
explanations of liia clear-headed and tlion^litful mother. "There
are," he says, "countless different schenies to expound this do<'-
trine of trust and appropriation ; hut they remind mo of the
ancilia at Rome, the eleven copies of the sac-red shield, or Palla-
dium : to prevent the true one beint^ stolen, the eleven were made
exactly like it. So with the tittc doctrine of the Atonement : it
is lurking among the others that look like it ; but who is to say
v^hich of them all it is?"*
So long as speculation busies itself with the construction of
theories, for which it afterwards seeks support in the Scri})tures,
there will be the variety and confusion of opinion which per-
plexed even the acute and brilliant essayist. The Atonement is
a matter of revelation : the Scriptures alone can tell us what it is.
After we have found it there, we may seek confirmatory evidence
in the speculations of the philosoj)her, and illustrations in history
and the relations of social life. But what we find, or fail to find,
in these fields of inquiry, can neither affect its character as the
Bible reveals it, nor disturb the foundations of its truth.
To this inquiry into the testimony of Revelation, I propose
to direct your attention ; and, as it would be impossible to sur-
vey the whole field of the teaching even of the New Testament,
I select that of a single writer, and ask : " What was St. Paul's
doctrine of the Atonement?"
The question is not intended to suggest that Paul may have
had a peculiar view, diflPering in important, or even in subordi-
nate details, from that of other Apostles ; but simply that we
may hope to find in his writings a view definite and complete.
There are, however, in his case, some special reasons for separat-
ing his doctrine from that of the others, for the purpose of
distinct consideration. One reason is the fact that he reached it
independently of them. He tells us that for three years after
his conversion he did not visit Jerusalem, and did not see an
Apostle ; that for fourteen years longer he pursued an independ-
ent course ; that then he visited the Capital to declare and defend
the Gospel he preached among the Gentiles, and to assert the
♦Page's "Life of DeQuincey," Am. ed., Vol. I., p. 393.
Saint I*aiti/h DocTmNK of thf, Atonkmknt.
rirlits of the Gentile elmn'he.s ; aiul that the piUars of the mother
chureh — Peter, James, and John — eoiihl athl nothin}^ to his
knowledge of the truth, Imt, j^iving to him the right hand of fel-
lowshi|), reeognized at once the fulin'ss of his (iospel and the
frnitfulness of his work.* JJy his own knowledge of the aneient
Scriptures; by his reading, in the light of them, the crucifixion
and resurrection of the Lord ;t above all, by " the revelation of
the Son of God in him,"]; he iiad gained his doctrine independ-
ently of iiuinan aid. It was emphatically his. His own thought,
his own spiritual experience, his own communings with the divine
Saviour, had led him into the atoning myst^ery of Messiah's death.
The doctrine of others may confirm his: he did not need the
confirmntion. He stood on independent and solid ground.
Another reason for the septirate consideration of St. Paul's
doctrine is the transcendent influence it has had on the religious
thinkings of the world. A few great minds, appearing, for the
most part, singly and in widely separate epo(!hs, have determined
the course and the character of theologic thought ; and, among
the few, the chief is Paul. He was ignorant of the Christian
faith until near the middle of his life. After he embraced it, he
had no leisure for study and system-building, except the three
years in Arabia and the time he spent in Tarsus and its neigh-
borhood before coming to Antioch. From Antioch onward he
was on long journeys and in busy evangelism ; passed through
repeated and severe suffering; through much of the time earned
his daily bread by manual toil, and through most of it carried
the burden of broken health. Yet his occasional letters to the
churches reveal an intense activity of thought, contain the sub-
stance of Christian doctrine, and have controlled the thinkings
of the great Christians of ancient and modern times. No influ-
ence is so plainly impressed on the great theologians and systems
of the church, — Augustine, Anselm, Luther, Calvin, Arniinius,
Edwards, — so that it has become the fashion with rationalistic
students of the beginnings of Christianity to speak of St. Paul
as the founder of the Christian church and faith.
*Gal. i. 17— ii. 9.
fActsxiii. 27-37.
Gal. i. 12.
8
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
i! I
To avoid any appearance of begging the question in the very
title of this discourse, it may be well to explain the sense in which
I use the word "Atonement." It occurs but once in the author-
ized version of the New Testament,* and disappears from the
revised, the substituted word being "reconciliation." This is
the etymological meaning of the term, — the at-one-ment, — and
was a conmion use of it when the authorized version was made.
Frequent use of it, in this sense, is found in Shakespeare :
" He desires to make atonement
Betwixt the Duke of Gloucester and your brothers."t
" I would do much
To atone them, for the love I bear to Cassio ;" X
and so in maiiy other places.
This word, like many others, has now transferred its meaning
backward from the effect to the cause ; and in the language of
theology designates, not the result of the work of Christ, but
that work itself, or rather, so much of it as produced this par-
ticular result. It is perfectly fair to question the wisdom and
convenience of this change ; but it is useless to insist upon the
ancient meaning in the theological discussions of the present day;
and it is frivolous to produce that meaning as an argument against
the reality of the thing which the wo»*d now denotes. Christ
reconciled God and man : the harmony thus secured could for-
merly be called Atonement. How did He do so ? The answer
to this question gives what is meant by Atonement now. The
word belongs to no particular theory, but to any theory which
professes to answer the question. Did St. Paul give an answer?
When we have found it, we have found his doctrine of the
Atonement.
There are two accounts of his teaching, — the fragmentary
reports of his preaching in the Acts of the Apostles, and the
record of his doctrine in his own Epistles. It is not now possible
to discuss the authenticity of the reports and the genuineness of
the letters. And it is not necessary. A successful defence has
been made by competent scholars against the assaults of Baur and
*Rom. V. 11. t Richard the Third, I. iii. 36. J Othello IV. i. 244.
Saint Paul's DorrRixK of tiik Atonemknt.
1)
^'|i
>¥
Zi^ller upon the credibility of the Acts. Tlie Pauline Kpistlos
are the part of Scripture which lias t^iven the <i;reatcst trouble to
the destructive criti(rs. Tliose of them which are the most im-
portant for the present purpose are, on all hands, oontcssed to be
genuine, and have never been the subjects of serious doubt.
Even so free a critic as Kenan, dividing; thenj into five (ilasses, —
the unquestioned, tiie certain, the probable, the doubtful, and tln^
false, — j)uts but three Epistles in the fifth class, and one in the
fourth, viz., tiiose to Timothy, to Titus, and to the Ephcsians.* So
far as I am ca])able of judj^ing, the arguments against tiie genuine-
ness of these letters are more than answered by the internal evi-
dence and the belief of the ancient church. St. Paul's doctrine of
the Atonement would, however, be complete \\ ithout them ; and
almost every passage of them to which 1 shall have occasion to
refer, has its meaning expressed in parallel passages of the
other letters.
The Epistle to the Hebrews is held by some critics of all
schools to be the work of another writer; but some of those who
hold this view maintain that it furnishes abundant evidence that
its author was familiar with St. Paul's teaching, and probably
wrote it under his insj)iratiou or suj)ervision. It is sublime in
its Christology, and rich in its treatment of the doctrines of the
Cross; and these doctrines are the doctrines of St. Paul. But
we are not at liberty to use it in the present inquiry. With this
exception, however, all the letters which bear the Apostle's name
may be appealed to in illustration of his doctrine.
It would not be necessary to say that our investigation is
purely inductive, and aims at discovering the truth by finding
and comparing the facts, were it not that conve?iience and brev-
ity of discussion coi ipel a classification of texts from the begin-
ning, and that it . ^ay be supposed the texts have been selected
and arranged to meot the demands of a foregone concbision.
On the contrary, everything that has come down to us from the
lips and pen of the Apostle has been carefully exatnined ; every
passage bearing upon the subject, unless the bearing is very
*Renan: Saint Paul, Am. Trans, p. 10.
■'. . i '
10
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
indirect, has been noted ; and the classification to be given is the
result. The necessity for some classification arises out of the
character of the Epistles, of which nearly all are not formally
doctrinal. They were written, save in two instances, to churches
or persons whom Paul had directtly instructed, and who must
have been familiar with his doctrine in a matter so fundamental
as the redeeming work of the Lord. His references to this sub-
ject are therefore incidental in the majority of his letters, and,
on this very account, have an in)portan('e which docs not Ix-'long
to formal reas(»ning; for they imply a general acceptance of the
doctrine by the churches and |>ersons addressed, that it was of
the very substance of the Christian faith as universally held in
the churches planted by Si. Paul.
I. One characteristic of St. Paul's treatment of the work of
Redemption is conspicuous and constant throughout the letters :
it is that his notice ( ^" oarthly life of the Redeemer, as related
to it, begins at tlie c. . IIo does not detail the facts of the
Saviour's history, — only two or three times does he refer to
any, — until he comes to the close ; and then he fixes upon the
Cross a fascinated eve. The death and the resu.rection of Jesus,
these arc for Paul the two monicntous facts : and his whole treat-
ment of them implies that in these, but especially in the former,
the Cross, the Blood, the Death of Christ, he regards the Lord
as sustaining a unique relation to the world.
This is characteristic both of the general preaching and of
the letters of the Apostle. It is not very conspicuous in the
discourses reported in the xVcts ; but this is accounted for by
their evidently exceptional character, intended, as the selection
of them is, to illustrate the bearing of the Apostle in the great
crises of his life. There are but six in all ; omitting those spoken
in self defence, there are but three ; one, suggested by the idola-
try of Athens, on the spirituality and unity of God ;* one, to a
congregation of Jews, in which he attempts to convince them of
the Messiahship of Jesus by a comparison of Messianic prophe-
*Actsxvii, 22-31.
aroi
enn
the]
ass I
prej
to
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
11
uics witlj tho clrcumstiiiK'cs of His doath and resurrection, and in
whieli lie deelare.s the fbrj^ivene^s of sins to l»e dependent on tlie
work of Clirist; ■■ and one to tlic Elders at Miletus, — an exhor-
tation to i)ast<>ral fidelity, patterned after the exan»|)le he ha<l
given them, and sustained by the solemn consideration that the
chureh of which they were overseers the J^ord had "|)nrchased
with his own blood."! And, further, all these addresses, except
that to the Ephesian Elders, were spoken to hearers who were
not Christians. It is evident, then, that these discourses afVonl
no indication of the general character of the Apostle's ministry,
of his way of dealing with the [)enitent and inquiring, or of his
education of the newly-formed churches in the truths of the
Christian religion. For information on these points we must
turn to his letters. There we find, not only the advanced teach-
ing which he gave to Christians of mature ex|)erience, but de-
scriptions of his way of winning souls and of feeding the infancy
of faith.
In reviewing his niinistrv at Corinth, he savs .e ha<l been
sent " to preach the Gospel ; not with wisdom of words, lest the
cross of Christ should be made of none effect. * * * Jjnt wc
preach Christ crucified. * * * For I determined not to know
anything among you, save Jesus Christ and him crucified." \
He gives in brief the same account of his preaching to the
Galatians, before whose eyes he had set forth Jesus Christ, as
if visibly crucified before them. || There is no room for doubt
that this was his theme wherever he preached the Gospel, in
the synagogues, the market-places, the houses of friends, from
Damascus to Rome. He further tells us what feelings were
aroused in his hearers by this preaching of the Cross, by the
emphasis which he laid not only on the fact, but on the manner,
the infamous and degrading manner, of Jesus' death : for we may
assume Corinth to be no exception in this particular. "The
preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness * * ♦
to the Jews a stumblingblock, and to the Greeks foolishness." §
*Acts xiii. 16-41.
t Acts XX. 17-35.
+ 1 Cor. i. 17-23— ii. 2.
IIGai. iii. 1.
\\ Cor. i. 18-23.
12
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
The unspeakable shame of the Cross may account for the
feeling of the Jew, if Paul identified Jesus with Messiah, but it
does not explain the derision of the Gentile. As a good man's
proof of his sincerity and goodness, it could have offended none.
As a wrong inflicted on the innocent by the hands of malice, it
(iould only have aroused indignation against Jewish injustice and
cruelty, and pity for a good man's fate. As a martyr's final
testimony to his high and heroic faith, to the sincerity of his
motives, to the importance of his message, it could only have
excited admiration of a self-denial and fortitude, at that time rare
in the Groco-Roman world. It could not, then, have been these
aspects of the Cross that appeared prominently in tjje preaching
of Paul. It was, it must have been, the explanation which he
put upon the Cross, the relation in which he made it stand to his
hearers and to the world, that provoked the scorn of Grecian
culture, and the hatred of Pharisees and priests.
And why, we may ask, finding such feelings aroused by his
manner of presenting the Gospel, did he persist in his course?
Why, after his reasonings with the wise men of Athens, meeting
them upon their own ground, and laying a basis in philosophy
for his Christian conception of the Godhead, and the unsatisfac-
tory result, did he go on to Corinth with the firm resolve to have
no theme but "Christ and Him crucified," and never afterward
alter that resolve? To win men to Christ was the supreme pur-
pose of his life : he gave up all for it; he bore all things for it;
he " took pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in
persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake." * Yet his message
wins ten, but alienates a hundred. He was not needlessly severe
or otfensive in his speech. He was not a narrow-minded bigot,
standing upon trifles and contending for things non-essential to
the Christian faith. He was courteous in his treatment of all
men and skilful in conciliating opponents. He was ready to
make concessions to the prejudices of others when no principle
was compromised, even at the risk of his own reputation for con-
sistency. He would have made any personal sacrifice that " the
*2 Cor. xii. 10.
■'!?•■
Saint Paui/s Doctiune of tiik Atonement.
13
1 )!-
offence of the Cross mi«:;ht cease." But the Cross continues to be
so peculiarly prominent in his preaching that everything in Chris-
tianity that is beautiful and attractive to the natural mind — and
surely there is much — is forgotten in the scorn and hatred aroused
by tlie doctrines of the Cross. "Nothing," says Dean Stanley,
"shows the confidence of tiie Apostle more strongly than the
prominence which he gives to an aspect of his teaching so un-
popular."* This may be true ; but it is more evidently true that
nothing shows nioi-e strongly that St. Paul believed the Cross to
be the most important fact in the (iospel, and that Christ upon
tiie C^ross held a uni«jue relation to the world, and one of supreme
importance.
]5ut, it is said, "while the Apostle lays great stress upon the
death of Christ, * * * he lays tenfold more emphasis on the
resurrection :" f "This, an<l not the cross with its supposed ctlects,
is the grand object to which they (the Aj)ostles) call the attention
and the faith of their hearers." | It is of course true that, like
Peter in Jerusalem after Pentecost, Paul in Antioch and Athens
and Corinth, preached unto the people "Jesus and the Resurrec-
tion." And whv not? The resurrection is a ij-lorious fact, and
on any theory of the death of Christ, it is the one transcendent
miracle on which, as on a sure foundation, the whole Christian
fabric rests. The Jews knew that Jesus had died upon the Cross,
and tliere was no difficultv in sccurinjr the belief of it amon<r the
Gentiles. The resurrection was the remarkable, the wonderful,
the incredible fact. That Jesus had died, died by public execu-
tion, died upon the cross, by itself proved notiiing in his favour,
but was, prima facie, evidence against his claims. But the resur-
rection "proved him to be the Son of God with power," § and
was necessarily dwelt upon by the personal witnesses, as the
unanswerable evidence for Christ. Beside this, the resurrection
of Jesus "brought life and immortality to light," and in addition
to being an argument for Christianity, is one of the media of its
*St. Paul's r'pistles to the Corinthians: A. P. Stanley: 4th edition, p. 40.
fLivermore: Commentary on Romans, p. 65.
X Martineau : Studies of Christianity, p. 105. ^ Romans i. 4.
!'ir
:!h
,A[
14
Saint Paui/s Doctrixk of tiii: Atoxkmknt.
revelations ; and he wlio counted it his dutv to declare the whole
counsel of God could not ignore the great truths immediately
connected with the resurrection of the Lord. There is another
reason why he nuist have dwelt upon it, viz., that he had a special
theory of the relation of the death of Jesus to the world. It
would have heen imi)ossible for him to obtain belief in iiis
doctrine of tiie death, if he had not been able to assert the resur-
rection of Jesus ; it was almost impossible to gainsay his doctrine,
it' t\w resurrection were proved to be a fact.
No, it may l)e said, there is another reason, and it is incon-
sistent with tlioseyou have been giving: the resurrection, and not
the <leath of Christ, is the ground of justification ; and it is on
that account the Apostle so often refers to it, and that when "his
general description (of faitjj in Christ) is replaced by a more
specific account of this justifying state of mind, it is faitli in the
Resurrection on which the attention is fastened. * * * He w'as
'delivered for our offences and raised again for our justifica-
tion.'"* The English translation of the passage thus quoted by
the olyector may seem to serve his ])urpose : the Greek original
contradicts his theory. As in tlie translation, so in the original,
the same prej)osition {di<\) is used twice; and this prej)osition, in
tiiis construction, has the signification given to it in the first part
of the English sentence. The same meaning must be preserved
in tiie second part : " Who was delivered on account of our
oifences and was raised on account of our justification ;" that is,
our justification was, not the end, but the cause of His resurrec-
tion. Because the atonement of His death was sufficient and
accepted of God, God raised Him from the dead. Our sins
crucified Him; our accomplished justification raised Him again.f
But if this exposition were doubtful, the commonly accepted
reading is not more favourable to the objector's cause, if we read
the j)assage in the light of other Scriptures. If Paul says "He
was raised for our justification," he also says, " We are now jus-
tified by His blood."! We cannot be, in the same sense, justified
foui
recor
did
oftei
shew
I
dcfin
delivi
tiiat
" Oui
"JesI
"De[
Paul
; I
* Martineaii : Studies of Christianity, p. 106.
t (iodet: Commentary on Romans, IV., 25.
t Romans v. 9.
ii
Satxt PaiiAs Dcktrink of thi: Atonement.
15
iniil,
l)V His blood and )iiii<tirK'd l)v His rcstirroction ; and tlioliarmonv
of the two assortions is found in a tinrd statcincnt of Si. Paul,
that the resurrection j)rov('d Him to be the Son of God, and, by
implication, proved the sufliciency of His death as the ground of
justification. In otiier words, justification is obtained ff)r us by
tiie death of (Jlirist — " We are justified by His i)loo(l ;" justifi-
cation is realized by us throu^ii faith, which has tlie resurrcctiiui
for its warrant, but the atoninj^ death for its object — " He was
raised for our justification."
There is, then, no fair ijround for the assertion that St. Paul
lays " tenfold more emphasis on ihe resurrection" than on tiic
death of Christ. We have ha<I his own declaration that he
preached the Cross of Ciirist; we siiall find confirmatory
evidence at every step as we go on ; and the general tenor and
frecpiency and emphasis of his teaching respecting the death of
Ciirist, must be left to show that, however much he had to say
of the resurrection, the Cross was his central theme. A single
illustration may conclude this point, and establish our proposi-
tion, that the Apostle regarded the Lord as sustaining in His
death a uni(pie relation to tiie world. Wherever the Apostle
founded a church he established "tli- fiord's Supper." The first
record of its institution that we jios.xtss was niadc by him.* He
did not regard it as a simple symbol of brotiicrly love, but "as
often as yc eat this bread and drink this cup," he says, "ye do
shew the Lord's death till He come." f
II. This relation of Christ to the world is more particularly
defined bv St. Paul to be a relation to the sins of the world. " I
delivered luito you first of all that which I also received, how
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures." |
"Our Lord Jesus Christ who gave Himself for our sins."§
"Jesus our Lord * * who was delivered for our offences." ||
"Delivered" {•paradidoml) is a common expression witii St.
Paul to describe both the Divine appointment and the self-
* 1 Corinthians xi. 23.
tVerse 26.
X 1 Cor. XV. 3.
§Gal. i. 3,4.
II Rom. iv. 24, 25.
16
Saint Paui/s Doctrink of thk Atoxemkst.
^l!
I >!
surrender of Christ to death,* su«ifgested to him perhaps by
Jsaiah's d(!S(Tiption of the Servant of Jeiiovali, wIjosc "soul
was deliven.'d to death." f
1. "lie was delivered for our offences." " We have here
'<U(i' with tiie a<'eusativc, which in sacred and profane autliors in
the Greek hin^uajjfc, is the most common mari< of the impulsive
cause." I In some sense, tlierefore, winch it must he left to sub-
sequent ex|)ositions to explain, our sins were the cause of the
death of Christ.
2. 1 1 is relation in death to the sins of the world is described
under two further particulars. He han-ii the sins of men. This
parti(Mdar expression belongs to Peter rather than to Paid ; but in
language of great intensity and emphasis Paul asserts the fact —
" God hath made Him to be sin for us ;"§ " Fie was " made a
curse for us."||
In the former of these passages, the contrast between the
sinlessness of Christ and that which God made Him to become,
and the antithesis between our righteousness and His sin, require
us to regard "sin" as equivalent to "sinful," and exclude the
frequent explanation of it as "sin-offering." He was sinless;
iTod made Him sinful: we become righteous before God, because
He became sinful for us. The abstract is used for the concrete
for the sake of vividness and force. Yet it is not necessary that
we regard the Apostle as saying that Christ was actually made
sinful, and was punished as a sinner : it is sufficient if we
understand that He endured the suffering which sin caused;
which sin deserved ; which He bore for the sake of the sinful,
and which, endured by Him, God accepted as if the sinner had
borne it, and as equivalent, for the ends for which it was borne,
to the punishment of the sinner himself.
Perhaps the true meaning of this important passage cannot
be brouirht out better than in the words of Grotius : "As the
t( ,
tl
le
Th
* Rom. viii. 32. Gal. ii. 20. Eph. v. 2, 25. f Isaiah liii. 12.
J Grotius: Defence of the Catholic F'aith, translated in the Biblio. Sacra,
Vol. 36, page 107.
r-JCor. V. 21. II Gal. iii. 13.
Saint I*.\ri/s Doctiiini-: ok tiii: Atoxhmknt.
17
, l)V
soul
here
rs in
Isive
sub-
f the
•ribed
This
but iu
fa<'t—
itido JV
ou the
ccome,
require
ide the
siulcss ;
because
20ucrete
ary that
ly uiade
t if we
caused ;
le sinful,
liner had
us borne,
re cannot
5
"As the
iblio. Sucra,
Hebrews emj)l()y .s7/( for jtinn.sJunott, so tlicy also call Iliin who
suffered the punislujioiit, .si)i. * * * Tlierefore, followiiiii' this
form of speech, Isaiah said of Christ: 'He made His sold sin,'
i.e., He ex|)osed His soul to tiie jtunishmeiit of sin. In the
same way, Paul said, ' ile hath made him to be sin for us.' * *
Socinus, to escape tlie autliority of the J'auiinc ))assaiie, su|>j)oses
that bv ti»e word mii siiould Im' understood a man regarded bv
men as a sinner, but without warrant ; for, first, there is no ex-
ample of such a use of either the (Ireeic or tiie Hebn.'W wonl ;
again, Paul attributes to (iod ;;e act of making Clirist sin ; and,
again, this interpretation cannot be adapted to the words of Isaiah
wliich contain a similar phrase. For wiiat Paul says (Jod did,
Isaiaii ascribes to Clirist, that doubtless He made His soul sin,
or He nia<le Ilinisclf sin. Besides, Paul contrasts sin an<l righ-
teousness: * We have been made the righteousness of God,' /. c,
we have been justitled, or liberated from divine punishment.
But that this might be done, Christ was made sin, /. c, sullered
the divine punishment. * * * Can it be anything else than that
God has inflicted punishment upon the undeserving?"* It is
necessary to say that throughout his treatise, Cirotius does not use
"punishment" in a strict sense, for he did not hold to the penal
suffering of Christ, but to the sufferings of Christ substituted lor
the ])enalty of sin.
The other ])assagc, "being made a curse for us," is virtually
equivalent to the last. The form dillers; the matter is the same.
This is a more direct assertion of what the former intends, that
Christ bore the consc(juences of sin, the curse, that which, wlien
inflicted on the sinner, is the ex[»rcssion of the wrath of God ;
and that He did so upon the cross. We nuist not explain away
these solemn words, but take them in their obvious meaning.
There is no figure in this passage. It is a real deliverance that
is effected by the real bearing of a real curse. Nor need we
shrink from this representation of the work of Christ, if oidy
we are careful not to import into the Apostle's language ideas
which he does not express. He does not say or imply that Christ
*Grotiiis: Defence of the Catholic Faith: Bib. Sac, Vol. 36, p. 121.
t i|
•l!
fi. '
18
Saint Paul's Dcxtrine of tiik Atonemknt.
;M''
ill!:
HI I'
was tlic object of the anger of G(k1 when He bore the sins of men :
on the other hand, lie sjiys that in tliat awful hour of Atonement,
when He fully came under the weight of that curse which He
had assumed, and when He cried, "My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken me?" even then he was a "sweet smelling offer-
ing and sacrifice to God."* The oft-quoted words of Luther, in
his comment on this verse, in which he speaks of Christ as a
sinner in every kind and to every degree, and therefore as bearing
the wrath of God, are shocking indeed. But there is reason to
think he did not speak literally, but only carried out in multi-
plied expressions the Ajwstle's form of s|)eech : " He made Him
to be sin," "He became a curse." For Luther says: "These
sentences may, indeed, be well expounded after this manner:
Christ is made a curse, that is to say, a sacrifice for the curse ;
and sin, that is, a sacrifice for sin : yet in my judgment it is bet-
ter to keep the proper signification of the words, because there is
a greater force and vehemency therein. For when a sinner cometh
to the knowledge of himself indeed, he feeleth not only that he
is miserable, but misery itself; not only that he is a sinner, and
is accursed, but even sin and malediction itself. For it is a ter-
rible thing to bear sin, the wrath of God, malediction and death.
Wherefore, that man which hath a true feeling of these things,
(as Christ did truly and effectually feel them for all mankind,)
is made even sin, death and a curse." f
3. A third particular in St. Paul's conception of the relation
of Christ, in his death, to the sins of the world, is that He delivers
men from sin, from the guilt of sin, and from God's wrath and
penalties.
Sometimes both the humiliation of Christ and the advantage
arising from it to men are presented in a very general way, as
when he says : " Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor, that
ye through his poverty might be rich."| But usually he par-
ticularizes the blessings, and connects them immediately with the
*Eph. V. 2. tl^"*''*^*'' Commentary on Galatians Hi. 13.
J 2 Cor. viii. 9.
il! !l
Saint Paul's DocrniNK of tiik Atonkmknt.
19
len:
icnt,
He
Imst
)tVer-
»r, in
as i\
aring
ion to
Hulti-
Him
These
inner :
curse ;
is bet-
here is
cometh
that he
ler, and
Is a ter-
1 death.
! things,
ankind,)
relation
e delivers
rath and
dvantage
I way, as
Lis Christ,
poor, that
y he par-
y with the
i. 13.
death of Christ: "lie gave liimself for our sins, that lie iniglit
deliver us from this present evil world."* He "gave himself for
us, that lie might redeem us from all ini(]uity."t This is salva-
tion in the present time. On the other iiantl, he saves us from
the future |)eualty of sin. He "delivered us from tiie wrath to
come."! Ho " ''^^t'' redeemed us from the curse of the law, l)eing
made — because he was made — a curse for us."§ " IV'ing now
justified by His blo(xl we shall l)e saved from wrath through
Him." II And, not to multiply quotations, we "obtain salvation
by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that, whether we
wake or sleep, we should live together with Him."l The Cireek,
in this last passage, expresses more directly than the translation,
the connection between His dying for us and our obtaining salva-
tion. For the participial phrase, {tou apothanontos huper lu'mdn,)
as Crawford remarks, "has the force of the well known Latin
phrase, 'quipjx) qui,' "** and may l)e translated "in as much as,"
i. e., " because he died for us." These passages make it plain
that Paul connects the forgiveness of sins and eternal life with
the death of Christ as their ground and cause.
4. In describing His relation to the world and its sins, Paul
further speaks of the Lord as a substitute, taking the place of
sinners, suffering and dying in their stead.
The Greek prepositions used by the Apostle are worthy of
consideration ; for, if no confident argument can be based on
them alone, the context often invests them with important
meaning. The three prepositions occurring in this connection
{pei'i, huper, anti), and all translated "for," have different mean-
ings and denote different relations. "A7iti" means " instead of,"
and must be so understood. It is used by the Lord when he
says of himself that He came " to give His life a ransom for
many;" ft where both the preposition and the figure involve the
idea of substitution. It is also used by St. Paul when he says
*GaI. i. 4. fTitus ii. 14. J 1 Thes. i. 10.
?Gal. iii. 13. || Rom. v. 9. T[ 1 Thes. v. 9, 10.
** Crawford : Scripture Doctrine of the Atonement, third ed., p. 55.
tt Matt. XX. 28.
M
20
SaFNT PaTI/s I)(M think of Till- Atoxkmf'at.
tiic lidi'd " ^avo Tfimscir a ransom for all;"* wlicrc the noun
and prcjtosition arc ns('<l as a conipound word i(infi-/itfr(ni), and
" tlio idi'U of an {'.\('liaii;i:<'> which lies in tiio substantive itself,
}^ains sjx'cial force from tlie prcjufsition." f
Of tl>e otiier two i>repositions one, (y>o7), means "concern-
in;r," "on account of," '* in hehalf of," Imt never " instead of."
It is used hy Paul when he speaks of Christ's relation to sin,
where the idea of suhstitution would he inadmissible; hut never
when he speaks of 1 1 is relation to sinners, where the idea would
he proper. Here \\v invariably uses ^^hiijur,^^ which means both
" in behalf (»f " and " instead of." That Paul is aware of thin
second sense, and sometimes intends it, is clear fntm his statement
toPiiilemon: "I would have retained Onesimus with mo, that
in thy stead {liupcr mn) he nuj^ht have ministered unto me."|
Jiut in everv instance the nature of the case or the context nuist
determine the sense of the prepo.-^ition. When Paul says " Wc
arc aml)assadors for Christ" — " We pray you in Christ's stead,
{hvpcr Chridoii)," ^ the nature of the case settles the meaninjj: : it
must be "in the place of." So in the passage, " Scarcely for a
righteous man will one die, yet peradventure for a good man,
some would cv(mi dare to die," || the nature of the case re(juires
us to understand " in the j)laee of." For, a man does not die for
another as a gratuitous manifestation of his love, but in his
place, to save him from death or some calamity terrible as death.
And when Paul goes on to say, "God commendeth His love
toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us,"
he instances a jjarallel case, which must be a case of substitution.
In other instances the context settles the meaning. When
Paul says "one died for all," ^ some uncertainty may attach to
the clause taken alone; but when he adds the inference, "then
all died," he fixes upon the preposition the sense of substitution.
And this account of his meaning is borne out by the fact that
this word is found in the New Testament, upon the li])s of
speakers of every station and character, in connection with the
*1 Tim. ii, G.
i 2 Cor. V. 20.
t liange's Commentary, in Loco.
II Kom. V. 7.
X Philemon, 13.
IT 2 Cor. V. 14.
at id
h^
dev(i
(leatl
J)lac
nior
infeJ
he i\
fron
a p;i|
died
Saint Pati/s Dim timm: ok rm; A ionknikm'
2\
sul)stitiiti(»n of life for lifi-. Wlicii the lionl says, "(Jnatt'i* lov»»
liatli no man tlian this, that a man lay down hi<^ life for [/nijHr)
his friends,"* tlicrc ran Iw no doiiKt of his nuaninir: ll<' «'\toIs,
as the noMc.-t act of scIf-sacrilicinL,^ l(»vr, the ;iivin;x '"f one's life
to save the life of one's friend. W hen I'eter, in tiie ardour of
his devotion says, " I will lay down my life for thee {/nij)rr
mu)"f ho certainly means that he is ready to die in hi< Master's
stead. When ( aiaphas declares " It is e.\|iedient that one man
shonid die for tlu! |)eo|)le," ;}; we eoid<l have no donht of his
meaning; even if it were not ailded, " that the whole nation jxrish
not." And when dohn allirms that the llii;h Priest sj>oke hy an
inspiration himself tlid not reeoM-ni/i', he hoth explains the m«an-
inj:; ot iUv priest s proplietie words, an<i records Ins own d«>ctrnio
of the vicarionsness of Jesus' death : " lie prophesied that .lesns
shoidd die for that nation and not for that nation only.">; Ihns
we see that this pre|tosition, while? not necessarily involvin*;' the
idea of snlistitntion, yet, from the nature; of the snhject and in
the eonneetions in which it stan<ls, e\j)resses it with siillicient
pr
ceision.
]int it is not neecssarv to rest the wei'dit of the artrinnent for
Hiibstitntion njuHi the meanin<ijof a preposition. Apart alto}j;ether
from its significanee, it is impossihle to ^ive any other nieaninj^
to many of the passaires in which it is found. This has Ix-en
made plain in the fore^oinir, and it is .loi worth \shilc to repeat
at len|i;th. M'hen St. Paid illustrates the ji-reatness of (iod's love
by comparin<!: His sending' of J I is Son to death for sinners, to the
devotion of tiie num who saeriliees his life to avert a ^ood man's
death, substitution is the unavoidable iiderenee : it is life in the;
place of life, in the one ease as in the other. JIa<l Paul said no
more than that Christ was made a curse for us, we could have
inferred no more than that he suilered in our interest; but wlu'ii
he al
so
sayi
that
nde
we were under a eurse, and nave Deen savee
1 h
1)
d
from it by Christ's being made a eurse, it is not an inference, but
a paraphrase, to say that He stood in our place and suflered and
died in our stead. And so, also, when Paul says that Christ was
■John XV. 13. f John xiii. 37. JJohnxi. 50. ^ John xi, 51-52.
iir
22
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
"made sin for us," — sin, in the sense already explained ; for he
puts the Lord in vicarious relation to us, by adding that by His
endurance of what sin brought upon Him, we are made the
righteousness of God, are justified, are saved from the penalty of
sin. He who by suffering saves another from the suffering other-
wise inevitable, must suffer in that other's place.
5. At the same time, St. Paul represents the Lord as coming
into this relation to man and his sin through the prompting of
His own love, and as bearing in His humiliation, His sorrows.
His death, a really voluntary part. Without necessity and with-
out constraint, " He gave Himself for our sins." * It was a
manifestation of His own grace that " though He was rich, yet
for your sakes He became poor." f " The Son of God loved me,
and gave Himself for me."| "Christ hath loved us, and hath
given Himself for us."§ He "loved the church, and gave
Himself for it." II
Such is Paul's account of the relation of Christ to the ivorkl,
in His sufferings and death.
III. On the other hand, he represents Him as sustaining, in
the Atonement of His death, a relation to God.
Three particulars may be named :
1. He dies by Go(Vs appointment. "It is appointed unto
men once to die;" but in the view of St. Paul, everything con-
nected with the death of Christ, — the end, the time, the means,
the circumstances, — is by divine decree. He "gave Himself for
our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world,
according to the will of God and our Father." ^ " God hath
appointed" the end, "to obtain salvation," and the means, "by
our Lord Jesus Ciirist, who died for us."** God made Him the
sinner's substitute, and laid upon Him the burden of sin and its
atoning woe: for "He hath made Him to be sin for us."tt Grod
api)ointed the whole course and character of the Redeeming
history : for "when the fulness of the time was come, God sent
i I
Hnll. i. 4.
II E|)li. V. 25.
1 2 Cor. viii. 9.
H Gal. i. 4.
JGal. ii. 20,
** 1 Thess. V. 9, 10.
I Eph. V. 2.
tt 2 Cor. V. 21.
Tf
of
intc
anti
an(
dis(j
lesa
I-,
Saint Paui/s Doctrine of thp: Atonkmext.
l>r he
His
; the
ty of
ther-
ming
ngof
TOWS,
with-
was a
!h, yet
ed me,
d hath
I gave
; world,
ning)
in
ed unto
ing con-
c means,
mself for
il world,
Jod hath
sans, " by
Him the
in and its
'ft God
Redeeming
God sent
1. V. 2.
Cor. V. 21.
forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem
them that were under the law." *
2. He dies as tfie result and c.vpression of the love of God to
man. "God commendeth His hn-e toward us in that while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for u.s."t
3. He dies to illustrate and honour the Justice of God, and so to
make possible the exercise of mercy toward sinful men : " Whom
God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His
blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that
are past, through the forbearance of God : to declare at this time
his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him
which believeth in Jesus." J; The full consideration of this great
passage is deferred to a subsequent stage of the discussion.
Meanwhile, the foregoing may, I think, be called a complete
summing and an accurate classification of the Pauline passages
relating to the Atonement. It is, perhaps, liable to the charge
of being commonplace, and of being based on old and familiar
interpretations of the Sacred Text. It may, on that account, be
more confidently claimed for it that it represents the mind of
the Apostle, than if it rested on novelties of exegesis, lleccnt
attempts in our own language, elaborate and ingenious as some
of them have been, to put new meanings into the Apostle's words,
in the interest of modern theories of the Atonement, confirm a
remark of that great philologist and exegete, Heinrich Meyer,
with reference to the theolojjical literature of Germany: "Long
experience and observation in this field of scientific inquiry have
taught me that — after there have been expended upon the New
Testament, the labours of the learning, the acuteness, the mastery
of Scrij)ture, and the pious insight of eighteen centuries — new
interpretations, undiscerned hitherto by the minds most convers-
ant with such studies, are destined, as a rule, speedily to perish
and be deservedly forgotten. I am distrustful of such exegetical
discoveries, and those of the present day are not of a kind to
lessen my distrust." §
*Gal. iv. 4, 5. fRom. v. 8. See also Titus ii. 11-14 ; iii. 4-7.
I Romans iii. 25, 26.
§ Meyer: Cora, on Corinthians, Clark's Trans., vol. 1, p. ix. note.
'I
24
Saint Paii/.s Doctiunk of tiik Atonement,
'!
TV. In |)nss:i<j:;os incliidod in the foroiyjoiiij^ summary, St.
Paul (IcscrilK's tlu; atouiufj; work of Clirist by several (jcncral
tcrma ; each of which <::athers up some of the particulars already
spe(!i[ied, while <:;iviii,L!: j)romiueu(.'e perhaps to one; and all of
which taken together present a very full view of his doctrine
of the Atonement.
1. One of tliese <;enera] terms is Sacrifice, the comparison
heinj^ at one tiuK! with sacrifice as appointed by the Mosaic
ritual, and, at another, with sacrifice as a religious institution of
the world.
We have the former when, having exhorted the cliurch at
Corinth to purify herself by casting out the old leaven, he adds:
" For oil)' Passover also hath been sacrificed, even Christ."* This
is a proof of the propriety of the exhortation, and a motive for
obeying it. It is not an accidental com}»arison suggested by the
figure of leaven already used, but one founded in a real and
divinely intended similitude: it is type and anti-type. Paul says,
there is a true analogy between your position and duty, and those
of tha Hebrew family celebrating the Passover and putting away
all leaven from the dwelling; for there is not only a general like-
ness, but in one particular, and that the chief, your position is
the same : " Oiu' passover also has been sacrificed, even Christ."
This is not only an illustrative reference, comparing things that
differ: it is a descriptive illustration, presenting the feature in
which two thnigs are alike. This view of the Apostle's words
is justified by other passages of the New Testament ; by the
coincidence of the J^ord's passion with the time of the Paschal
celebration ;f by His own substitution of the memorial of His
death and the great deliverance it wrought, for the annual com-
memoration of the first Passover and the ancient redemption;;};
by St. John's assertion that the Scriptures which described the
offering of the Paschal Lamb were fulfilled in the circumstances
of the death of Christ. §
I
,r]\
■■•■ 1 Cor. V. 7. Keviseil vorsion.
j; Lulie xxii. 15-20.
tMtitt. xxvi. 17,
^ John xix. 36
, St.
iicral
•eudy
ill of
I'trine
iirisou
losaic
ion of
rcli at
I adds :
This
Ivc for
by the
:>al and
ul savs,
ul those
ig away
ral likc-
sition is
Christ."
ngs that
'aturc in
)'s words
; bv the
I Paschal
il of His
lual com-
niption ;t
ribed the
unistances
i. 17.
36
Saint Pail's Doctrine of the Atonement.
25
What, then, is tliat feature in which the Pasclial lianib and
our liord are alike? One word of the text states it: hotli were
offered in sacrifice. This verb {ikno) may be used in the sense
of "to kill" without reference to the purpose, and is so used
in the New Testament:* its proper nieanin<^ is "to kill in
sacrifice;" in classic Greek it is a word of the altar only;
and it is used in this sense, in the only place beside this, where
Paul einj)loys it,t and in that part of the narrative of St.
liuke which relates to St. Paul and would be derived from
him. I Was the Passover, then, a sacrifice? It is true it was
not offered in the first instance under the usual conditions of
sacrifice, but the necessities of the case account for that. In
its ori<^inal celebration, however, it was a true sacrifice, and
produced the a|)propriate effect, securin<^ the " passint^; over"
of those who presented it, when the judj^ment of Jehovah went
through the land. In all subsequent observations the same char-
acter was recognized : for it was aj)pointed as a j)art of the
Passover ritual forever, that when the children should ask,
"What mean ye by this service?" the fathers should answer,
" It is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover." § Other j)assages
are as explicit as this. ||
On the other hand, St. Paul illustrates the nature of the
Lord's death by comparing it with the offerings made throughout
the world, in Gentile and in Hebrew religion, under the general
institution of sacrifice : " Christ hath loved us, and hath given
. Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-
smelling savour." T[ Here are used two ter ma, pi'osphor a and
thuma, of undoubtedly sacrificial import, the former being a
name for offerings of all kinds; the latter, for sacrifices in which
atoning blood is shed. The same idea is involved in the descrip-
tion of Christ as a propitiation or propitiatory sacrifice {Jiilas-
I 11
:^'
* Luke XV. 23, 27.
'i Ex. xii. 2C, 27.
i Eph. V. 2.
fl Cor. X. 20. J Acts xiv. 13, 18.
II Ex. xxiii. 18; xxxiv. 25. Deut. xvi. 2, 4,5,6.
** Rom. iii. 25.
It*
26
Saint Paui/s Doctrine of the Atonj:ment.
fi
i!!3:!
fin-
<mi;
The natiiro and intention of Sacrifice in jroneral in tlie ancient
world, there is no need to explain. We have hut to put our-
selves in the place of readers in Ephesnsand Rome, and ask how
they must have understood such accounts of the death of the
Ijord. For we are not to suppose that Paul was utterinj^ words
with hidden meanings, for the curiosity and criticism of future
ages to discover, but tliat these letters were more immediately
intelligible to them who first read or heard them than they
are to us, because they had before their eyes the social, moral,
and religious conditions to which they referred, and which lighted
up their meaning. Jews would interpret such teachings in the
light of their own Scriptures and their traditional ideas : Gentiles,
who had been the devotees of religions which, differ as they may
in other respects, had the sacrificial character in conuiion, would
understand the language of the A])08tle in the substantial sense
in which they had been accustomed to employ it. It is conceded
to us that " the words used in these passages, if found in ordi-
nary Greek literature, might, without question, imply that very
doctrine of propitiation which" — as the author I am quoting
thinks — "it se(Mns to be the very object of the revelation of God
to destroy ;" * and the use of them is defended on the ground
that the Apostles could not invent a vocabulary, but must em-
ploy words familiar to those to whom they wrote ; that thus they
were " obliged to use language that was already saturated with
falsehood; and which could not fail to convey those associations
which were precisely the errors which a Divine revelation was
intended to remove." f But by what was the necessity imposed?
By the subject of which they treated? or the language in which
they wrote? If there was no parallel between the death of
Christ and the sacrifices of the ancient world, if the ciiief ideas
involved in both were not the same, surely it was not necessary
to employ the language of the one to describe the other. If the
Atonement of Christ was only an appeal of the love of God to
*Kirkus: Orthodoxy, Scripture, and Reason, p. 163. See also Bushnell
Vicarious Sacrifice, p. 522; Forgiveness and Law, p. 81.
t Kirkus : Orthodoxy, &c., p. 163.
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
27
iclent
our-
: how
jf the
words
future
tliately
n tliey
moral,
iightetl
8 ill the
lentiles,
iiev nvay
1, would
ial sense
conceded
I in ordi-
that very
1 quoting
>n of God
le ground
must em-
thus they
rated with
^s50(!iations
■lation was
y imposed?
re in which
e death of
chief ideas
ot necessary
ler. If the
c of God to
also Bushnell :
the heart of man, it was possible to say so without the use of
these misleading words. Love was not an idea foreign to ancient
thought; manifestations of it hv acts of kindness were not un-
common in the social life of Greece and Kome : and there was a
language in daily use to express such ideas and <les('ril)0 such
conduct, which did not belong to the altar, nor remind those who
used it of avenging deities and propitiatory rites. Our UKMlern
o|>ponents of vicarious sacrifice do not find it tliflicult to define
their various theories without the employment of the daiigerous
words ; and the difference between them an<l tiie sacred writers
is hardly to be explained by the affluence of English and tiie
poverty of Greek. Yf the sacred writers themselves had given
any caution against ideas which their words would inevitably
suggest, they would have prevented a long history of error,
and saved the church from manv a controversv ; and it was the
least thev could have done. But we find 8t. Paul, with all his
zeal for the trutii, with all his indignation at any departure from
the j)ure gos|)el of Christ, with all his care of statement and
labour of argument, employing language which, he must have
known, would mislead his readers, and — if he could have fore-
seen — would mislead the church for eighteen hundred years ;
and doing so, without the utterance of one warning word.
The comparison of this language of the New Testament with
the antliropological language in which God is spoken of in the
Old, does not support the argument of the objector. That lan-
guage was used by poet, priest, and })rophet, not only because
the limitations of human thought and speech made it necessary,
but because, when it is discharged of its materialism — which, be
it remembered, the Jews did not infer from it — it directly ex-
presses a sublime truth, the only view of God which can satisfy
the intellect or heart of man. Not only can we form no concep-
tion of personality which is not suggested by our own nature ;
but personality in God and personality in man must, so far as
they lie i irallel, be the same. Personality in God may infinitely
transcend personality in man, but it must include it. It must
be that as truly as it must be more. No better proof of this can
, , ,, tlnn the fuct that all attem,.t to l^
" *' -rr— -i'!^"- «■*■■ "f" .s" - ■>-
fn n more Scriptural view, it is, n ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^ ^f
Trenacus and inigeu " divines have not oe^ii
ar.»uu ->f^^jr t: :Meu class a^ pa"i;^«^^- :
analogies '-Y'" f the proper or the metaphor..^!, th rat
:ret:Sr?o ::aic^-vh;eh - -— ;coie*^
endeavoruig to show ^^^^.^^^^ ^^„„e8 that
effect for man ot the woi
.E«y on ^^Xl^^^on, Harper, ed,, PP. 307-317.
^Coleridge: Aids lo xw
of the
indon-
or t\ie
)r some
)0scs as
IS coni-
that de-
be idea.
Paul
tV
len
k1
however
a ransom,
in this
tlie work
\vit\i great
tails.
K'hers, for-
id carrying
em, framed
id a ransom
held for a
11 gave cur-
th particular
a the time of
has not been
been led into
incapacity to
phrase, from
aul's figure of
al, the rational
;s " or " analo-
^t'of Coleridge,
c^ribe solely the
it it is a meta-
Saint Paul's D(ktrine of the Atonement.
29
phorical analogy, and alj-io that tlu; word "redeinjUion" is used
in its weaker sense of deliverance siniply. If St. Paul liad used the
figure of redemption as a passing illustration an«l witiiout added
particulars, it might not have l)een easy to answer this and simi-
lar reasoning. But his use of the figure is so frecjuent and so
particular, that there can be no doubt that he describes both tiie
deliverance accomplished for man and the method by which it
was effected. For, he not only speaks in general terms of " the
redemption which is Christ Jesus,"* and indicates from what He
lias redeemed men, " from all ini(piity,"f " from the curse of the
law,";}; but he asserts the reality of the redemption by declar-
ing that a real ransom was given, and by telling what that ransom
was: '' Ye are bought with a price ;"^ "We have redemi)ti()n
through His blood ;"|| "He hath purchased His church with
His own blood." ^ This representation leaves no doubt that St.
Paul regarded the Atonement of Christ, effected by His death,
as an objective fact and the condition of man's forgiveness, and
not as a subjective process accomplished in the heart of man.
3'. A third general term, in which St. Paul <lescribes the
work of Christ, and one peculiar to him in this connection, is
ReconciHation.
The most important passage in which this account is given
of the redeeming work, is the closing part of the fifth chapter of
2 Corinthians. This and other passages** containing the same
form of expression, are often appealed to as teaching that the
Atonement is a subjective work, — the bringing of man into har-
mony with God by the soul-renewing power of Christ's self-
sacrificing love. It is not God that is reconciled — they say, — it
is man ; there is no propitiation, changing God's feeling and
attitude towards men ; there is a subduing and transforming
power flowing from the Cross, and changing man from enmity
to love, and this is the Atonement : " We were reconciled to
God;" "God hath reconciled us to Himself;" "God was in
*Rom. iii. 24. fTitusii. 14.
^ 1 Cor. vi. 20 ; vii. 23. || Eph. i. 7 ; Col. i. 14.
** Rom. V. 10, 11. Eph. ii. 16. Col. i. 20, 21.
JGal. iii. 13.
^ Acts XX. 28.
,1 ' in.
|a,
k
Ii
•M
307-317.
r>*'
.ill i
i'\<i'
30 SM..PA.-.P0,.m.-K™KA.0..MK.T
,, . Himself" Pl«"sil'l» »» ♦'""
a.H, re..o„..n>,„ "-7;;!;^:;" ; j;:"W s„,«*i.l inton-
,a,i„„oftl.cA,.ostes«<mK ^^^ ^^ ^^^.^^^^ ,,„rk.
Keeonnliation nnplu* '«" ^^;" ;, „„„ „f the parties to ,t
VVbero one si.lc of "-. """"'"^^X^' , tlu.t l..s Wn «rons;«
,re .mde ,.ron,inent, .t n,,.y Ok , ^^,^^,^^ ,,^ f , ,
a,„l his aisposition to »"'B'^-'';^;,, ,,,,,',,. „,e ...l.or, tlu- otlen.l-
,„,reK.ion attributes the - ""^'^ ' „,„,,,, ,„ i„ S..ripture
-Me, for cx-'ple, I;-- ;;;,^"^;,7."„^„.noile," multhere er-
« to make atonement, .s t an^ a « ^^. _^^^^ , ^^^^^^, , .y hen
enc* is plainly to the V^^^ U to the altar, mul remem-
the Ura tells hin, who '-"^J^'^l,^,,,^, .vith his brother, .0
hers that he is not m ''"« ^ f"'; ;,„,,„ing m«st 1« that he .s
„„ ana " first te rceone.lea, t the • b .. ;,. t,,„„
I st.U his brother's for^Xl«« ) ,, ,„.," an.j,
rememterest that f% .''™'^^, '"",,„ ^^ule his own anj^ry eel-
■^S^now to the pa.a,es in which ^^ £;'::^
aescription of the ''I^^'-'^io -whatever may be the form
will be fonna that the «™"'^''';""'" q^. " If when we were
:; expression-mnst be f -'^it^^death of His Son :" J
enemies, we were '^"""''^'^ '.^ „» to our faith, mul even our
he is speaking of a «""« ''f f ^^ Christ's death dia not, .
U„„wleage of Christ. ^' -y^,^,,e„rt against G«l : yet
eouia not, remove the e"'"''^ jf;"^,,;,, then, ean only mean
U actually effeetea reconc Im o„ 1 ,^^^ ^^^^
that it put away Gf « .-^7'"-^"^' Further : " reeoncibat.on
His law from the ''^s Uny of .man ^^ ^,, ,^,t ,
,„a "salvation" are d-""S^'«^^' ^^ f„„er, and surely th.s
being inferre<l from the realUy ;f^ [^ ,, f ,.,vation is war-
requires the same n,terpretat.on . or ^ ^^ ^^
Saint Paul's Docthink of tiik Atonkmknt.
31
this
rpre-
vork.
to it,
iriii of
(tVcnd-
ipturc.
iidorcd
2 refer-
When
rcmein-
.tlier, to
u\t i»e \ri
■ if thoii
;" and,
irrv feel-
, i\nd be
term i"
3," and it
the form
1 we were
is Son :" X
\ even our
did not, it
God: yet
only mean
sentence of
,nciliation
the hvtter
surely this
ition is war-
V. 23, 24.
ranted, not hy our conscionsiicss of In-iii^ friendly towards (lod,
hut by our kii(>\vlodgo tliat Ilo is friendly towards us. And, \et
furtlier, tliis verse is clearly an emphatic r(|K'tition, in varied
phraseolon;y and in«tre formal ar;i;ument, of the thoujxht contained
in the verse preeedinj; : "J'xinjji: now justified by His blood, we
shall be saved I'rom wrath thr()U<rh Him." The two are parallel,
and one must interpret the other. The justification of the ninth
verse and the reconciliation of the tenth, thon<;h not piXK'isely,
are yet substantially the same : both objective; one, the j»'ift, the
other, the attitude, of <^iod ; the latter, like the former, implyinj^
the removal of CJod's displeasure from us, not the change of our
feelinti; towards (Jod.
Coming now to tiie great passage which these references are
intended to illustrate,* we find that it includes and distinguishes
both parts of the reciprocal work of i-eeoneiliation. "(lod was
in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself:'' it was a recon-
ciliation affecting all equally. " He hath committed unto us the
word of reconciliation :" it is now proclaimed that men may avail
themselves of it. " God hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus
Christ:" it was done once for all, and we took no part in it.
" Be ye reconciled to God :" this remains to be doiie^ and we must
be actors now. The reconciliation of God, previous to reconcilia-
tion in man, is further emphasized by a statement of its nature —
" not imputing their trespasses unto them ;" and of its ground
— " he hath made Him to be sin for us who knew no sin." The
teaching of the whole passage is clear and positive, that recon-
(.'iliation is primarily a change in God's relation to men, effected
by the Atonement of Christ, and that "the individual reconcilia-
tion to God is no other than the personal assumption of the
benefit of the general reconciliation." f
A recent Unitarian writer gives a candid interpretation of
this teaching of Paul. " It was only a part of what Paul taught
* * * that Jesus reconciled man to God. It was the expe-
rience of the Christian world that God also had been reconciled
*2Cor. V. 18-21.
fPope: Compendium of Christian Tfieology, If., 287.
t^ I
ilr
'i I
IIIH'-
,]\'\
ill!
'■ill in
I8ii \ \
illi
.1
11
32
Saint PauI'«*' v.n<r of Him,
.U«t of tl.o man ." - ' » ^^ .,,. ,„„,, oon.tort, b, > ^^,,,_
„„, fal uny mon,. tt " ^^^^^^^^ ,.^^ ,„,ge,. tl.,.n
«orW awn-eci .t; «»'»'' '^ „.,,,,," t
trine. h»t t 't n ,o„,l,.su»« a«l. uea ^^, ,,„j
foun-W on 'n^c 1 .^^^^.^^,^ -'""'™"*t lla to eonstrnction,
"recossniM, *->>»•> ^ ,,... -.In.ost witbout regain ,
U,.s, Epistles cr«mi.lea«l.,.>l ^ , «l.cn r«>.l, '-*> r;'^
„3if tl.ey«mst,U.e<Uchar _^^^.^^_ ,^ f nr^" bs, "«"
broken from tbc.r pl-'<-«/; ^,,,, inaevendent P™^\^ ;^^ ,,
P™P "i: "^ t"-V^S -"l 'TTnr^ MV.s n'de of
closely otnted ''"''" °.t„es so mucb .«J«r«l by ^^^^
treatment as the long ^
the Apostle's «"""§ are.1 to state, be ^^^^^
particular V^^^^fJ^Zn bitberto omitte;!, tbat we n y ^^^ ^^
k one of them ba bee .^^ ^^_^^^^,„„ .„ the g
arg„..e„ts una th ^_^_^^^.^^__ ,„„„, «s, p
*Dr. B«f«s *^"'! „ .^„uary 1882, V- 17.
Saint Pail's l)(KTinNK ok thi: Atom-.mknt.
• ••>
Him,
1)1' the
OS not
. unth-
im, io»;
Ih'Voih*
ami \>»>*
our reVi-
•
s a\rcctU'
f \»is tloc-
vvou\(l not
ashUNvnt-
lUfttruction,
t v.ieoenical,
^ sentence or
roverbs, not
Y. There is
this mode oi"
tatlon of tbc
:„eral tenor of
,„ement whie^
consideration
we may now
the greatest of
1882, p. 16.
V. Aiuoii^ all passii^'cs nC the S-riptiin's wliicli treat eitlicr ot'
Atonement or .ln>tifi<'atioii, tlie fnt'ii.s r/dssintu is J{oni. iii. 'J 4-'2<),
a i>a>saj;o wliieli <lerives its iinixii'taiMH' not only from tlie iuhM'>s
of its own statement, but from its relation to the tlisens-iion in
wliieh it stands.
Paul lia<l lon^ «lesir(Ml to visit Rome* that he mi^ht >ee tiio
ehureh foumled by his (»\vn disciples, that he n»i;;lit haveclireet
fruits of his ministry in Home also, and that he mi^ht build up
a j>o\verful Christian organization in the Capitid of the Kmpire,
whose influence on the fortunes of Christianity in the ^^'e^t ho
could not but foresee. The lonjij-<leferre<l hopi; may be near its
fulfilment. When he shall have gone to Jerusalem with the collec-
tion madc! in Macedonia and (ireece, his ministry in tlu; Kast
will for the present be ended ; and then he proj)oses to travel to
the western limits of civili/ati»»n, carryinu: the (iospel into Spain,
and takin<; Home by the way. f Jint the futiu'e is uncertain, and
he goes " bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the
things which shall befall him there."| Whetlua* his hope of a
personal ministry in Rome is realized or not, he feels it imjtort-
ant that his teaching should be fully known tiiere, and have the
seal of his own autlu»rity. Perhaps also la; desires, before it is
too late, to put the cardinal doctrines of his (Jospel in such forma)
order and permanent record as may guard the interests of the
churches and the vital truths of Christianity, after he has fin-
ished his course.;:} No special circumstances in the Roman
church decide the matter or the form of his letter. There are
no heresies tiiere wli'ch he will refute. He writes in no polemic
spirit, except as tlie unceasing conflict between Jewish Christian-
ity and his own, gave a polemic cast to his ministry in general.
He writes with deliberate intention to give full and formal
statement of "tlie Gospel, as to which his disciples had already
instructed them, in the entire connection of its constituent fun-
damental principles." ||
*Kom. i. 10-13.
§ Kom. XV. 15, l(i.
X Acts XX. '22.
t Rom. XV. 23-25.
II Meyer: Coniinentary on Koinans, Vol. 1, p. 31.
1 !
lii
lii
- . 1 .livW"" "f "'« '^""" •
1 Till' 1 1""" "' ' . • .. -.i \» "tlii^ lli}!in""i
<-' >';.";';: It w«i," -'-^f ;,;,'! uu..t.-:..i<... ...•
typical cii^* ♦»» „^,u.^s-' t «"*^ NN»CVC, i'> 1 . j^„
"»'" "-, '■";• .';f \: :: " <>-•.■»« "- 't'^t: «::: ' « ti.ey
wliosu ....q'l."^ „v„<,iiv.»o.is w.tl. ""- . \ ,,„„cval tenor
,„„ke» .•igl.te-.'^"'-; >^;;;;;.>^,. ,, .„^ ,,„«.ever, .« the genu
•l-l,e one ""^^■""""''._' ,„„v to t.i>« '.'. . „ rCvi-.c craec to
„f the ,.rg.....e..t -;: .^^^ eial intevi-o^Hion of P^ • « ^ , .^
T!,e nc«...ty "f «-'<•= ^1 ^.^^ -...t to l.e l" -^rt .
the WO.-W. Amonb v.sobeye.!, anil tl.r""- , ^^^ to
•-' ^Ttm urX"» o-t»" "■-''' , :^::, oXn.ea -a
obsenrea, »..t.l ""- ,. o„a into a 1'^; ;^"'' ,.,^ aegraaation
.f their very religions lias ^^^^^^^ .^ e,^ -^.
pose and in fuller detail, Bee i ^ Rom. i- 1^ -o-
pp. 2'2o-249.
f i
I II
(' ' 'I
Saint Paii/.s Dcmtiiink of tiik Atonkmknt.
;j.j
i; !l
\h cx-
^ The
I nv.iu »rt
ioi\ (t. ^•
e of i)cr-
t\ie con-
itviitiou «»*'
the great
rts i'oiinte<l
. the NV()V<^«
of tU<^ "^^"
;,! uve they
iVcreA "^ — "6
.»» of si"^" ^
rcncval tenor
vine grace to
oYC(\: and it
t, anc^ ruin of
e'and the nat-
(lisobeiUence,
IV fallen as to
,ovsliipp<^^^ and
ius aegraaation
aegraaation ot
^Kom. iv. 6, 7.
vith the same pur-
I. A.; Lecture \i-.
social and private life, in the wide-spread prevalence of viecs
whose very niention sullies tli«' Apostle's pa;;e. * Yet the (Jen-
tiles retain siillieient of the lijrht of eonseien«v to l»e investt-d with
the eharaett'r ot' moral responsihility, aiwi to Ix-ar the sense of
^uilt: for they "know the Jiidj^iuent of (Jod, that tiiey which
cointnit such tilings are worthv of death," and vet " not onlv do
the same, but have pleasure in them that do them."t
And what of the Jew? He has some advantayri-over tl
le
(Jentile, for "unto him were committed the ora<'les of (lod."];
ile is aware of the advanta;;e, and proud of it : "he rests upon
the law, and makes his boast of (lod, and is conlidetit that he is
a li^ht to them that are in darkness."?} l>ut (lod d(»es not
approve men for their knowledge, or condemn them for their
ignorance: II lie "will render to every man according to his
deeds."^ Jf, while teaching others, Ik; does not teach himself;
if, while boasting of the law, he breaks the law, the Jew disbe-
lieves God, and circumcision itself beconu's the sign of guilt.**
What, tiien, are the liicts in regard to him? Is he better than
others who have not the law? So far from this, the picture
given of the corruption of the Gentile world is a mirror in which
he may see himself: "he that judges the other condennis him-
self, for he does the same things." ff Let his own .Scriptures
describe the state of both : " There is none righteous, * »= *
they have all gone out of the way, * * * there is no tear
of God before tiieir eyes." ;{:;{; The Jew cannot evade the voice of
the accuser, for what his Scriptures say, they say to him : " What-
sover the law saith, it saith to them who are umler the law."§§
Thus, "the wiiole world is guilty before (Jod, and by the deeds
of the law shall no flesh be justified in His sight." ||||
With what feeling, then, n)ust God regard the world ? How
will He, how must He treat it? The Apostle gives the terrible
answer: "the wrath of (iod is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and unrighteousness of mcn,"^Ti of the Cientile of
*Roin. i. -JG-iil. tKoni. 1. ;?2.
II Rom. ii. iL'-lf). !i Rom. ii. G.
t+Rom. iii. 10-1 S. ^ Rom. iii. 19.
:J: Rom. iii. "J.
** Rom. ii. 21-23.
lijl Rom. iii. l!>, 20.
^ Rom. ii. 17-211
ft Rom. ii. 1.
** Rom. i. IS.
36
Saint Pati/s Dcktrjnk of thk Atonement.
if!
ilJ!
foiirso, hut of the Jow even more; for he, by tlie abuse of supe-
rior privile<;es, " treatiiwcs up iiiito liimself wrath against the day
of wratli and revehition of the rij^hteous judgment of God."*
Such are the guilt, the eondeniuation, and the doom of the entire
world.
And now, to this world is revealed a "righteousness of
(lod," "apart from the law," "through faith in Jesus Christ." f
What is this righteousness? How is it effected? Does it con-
serve the honour of God, while it reveals His love? We have
reac^hed the climax of the Apostle's argument, and we may ex-
j)ect a formal and careful statement of the glorious truth. He
makes it in the fullest expression of his doctrine of the Atone-
ment to be found in all his writings: "All have sinned, and
come short of the glory of God ; being justified freely by Plis
grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom Go^
hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood,
to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are
past, througli the forbearance of God ; to declare, I say, at this
time His righteoutness ; that He might be just, and thejustifier
of him which believeth in Jesus." |
Here we have, first, a brief statement that justification, or the
righteousness hitherto spoken of, is a free gift of the grace of
God ; and then a much longer statement of the medium through
which it is conferred, " the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."
Now, let it be remembered, that the salvation for which the
argument of the Apostle has ])reparcd the way, is an objective
gift, not a subjective work. It may issue in a great renewal of
man's nature, — the Apostle afterwards shows that it does, — but
he has not reached that subject yet ; he is ni w concterned with
an outward deliverance, salvation as a fact of history, not salva-
tion as an experience of the heart. It is salvation from " the
wrath of God" which "is revealed from heaven," from the "in-
dignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish [that shall come]
upon every soul of man that doeth evil ;" and this salvation has
been gained by Jesus (^hrist. An objective Atonement, tiiere-
* Rom. ii. 5, G, 8, 9. fKoni. ii5. 21, 22. J Kom. iii. 23-26.
tn
St
tu
aij
inl
ej
Gl
'W'
Saint Paul's Docthink of tiik Atoxemknt.
37
supe-
le dav
ckI."*
entire
less of
rist."t
it con-
^e have
nay ex-
h. He
Atone-
icd, and
by His
lom Go "'"
is blood,
i that arc
', at this
e justifier
on, or the
e grace of
n through
ist Jesus."
which the
n objective
renewal ot
does,— but
«rned with
J not salva-
from "the
om the"in-
sliall come]
alvation has
ment, there-
in.
23-26.
fore, inndo once for all, is the logical issue of the Apostle's
argument.
That this salvation is by a judgment of (Jod, changing the
legal relations oi men, and not by the 8|)irit of God elianging
their character; tliat it is a purely objective wori<, and therefore
inconsistent with that view of the Atonement wiiich represents it
as having for ils only end the renewal of the life of men, is further
made clear by tlie important connection between the twenty-tiiird
and twenty-fourth verses, for : "All have sinned and come short of
tlie glory of God." " To come short of," means "to be destitute
of." The same word [hustcrco) is found in such passages as "One
thing thou lackest," * "He began to be in want,"t "Lest any man
fail of tiie grace of God."| "Tlu; glory {(lo.va) of God" is the
praise, the favour of God, as in the passages, " How can ye believe
which receive honour (r/o.r«») one of another?" § "They loved
the praise [do.van) of men more tlian the praise {(loxan) of Goo'."||
Then, also, the change of tense is noticeable; " all have sinned"
(a ]>ast fact), and "all are destitute (a present want) of the favour
of God." Now, this present need is met and filled by God's
grace : " Being justified freely by His grace, through the redemp-
tion that is in Christ Jesus." The conclusion is inevitable that
St. Paul is here contemj)lating, not the change of man's disj)osi-
tion toward God, but the restoration of man to the favour of God,
and that, not by the renewal of his character, but, notwithstand-
ing his character, on the ground of the Atonement of Christ.
The nature and relations of that Atonement he proceeds to
ex])lain. It was provided by the love and wisdom of God :
" Whom God hath set forth," either " designed beforehand," as
many critics prefer, or, with our version and modern commenta-
tors in general, " set forth publickly." In either case, the tleath
of Christ was not merelv the natural result of His collision with
the sinful and hostile forces of the world ; it was designed by
God as "a propitiation" for the sins of man.
No eifort of criticism can remove the Sacrificial idea of this
word, " propitiation " {hilaHterion). We may regard it as an
*Mark x. 21. f Luke xv. 14. % Ileb.xii. 15. g John v. 44. || .John xii. 43.
III
;! i
i I
I! ill '.
m
3« S.,.xP.m,.Bo<.-K«.n.KA™.-s..
1 -il the VuVate ami the
,,r,cotivc used «.bsta..tivcly, an<l r«« , w. -^^^ .^ ^^ ^„
AS,on..l Version, " a I'-l';;' •,,,:;; our ehoic being
elliptical expression ami -m^^ . ,„,„,- seat," the other
between two; one (e,nilmna) "'^^"Jf ,^„ , „,, finally, we may
(thuua) making i. 'V""'''" thrlljeetive form, ami reachng,
avoi.1 ni«,Mi.>estions by reta nu g the a^ ^^^^j.__^_ ^^,,,^„ „ „-
„ith Morrison, " ''M-rop' - °0-„ ^^^ ^^^ ij,„ „f saer.fiee
fiea by the elanse " n, Ins bh>od c ^^^ _^^^^^_^ ^,^^ ^^„j,,,.
and the idea of propit.at.on. 1 or, e ^^ ^,^^ ,^^„
tig " merey seat," the ^-P^^'T,;^:!, inspired the Tsrae 1-
^:t, sprinkled with the blood of A"' ,ri„uied with
Ue :S <«nfiaenc. in th. ^J^ O^^^ ',,L,,,, and the
His own bloo.1, is the ground and pl = ^^^^^^ ^^^ ^„ ,„^„j.
„.edi«n, of a sinner's m^'^^^ „f ,„,,l,ing the alter-
,.eas„as against this v,ew * »'«' \- ^,,^,, u„i,arian scholar. Dr.
„,We substantive, that the »« ' ^^ « ^^ ^
Noyes, translates, "Whom ««l ' ;;^^,, . ;„ His blood," does
Jifiee." The pos. .on f^^J^^^ ^,,,;„,er He was set for h
not affect the dc^.trn.al '«»*"«;'';,,, His blood, or is to l«
- «>^ r \°It:t' h1" . tfoLvs that ms blood, or
received bv ti^itn m a^
death, is the great F^f -'"^^Xr " ,,,« purpose of God in the
Paul then proceeds to ^»«-;^f \ ^,,,U'that sacrifice avad
.acrific. of Christ, and the ^ <^ ^';„,,,tation, "a pract.ea
for the forgiveness of «">«. " .s ^^^^ ^,^^ „f
(■"+ nf the r ghteousness ot Vjou i ", ,. •„ jcsus
proof, t ot tin. > o f„„tiving those who beue\e
former times, and m now fo'S^^'-S „ ;„ t,,is place must, of
Christ. " The rigLteousness of Go ^^^^^^_ ,. He
course, be an attr>buteotGo<hi^^, It„>ustbeH.s
might be just," settles that. But w'.a ^^ ^,„,^<„ty,
Idminisfitive justice, -^^^^'J^ ^^ f,ea„u.g of the Greek
«... holiness, as --^-^ ^^^^ „ent, the opp<«itiou tn t^
word, the usage of he ^'^ . „^," and " the r.ghteous-
fifth verse tetween """"teot .^^ ^,^^ ^,^^^,„^
r.e ri«vl " the employment oi i"« i
UCSSofCKXl, .Meyer: CoiBmentary.mJoco.
* See Meyer, in ioco.
Saint Paul's Doctrine of tiik Atoxkment.
ao
I tlie
is an
)c'ing
otiier
may
uling,
modi-
}iuler-
mercy
Tsrael-
21! with
and the
many
le aUer-
)lar, Dr.
)itiatory
•d," does
set forth
' is to be
blood, or
od in the
fice avails
1 practical
the sins of
e in Jesus
2 must, of
, " that He
luist be His
or veracity,
f the Greek
ition in the
e righteous-
le p-eceding
n loco.
discussion to denote tlic riglit relation of man to law, rc([uire
that now, when it denotes an attril)ute or cliaracter of (Jod, its
meaning shall be " the right relation of Go<l to law," i.e., his
rectoral or administrative justice. It is impossible that St. Paul
has suddenlv introduced an essentiallv dirtereut meaning: in the
very crisis of liis argument. The propitiation of Christ, says
Paul, manifests, proves, vin«licates the justice of God, and makes
it possible " that He might be just and the justifier of him that
believeth." The commentators often add, " /. c, that He might
be seen to be just." But why dilute the Apostle's meaning? Is
it not the evivlont impl" ation that God could not he just, if He
justified men without the proj>itiation of Christ? The teaching,
rhen, of St. Paul in this great j)as.sage is that justiticatiou is not
the exercise of prerogative, tiiat justice has imperative ri<:;hts,
and that those rights are guanled by the atoning sacrifice of
Christ. The Atonement is therclbre a satisfat tion of the justice
of (iod.
3. Having seen the doctrinal imj)ort (►f this passage as fixed
by its own terms and ''Cjulred by the argument which culmi-
nates in it, let us see if the course of ♦he discussion which suc-
ceeds it confirms our exposition.
There immediately follows a defence of faith as the condition
of partaking of the benefits of this redemption, illustrated j)ar-
ticularlv bv the case of Abraham;* and then Paul proceeds to
sum up the results of this nlan of salvation bv Christ. He first
mentions peace, and a certain hope of salvation for all 'vho
believe ;t and then, as a second consequence, he infers a possi-
bility of salvation as universal as the effects of Adam's fall : "As
by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to (iondemua-
tion ; even so, by the righteousness of one, the free gift came
upon all men unto justification of life."| The meaning of this
cannot be mistaken ; or, at least, our choice must be between two
meanings, — the universal possibility and the universal reality of
salvation. In either case the Atonement is a universal blessing.
(:■■,
*Kom. Hi. 27 — iv. 25.
fKoni. V. 1-11.
J Rom. V. 18.
40
Saint Patt/s DofTitixK of thk Atgnkment.
V^'(\
Ml
i
I: U
i
On anv moral tlicorv of the At(MicMiieiit, none are benefited
by the work of Christ but those to whom it is made known. It
conferred noadvantajjje upon the many <i;enerations that had lived
under the cm'se before Christ came; it brought no blessing to
the multitudes who since then have lived and died in ignorance
of Him ; and, during the nineteen centuries of Christian history,
periiaps not one twentieth of maidvind have in any way been
benefited by that matchless work of love. But, on Paul's theory,
the entire race from Adam to the end has been blessed in Christ.
God's forbearance toward the sins that were past was justified in
Him ; God's forgiveness of sins in the present time is a righteous
act through Him ; and, to the ends of the earth and to the close
of time, a light of hope shines upon the spiritual condition and
prosj)ects of mankind : " the free gift came upon all men unto
justification of life." No theory of the work of Christ but one
which recognizes an objective Atonement, removing obstacles to
salvation, and thus bringing a positive advantage to men inde-
pendently of faith and of knowledge, can sustain the logic of the
Apostle and save his argument from a most impotent conclusion.
From this deduction Paul advances to another, and in the
sixth and seventh chapters shows that, not only are the moral
character and the godly living of believers not endangered by
this method of salvation, but they are made more sure and per-
fect ; and this, because Christ by his work of Atonement both
breaks the bondage of sin and inspires new and mighty motives
to obedience. There was the more need of his doing this, because
it was already slanderously reported that he encouraged immor-
ality by his doctrine, and said " Let us do evil that good may
come." * Now, what was the theory of Atonement that suggested
such an accusation, and made it necessary in a brief treatise of
eleven chapters, handling a high argument and embracing many
connected themes, to ask the question, " What shall we say then ?
Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound ?"t and to de-
vote so long a passage to the answer? The character of the
charge is a certificate of the character of the doctrine. If Paul
*Roni. iii. 8. f Rom. vi 1.
trii
of
mat
thi
gi\\
\my
the!
wai
a \\
doc
satj
and
■fi IB
Saint PArr/s Doctrine of the Atonement.
41
M
fitcd
It
lived
iig to
riince
5tory,
been
leory,
nirist.
led in
liteous
2 close
)n and
11 unto
mt one
leles to
I inde-
p of the
lUision.
in the
; moral
:red by
nd per-
nt both
motives
because
immor-
t)od may
uggested
'eatise of
ng many
ay then ?
id to de-
ir of the
If Paul
had taught any of tliose views of Atonement which exclude its
vicarious character, such a charge had been im|)ossihie. Had he
thought and taugiit that the Atonement was the appointment of
love, but not the requirement of justice; that it was a movement
of the Divine love and holiness upon the heart of man, and that
alone; that its (nie design was to renew the souls of men and
form them to holy character, by the portrait of human excellence
in the character of Jesus, and by the proof and power of Divine
compassion ; then, no such representation of its effects as its
enemies made had ever been possible, and neither friend nor foe
had imagined the Apostle as saying: "Let us do evil that good
may come." But, if Paul taught that Christ was a sacriHce for
man to the justice of God, a substitute suffering in the room of
men and expiating all human sin, then the inference, however
false in itself, would have some plausibility. His enemies, in
their effort to destroy his doctrine, have made it certain what that
doctrine was.
4. The passage which we have now been considering is the
only one in the Scriptures in which the need of Atonement is
grounded in the Justice of God ; and more than any other it has
shaped the church's doctrine of Atonement for eight hundred
years. This aspect of the subject, as a peculiarity of Paul's doc-
trine, is particularly deserving of notice.
It must be admitted that Paul does not say that the design
of Christ's atoning work was to .satisfij the Justice of God, but to
manifest it. But he does say — his whole argument culminates in
the assertion — that this manifestation was necessary to make for-
giveness right and possible, and that without it God could not
have been "just and the justificr" of men. The Justice of God,
therefore, made unconditional pardon impossible; the condition
was supplied by the propitiation of Christ : and it follows that in
a very real sense, if not in the sense of Calvinism — in which the
doctrine is generally understood when it is attacked — Christ did
satisfv the Justice of God.
The term "Satisfaction" is not found in the Xew Testament,
and appears but once in the Old.* The history of Christian doc-
* Numbers xxxv. 31, 32.
ii!:il
42 SM.rP,u-.,'sD<-r.MS...-r„.Axo.KMKKT.
s, 1, in the «.„se with «l.iei. we are
trine <l.>c* not meet ^.tW - ,^,^,,^ (^ „, ,„on>inent u.
famiru.r until tl.c tnne "f ■ ^ ;,^ ,„^,.,„ ^ ,,eep an imprcs.on
'•»'"x,,e «.,.a i. ce..tai«K. Ua,.Je to a|,n^ It -.|-;-;-:'-
„, the payment oniei.t ^^^^^^^^X^^. Strictly inter-
,„„ac upon those u, «'>"';» ;,,,,,,,Uy of the Atonement,
,,rete.l, it is incons,stent "'"'^^ " „ „,„, it belongs properly
I H requires universal -'-' ^'^J, ^ .,„„ed Universalis^. It
to the Calvinistic system o ^J^ of Satisfaction fincls a
■„ in sueh a eotmeet.on hat he ^^ ^^.^ ^.^^^^ ^^^ j„,,
,,,a«, in the scheme of ^-j"^ /, "j ,„,en>,,tion of man, the
'of God to make up, by the reattm an J^^ ^^^,^^^ ^^.^^^
iaealnumberofintelhgen l."V^-^; ^_,j ^^^^ ,,,„ farther
completed by the creatKm "^ t^^ea^^^^ .^ „oq„estion," ho says
lessened by the angel.c f""; *° ; hapi-iness, both now and
"that intelligent "«ture whteh fin sj 1 1 ^^ ^.^
forever, in the contem,.lat,on o ( od, ^^^^^^ ^,_^^^ ^^„,,j ,
.,rtai« reasonable and <'-'™^ ;;; .^I^'; 'reatcr.^^ A« modified
a„ unfitness in its beu.g ^""'J' ^:' ji.^iic Faith con«=rning the
,,V Grotius in his " l)e ence of the Cath ^__^_.^„y_
Satisfaction of C''"f ' . ^ ^ , TustiL of God loses the ob-
,„e doctrine of Sat.s«-^ to ^^ ' j„,.icc and answers
jectionable features: Chn^t truy ^^ ^._^. b„t he does
,,e end of Government '" /^^J' " ; ,,^„,,,ess through suffer-
,,i, ,,y the u,anifetat,on " G-'^J^!;,,,,, ,o the punishment o
i„S,s which, for th.s ^''■.f '^ fi,^,f His Satisfaction makes
si;:ncrs, but "»* .f-V"!'* "1 lu ondition of his re,,cntance
forgiveness possible to every .nan on ^^^^^ ._^ „f
and faith : it docs f "V^f^^^";^ ^t condition. Still less does
a.., „.an without tHe f-'«'- » ^^^^ ^^^„,„., , ,. ...
*An8elm:CurDeu8Homo,Bk.I.chap
Sac, Oct. 1854 and Jan. 1800.
Saint Paul's Docthim: of thk Atonkmknt
All
} arc
lit in
ission
i (loc-
vcrsv,
eiieral
itlea
can be
inter-
lenient,
roperly
,m. It
finds a
design
nan, the
was not
further
he says,
now and
him in a
would be
modified
irning the
generally,
;s the ob-
d answers
lit he does
iigh suffer-
lishment of
tion makes
repentance
the case of
ill less does
jd in tlie Bib.
the use of tlie word "Satisfaction" 1)V anv school of tijcolotjrians
imply — what the common nsc; of it by ukmi as expressive of
their own demands impHes — the existence of a revenj^cfnl feel-
ing which prompts retaliation. The very willin;i;ncss of (Jod to
accept the mediating ortices of anotiier holds hack the doctrine
from such an extreme. Yet, it is by such a misrcj)rescntation of
the doctrine of Satisfaction that it is nuule the butt of the ob-
jector's scorn.
The great importance of the doctrine of Satisfaction, — Paul-
ine, Anselmic, and Grotian, — lies in the fact that it iinds the
necessity of Atonement in the very nature of (Jod. Tiie treatise
of Grotius is sometimes charged with serious defect in referring
this necessity to the exigencies of government, an<l not to the
nature of God. But God's government derives its charaiitcr from
His character : it is because He is what He is, 1 1 Kit His moral
rule re(piires an Atonement for sin. W hether our statement refers
the need of Atonement to God's nature or God's administration,
it is in harmony with the Pauline doctrine that tiie Justice of
God requires the Atonement.
Justice is that attribute of God which first suggests itself
to the mind of man as a necessary constituent of His nature.
It is that which, without a revelation, most dee| ! impresses
him, and under whose shadow he lives and trembles. It is of
that Nature assures him ; for she tells him of inxorable law;
she warrants no hope of mercy. It is to that conscience testifies:
it points to a law, a Judge, a retribution ; it forbids th(.' hope
of mercy. It is to the same conclusion, rcfiectioii comes. Justice
is seen to be necessarv to tiie order of the universe; mercv is
not. Thougii we believe God to be merciful in his nature,
we see tiiat in anv u;iven case He mav exercise mercv or not,
as He sees fit and ju<lges right. But, God being just, we
cannot think He may, in any particular case, be just or not,
as He mav choose. He may say " 1 will iiave merctv on
whom I will have mercy :" He caimot say " 1 will be just to
whom I will be just." He may be merciful to the sinful, if He
can also be just; but He must be just even while "the justifier
i !'
44
Saint Pail's DofTiUNK of tiik Atonkment.
* ii
ill In
•!i:(fl!
of him that holieveth." It must therefore bo the case, that when
God forgives the sins of men, lie does so in a way (,'onsist<'nt
M'ith His justice. Therefore it does not surprise us, but meets
our deepest sense of rig:lit, wiien it is revealed tluit the Son of
God, in saving men from the jxinalty due tlieir sins, do(\s so in
sucli a manner as to satisfy, uphold, and honour the .lustiee of
God. "The Atonement" is thus "a Satisfaction for the ethical
nature of both God and man."*
Theories of the origin and nature of Conscience need not be
discussed, for they hardly affect our argument. The most recent
theory, which seeks to find a place for it in the general doctrine
of evolution, certainly does not. Let it be granted in full, and
after all it does not account for the faculty which j)ronounces the
moral imperative — except as it accounts for the existence of man
— but for the character of those moral distinctions which are
made by men, and which may change with civilizations, with
philoso})hies, with religions, while the faculty which is properly
called Conscience remains the same. The existence of Con.<cience
as a real and distinguishing faculty of man continues undisturbed;
and the faculty and its operations may as surely be made the
matter of observation and the basis of argument, as the contents
of consciousness in general, or the phenomena of the external
world.
On the commission of sin, arises immediately the sense of
guilt: the transgressor judges and condemns himself. This self-
condemnation is purely spontaneous. The will has no control
over it : it does not arise by effort ; it (;annot be driven away by
resolve. In other words, it is a part of man's very constitution ;
that is, it is implanted by God ; that is, it is the voice of God,
and the reflection of His own nature, — it testifies to God and to
His moral rule. Now, this sentiment must be propitiated before
it can be pacified. It demands atonement for sin, before it can
permit the sinner to rest. A report was lately given of the case
of a man who had stolen a large sum of money ; had been tried
* Shedd : Discourses and Essays. One of the Essays, to wliich this para-
graph is indebted, has for its title the words quoted above.
all
in
vol I
Hei
in
Till
be
n
Saint Paui/s Dcktkink of the Atonement.
».")
stent
iieets
on of
so in
ice ot*
thical
not be
recent
jctrinc
11, ami
CCS the
of man
ich are
^s, with
roperly
iiftcienee
sturbed ;
lade the
contents
external
sense of
rhis self-
control
1 away by
istitution ;
;e of G(k1,
ckI and to
ited before
fore it can
of the case
been tried
ich this para-
and ac<juitt('(l ; had afterwards restored the stolen property on
reeeivinjj^ a ple(lo;o tliat he would never he exposed ; and yet,
inontlis afterwards, surrenchned himself to justice, iK-eause he
<'(»;d(l have no peace until he accepted the cousequen(vs of his siu
and made atonement.* \o\v, in tiiis instance, whi<'h, thonjjjh ex-
treme, illustrates the feelin<:;s wliich «;xist in every case of wrouij;-
doin<>; where the conscience is not seared, what was that authority
which the criminal soujj^ht to appease and satisfy hy the act of
atonement? It will not do to sav that it was his own mind ; for if
a man could be sure that his crime, be^iiuiint^ in himself, was shut
up and ended there, he would not trouble himself with exterior
considerations. Nor co dd it be the persons he had defrauded :
he had made restiiuilon to them, but was not satisfied. Nor
could it be the law of his country : that law had acquitted him,
knew no claim aj^ainst him, never could trouble him again ; and
vet he deliberatelv soutfht its penalties. The onlv answer that
meets the case is that it was the eternal law of ri»:;ht, speaking
through his conscience and asserting its claims. But a law u!i-
embodicd and im[)crsonal could assert no such clain.s, and insfjire
no such dread ; and it could be no other than the law personal
and supreme. Thus the conscience testifies to the personality of
God, and bears witness to the need of Atonement.
This has been the testimony and demand of the conscience in
all nations and grades and ages of men. It cries out with pain
in the poetry of every land and every time. It spoke in the
voices of the prophets, and in the [)euitential Psalms, and in the
Hebrew ritual. It has spoken in every system of religion and
in all the Sacred Books of man :
"Out from tl e heart of nature rolled
This bunleu of the Libles old."t
The ancient and continuous cry of the soul, — " How should man
be just with God?"| — it is satisfied first, and only, and fully, in
*New York Christian Advocate, February 19th, 1882.
t Emerson: The Problem. The true reading is —
"Out from the heart of nature rolled
The burdens of the IJible old."
X Job ix. 2.
4e s.,.TP,.u,;sn.K-r...sK...-n"-.A— -■
, r 1 . flip f'lct of !»»?<
„f tl.e Crns., .."<!, «"''_ ""^
(io.l«ju^t. Tto.^tl'*-' ••'""-'""*■
„r,„„„c,ty,0.e."ee.l<>n.>....'"^'V-'
-rUe dussifioation am' •"">'>--' ,,;^'„ „,,, ,„e,. given,
„,„ ,v«>t subject of A>"-;"»;^ '"• i,, ,|„t by .l.e api-i';:"
e,u.Ule us .0 forn,,. ;>.e u^ — ' ; ^,„ i,„,„,.o of I..
„..„t ol- .1.0 love o (Jo.1, :u jr ..^.o^passiou for n.eu, the
„«.u .cal for GoJ'. glory ^J^ ^,,^ ,],.^,. „f tl.c Cross us
Lora Jesus C''"f f'-'^'V/, Tl c \vorUl, ,,resentiug to the r.gh-
a Substitute au.l S»«:'h'« f"' '''^ 4,„ ,,' f„r tl.e l-unislnncnt oi
teous Uuler of »>- '":'^'^^";" v , g before meu the just.ee
dinners, an.l „.anii^.stn,g »-^^^^^ ^^„„ the cuds of a
,..a holiucBS "ff»^^;-X! ;:;,!:• to an u>en, o„ coud,tu,« of
s^r:;r;rL;:ii-'-.a..iou of their sius.
0.,.cno.toSta>aurs— e_ofU,eA^^^^^^^^^
„rauged under two go.-al ^acl ; ^^^^^^^^^^^ .^^ oi.jcctlous
,ubstano«, and those «1. cl ''^ ' ^^.,„, „.„,g„i,,e and th-c
„f the fi.'st Uin.l are made bo«. by ^^^^ j.^_._,,^,. ,„„tc„dn,g
,,,,., repudiate the au.bo" ) "^ « ^^^ „,„, ., ,„,ter o
„,at the doctrn.c '.« ■'"'.'^f:^ li'tle „,„mcut whether he teaches
course considering it a matte, ot
it or not. „ , . , i.-„„l have already, to some extent,
1. Objections of "'»«-' ^l/^r,, ,„ffieio,.t to a.ld that
,,een ..oticcl h.cdentalU. ,„ i,,erfcct or erro..eous state-
nearly all of then, a.-e '» "f P-^^^^,^,,,,' ,,,,icl. have been cWv
„.ent of the doctri..e All -;^;' ,^,^,,„y. not only to fill o..t
ered in the Apostle's tea In g a ^J.^^ ._^ ^ ,„„, „,«pt-
his own concepfon, but fo prcse.
• Cowpcr: YurdleyOak.
Saint l*.\ri/s I)(« timm: ok i.ii: Atonkmknt.
17
easy
nciit
that
I lis on
Lniven,
ro^*s art
e rigl»-
rncnt of
! justice
kIs of a
iition of
t may be
ite to its
objections
iind those
intending
c latter of
he teaches
me extent,
) add that
icons state-
een discov-
er to fill out
orm accept-
able to the reason and the moral sense. Those objections which
are nr^(!d witii the greatest emphasis, and tell with the; greatest
for(!c, are based for the most part upon |)artial statements of the
truth. Tiic i<;norin;; of some important particular invests th<'
objection with any plausibility it may possess. Kor instance, the
sid)stitution of the imiocent for the ;^uilty is represented as an
innnoral |)rocedin'e. It niay, indeed, l)e so; but wiicther it be so
will depend U|)on tiie circumstances of the case. In this case it
has not seemed so to the j;jreat<>st number of intelli<:;ent Chris-
tians, to those in whom the moral sense has been most hit^hly
educated, who have been most (piick to feel the shame of injus-
tice and to blaze with indiirnation atrain- 1 it. What then makes
the difference between those to whom the doctrine is the most
affecting statement of both the justice and the love of (iod, and
those who make the objection ? It is that *' the Christian Ixnly
has taken the doctrine as a whole, with all the light which the
different elements of it throw upon each other, while the objec-
tion has only fixed on one element in the doctrine, abstra(!ted
from the others."* It has fastened attention upon the substitu-
tion of the imiocent for the guilty; it has ignored the voluntari-
ness of the Victim and Mis relation to the (Jodhead.
A F^uropean city was being decimated by a |>lague so new to
the medical world that no means suggested by experience served
to stay its ravages, and so perilous to approatih that no proper
studv of it could be made. It was agreed among phvsicians that
until some expert should incur the danger and watch a case
through all its phases, the position was hopeless. Who would
do it? A young physician said, " I will make the observations
to-morrow." During the day he provided means to secure the
results of his study, said farewell to his friends, and cabnly j)re-
pared for death. In the morning he shut iiimself up with a new
victim of the jJague, watched by him till the end, dissected the
body, made a perfect record of his observations, and then went
through the agony and died.
*Mozley: University Sermons, ji. 1(52.
48
.' Till-' X'roNKMKN'l'-
,„,,..r. must a>. ; 1.C 1""^^ i,,^„„, „,„, ,l,e .-.«...» <-! " " %
ZJ^l of hi, .«..".ry ,r ^J ^^^^ '-r.-cir uppuv^™^
geons, being, '■«77^' '^ „t,,t of bis sacrifice, nor un,«ur .W
conbl not actraet trom tbe me ^^^ .^
, Bnence, nor a<W one e en.e,^ "^^ ,^ „f eo„rse .t doe.
The analogy i« go.K\ a« ft" «^ '' ^ . ^.^^„ ^ foils of »m-
„ot go far enougb, a» no '"»'»"':;;;; •-, „ ,,eh relation to tbose
Steness partly touse be s .stom ^ ^^^ ^^^ ^^.^ ,
Iho appointea him - Chn ^"^^ ,,„,,, „,„ to -be ; y
witbtbem; tbey «'er>hml "otl "S '^j^^ manifest love. B t
they did not violate J'-'f •^*;^ j ;7„„,„„„ity of nature and of „-
God and Cbrist «« 7' ^^^iness of .be Sufferer, s,le„<» he
terest, and the F^^'^'" "™ „t „„ee the righteousness ol 1.^
,,,„Je of injnstiee and <^:^^J^^^^, „, tbe ^^"^^"'^1;,
t,'"d:£S^^^^^^^^^^^^^
no,eetion,..,---t:fnf:r::v^'q^
... e P-.i.l to tbe Christianity ^j „,
addition ot 1 aul w ,,„„a can
development of the doet.ne '" .^^ „,.acr.
til ep sties «hen arranged ";" ^=,^i„,,,, it might be sbo«;n
''" lUns«ertotbefonnerof ri^--- '.^ ,.^„„„„io„s with
(1.) That Paul's ''o^^^ ' ;f ^ statement of it.'
X See Matt. XXVI. 28 ;MarR
Saint Paif/s Doctkim; of thi: Atonkmkm'.
40
tion :
who,
•uring
y, i"»^^
nee, (»r
en and
death.
he gov-
nd ftur-
ihitmcnt
npair its
5e it does
of eoni-
1 to those
i not one
die ; yet
Dve. But
and of in-
silcncc the
OSS of iii^^'
uage of St.
ic love" of
le character
V to impose
on, and an
id that the
be traced in
ht be shown :
nonious with
it.*
ler places.
(2.) Tliat siicIj a fuller statcnicnt is what the nature of the
case rc(|uire(l, and what the Lord's own woi ds ilirect us to look
for. " I have vet inanv thiiii^s to sav unto vou, hut ve <annot
bear them now. Ilowbeit when lie, the Spirit of truth, is eonie,
He will ^nide you into all truth. * * lie shall ^dorify me;
for He shall re<'eive of mine, and shall shew it unto vou."*
(3.) That it is in harmony with the general plan of Revela-
tion, which is progressive.
This plan, not oidy in general, but in the particular relation
of the teachin<ij8 of the Epistles to the contents of the (iospcis,
justifies itself. The true doctrines of Christianity are not specu-
lations: they are the interpretation and application of historic
facts. The facts nuist iiave been accomplished before they could
be understood, their relation appreciated, and their doctrine
formed. Christ must die and rise a^ain, and ascend and be
glorified, before His own disciples could inulerstand their interest
in His humiliation, and the relation of His passion to them and
to the world. Without the Epistles, we should stand, in relation
to tlie Gospels, in much the same position in which the disciples
stood in relation to the life they saw and the words they heard.
And the Epistles are to us, in the understanding of the great
facts of the ministry of the Lord, what the revealing agency of
the Spirit was to them, f
But, to pass on to the other contention : it is Fnaintained that
Paul's doctrine was not at first what it afterwards came to be ;
that, at most, his earlier views of the death of Christ in relation
to man were nothing more than a general belief that in some
way — he did not say what, he did not know what — men were
benefited by the death of Christ; that, being led by the consti-
tution of his mind to seek a reason for every belief, a philosophy
for every fact, he gradually developed a theory of the Atonement
which, when finally formed in his mind, he stated in his later
Epistles. Even granting such a progress of doctrine ir* his own
*John xvl. 12-14
t For a very satisfactory discussion of these points, see Bernard : Progress
of Doctrine, especially Lects. I., III., VI. and VII.
I^l;
^i!.
Ami
m
m
■li
il'! !'! 4^ ,
I ill' 111' ^
^^ .If fUU »ro«n'css was
...UWncoof tl.cSi..r..ofGo,l. ' ,_^,„^„ f„„.,u,es: tor
ration n,:t to s«pcrse.lc the vUion o^ ^^ ^ „,edu,m ol
h n one man uouUl be as S*'] »" \^..,a,„t ;„ the select.on
Dvine llevelation, and the «^»- ^^, „„,, ,„ .vUlely tra.ned,
.\ nPPiiracv of the results. v ti^prp any fouiuVation tor
''' k" e grant such a .J|:;X lUt'st. Paul a--
the belief that in the conrse of t s ^e^, 1 _^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^, ^
iTa very different --^"^^t ,lt baeUward, and tha Uus
his nro.'ress has been reall) a mo ^j,„,^„ that his
taU^oetrine eontradiets h,s to • J' »J ^,^,^, i. e„n-
te rine in the amplest e^P"^'""" °\i., first, and is the only
^ed in the ^^^ T^;ll been' made: as from a
development that eouUl log.ca ) ^ ^^^j^,„ i^e.
g en Icod, if it germinates at 11 mus^^^_^ ^„^ ^^^.^.^
^ A general case is supposed '« '« P ^ j „,,on Phil. "•
the declaration that he bad know „ ;, ,pj«aled to
"- -rr^^il^^trio— ess of an a— ^- »„
- - -r T^nrweauteL and error, and of conse.ous
^:rn%t— dge."t
;s."^le;;EpUt.e..o.heCorintMan.,i..oe.
i
Saint Paui/s Doctrink of the Atonkmkxt.
51
,s was
)y the
inspi-
s: tor
am of
ilection
rained,
appears,
normal
[> secure
ition for
1 arrives
•ted, that
. that his
that his
is, is con-
the only
^s from a
tree,
nissions of
, Phil. iii.
manifestly
ne, but in
11, however,
.e flesh, but
appealed to
vnce from a
! had known
cd Him " in
5sible to him
•ession," says
of conscious
\
The meaning of this passage may not, indeed, be obvious to
the superficial reader; but there is an explanation of it, which is
not onlv more natural and more in harmonv with the line of the
Aj)ostle's argument than that which makes him a discoverer in
theology, but which also sustains our position, that in regard to
the particular doctrine of Atonement by Christ, he held it at first
as he did at the last. lie is speaking of the universal aspect of
the work of Christ, and declares that it has obliterated all ritual,
national, and historical distinctions. It is now a matter of per-
fect indifference whether a man be Jew or Uentile, has been
circumcised or has not, keeps the ritual of Moses or does not
keep it : " If any man be in Christ, lie is a new creature."* And
to give emphasis to his assertion that he as a preacher of the
Gospel does not regard these human distinctions, he says it is the
very same principle which he applies in his view of Christ. He
had " known Him after the flesh :" he had dwelt upon the national
and historical diyracter of the Messiah; he had been "an He-
brew of the Hei>rews." But from the hour when Jesus ap|)eared
to him and he received the truth as it is in Him, all was
changed : he no longer looked for the Messiah of the Jews, but
he believed in Jesus as the Saviour of all men and the <jlorified
Lord of the world. Plis discoverv of the truth was not <rradual,
his conversion was the date of his change of view.
But, let us briefly look at the evidence of the facts in regard
to his supposed development of this particular doctrine of the
Atonement. For the maintenance of this proposition it is not
enougli to show that different toj)ics f» .ni tlie subject-matter of
the earlier and the later Ep-stles ; or that the same topics are
treated more elaborately in the one than in the other; but that
the same topics are presented in lights so different that the views
of the later Epistles could not have been held by the same mind,
at the same time with those of the former.
Remember that at the time of writing his first Epistle St.
Paul had reached the age of fifty, a time of life at which almost
every man who has given much thought to important subjects
*2Cor. V. 17.
p
r'«*
111
''|t p ^
i 111
52 BA-sxPA-^Docru ,,, ,« had
, . 1 .,t least the general cl.araeter ot h.s ^.^^stian tnys-
.eries; >'"''''-' ^"*'';":rri the anteee<lent probab.U.y
were ,.r(KUice<l,-ana how M.fe ^..parent.
cl a aevelopment of ''f ""« ';;Xlewi St. Paul's eh.cf
B„t let .. go to the — nt ^_^^ ^^^^,^, „.^
Td^^i-^ -"""^ '" "^ *"""1 "t 1 tte -i"dee<l all the letters
Now it happens that hmearhest letter ^^^^^ ^^ ,,„a
, iehe. eU '^ ^j^J 'f . -Us or n.onths or even
,,,„„aed, that h^l'»'l"""X;a«.ili«^ «■■''" *"^ "^"^-"f uZ.
years, and that were perfectly tan ^_^^^ ^^ ,„d,v.duals
Singly «e find that "> l-'« ^'^^^^^^^eaclnng, he appeals
: o htd enioyed the V-'-^'^^^'^^X^o.^ U preserved, anc^ex-
,0 his former ministry, »' ;'2' ,„a to hold it fast: ' Hold
horts them to remember l"*- <'°7' , ,,ast heard of me.
S the form of sonnd worc^w -ch rt^o« ^^^ ^^^^^ ,
When, after an aljsenee of h - » ^^ ,e.st e>ght«n
,,,„„h at Corinth «.th "'";' "^j. ,,„ eueral charaeter of his
.lelivcred nnto you hrst ot ^ ,, „ ,„ the Scnptur^H. t |"«
r,t Christ died for oar sms 'f "''"', ., appealed to as dlus-
K sue to the Galatians «h.d, '^^^!^^ ,„ u. later stages,
tratin" the development o. St. 1 aul ^^^^ ^^^,^ the
lains eonclnsivo -*- *", t'tablisl. and confirm them
purpose of this Kp.stle ? It -to ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^ ,, ,, t, ey
I I doetrine whieh !>« ^^d U f h .^ ^_^^ ^^ ^„„, ,,,i .„.port-
are being led astray, i he ao ^^^ ^^ ^^
* 2 Tim. ». t'^. '
Saint Paul's Doctrine of thk Atonement.
53
i had
mys-
itings
ity of
i chief
astoral
He de-
gratu-
itain all
ters.
le letters
he had
J or even
iig. Ae-
dividuals
le appeals
1, and ex-
,t: "Hold
of me."*
rites to the
it eighteen
\cter of his
among yo"
re fnlly, " I
ed unto you,
p * * for 1
iceived, how
ires."t 'i^^^^
id to as illus-
s later stages,
r, what is the
confirm them
ni which they
vital import-
'. XV. 1-3.
ance, and the evil of forsaking it is so great, that he writes with
a warmth of feeling, an enthusiasm for the truth, a fire of indig-
nation agaiuFt the seducers, which find a parallel in no other
])roduction of his pen : " I marvel that ye are so soon removed
from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another
gos|)el : which is not another; but there be some that trouble
you, and would pervert the Gospel of Christ. But though we,
or an angel from heaven, j)reach !Miy other gospel unto you than
that which we have preached unto you, let iiim be accursed;"*
"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched yoii that ye should
not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been
evidently set forth, crucified among you?"t He contemplates
with bitter pain the ruin of his fair work by the substitution of
a spurious gospel for the pure truth he had taught : "After that
ye have known Gud, or rather are known of God, how turn ye
again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again
to be in bondajje? * * * I am afraid of vou lest I have bestowed
upon you labour in vain."| And the matter of the controversy
is this very subject of the Atonement, and, as connected with it,
Justification by Faith : " Ye are now being taught salvation by
works. I taught you salvation by the redemptive work of another.
No man is justified by the law in the sight of God. Christ hath
redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for
us;" and all his statement of the vicarious work of Christ which
the Epistle contains, and which is asserted to be the theorizings
of a later Paul, as against the practical teaching of the earlier, is
claimed bv him to be the very vital doctrine he had tauffht
among the churches of Galatia. And, be it remembered, this
preaching in Galatia was in the earlier months of his s<!cond mis-
sionary tour, and before the v/riting of hia li^st letter.
Further: the very brevity of his statements in his early let-
ters to churches of his own founding, on a matter of such trans-
cendent importance as Christ's mediatorial work, — as for exami)le
when in fii-st Thessalonians he says, in passing, " Jesus, which
delivered us from the wrath to come ; " § and again, " God hath
*Gal. i. 6-8. fGal. iii. 1. J Gul. iv. 9-11. ^^ 1 Thess. i. 10.
I ill ' 1 1
"' iw
m
T (1 Jesus Christ wno
„,„„.in.ea us to <>'*»" "''r-rkl;«le.Vc of the fuller a«ctrine;
r .1 IW us " * — '"'I'l'^'* *'"=" ^ ° J.ort wouia Lave per-
S ir^c, sto,eu,cuts so ^''-^-;f „ 't rensonably ..f
L.\ and .listuvboa « '-• «^;^' ;,„ ,,„a no others, they
biriS=;:^Ss:C^":^^^^
S^SSr::o?r>eu.eu.h.the— u.u.r.
^--::r he f i-ss:-^^- ^^t;
:; the Lonl Himself : " I -r 'f l^; ^,„, For I neither re^
Jhieh was preached of me > noU t ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^,^,^^,„„ „f
ceived it of man, neither xvas 1 tau„
Jesus Christ." t g^ pj,„V9
such then, if our eM-^'l^r ^-rof the rea.ns for
doetrineof the Atonement; an Uueh^^^ ^^ ^^^^,^„^_ a
thinking it consonant wth «'^ " ^ ,; ht. Does any one
tith the eternal 1-":;!^-:^ r:;^,odoxy, »d is not in^ar-
,av it belongs to a severe type oi ^^^ , Be it
"nly with the P--">|;Sr do not care in eompar.on
,0 That is a luest.on for which ^^ j^ „,,, ,t ,»
trC. i!ro:gh all 0.r^-^::S^ ficinate the
the future. All other theories, o « ^ ^^j„,, that
J:cnlative, charm the --2, :!„„ the Pauline doc.rme
Rebels against the charge "' -'^^^f^,,!,, „f .he stream ; while the
„„V..s against all men, are but uU. e ^^^.^^ ^^,,. „„.
:^„t current of Christian tl'""S'' ;^^^,,.,t fountain it has eome.
..A vet remembers and reveals from i ^^ .^ ,^y ,„
^^"kCg gained a clear ^^^^ his Epistles, we
the mind of the Apostle and was exp ^^^^ . ^^_^^
* 1 Thess. V. 9, 10,
Saint Paui/s Doctrine of the Atonement.
i)i)
who
rine ;
12 per-
urge<l
, they
ic oral
tain in
suffer-
hat his
\vn dis-
aiight it
Gospel
ither re-
lation of
^t. Paul's
jasons for
ence, and
!s any one
ot in har-
it? Beit
comparison
3 old : it is
11 mind and
promise of
ascinate the
nature that
line doctrine
Ti J while the
•ing ever on-
, it has come,
h as it lay in
Epistles, we
1,12.
may put our knowledge to several imi)ortant uses. We may go
through the history of the doctrine in the church, and test the
a(rcuracy of the successive phases through which it lias i)assed.
We mav also survev the field as it lies before us to-dav, and <lis-
cover where, in the various forms the doctrine now assumes, tiie
truth is most largely found.
But our subject is not only of speculative importance. As
churches are distinguisiied by their view- of the Atonement, so,
and for that reason, are they distinguished by the nature and
range of their activities, and by the character and degree of tiieir
influence on the world.
It is of j)rofoundly personal interest too. The type of ex])e-
rience and character must be affected l)V a man's view of this
truth, and of the relation in which, in consequence of his view,
he believes that he stands to Christ.
In connection with this subject, more tiian all others, the
speculative should be held subordinate to, and made to promote,
the personal and practical. The si)irit in which our inquiries
should be, and I trust have been, condu;.'ted, and the result to
which they should lead, are well expressed in the words o^ the
great Bishop Butler : "Some have endeavoured to explain the
eflficacv of what Christ has done aii<l suffered for us, bevoud what
the Scripture has authorized : others, j)robably because they
could not explain it, have been for taking it away, and confining
His office as Redeemer of the world to His instruction, example,
and government of tlie church. * * * It is our wisdom thank-
fully to accept the benefit, by [>erforming the conditions upon
which it is offered, on our part, without disputing how it was
procured on His." * The same Bishop Butler it was who, when
drawing near the final hour and the judgment throne, found no
peace in thinking of the careful habits of his life, or of the
splendid services he had given to the cause of truth ; but when
a Curate by his bed side, repeating Scripture words of hope and
comfort, read " The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us
from all sin," his face lighting up witli a new and heavenly
* Butler's Analogy, Part II., Chap. V.
i.,'i I
N'i
m
5G
Saint Paul's Doctrine of the Atonement.
radiance, said, " I have read those words a thousand times, but
1 never felt their meaning as now."
" Jesus, Tliy Blood and RighteousnesA
My beauty are, my glorious dress;
'Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed,
With' joy shall I lift up my head.
Lord, I believe Thy precious Blood,
Which, at the Mercy-seat of God,
For ever doth for sinners plead,
For me, even for my soul, was shed.
Lord, I believe were sinners more
Than sands upon the ocean shore,
Thou hast for all a ransom paid,
For all a full Atonement made.
When from the dust of death I rise,
To claim my mansion in the skies,
E'en then — this shall be all my plea,
Jesus hath lived, hath died for me."
}, but
THE INCARNATION
AND
ITS LESSONS:
nKix(j
The FoiTiiTii Annial Sermon jjefoiie the Tiieoi/mjical
Union of Mount Aijjson Wj-^sleyax College.
DFXIVEKED JUNE, 18Sl>.
I 1
BY
REV. A. D. MORTON, A. M.
1!
t4
'IIP
£ |U$
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1
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t'n
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sei
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f'lii
pr
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tio
hIk
(hi
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to
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nit
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be
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in
stci
SERMON.
For in Him dwellctli all the fulness of the (Jodlu'iid bodilv. — Col. ii. !).
rpHE 'i\^(i ']]) wliic'fi we live professes to dolio^lit in a roHji^ion
-^ of 51 huinafiitarian atui practical character, as distiiiguishod
from one that is spiritual and doi^niutic or thcoloirical. There
are causes which have doubtless developed this sentiment and
which are not difficult to determine, nor need we look upon the
sentiment itself as necessarily or wholly evil. It marks a transi-
tion period, and will doubtless issue in the attainment on the part
of the church of a hi<«;her j)lane of tho':o;ht and life. But mean-
while, it behoves those — whose it is to contend earnestly for the
faith once delivered to the saints — to remember and act u[)on the
principle, that dogma underlies all Christian life, that the latter
is inseparable from the fr)rmer. The clear and distinct presentii-
tion of doctrinal truth is therefore essential, and no popular whine
should seduce the Christian Teacher from the discharge of his
duty in this regard.
Around each and every doctrine enunciated in God's Word,
and held by evangelical Christendom, the storm of opposition
has gathered and raged with relentless fury, and if they stand
to-day and are potent over men's hearts, it is because they have
a Divine origin and attestation. Certain doctrines we are wont
to rejrard as fundamental, as constituting the very life of the
Christian System, and therefore essential to its success and ulti-
mate triumph. We cannot err in regartling the doctrine of
Christ's Divinity in this light. H it be a revealed truth it must
be of the highest importance, to which many other truths, rela-
tively imj)ortant, are necessarily subordinate. The virulence
with which this dogma has been assailed is a clear indication that,
in the popular judgment, it constitutes not only a fourjdation
stone, but a chief corner stone in the system of the Christian
()()
TlIK IN( AKNATION
, r
'I
■ ia I-
m
".
I- Si
Faitli. \('V<rtlM'l«'ss, in the juIvocmcv of tliis canlinal doctrine,
Nvc iirc not niicliMritMl)l(' ; we do not foi-ovt that some of tin*
nol>l<'st tfiiclu'i'.s ot" Cliristian ctliicH did not hold this doctrine in
its inte<;rity, did not .somehow chithe their tciichin^s npon this
sid>je<'t in hni^nui^e a<'<'e|)tal)h' to ns. IJiit wlien we find one of
the most distin^nishe<l of these, disconrsin<ji: upon the "C'haraet<'r
of Christ," maUin*^ nse of tliese words, " lie talks of his glories
as one to whom thev were familiar, and of his intimacy and
oneness with (iod, as simply as a child s|)eal\s of his connection
with his parents. lie speaks of saving and judging the world, of
drawing all men to himself, and of giving everlasting life, as we
speak of the ordinary powers which we exert," we cannot un-
derstand how, in his view, the character and claims of Christ can
be oth(!r than tndy and essentially Divine. W this morning I
presume upon a survey of this grantl doctrine as correlated to
other truths, I hut claim to \ ,1k in paths explored and oj)ened
up by others. Tlu! subject nuist needs have an interest for all
who claim to be serious and thoughtful, irrespective of the views
they personally pr(>fesH to hold. Between the |)assionate adora-
tion that distinguishes some in regai'd of the person of Christ
and the defiant hatred that distinguishes others, there are varied
shades and levels of thought and feeling, but there ia no room
for, no toleration of, indiff'ereiKje. Our text, we take to be, by
the intention of the writer, a positive and unequivocal assertion
of the j)roj)er divinity of Christ, and to the sui)port of this asser-
tion, the reasoning of the Epistle, at once logical and conclusive,
is larijelv directed.
Let it not be supposed however that this doctrine rests upon
isolated passages for its supj)ort. The Scriptures, as a whole,
testify of Christ, and in particular of Him in His divine charac-
ter and claims. This testimony is gradually unfohled. The
germ of all that inheres in the person and work of Christ is con-
tained in the promise so early given to man, "The seed of the
woman shall bruise the ser[)ent's head." But while the Old
Testainent Scriptures are by no means reticent upon this subject,
it remains for the later writings of a more privileged dispensa-
Je.'
are
A Skumon'.
01
' Uu"
\w in
tliis
i\U' ol
;l()ricf*
y and
icction
rUl, of
us we
ot un-
•ist oi\»»
i-ninj^ I
iitod to
oju'ned
t lor all
le views
3 lulora-
f Christ
•e varied
no room
o be, by
assertion
his asser-
DiH'Uisive,
rests upon
i a wliolc,
ne eharae-
iled. The
rist is con-
seed of the
Ic tlie Old
:his subject,
d dispensa-
tion to revr-al in full oriicd ficanKss and spi(ii(l(»!' tiiis inarvclions
truth. Altlioii<r|i onrohj<'ct this niorniii*;; may he to <'(int('m|>ialt'
C'lirist as divine, and altlioiiH;li the argument and assertion of
Scrijiturc may lie chiefly in this direetion, it <loes not follow that
we are to forj^ot or overlook the essential linmanity of the Son of
God. It is the con'mnetion of these distinct natures in one per-
son that makes ( 'lirist the «'ynosnre of all vyvs, that constitntis
Him not only the typical man, hut the man hy whom, in virtue
o
f h
is relations to mankind irenerallv, the race is rescuei
il ^r
1 fi
'om
the ruins of the Fall. Tlu,' delineations ol' the (iosjm-I furnish
such a portraiture of the Man Christ .Je.'^us as to leave an ahid-
inj5 impression of His humanity. Whatever lay behind that
nature, mi«;ht be a (piestion involving:; a dilVerence of opinion, but
as to the humanity itself there can be wo doubt.
We may consider Christ's dignity and reijitive position as a
MS man tiie etiua
niiin ; we may make tl
him the chiefest of <*reated bein<
<!'
d of
aii'n
I
we mav maUe
\\v mav Drifi/ him ; he mav
be th<! Son of (iotl, but whatever else he is, he is a man. It is
the iiKOi that lirst appears before me, that I learn to know, and
that 1 ultimatelv fin<l to be more than man. The voice of the
ages is not, What is Christ? but. Who is Christ, the man Christ
What think ve of IlimV Whose son is He?" We
I esus
are very apt to feel that tiie doj^ma of Christ's divinity must be
highly important, because it is one so fiercely contested, so strong-
ly insisted upon, on the one hand, so stremiously denied on the
other, and fail to realize the not less important fact of His
humanity. It is not of God in His essence and abstract rela-
tions that we sj)eak to-day. Jt is not of God, thus viewed, that
we speak in those earnest addresses and appeals by which we
seek to nmve men's conscfiences and reclaim them from the paths
of sin by inspiring in their hearts hopes of forgiveness, and in-
sisting tipon the possibilities of our redeemed nature. It is of
God made man ; of God who in our nature suffered and died;
God our liel[)er, our brother, our Saviour. It is of Him in whom
dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. God incarnate
is the grandest fact in human history. But herein lies the ques-
(12
Tm: Inc'aunation:
I
^u^
tioii, — Is this riiiui, (i<m1 ? To consider this <|iicstion with any
(lofj^rc'c of fiilncss is iinpossihlo. We may, hoNvevcr, jjjhuico at it.
To the ohjoction of mystery or itM|)ossil)ility, we |)ay little heed.
Mvsterv we looiv for. " In»i)ossil)ilitv" is a word not to ha men-
tioned where; (iod, in Ilis aims and pnrposes, is coneerned.
Nor are we iisinjif tlie word "divine" in anv modified sense.
Withont (jualilleation, we apply it to the man Christ Jesns. The
pnr|)ose of Christ's eominjj^ into the world, as proelaimed by
Himself, would seem to he sng<:;estive of His divine character.
Admittintj^ for one moment the fact of tiie incarnation as held i)y
evanjjjelical Christendom, the (piestion at once arises, What is the
object? And it is almost axiomatic;, that the object, in its {gran-
deur and importance, nmst be commensurate with the measures
taken to realize it.
That purpose was not merely the salvation of so many souls,
but the establishment of a kinj^dom that was to be "world-wide
and imperishable."
No earthly monarciiy then or now, existent, furnished in the
principles of its constitution, a model for the kinj^dom that
Christ set up. A visible kingdom in a certain sense it was, but
in its distinctive characteristics, it was to be a moral kingdom,
whose ruler should exercise supreme domination over the hearts
and consciences of His subjects. In the Sermon on the Mount,
we have furnished those laws which will, through all coming
time, guide and govern those who become members of this spir-
itual kingdom. By reference to these, it will at once be perceived
that no mere outward observance will be sufficient or even ])os-
sible. They imply, in the hearts of those who receive them, a
new life, bringing them into conscious sympathy with the ends
those laws were designed to promote.
The agency and methods employed in the fulfilment of this
purpose are, to say the least, extraordinary, in that they differ
80 materially from what in our preconceived notions they would
necessarily be. The commission to }>ropagate Christ's teachings
and extend the limits of His kingdom, is entrusted to a small
and uninfluential body of men, men who by their original social
A Skumon.
<).-{
liny
at it.
nien-
soiisc.
Tlu-
ed by
meter,
ckl by
t is tlie
s j>;ran-
easurt'f*
[(l-\vi(lo
1 in the
mi tliat
,vas, but
n|rtloin,
le hearts
Mount,
coming
his spir-
)erccive(l
jven pos-
! them, a
the entls
lit of this
icy differ
ley Nvoukl
teachings
o a small
inal social
relation."*, their inherent cowan li<v, as evidenced in connec-
tion with the scenes of (icthseinane and Calvarv, ns well as bv
other considerations, seem to iaci\ the fu'st <|naIifications for so
important a work. These men however constituted the hninair
instrumentality which was o|)|»osed to the pride and prt;jn<lice
and jtower of tlie w<»ri(l.
In re<»;ard to metliods, they were restricted. TIjosc wliich, in
the |)opuhir indi^m(;nt are justifial)le and essential in conne<'tion
with political achievements, the conciucst of nations, the propa-
gation of iiuman systems of religion, were prohibited. They were
to go forth without provision or e(piij»ment of any sort, — their
sole dependence the inspiring jM'onnse, *' liO, I am with you
alway ;" and as they went, they wcr<: to preach, — simply preach,
allowing their simple utterances, accompanied by the energy of
the promised Spirit to do the work — to lay siege to the hunuui
heart and conscience, to revolutioni/e the sentiment of the world,
and usher in the dawn of that day when "Jesus shall rule all
human thought, shall make Himself the centre <»f all human
affections, shall become the Lawgiver of humanity, and the object
of man's adoration."
Is it to be wondered at that some writers have designated
this plan in its essence and the agencies and methods by which
it was to reach forth to its ac(romplishmcnt, both original and
audacious? Surely its author, whatever our ultimate iin|)ression
of him may be, must arrest our gaze and awaken within us the
earnest enquiry, "Who is He?" We cannot doubt that Christ
came into the world fullv furnished with credentials, certifvini;
both Plis divine character and mission, so that those who in the
days of His flesh rejected Him, were without excuse, but the
lapse of nineteen centuries has undoubtedly lifted us uj) to
higher vantage ground in respect of affording us opportimities
to judge of Christ and the merit of His claims. His predictions
and promises have been subjected to that test which time and
huma'" experience alone can furnish. And to these we make our
appeal. Is it objected ? " The end is not yet. Generations must
away. The age of the future may ch
pass
may cnange
^pect
CA
The Incaiixation
1'^ 5";
lilt
of affairs to-day aii<l involve the hopes now cherished in utter
disa|)j)()intment." If there are those wlio find eoiiii'ort in this
refiif^o of unbelief, we envy them not. Tiie period whieh lias
elapsed since the institution of Christianitv is surelv sutfieient to
aiford a basis on whieh to rest our estimate of its merits and
warrant a confidence as to its future. Having appealed then to
these sources, what answer is returned? It is, I believe, said to
the visitor of Sf. Paul's Cathedral, concerning its architect, " If
you would se(? his monument, look around." With greater pro-
prietv niav we sav to one who asks what is the testimonv of the
ages respecting Christ, "Whose Son is He?" "Look around."
The church to-day, loyal in its attachment to Christ, instinct with
the life of its Founder, reaching forth with unrepressed ardor
and with unquestioned certainty to the subjugation of the world
to Hin«, furnishes you the living, irresistible answer. We cannot
overstate the significance of the fact that the (luirch instituted
of Christ still lives — nor have the centuries < f her existence
induced the elements of decay. The careful and honest student
of history will testify that never in the past did she gather to
herself such elements of strength and ultimate glory as in this
the nineteenth eenturv of her existence. With niinj^led feelintjs
of amazement and assurance we contrast the Jerusalem Church
in the upi)er chamber, representing the body of believers in that
early day with the gigantic proportions whieh the church has
since assumed, including within her eml)race the representatives
of all lands and languages, of all conditions in social and intel-
lectual life. Who can estimate her power over human thought
and action in the present day, those subtle yet wholesome influ-
ences that radiate from her as a centre, disintegrating the corrupt
masses of evil in society, and infusing the leaven of truth and
purity and justice and love!
What is it that characterizes the civilization of this nineteenth
century, giving it its peculiar glory as compared with the centu-
ries of the past, making it the age of freedom in thought and
action, the age of philanthropic endeavour, the age that more
than any other recognizes the true brotherhood of man ? Do we
A Skumon.
65
itter
tliis
has
nt to
and
en to
lid to
, " If
I- ])ro-
)i' the
)nnd."
t with
ardor
\vorUl
cannot
^titutc'd
vistonce
student
ither to
in this
feelings
Church
5 in that
irch has
jntatives
nd intel-
thought
ine influ-
c corrupt
;ruth and
lincteenth
lie centu-
)ught and
that more
9 Do we
mistake if we ascribe these features of our age to the growing
power of Christianity as expressed in the lives and influence of
those who, aggregated, constitute the Church of Christ upon
earth? 1 am not unfamiliar with some of those specious f()rms
of obj'.jtion that may be urged against all 1 have said in this
connection. There are, doubtless, those who will not admit the
fairness or force of any argument ; but if what I have said be
true, then what follows? In what light must we look upon the
Author of Christianity, the Founder of the Christian church? I
make my appeal to the common sense of our humanity, and am
satisfied as to the answer that will fornndate itself in ten thousand
thousand hearts and find a voice, which in thunder tones will go
ringing o'er the hills and valleys of our redeemed eartii, the re-
verberating echo of that voice that spake beneath the shades of
Calvary, " Truly this Man is the Son of God." The testimony
of the first Napoleon, though not that of a j)rofessed theologian,
is for some reasons the more to be valued on that account, and is
es|)ecially suggestive here. Proj)osing one day the en(juiry,
"Can you tell me who Jesuti Christ was?" and failing to elicit
any answer, he continued, " Well, then, I will tell you. Alex-
ander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I myself have foinided great
empires; but upon what did these creations of our genius dej)end?
Upon force. Jesus alone founded His empire upon love, and to
this very day millions would die for Him. ... I think J
understand something of human nature , and I tell you, all these
were men, and I am a man : none else is like Him; Jesus Christ
was more than man. I have inspired multitudes with such an
enthi'.riiastic devotion that thev would have died for me ; but to
do this it was necessary that I should be visibly present with the
electric influence of ray looks, of my words, of my voice. When
I saw men and spoke to them, I lighted up the flame of self-
devotion in their hearts. . . . Christ alone has succeeded in
so raising the mind of man towards the Unseen, tiiat it becomes
insensible to the barriers of time and space. Across a chasm of
eighteen hundred years, Jesus Christ makes a demand which is
beyond all others difficult to satisfy ; He asks for the human
heart; He will have it entirely to Himself; He demands it
66
The Incarnation :
unconditionally ; and forthwith Ilis demand is granted. Won-
derful ! In defiance of time and space, the soul of man with all
its powers and faculties, becomes an annexation to the empire of
Christ. All who sincerely believe in Him, exjKjrience that re-
markable supernatural love towards Him. This phenomenon
is unaccountable; it is altogether beyond the scope of man's
creative ])owers. Time, the great destroyer, is powerless to ex-
tinguish this sacred flame: time can neither exhaust its strength
nor |)ut a limit to its range. This is it which strikes me most;
I have often thought of it. This is it which proves to me quite
convincingly the Divinity of Jesus Christ." And this is the
verdict of the intelligence and M'isdom of mankind in every age.
But I forbear to pursue further a line of argument familiar
to my brethren — one that, followed stej) by step, caimot fail to
bring conviction to the candid mind. Well I know whom I am
addressing, and It is not because your faith is weak or that I
deem the Rationalism of the day has any undue influence over you,
that I thus speak ; but it seemed proper under present (;ircum-
stances, to, at least, call attention to the great fact which the
popular mind can appreciate, as an evidence of the Divinity of
Him wiioni we adore as our Saviour.
There are those before me who, while they can appreciate
that line of argument which appeals more particularly to the
intellectual and moral j)arts of our nature, are resting not upon
this as the inspirer of their joy and the foundation of that hope
which is as an "anchor to the soul." To your inner consciousness
Christ has spoken, not by the matchless wisdom of His teachings
or the unsurpassed grandeur of His works, but by that still
small voice that proclaims [)ardon for your sins and peace with
God, and with an apprehension divinely inspired of what is
involved in the " mystery of Godliness," your soul cries out in its
longing for a richer and yet richer experience of the life of God.
" AiiHwor Thy mercy's wliole design,
My (t()(1 iiu-aniiitod for iiie ;
My spirit m:ike Thy rudiunt shrine,
My li^ht and i'tdl salvation be ;
And tlirouyii tlie shades of death unknown
Conduct me to Thv duzzlina: Tlirone."
nl
ill
A Sermon.
G7
r>n-
all
3 of
re-
non
tin's
ex-
iigth
lost ;
:|iute
? the
' age.
niliar
■ail to
I am
:luit I
!r you,
rc'iuu-
i\\ the
nitv of
ireciate
to the
)t upon
at hope
lonsnoss
aohings
lat still
[\c'e with
what is
mt in its
of God.
\Vc accept, thcMi, the fact of the Incarnation, l^iut what is
involved in it? What of blessing, or comfort, or help for our
sin-crushed, sorrowing: humanity? Would I could tell vou. I
think the first great need that the Incarnation supplies is man's
need of God. How real, how intense this need is, the records of
human history abundantly testify. The a<jes of dim and uncer-
tain light reveal here and there souls gropiug amid the darkness
and the gloom, seeking G(td, studying Nature's half opened book,
to learn of Ilim who matle all things and impressed some "linea-
ments of Himself on all the works of His hands. The vagaries
of uninformed minds, the absurdities which have marked the
superstitions born of the religious element in man, all go to show
that man was formed for God, that Jle alone can become his
satisfying portion.
But who is the Lord and unto what will ve liken Him?
How difficult it has been to conceive of God — not so nmch of
His existence, but His character. His disposition toward us.
And without just conceptions here, how shall we cherish suitable
feelinsrs towards Him who is the Author of our beiny; and in whose
hands for good or evil we feel ourselves to be. We see an at-
tempt to respond to these yearnings in the hierarchical system of
the Church of Home — and if we seek an explanation of the
dominancy of that church over the hearts and consciences of its
adherents we find it in the eagerness with which the soul, irre-
spective of intellectual developments and attainments, grasps
after some personation of the Deity. This i)ers()nation we have
in Christ, not proximately, but really.
"God did in Christ Himself reveal,
To chiise our dari^ness l)y His liglit,
Our sin and ignorance dispel,
Direct our wandering feet aright,
And hring our souls, with pardon blest,
To realms of everlasting rest."
Here then is our privilege, brethren, — not to preach doctrines,
not to preach morals merely, but to preacii Christ, Christ cruci-
fied; but Christ a divine Saviour, a living and exalted Saviour.
68
The Incarnation :
Oh ! when this relationship of Christ is understood, is it any
won(ier that men have risen uj) in their pity, in their love, men
with Paul's spirit in them, yearning to carry the glad tidings to
their fellows; willing to suffer exile and shame and death, that
to those sunk in the darkness and despair of sin they might pro-
claim this Saviour in His love and power to save. Our mission
may not challenge such heroism as this, but it is grand, and often
in moments of earthly sorrow and des})ondency, the consciousness
of having led some soul to know and embrace this Saviour,
thrills the heart with heaven's own joy, and constrains to a re-
newed consecration to the duties and toils involved in the min-
istry of the Cross.
The second lesson taught me by the Incarnation, follows nat-
urally and necessarily from the first. Is the man wiio died for
me a Divine Being? Is he possessed of Divine resources? Then
indeed I !;ave nothing left to desire. I look at myself: I see
myself in my sinfulness, my hel[)lessness, my moral destitution,
my spiritual hopelessness. The picture cannot be overdrawn ;
but, turning to the portraiture of my Saviour as presented in the
inspired volume, I find " in Him all fulness dwells, and that for
wretched man." As an individual in need of salvation, I rejoice;
as a minister, commissioned to ])reach Christ, I rejoice, because I
can go toman wherever I find him, and proclaim the most joyful
intelligence that can affect the human heart. Is sin an offence
against a divine law, an offence that must be atoned for? I lean
on a Sacrifice commensurate with man's utmost needs. Once
assure me that in Him who died for me, dwelt all the fulness of
the Godhead bodily, and I see an infinite merit attaching to the
sacrifice of C^alvary. It becomes to me no longer a question of
this man's sins or that man's sins, or the sins of any given num-
ber of men, but of sin as existing in the world, sin barring man's
approach to God, sin dooming the guilty ones to that everlasting
death which is the appointed penalty of sin. Sin in this sense is
atoned for. The benefits of this atonement are not only such as
to relieve my mind on the score of personal guilt and exposure,
but are, most evidently, the common heritage of the race.
qi
tlj
esl
Fi
atl
A Sermon.
69
(3.) Do I find tliat a mere atonement for sin past cannot suf-
fice, that more than forgiveness is needed ? Again, tlic assuring
power of the Incarnation, appreliended in its significance, is
realized. I have as my reliance not only the benefits of Christ's
death, but I enjoy His perpetual offices as a Saviour. There is
blessed meaning in those promises which sj)eak of a spirit of
truth o})erating in my heart to the renewal of my nature, impart-
ing unto me at once purity and the power to live conformably
to that will which constitues the law of my being.
It does not dismay me when I am told of the sinful propen-
sities of my nature, of my weakiH>s, and the possibility of my
lapsing into sin. I have a living Saviour, in whom dwelleth all
the fulness of the Godhead bodily. He can keep me : He will
keep me : " Wherefore He is able to save unto the uttermost all
them that come unto God by Him." I trouble not my mind
with mysteries which are unfathomal)le in their depths, so far-
reaching in their connections as to utterly battle my powers of
vision. I see it to be a simple matter of reliance upon Christ,
of continual trust in Him as a personal Saviour, and my mind
finds rest.
(4.) Again : man seems to possess an inborn consciousness
of the need of an Intercessor, — a Daysman, who can mediate in
our behalf with God. I see my co-religionists, many of them,
in serious error here, as I conceive. Impelled by their sense of
need in this regard, their appeals are made to the Mother of our
Saviour, to various saints, who are deemed worthy to act in this
capacity : I say not only how wrong, how derogatory to the
Divine glory, but how needless! Give me to understand the
blended nature of Christ, and He possesses in perfection the
qualifications that this office might seem to require. I go to God
through Him, — through Him alone. I cannot doubt His inter-
est in me; nor can I doubt the prevalency of His intercession.
(5.) Yet again : I look out upon life's dark and stormy ex-
perience. There are other than s[)iritual asj)ects to our nature.
Forgive me if I have seemed to dwell too much on these. I look
at life — human life — a brief thing at best, but often crowded
70
The Incarnation
full of sorrows tliat roll like ocean waves over us. I am awaken-
ing painful memories now. To my eongregation, I may be a
stranger ; I may not recognize your faces ; I may not know your
names; you may think your j)ersonal experience is something of
which I am profoundly ignorant; but stoj), tell me this: In
what resj)e(!t is our brotherhood — tin; brotherhood of man, where-
ever you find him, made most apparent ? Is it not in this, that
sorrow is our common heritage. I see, wherever I go, the out-
ward semblance and tokens of those experiences through which,
dark and distressing though they be, we one and all seem doomed
to pass, while here. The cemetery, the rural (jhurchyard, God's
acre, call it if you will, — where will you go that you find it not.
I enter these sacred enclosures; I read from the monuments that
record names, dates, and many a fact beside ; I go back with
mourning ones to the homes made desolate by death ; I see a
mother bending tenderlv, tcarfullv over the couch on whicli her
babe is breathing its life away; I see a wife watching, while the
gathering shadows of death are closing upon the husband, stricken
in his prime; I see the anguish depicted in her countenance as
her eyes are lifted appealingly to heaven. You know all about
it, — the weary >vatching, the dying hope, the chill despair, the
dcsolateness of that home from which a loved one has been taken,
the memory that lingers like a pain for which there is no earthly
anodyne. Oh God ! is there anything that can meet such sorrow
as this? There is. Jesus becomes my refuge ; my Saviour tastetl,
aye, He drank, in its fulness and bitterness, the cup of earthly
sorrow. I have not only human sympathy in Him, I have a
Divine, and therefore, all-sufficient helper.
" Througli all the tangled maze
Of losses, sorrows, and o'erclouded days
We know His will is done ;
And still He leads us on,
And He at last.
After the weary strife
After the restless fever we call life.
After the dreariness, the aching pain,
The wayward struggles which have proved in vain,
After our toils are past,
Will give us rest at last."
clj
of
tlj
bl
gI
iwaken-
lay be u
ow your
thing of
his: In
1, whcre-
this, that
the oiit-
h which,
1 (loomed
[•a, God's
nd it not.
iients tiiat
l)aek with
; I see a
whioii her
while the
d, stricken
tenance as
all about
espair, the
)een taken,
no earthly
ueh sorrow
iour tasted,
of earthly
. I have a
A Seumon.
71
vain,
Finallv. The thoutjlit of the Incarnation is to me the svmhol
and pledge that what constitutes the fondest anticipations of my
heart shall be realized. I follow the footsteps ()f my Savionr
from Bethlehem to Culvarv. I trace with lovin;; eagerness those
footste[)s as they emerge from the garden on the morn of the
resurrection, till tiiat day wiien having led His disciples as far
as Bethany, the crucified, the risen Son of God and Son of Man,
the Conqueror of sin, the Conqueror of death, ascended in our
nature. Oh, think of it! Ascended into Heaven! Tliere He
perpetuates that mysterious union, and there
" We sir.ill soe Ilirn in our iiiiture,
Sciitod on His lofty Throne,
Lord, adored by every creutnre,
Owned as (lod, and (lod alone."
The imj)ortance of this perpetuation of Christ's luimanity
consists to some extent in this (I speak for myself), that it seems
to invest Heaven with what may be termed material aspects. I
cannot very well conceive of sj)iritual essences. A Heaven peo-
pled with such essences has no attractive power on my mind.
But give me a Heaven where dwells my Saviour in bodily shaj)e
and form, where my humanity is represented in His person, and
you give me a pledge, that tlie loved ones {)assed into the spirit
world, whatever may be their meanwhile condition, will ulti-
mately with bodily form appear to my gaze. And the joy of
Heaven consists not only in the recognition of my Saviour, but
tiie recognition of those whose de})arture has made earth a lone-
some place and whom I wait to greet in that land of which the
poet so beautifully sings:
" Sorrow and death may not enter there,
Time doth not hreathe on its fadeless bloom,
For beyond the clouds and beyond the touib,
It is there, it is there, it is there."
We are entering, brethren, upon the second century of our
church's history in these Provinces. May our ministry, like that
of our Fathers, be made powerful for the salvation of souls, by
the earnest preaching of Christ, and the apprehension of this
blessed truth, that " In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the
Godhead bodily."