CHAPTER III.
OFFICES OF CHRIST.
JESUS CHRIST IS THE MEDIATOR BETWEEN GOD AND MEN.[1]
A mediator is a middle person between two parties. The term is especially
applied to one who interposes between parties at variance, with a view to
effect a reconciliation. Men are under the displeasure of God, on account of
their sins, and are in rebellion against him, and enemies in mind by wicked
works. Christ appears as mediator, to effect a reconciliation.
The duty of a mediator differs, according to the relation of the parties.
When the variance between them arises wholly from misunderstanding, an
explanation is all that is necessary to effect a reconciliation. In this case
a mediator is simply an interpreter. When an offence has been given, but
such a one as may be pardoned on mere entreaty, the mediator becomes an
intercessor. But when the circumstances are such as to require satisfaction for
the offence , the mediator must render that satisfaction or become surety
for the offender. On God's part, as he has committed no wrong, nothing more is
required than an Interpreter,[2] to show to man
his uprightness. But, on the part of guilty man, it is necessary that the
Mediator should be both Intercessor and Surety.
The union of two natures in Christ qualifies him for the work of mediation.
As man, he sympathizes with us, is accessible, both when we desire to present
petitions and to receive instruction; and he is capable of standing as our
substitute or surety, and of making the requisite satisfaction of divine
justice. As God, he understands fully the claims against us, has ready access
to the offended Sovereign, has all the knowledge which it can be necessary to
communicate to us, and can give dignity and value to the satisfaction offered
in our behalf. These qualifications are found in no other person, and
accordingly "There is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we
must be saved."[3]
In the one office of Mediator three offices are included, which need separate
consideration: those of Prophet, Priest, and King.
SECTION I.--PROPHET
JESUS CHRIST, AS PROPHET, MAKES REVELATION FROM GOD TO MEN.[4]
Among the revelations made by prophets, the foretelling of future events has
held a conspicuous place: but this does not constitute the whole of the
office. The word prophesy does not always refer to future events, as is
apparent from an incident in the injurious treatment which our Redeemer
received at his trial. When blindfolded he was struck by one of the
attendants, who contemptuously demanded, "Prophesy who is he that smote
thee."[5] From this example we learn that the
term was not exclusively used for the foretelling of future events, but was
applied to the making of any declaration which required superhuman knowledge.
Jesus Christ, as a Prophet, was superior to all other prophets. Moses was so
far distinguished above the rest, that it was said no prophet had arisen like
him;[6] but Moses foretold the coming of Jesus
Christ, in these words: "The Lord, thy God, will raise up unto thee, a prophet
from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall
hearken."[7] Elijah was a prophet, highly
distinguished in his day, and was translated to heaven, without tasting death:
but Moses and Elijah appeared on the mount of transfiguration, to lay down
their prophetical office and honors at the feet of Jesus, when the voice from
heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, hear ye him."[8] Moses and Elijah were to be heard in their day; but the
voice from the excellent glory singled out Jesus as the superior prophet, whose
instructions we are commanded to receive.
Not only was Christ superior to the prophets of the former dispensation, but
it was he who qualified them for their office, and spoke through them.[9] This fact accords with his statement, "No man
hath seen God at any time: the only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the
Father, he hath declared him."[10] He is, in
this view, the only Prophet, the only Revealer of the mind of God. Before his
personal ministry commenced, he made revelation by prophets whom he inspired;
during his ministry, he spoke as one from the bosom of the Father; and after he
left the world, he continued to make revelation, through his apostles and
others, to whom he gave his Spirit. The last book of the Bible is a revelation
which he gave to is servant John;[11] and the
whole Bible is now to us as the word of Christ. His truth he still uses, as
the Prophet of the Church, instructing his people into the knowledge of God.
God has sometimes been pleased to make known his will by the ministry of
angels; but the prophets, whom he ordinarily employed, were men of like
passions with ourselves. There was peculiar fitness, as well as condescending
kindness, that the great Prophet of the Church should be one in our own nature.
Though it was true, "Never man spake like this man,"[12] it was still true, that he spoke with the voice of a man;
and, instead of the terrific thunders heard from Sinai, addressed those who
were willing to receive his instructions, in the accents of tenderness, as an
affectionate friend. But such affection might have existed, without the
knowledge necessary to make known the whole mind of God. This qualification
his divine nature supplied. Paul asks, on one occasion, "Who hath known the
mind of the Lord? and who hath been his counsellor ?[13] But, it had been predicted of Jesus, that he should be
called Wonderful, Counsellor.[14] He was the
wisdom of God, from the bosom of the Father, and was therefore fully qualified
to reveal the mind and counsel of God to men.
At the feet of this Prophet let us sit, that we may learn the knowledge of
God. With Mary, let us take our place there, leaving the cumbering cares of
the world, and opening our ears and our hearts to receive his heavenly
instructions. Peter, James, and John, who saw his glorious form in the holy
mount, when the bright vision had passed away, were left in possession of the
divine command: "Hear ye him." Let us take this direction as the guide of our
way, until we shall be admitted to the brighter vision of his glory, of which
the former was but a shadow.
SECTION II.--PRIEST.
JESUS CHRIST, AS PRIEST, MADE AN EFFICACIOUS SACRIFICE FOR THE SINS OF HIS
PEOPLE, INTERCEDES FOR THEM AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, AND BLESSES THEM WITH ALL
SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS.[15]
A prophet approaches men with revelations from God; but a priest approaches
God in behalf of men. His chief business is to offer sacrifice, and make
intercession. Priests have existed in the various religions of the heathen
world; but in the forms of worship instituted by divine authority for
observance of the Hebrew nation, we find the most instructive exposition of the
priestly office. The Epistle of the Hebrews explains the design of this
institution, and sets forth the Levitical priests as types of Christ in his
priesthood. It is there stated to be the duty of the priest to offer gifts and
sacrifices for sins.[16]
The text last quoted refers to two kinds of offerings which the priest
presented: one for thanksgiving, the other for propitiation. Various
offerings were prescribed as expressions of gratitude for mercies received, and
others to make atonement for sins. Christians make their offerings of praise
and thanksgiving through Christ, as their high priest; but the only atoning
sacrifice is the offering which he made of himself, when he gave his life a
ransom for us.[17]
All propitiatory sacrifices involve the idea of substitution. The animal
offered represented the offerer, and bore his sins, which were confessed, over
its head.[18] So Christ bore our sins,[19] our iniquities being laid on him. With
reference to the use of lambs in sacrifice, he is called "the Lamb of God, that
taketh away the sin of the world."[20] The
idea of substitution is clearly conveyed in such passages as these: "For a
good man some would dare to die; but God commendeth his love toward us, in
that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."[21] "He who knew no sin was made sin for us."[22]
Those who deny the divinity of Christ, deny also the doctrine of his vicarious
sacrifice. When he is said in Scripture to die for us, they understand the
import of the language to be, that he died for our benefit; but they exclude
the idea of his suffering in our stead, bearing the penalty due to our sins,
that we might be released from it. He is supposed to have died for our
benefit, in that he gave us an example of patience and resignation in
suffering, confirmed the doctrine that he taught, and, by rising from the dead,
established the truth of the soul's immortality, and the resurrection of the
body. These several benefits, all will admit, are derived from the death and
resurrection of Christ: but they do not fully come up to the import of the
strong language which the Scriptures employ in relation to this subject. The
ancient martyrs generally set us a noble example of patience and resignation in
suffering and death. Many of them exhibited a fortitude and triumph in the
prospect of their dying agonies, not seen in the example of our Redeemer. In
the garden, his soul was exceedingly sorrowful in the prospect of his
sufferings, and he thrice prayed that the cup might pass from him; and, on the
cross, though he was all submissive to his Father, and yielded his spirit at
last into his Father's hands, yet he exhibited none of the joyful exultation
which has often shone forth in the martyr's last moments, but he seemed
oppressed, shrouded in gloom, and mourning the withdrawal of his Father's
presence. All this may be accounted for, if we consider that his death had
been merely to set us an example, it might be said, with greater propriety,
that Peter, Paul, and other Christian martyrs, died for us: but Paul will not
admit this; for he says, in a manner which implies a strong denial, "Was Paul
crucified for you?"[23]
The sincerity of the ancient Christians was demonstrated by their readiness to
suffer and die, rather than renounce the faith which they professed. Christ's
death may be said to confirm his sincerity in the same way; but if this is what
is meant by his dying for us, Stephen, James, Peter, and Paul died for us in
this sense. But though the death of Jesus may be understood to establish his
sincerity for the confirmation of his doctrine, he was accustomed to refer, for
this purpose, not to his death, but to his miraculous works and his
resurrection. It was his resurrection also, rather than his death, which
established the truth of the soul's immortality and of the resurrection of the
body. If, therefore, these confirmations of truth for our benefit are what is
intended by Christ's dying for us, it would be more correct to say, that he
wrought miracles and rose from the dead for us. But his death has so prominent
a place in the Scriptures, as that to which we are indebted for eternal life,
that we are compelled to seek for a higher sense of the phrase, "Christ died
for us."
The humble disciple of Jesus, who is willing to learn, as a little child, in
what sense his Lord and Master died for him, needs only to read with attention
the passages of Scripture which have been quoted, and which fully establish the
doctrine, that Christ's death was an atoning sacrifice for our sins. This
doctrine is essential to Christianity. It is the grand peculiarity of the
Christian scheme. Hence Paul determined to know nothing but "Christ
crucified,"[24] to glory in nothing but "the
cross of Christ."[25] The gospel was the
preaching of Christ crucified.[26] It was a
stumbling block to the self-righteous Jews, and foolishness to the
philosophical Greeks; but to those who received it to the salvation of their
souls, it was Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God.[27] It was not Christ transfigured on Mount Tabor; not
Christ stilling the tempest, the raising the dead; not Christ rising
triumphantly from the grave, and ascending gloriously, amidst shouts of
attendant angels, to his throne in the highest heavens: but Christ on the
cross, expiring in darkness and woe, that the first preachers of the Gospel
delighted to exhibit to the faith of their hearers. This was their Gospel; its
centre, and its glory. It was faith in this Gospel that controlled the hearts
of their converts, and made them ready to die for him who had, by this death,
procured for them eternal life. In this faith they exclaimed, "God forbid that
I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ."[28] To this they referred when they said, "I am crucified
with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the
life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who
loved me, and gave himself for me."[29]
The doctrine of Christ's atoning sacrifice explains the Old Testament
dispensation. To what purpose were its victims brought to the altar, and the
rites of its worship all stained with blood? Was God really pleased with the
slaughter of animals, and the smell of their sacrifice? Paul has explained,
that these were a shadow of good things to come;[30] but the body is of Christ. As mere types of Christ's
atoning sacrifice, they are intelligible. This they prefigured. "Christ also
hath loved us, and given himself for us; an offering and a sacrifice to God of
sweet smelling savor;"[31] and it was only
because of their reference to this sacrifice, that the sacrifices of the
preceding times were acceptable to the Lord.
The general prevalence of sacrifices, in the religions of the world, is a fact
which it is difficult to account for. If it be supposed to arise from
principles implanted in human nature, it will furnish a strong argument to
prove that human nature has ever felt, and must feel, the necessity for such a
sacrifice as is made by the death of Christ. If the prevalence of sacrifices
be accounted for by tracing them to an ancient institution, given to our race
by revelation from God, an argument, still stronger in favor of our doctrine,
is furnished by the fact. It appears, from this view of the subject, that the
institution is not only more ancient than the laws of Moses, but has come down
from the time when Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain.[32] As this sacrifice, like all subsequent ones
which were offered by faith, had reference to the sacrifice of Christ, the
whole institution of sacrifice bears testimony to it.
The sacrifice of Christ, which is the object of Christian faith on earth, will
be the song of glorified saints in heaven. The Lamb, in the midst of the
throne, will appear in their view, not as once honored and powerful, but as
having been made a sacrifice, "a lamb that had been slain."[33] He was once the victim on the sacrificial altar, but he
will be the object of adoration in the everlasting song, "Unto him that loved
us,"[34] & c.
When the birth of Jesus was announced by the angel, it was said, "His name
shall be called Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins."[35] This was the grand design of his coming
into the world: "The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was
lost."[36] To effect this salvation, a
sacrifice was demanded; and, that he might make the required sacrifice, it was
necessary that he should assume human nature: "When he cometh into the world,
he saith: Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not but a body hast thou
prepared me."[37] "It was necessary that this
man have somewhat to offer."[38] His humanity
was the victim laid on the altar, for which reason it is said, "He bore our
sins in his own body, on the tree."[39] "The
Captain of our salvation must be made perfect through suffering;"[40] and he must, therefore, have a nature
capable of suffering: "For this cause, he was made lower than the angels,
that, for the suffering of death, he might be crowned with glory and honor."[41] There is, doubtless, also a peculiar
fitness in the arrangement, by which the Redeemer is the near-kinsman of the
redeemed; and the sacrifice made in the nature that had sinned. Had the Son of
God undertaken the salvation of angels, there would have been a fitness in his
taking on him the nature of angels: but as he came to save men, he took on him
human nature, and was made in all points like his brethren.[42]
While the fact of the sacrifice depended on the assumption of a nature capable
of suffering, the undertaking of the work, the efficacy of the sacrifice, the
power to lay down his life, and the power to take it again, depended on the
divine nature of Christ. The divine nature, alone, could not be made under the
law: and the human nature, alone, could not have originally consented to be
made under the law; and would not thereby, had it been possible, have exhibited
any humiliation, any voluntary impoverishing of himself, that we might be made
rich. The question has sometimes been proposed, how much obedience did the
human nature of Jesus Christ owe for itself, and how much did it render for the
benefit of others? But this is a useless question, and is asked on a mistaken
apprehension of the facts concerning Christ's assumption of our nature. The
man Christ Jesus never had an existence separate form the divine nature. The
Word did not enter into flesh previously existing: but "the Word was made
flesh."[43] Had the Word entered into a
previously existing man, we might conceive of the obligations which that man
had previously owed to the law, and the continuance of those obligations. But
the Son of God was made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that
were under the law.[44] As the assumption of
human nature was designed for the salvation of his people, all that he did and
suffered in that nature, is to be viewed as a part of the great design, and
constituting a part of the work.
We are not permitted to suppose that the divine nature of Jesus Christ could,
in itself, endure the sufferings necessary to make atonement, or that it did,
in the proper sense, suffer with the human nature. We cannot conceive that the
perfect blessedness of God can consist with the endurance of suffering, any
more than we can conceive the divine immensity shut up within the limits of a
human body. Yet we are authorized to conclude, that whatever Jesus did or
suffered, does, in some manner, represent to us the mind of God. To think God
to be altogether such an one as ourselves,[45]
is a gross and sinful view of him, which he resents: but we are, nevertheless,
compelled to form our conceptions of his mind from the knowledge which we have
of our own. This mode of conception his word authorizes. The pity of a father
for his children, is made by God himself the image in which we are to see his
pity for those who fear him.[46] Pity, as
exercised by human beings, may be a very painful emotion; but, when we
attribute it to God, we must conceive of it as possessing all that is
excellent in human pity, but without the imperfection of pain. So, the mind of
the holy Jesus exhibits to us the mind of God. The pity which he felt, however
painful it may have been to his human soul, is an image in which we are
permitted to see the compassion of God. Could we have before our contemplation
all the affections and emotions that the holy soul of Jesus ever experienced,
we might learn therein more of the mind of God than is otherwise discoverable:
and if we understood the affections and emotions of which he was the subject in
his last hours, we should probably understand, better than in any other way,
how the divine perfections were concerned in his atoning sufferings. It is our
duty to look to Jesus, who endured the cross,[47] and to study his character, that the same mind may be in
us, and we feel the stronger obligation to study with what mind he suffered
death; because Paul prayed to have fellowship with his sufferings, and to be
conformed to his death.[48]
What, then, were the emotions of Jesus in his last sufferings? When he
consented to make the sacrifice in the body prepared for him, he said, "Thy law
is within my heart."[49] He doubtless
retained this law in his heart, through his intensest agony, and approved it,
even while he was undergoing its dire penalty. In this particular Paul had
fellowship with him, for he could say, "I delight in the law of God after the
inward man."[50] When Jesus bore our sins in
his body on the tree, it is reasonable to suppose that his human soul had a
sense of the great evil of sin; otherwise we cannot understand how it should
approve the law under which he was suffering the penalty for sin. Whatever
other emotions had a place in his mind, we are authorized to conclude that he
had a deep sense of the evil of the sins which he bore, and of the excellence
of the law which those sins opposed. While love, stronger than death,
identified him with his people, who were under the sentence of the violated
law, he loved also that law with all his heart. These contending affections
painfully struggled together in his breast. The sins of his people were not
offences which he had personally committed; and therefore remorse, in the
proper sense, was not an ingredient in his suffering. But an affectionate
husband, who loves his wife as his own flesh, would, when grieving for a crime
which she has committed, feel nearly the same agony as if he had personally
committed it; so, when Christ loved the Church, and gave himself for it, he
felt the sins of the Church as if they had been his own. In this sense of the
evil of sin, which was an element in the sufferings of Jesus, it was lawful for
Paul to desire fellowship with him. The Scripture teaches that Jesus offered
himself to God, through the eternal Spirit.[51] This Spirit produces love to God and his law in the
hearts of believers, and gives them a sense of the evil of sin; in both which
particulars they have fellowship with Christ in his sufferings. Now, if we
suppose that the Spirit, which was given to Christ without measure, opened to
his view, when hanging on the cross, the full glory of the divine law which the
Church, his bride, had violated; and the full enormity of the sins which his
people had committed; what intense agony would these discoveries produce! No
agony of the deepest penitence could surpass it. Yet all this Jesus probably
felt; and in all this we may well pray to have fellowship with him.
If the view which we have taken, gives us any just insight into the emotions
which rent the holy soul of Jesus, when he hung on the cross for us, it should
make us feel, deeply feel, the moral power of that cross. To think as he
thought, and feel as he felt, is enough to constrain us to live to him who died
for us. No higher motive to holiness can be needed, than that which proceeds
from the cross.
The denial of Christ's divinity, and that of is atonement, consistently
accompany each other. We should have little need of a divine person, to fulfil
the offices ascribed to Christ, if that of making an efficacious
sacrifice for sin be not included. The system in which these two cardinal
doctrines are omitted, is another gospel, which Paul, and the first ministers
of the Christian religion, knew not; and which cannot meet the necessities of
lost men. It is worthy of special remark, that the two positive institutions
of Christianity--baptism and the Lord's supper, refer to these two doctrines,
and silently and significantly preach them. In baptism, we devote ourselves to
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; acknowledging the divinity and
authority of each person in the Godhead: and the divinity of the second person
is more especially acknowledged in those brief accounts of baptism, in which
persons are said to have been baptised in the name of Christ. In the
Lord's supper, the doctrine of atonement is clearly set forth. "This is my
blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of
sins."[52] The two ordinances have, from the
days of the apostles, been observed by the great body of professing Christians;
though their form and use have not been kept pure, as they were originally
delivered, and the two doctrines which they set forth, have been maintained in
the great body of Christian professors, in all ages; though accompanied with
much corruption.
The Scriptures plainly teach that the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ was
necessary to render the justification of a sinner consistent with the justice
of God. "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, I say, at this time, his
righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth
in Jesus."[53]
Had it not been absolutely necessary, we cannot account for it, that God
should have inflicted such suffering, or even permitted it to fall, on his
beloved Son, who was "holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners."
The death of Christ, if he was not a divine person, was, as we have before
shown, the effect of perjury and suicidal prevarication on his part; and if it
was not an atoning sacrifice indispensably necessary to satisfy divine justice,
it is difficult to show that it was not, on the part of the Father, a display
of injustice and cruelty towards the Son of his love. Why was his ear deaf to
the thrice-repeated petition, "Let this cup pass from me?" Why had the sorrows
of Gethsemane, and the bloody sweat of the agonized, but innocent, sufferer, no
effect to move the pity of the Father, to whom Christ had said: "I know that
thou hearest me always."[54] The resigned
language of the suffering Jesus, and the condition on which he bases the
petition, furnish the answer: "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup
pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt."[55]
What ever views of propriety may be entertained by short-sighted mortals, it
is manifestly the teaching of sacred Scripture, that God could not,
consistently with his justice, forgive our sins on our mere asking, or even on
our penitential acknowledgments. We are required to forgive offences
till seventy times seven, when a brother acknowledges his trespass; but sins
against God are not private offences , to be remitted in the same manner.
A judge who should pardon a criminal, that, according to law, ought to be
condemned, and turn him loose on the community, would be false to his sacred
office. So God sustains the character of a righteous Judge; and, sooner than
disregard the claims of law, and overthrow his moral government, he is willing
to plunge the sword of justice into the heart of his beloved Son. And such is
the reverence of the Son, for the law of his Father and the claims of justice,
that he patiently consents to be led as a lamb to the slaughter, that his death
may justify God in forgiving and saving the guilty.
How the death of Christ rendered full satisfaction to divine justice, is a
question which we shall have occasion to consider, under the head of
Justification.
Those who suppose the doctrine of atonement, have viewed it as inconsistent
with justice, that the innocent should suffer for the guilty. Their views,
however, are plainly at variance with those which are presented in the Book of
God. "He suffered, the just for the unjust."[56] "He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin;
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."[57] Even in human affairs, sureties are allowed to pay the
debts of others; and, with reference to this well-known arrangement among men,
Christ is called the surety of the better covenant.[58] To render such suretyship consistent with justice, his
voluntary consent must be given, and he must have had a perfect right to
dispose of himself. The right he possessed, because of his divinity; and the
consent was given in the covenant of grace which he made with the Father.
A part of the priest's office consisted in making intercession for the people.
The high priest did this in a special manner, when he went into the holy of
holies. Jesus interceded, when he prayed for Peter that his faith might not
fail; and when he poured forth to his Father the beautiful prayer recorded in
John xvii. But now, in the holy of holies, the immediate presence of God, he
ever liveth to make intercession for us.[59]
How that intercession is carried on, we cannot undertake to explain. What his
mode of asking is, we know not; but in some mode, he asks, and the heathen are
given to him for an inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for a
possession.[60] In some mode, while he
sympathises with his suffering followers on earth, he asks grace for
them, to help them in their trials and sorrows, and his intercession
prevails.
The remaining part of the priest's office consisted in blessing the people.[61] The high priest did this, on his return
from the holy of holies. This, also, our great High Priest will do, in the
most public manner, when he shall return from the heavens which he has entered,
and meet his people in the great congregation at the last judgment. It is of
little importance, whether we refer this act of blessing to the priestly or the
kingly office of Christ. It was anciently said, that the priest's lips should
keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth.[62] Yet we refer Christ's teaching to his prophetical,
rather than to his priestly office. So, though the ancient priests blessed the
people, yet, as the priest's office was to approach God, in behalf of men;
rather than to approach men with either revelations or blessings from God; we
may consider the blessings conferred on the obedient subjects of Christ's
reign, as the bestowments of his royal munificence; and, therefore, as
appertaining to his kingly office. This accords with the language of
Scripture: "Then shall the King say: `Come, ye blessed of my Father.'"[63] But all Christ's offices yield blessings to
his people; and were undertaken by him for their sake.
SECTION III.--KING.
JESUS CHRIST, AS THE MEDIATOR BETWEEN GOD AND MEN, EXERCISES KINGLY AUTHORITY
OVER ALL CREATURES, TO THE GLORY OF GOD, AND THE GOOD OF HIS PEOPLE.[64]
The superscription which Pilate placed on the cross, was, "Jesus of Nazareth,
the King of the Jews." This writing expressed a truth of which its author was
not aware. Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah, foretold by the Hebrew prophets,
and expected by the nation as the king who would rule over them, and raise them
to great prosperity.
The Hebrew word Messiah, to which the Greek word Christ corresponds, signifies
the Anointed. When kings and priests were introduced into office among the
Israelites, it was usual to anoint them with oil. We have one example, in
which a prophet was set apart to his work, by the same ceremony.[65] Jesus was the Anointed, because he sustained all these
offices; and, although he was not introduced into either of them, by a literal
anointing with oil, he had the unction of the Holy Spirit, of which the literal
unction with oil was a type. The words of Isaiah read by him in the synagogue
of Nazareth, were applied to himself: "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because he hath anointed me to preach,"[66]
&c. Here the anointing must be understood as referring to his prophetical
office. The same reference seems to have been made with taunt and derision by
the individual who smote Jesus, and said: "Prophesy, thou Christ, who is he
that smote thee?"[67] In this taunt, it was
implied, that the Christ was expected to be a prophet. But from the common use
of anointing, we are led to refer the term Christ rather to the priestly and
kingly offices, with which Jesus was invested. The most common reference, is
to his kingly office. He was reported to Pilate, as making himself "Christ, a
king."[68] In expecting their Messiah, the
Jews looked for a king, who was to rule over them and deliver them from their
enemies. Many of the prophecies concerning the Christ, relate to his reign as
king over Israel: and when he, before the Jewish council, claimed to be the
Christ, he referred to the future manifestation of his kingly power and glory,
"Hereafter shall the Son of Man sit on the right hand of the power of God."[69]
A proof that Jesus was the promised Messiah, is found in the fact, that the
prophecies were fulfilled in him. The time and place of his birth, and the
tribe and family from which he was to spring, were particularly foretold; and
the events corresponded to the predictions. Many prophecies of events in his
life, sufferings, death, burial, and resurrection, were exactly fulfilled.
Jesus appealed with confidence to the Scriptures, for proof of his claims:
"Search the Scriptures; for they are they that testify of me."[70] And the apostles said: "To him give all the prophets
witness."[71]
Further proof that Jesus was the Christ, is furnished by the testimony of John
the Baptist,[72] by the voice of the Father at
his baptism,[73] and at his transfiguration in
the mount;[74] by his works, to which he often
appealed in proof of his claim; and by his claim before the Jewish council, and
before Pilate, and which was sustained by his miracles, and ultimately by his
resurrection from the dead.
To all these proofs it may be added, that the Jews have found no other
Messiah. They have confidently expected one, and the time for his coming has
long passed. Either Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah foretold, or the
prophecies were false, and the religion of which they were a part was not from
God. Jesus Christ, as the Supreme God, had, of original right, sovereign
authority over all creatures. But when the Word was made flesh, he took on him
the form of a servant; and, for a time, appeared divested of divine power and
glory. But, after having humbled himself, and completed the service for which
his humiliation was necessary, it pleased God to reward that service by
exalting him to supreme authority over all creatures. "All power is given unto
me in heaven and in earth."[75]
A peculiarity of Christ's dominion as Mediator, is, that it is exercised by
him in human nature. Why it was the pleasure of God to exalt human nature to a
dignity so high, it is impossible for us fully to comprehend. We see in it the
complete defeat of Satan, the apostate angel, who aimed to bring our inferior
nature entirely under his power. He triumphed over the first Adam: but the
second Adam has triumphed over him, and will bring him into complete
subjection, with all the hostile powers that he has set in array; and will, in
the very nature over which Satan triumphed, bring them into subjection under
his feet. This dominion over principalities and powers Jesus Christ exercises,
with a reference to the good of his people, redeemed from among men. To secure
this benefit, the exercise of his dominion in human nature doubtless
contributes. The redeemed are one with him, as he is one with the Father.
That wonderful prayer is fulfilled, "that they all may be one; as thou, Father,
art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us."[76] They are admitted to a communion with God, far more
intimate and glorious than could otherwise be enjoyed; and are exalted to such
honor, that they are said to reign with Christ. This dignity is nowhere
ascribed to angels. Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This exercise of divine authority, through the human nature of Jesus Christ,
will manifest the glory of God in its richest displays; and angels and men will
here learn, through eternal ages, the perfections of the divine nature, and
will for ever admire and adore, with ineffable joy.
Another peculiarity of this dominion, is, that it opens a new dispensation to
rebellious men. When the angels, that kept not their first estate, sinned
against God, they were driven from his presence, and condemned to hopeless woe.
No mediator was provided for them; and no gospel of salvation was ever
proclaimed in their ears. Such an administration of divine authority, as gives
hope of pardon to offenders, was unknown in the government of the world until
man sinned; and this administration constitutes a distinguishing feature of
Christ's mediatorial reign. Hence, he is the Mediator between God and men, and
not between God and angels; and hence the Mediator is emphatically called "the
man Christ Jesus."[77] On earth, the Son of
Man had power to forgive sins;[78] and in
heaven he sits on a throne of grace, to which we are permitted and invited to
come, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in every time of need.
When God displayed his glory to Moses, and proclaimed his name in the hearing
of that favored servant, his forgiving mercy had a conspicuous place in the
revelation: "The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long suffering,"[79] &c. so, in heaven, where his full glory
is seen, the dispensation of his mercy from the throne of grace on which the
exalted Mediator sits, constitutes the most lovely and attractive exhibition of
the divine glory that the happy worshippers are permitted to behold.
Of the two peculiarities which have been mentioned as distinguishing the
mediatorial dominion of Christ, the first could not exist until the humanity of
Christ was exalted to the throne. Then the mediatorial reign, in its full
development, commenced, when the Father said, "Sit thou at my right hand, until
I make thine enemies thy footstool."[80] But
the second peculiarity existed in an incomplete administration of this
mediatorial reign, which was exercised from the time of man's fall. Before the
efficacious sacrifice for sin was made, in which the humanity of Christ became
its virtue, pardons were bestowed on believers, from the days of Abel. It is
now made known to us, that these pardons were engaged, as the surety for
sinners, to do the work which he has since performed: and the inquiries of
angels, and the faith of Old Testament saints, were all directed forward to the
coming of Christ, for explanation of that mysterious dispensation by which
rebels obtained mercy.
Jesus Christ is head over all things to the Church. He exercises his supreme
authority for the benefit of his people, for whose sake he sanctified himself
to undertake the work of mediation. He is head over principalities and powers;
and angels honor and obey him, and are sent forth as ministering spirits, to
minister to the heirs of salvation. He is Lord over all the earth; and
regulates every agent and every event in the world, so that "all things work
together for good to them that love God." If Christ is ours, all things are
ours; for all things are in his hands, and he holds them for the benefit of his
people.
In the few words which Jesus spoke respecting his kingdom, when he stood
before Pilate, the most important instruction is conveyed. We cannot too much
admire the wisdom with which he accurately described, in so few words, the
kingdom that he came to establish: "My kingdom is not of this world. If my
kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight."[81] The kings of the earth maintain their authority by
force. The coerced obedience which they procure, is often reluctantly
rendered. The proper subjects of Christ's kingdom are a willing people,[82] who voluntarily give themselves up to his
authority, and serve him with delight. In extending his kingdom he has not
allowed carnal weapons to be used; but such only as are powerful, through God,
to bring the heart into subjection: "Every one that is of the truth, heareth
my voice."[83] He who receives the truth,
hears the voice of the king, and acknowledges his authority. To believe the
truth, is to obey the Gospel; and this is to be subject to Christ as king. The
Jews had expected the Messiah to set up a kingdom, which would be like the
kingdoms of the earth, and surpass them in glory. The disciples of Jesus
entertained similar views; and hence arose the request to sit on his right
hand, and on his left, in his kingdom. Hence, too, arose their despondency
when they saw him crucified. They had thought that it was he who was to
restore the kingdom to Israel;[84] and his
death darkened their prospects, and cut off their hopes. The faith of the
expiring thief recognised the expiring Jesus as king; and prayed, "Lord,
remember me, when thou comest into thy kingdom:"[85] but the mourning disciples of Jesus could not see the
bright prospect of his kingdom, through the darkness of the grave. Yet, the
death of Jesus was necessary to the establishment of his kingdom: "For
obedience unto death, he was crowned with glory and honor."[86] And the dying love of Christ is the constraining power
which brings the heart into subjection to his authority.
Wrong views respecting the nature of the Messiah's kingdom, have been
productive of much evil. The princes of this world crucified the Lord of
glory, because they could not recognize him in the person of Jesus of Nazareth,
who came into the world to bear witness to the truth, and not to introduce his
kingdom with the pomp which the carnal mind is pleased with. And Christ has
been crucified afresh, and put to open shame, by his professed followers,
because of their wrong notions respecting his kingdom. A visible
ecclesiastical organization, distinguished by the observance of external forms,
has claimed to be the kingdom of Christ; and its power has been extended and
wielded by means far different from those which Jesus authorized. To banish
this corrupt Christianity from the earth, correct views respecting the kingdom
of Christ must prevail.
The Messiah was to rule in the midst of his enemies; and his iron sceptre
was to break in pieces, as a potter's vessel,[87] all who are disobedient, and do not obey the truth: but
those who obey the truth are "the children of the kingdom:" and to them the
benefits and blessings of his reign belong. In this restricted sense, none but
regenerate persons enter into his kingdom.[88]
We are translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son,[89] when we receive his truth into our hearts. In this
sense, no profession of religion, and no observance of external forms, can
bring any one into the kingdom of Christ. The tares may resemble the wheat:
but the tares are the children of the wicked one; and the good seed only are
the children of the kingdom;[90] and when the
Son of Man shall gather out of his kingdom whatever is offensive to him, the
tares will, equally with the briars and thorns, be rejected, as not belonging
properly to his kingdom, and doomed to be burned. Let it then be distinctly
understood, that the kingdom of Christ is not a great visible organization,
consisting of good men and bad, who are bound together by some ecclesiastical
tie. He rules over all; but he accounts all as the enemies of his reign who do
not obey the truth: and the hypocrite and formalist have no more part in his
kingdom than Herod and Pontius Pilate.
Some obscurity has arisen in the interpretation of Scriptures in which the
word kingdom occurs, from supposing that it always refers to the territory of
subjects that are under the government of a king. Kingdom is king
dominion, king jurisdiction. The primary idea is kingly authority. In this
primary sense it is used in Luke xix. 12: "A certain nobleman went into a far
country to receive for himself a kingdom." See also Rev. xvii. 12. This
radical idea the word retains everywhere; but it becomes so modified by the
connection in which it is used, as to refer to the time, place, or
circumstances in which kingly authority is exercised; to the persons over whom
it is exercised; and, sometimes, to the benefits resulting from its exercise.
An example of this last use is found in Rom. xiv. 17: "The kingdom of God is
righteousness peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." The phrases, "kingdom of
heaven," "kingdom of God," "kingdom of Christ," "kingdom of God's dear Son, "
are used with reference to the reign of the Messiah. They denote God's
exercise of kingly authority in the person of the Messiah; and this radical
idea, as before stated, becomes modified by the connection in which the phrases
are used. When parables are introduced with the words "The kingdom of God is
like," we are to understand that some fact or truth connected with the reign of
the Messiah is illustrated by the parable. It will be impossible to make sense
of many passages, if the term be understood always to signify the
subjects over whom Christ reigns. How, in this signification of the term,
can the kingdom be like a merchantman,[91] a
net,[92] a treasure?[93] "The kingdom of heaven is like to a man which sowed good
seed in his field."[94] Here, no comparison
can be intended between the subjects of Christ's reign and the man that
sowed the seed. But the parable illustrates important truth commented with the
reign of the Messiah. It teaches that the world, represented by the field, is
under his dominion; that, for a time, the good and bad are permitted to remain
together; but that a separation will finally be made, and the blessings of his
reign will be enjoyed by those only who are "the good seed," sown by himself,
and who only are "the children of the kingdom."
The mediatorial reign of Christ will include the judgment of the great day.
It is said, "We must all stand at the judgment seat of Christ;" and also, in
describing the sentences pronounced, "Then shall the king say," &c. Then
they who condemned and crucified Christ the king, and all who would not have
him to reign over them, shall stand at his tribunal. The decisions of that day
will be made according to the relation which each individual has borne to
Christ. What men have done to the least of his disciples, he will regard as
done to him; and, according to the dispositions so evinced, will be every man's
final doom.
Will the mediatorial reign of Christ continue after the transactions of the
great day? An important change will doubtless then take place in the manner of
his reign. All his enemies will have been subdued, all his ransomed people
brought home, and his last act of pardoning mercy performed. Yet, we are
informed that the glory of God and the Lamb will be the light of the New
Jerusalem;[95] that the Lamb will be in the
midst of the throne; and that he will feed the redeemed, and lead them to the
fountains of living water.[96] From these
representations, we appear authorized to conclude that Christ will remain the
medium of communication through which the saints will for ever approach God,
and receive glory and bliss from him. The language of Paul in 1 Cor. xv. 25,
is not inconsistent with this opinion: "He must reign, until he hath put all
enemies under his feet." When it is said, "Until the law, sin was in the
world,[97] we are not to conclude that sin was
not in the world afterwards: so, when it is said, "He must reign until,"
&c., we must not infer that he will not reign after this time. It will not
accord with his own representation of the subject, if, when those who would not
have him to reign over them, shall have been slain before his face,[98] he himself shall cease to reign. When it is
said, "then shall the Son be subject to the Father,"[99] we are not to understand that this subjection excludes
the idea of reigning; otherwise it would be implied that his previous reign had
not been in subjection to the Father. Christ now reigns in subjection to the
Father; but the harmony of his administration with the will and perfections of
God, cannot fully appear while rebels go at large under his government; but
when all enemies have been subdued, the harmony of his administration with the
government of God, absolutely considered, will be made apparent. The
coincidence of the two modes of government will be fully manifested. This will
be the time of the restitution of all things.[100] He must reign until his enemies are subdued; and the
heavens must receive him until the time of the restitution of all things; but
he will not, then, either forsake heaven or cease to reign.
[1] 1 Tim. ii. 5; 2 Cor. v. 18; Col. i. 20; 1
John ii. 1; Gal. i. 4.; iii. 13; Tit. ii. 14.
[2] Job xxxiii. 23.
[3] Acts iv. 12.
[4] Isaiah lxi. 1; Luke iv. 18, 23; Heb. ii. 3;
1 Pet. i. 11; Deut. xviii. 18; John iii. 34; xvi. 1; Rev. i. 1.
[5] Matt. xxvi. 68.
[6] Duet. xxxiv. 10.
[7] Deut. xviii. 15.
[8] Matt. xvii. 5.
[9] 1 Pet. i. 11.
[10] John i. 18.
[11] Rev. i. 1.
[12] John vii. 46.
[13] Romans xi. 34.
[14] Isaiah ix. 6.
[15] Ps. cx. 4; Zech. vi. 13; Heb. iv. 14, 15;
v. 6; vi. 20; vii. 24, 26; viii. 1; ix. 11, 12, 14, 26; x. 12, 14; Isaiah liii.
5, 7, 12; John i. 29; x. 15; 1 Cor. v. 7; Eph. v. 2; 1 Tim. ii. 6; Heb. ix. 26;
x. 5; xiii. 12; 1 Pet. ii. 24; iii. 18; 1 John i. 7; Rev. v. 9; vii. 14; Rom.
viii. 34; Heb. vii. 25; ix. 24.
[16] Heb. v. 1.
[17] Matt. xx. 28.
[18] Lev. xvi. 21.
[19] 1 Pet. ii. 24.
[20] John i. 29.
[21] Romans v. 8.
[22] 2 Cor. v. 21.
[23] 1 Cor. i. 13.
[24] 1 Cor. ii. 2.
[25] Gal. vi. 14.
[26] 1 Cor. i. 23.
[27] Rom. i. 16.
[28] Gal. vi. 14.
[29] Gal. ii. 20.
[30] Heb. x. 1.
[31] Eph. v. 2.
[32] Heb. xi. 4.
[33] Rev. v. 6.
[34] Rev. i. 5.
[35] Matt. i. 21.
[36] Luke xix. 10.
[37] Heb. x. 5.
[38] Heb. viii. 3.
[39] 1 Pet. ii. 24.
[40] Heb. ii. 10.
[41] Heb. ii. 9.
[42] Heb. ii. 16, 17.
[43] John i. 14.
[44] Gal. iv. 5
[45] Ps. l. 21.
[46] Ps. ciii. 13.
[47] Heb. xii. 2.
[48] Phil. iii. 10.
[49] Ps. xl. 8.
[50] Rom. vii. 22.
[51] Heb. ix. 14.
[52] Matt. xxvi. 28.
[53] Rom. iii. 25, 26.
[54] John xi. 42.
[55] Matt. xxvi. 39.
[56] 1 Pet. iii. 18.
[57] 2 Cor v. 21.
[58] Heb. vii. 22.
[59] Heb. vii. 25.
[60] Ps. ii. 8.
[61] Num. vi. 22--27.
[62] Mal. ii. 7.
[63] Matt. xxv. 34.
[64] Num. xxxiv. 17; Ps. ii. 6; Isaiah xxxii.
1; Zech. ix. 9; Matt. xxi. 5; John xviii. 36; Matt. xxv. 34; Heb. ii. 9; Rev.
v. 13; 1 Tim. vi. 15; Rev. xvii. 14; xix. 16; Eph. i. 20--23; v. 23; Phil. ii.
9, 10.
[65] 1 Kings xix. 16.
[66] Isaiah lxi.1.
[67] Matt. xxvi. 68.
[68] Luke xxiii. 2.
[69] Luke xxii. 69.
[70] John v. 39.
[71] Acts x. 43.
[72] John iii. 28.
[73] Matt. iii. 17.
[74] Matt. xvii. 5.
[75] Matt. xxviii. 18.
[76] John xvii. 21.
[77] 1 Tim. ii. 5.
[78] Matt. ix. 6.
[79] Ex. xxxiv. 6.
[80] Ps. cx. 1.
[81] John xviii. 36.
[82] Ps. cx. 3.
[83] John xviii. 37.
[84] Luke xxiv. 21; Acts i. 6.
[85] Luke xxiii. 42.
[86] Phil. ii. 8, 9; Heb. ii. 9.
[87] Ps. ii. 9.
[88] John iii. 5.
[89] Col. i. 13.
[90] Matt. xiii. 38.
[91] Matt. xiii. 45.
[92] Matt. xiii. 47.
[93] Matt. xiii. 44.
[94] Matt. xiii. 45.
[95] Rev. xxi 23.
[96] Rev. vii. 17.
[97] Rom. v. 13.
[98] Luke xix. 27.
[99] 1 Cor. xv. 28.
[100] Acts iii. 21.
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