The
Seven Sayings of the Savior on the Cross
By A. W. Pink
INTRODUCTION
The death of the Lord Jesus Christ
is a subject of never failing interest to all who
study prayerfully the Scripture of Truth. This is so,
not only because the believer's all both for time and
eternity depends upon it, but also, because of its
transcendent uniqueness. Four words appear to sum
up the salient features of this Mystery of
mysteries: the Death of Christ was natural,
unnatural, preternatural, and supernatural. A few
comments seem called for my way of definition and
amplification.
First; the Death of Christ was natural. By this we mean that it
was a real death. It is because we are
so familiar with the fact of it that the above statement
appears simple and commonplace, yet, what we here touch
upon is to the spiritual mind one of the main elements
of wonderment. The One who was "taken, and by wicked
hands" crucified and slain was none less than Immanuel.
The One who died on Calvary's Cross was none other than
Jehovah's "Fellow." The blood that was shed on the
accursed Tree was Divine -- "The church of God which He purchased with His own blood" (Acts 20:28). As
says the apostle "God was in Christ, reconciling
the world unto Himself" (2 Cor. 5:19). But how could
Jehovah's "Fellow" suffer? How could the eternal
One die? Ah, He who in the beginning was the Word, who
was with God, and who was God, "became flesh." He who was in the
form of God took upon Him the form of a servant and was
made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion
as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:8).
Thus having become incarnate the Lord of glory was
capable of suffering death, and so it was that He
"tasted" death itself. In His words, "Father, into Thy
hands I commend My spirit" we see how natural His death
was, and the reality of it became still more apparent
when He was laid in the tomb, where He remained for
three days.
Second;
the Death of Christ was un-natural. By this we mean that
it was abnormal. Above we have said
that in becoming incarnate the Son of God became
capable of suffering death, yet it must not be inferred
from this that death therefore had a claim upon Him; far
from this being the case, the very reverse was the
truth. Death is the wages of sin, and He had none.
Before His birth it was said to Mary, "that Holy Thing which shall be born
of thee shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). Not
only did the Lord Jesus enter this world without
contracting the defilement attaching to fallen human nature, but He "did
no sin" (I Peter 2:22), had "no sin" (I John 3:5), "knew
no sin" (2 Cor. 5:21). In His person and in His conduct
He was the Holy One of God "without blemish and without
spot" (I Pet. 1:19). As such death had no claim upon Him. Even
Pilate had to acknowledge that he could find in Him "no
fault." Hence we say, for the Holy One of God to die was un-natural.
Third; the Death of Christ was preter-natural. By this we mean
that it was marked out and determined for Him beforehand.
He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world
(Rev. 13:8). Before Adam was created the Fall was
anticipated. Before sin entered the world, salvation
from it had been planned by God. In the eternal counsels
of Deity it was fore-ordained that there should be a
Saviour for sinners, a Saviour who should suffer the
just for the unjust, a Saviour who should die in order
that we might live. And "because there was none other
good enough to pay the price of sin" the only-Begotten
of the Father offered Himself as the
Ransom.
The preternatural character of the
Death of Christ has been well termed the "undergirding of the Cross." It
was in view of that approaching Death that God "justly
passed over the sins done aforetime" (Rom. 8:25 R. V.).
Had not Christ been, in the reckoning of God, the
Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, every
sinning person in Old Testament times would have gone
down to the Pit the moment he sinned!
Fourth; the Death of Christ was super-natural. By this we mean
that it was different from every other
death. In all things He has the pre-eminence. His
birth was different from all other births. His life was
different from all other lives. And His death was
different from all other deaths. This was clearly
intimated in His own utterance upon the
subject-"Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I
might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I
lay it down Myself. I have power to take it again7 (John
10:17,18). A careful study of the Gospel narratives
which describe His death furnish a sevenfold proof and verification
of His assertion.
(1)
That our Lord "laid down His life," that He was not powerless in the hands of
His enemies comes out clearly in John 18 where we have
the record of His arrest. A band of officers from
the chief priests and Pharisees, headed by Judas, sought
Him in Gethsemane. Coming forward to meet them, the Lord
Jesus asks, "Whom seek ye?" The reply was, "Jesus of
Nazareth," and then our Lord uttered the ineffable title
of Deity, that by which Jehovah had revealed
Himself of old to Moses at the burning bush -- "I am."
The effect was startling. We are told "they went
backward, and fell to the ground." These officers
were awestruck. They were in the presence of incarnate
Deity, and were overpowered by a brief consciousness of
Divine majesty. How plain it is then that had He so
pleased our blessed Saviour could have walked quietly
away, leaving those who had come to arrest Him
prostrate on the ground. Instead, He delivers
Himself up into their hands and is led (not driven) as a lamb to
the slaughter.
(2)
Let us now turn to Matt. 27:46 -- the most solemn verse
in all the Bible -- "And about the ninth hour Jesus
cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli,
Eli, lama, sabachthani? that is to say, My God, My God,
why hast Thou forsaken Me?" The words which we would ask
the reader to observe carefully are here placed in
italics. Why is it that the Holy Spirit tells us that
the Saviour uttered that terrible cry "with a loud
voice?" Most certainly there is a reason for it. This
becomes even more apparent when we note that He has
repeated them four verses lower down in the same
chapter-"Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice,
yielded up the spirit" (Matt. 27:50). What then do these
words indicate? Do they not corroborate what has been said
in the above paragraphs? Do they not tell us that the
Saviour was not exhausted by what He had passed
through? Do they not intimate that His strength had not
failed Him? that He was still master of Himself, that
instead of being conquered by death, He was but yielding
Himself to it? Do they not show us that God had "laid help upon One that
was mighty" (Psa.
89:19)!
(3) We
call attention next to His fourth utterances on the
Cross -- "I thrist." This word, in the light of its
setting, furnishes a wonderful evidence of our Lord's
complete self-possession. The whole verse reads as
follows: "After this, Jesus knowing that all things were
now accomplished, that the Scripture might be
fulfilled, said, I thirst" (John 19:28). Of old
it had been predicted that they should give the Saviour
to drink, vinegar mingled with gall. And in order that
this prophecy might be fulfilled, He cried, "I thirst."
How this evidences the fact that He was in full
possession of His mental faculties, that His mind
was unclouded, that His terrible sufferings had neither
deranged nor disturbed it. As He hung on the Cross, at
the close of the six hours, His
mind reviewed the entire scope of the prophetic
word, and checked off one by one those predictions which
had reference to His passion. Excepting the prophecies
which were to be fulfilled after His death, but one
remained un-fulfilled, namely, "They gave me also gall
for My meat; and in My thirst they gave Me
vinegar to drinV (Psa. 69:21), and this was not
overlooked by the blessed Sufferer. "Jesus knowing that all things were now
accomplished, that the Scripture (not "Scriptures," the
reference being to Psa. 69:21) might be fulfilled,
saitb, I thirst." Again, we say, what proof is here
furnished that He "laid down His life of
Himself!"
(4)
The next verification the Holy Spirit has supplied of
our Lord's words in John 10: 18 is found in John
19:30-"When Jesus had received the vinegar, He said, It
is finished; and He bowed His head, and gave up
the spirit." What are we intended to learn from these
words? What is here signified by this act of the
Saviour? Surely the answer is not far to seek. The
implication is clear. Previous to thisour Lord's head
had been held erect. It was no impotent
sufferer that hung there in a swoon. Had that been the
case His head had lolled helplessly on
His chest, and it would have been impossible for Him to
"bow" it. And mark attentively the verb used here:
it is not His head "fell," but He consciously,
calmly, reverently -- bowed His head. How sublime was
His carriage even on the Tree! What superb composure did
He evidence. Was it notHis majestic bearing on the
Cross that, among other things, caused the centurion to
cry "Truly this was the Son of God" (Matt. 27:54)!
(5)
Look now at His last act of all: "And when Jesus had
cried with a loud voice, He said, Father, into thy hands
I commend My spirit: and having said this, He gave
up the spirit" (Luke 23:46). None else ever did this or
died thus. How accurately these words agree with
His own statement, so often quoted by us, "I lay down My
life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from
Me, but I lay it down of Myself" (John 10: 17, 18). The
uniqueness of our Lord's action may be seen by comparing
His words on the Cross with those of dying Stephen. As
the first Christian martyr came to the brink of the
river, he cried, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" (Acts
7:59). But in contrast with this Christ said, "Father,
into Thy hands I commend My spirit." Stephen's
spirit was being taken from him. Not so with the
Saviour. None could take from Him His life. He "gave up"
His spirit.
(6)
The action of the soldiers in regard to the legs of
those on the three crosses gives further evidence of the
uniqueness of Christ's death. We read, "The Jews
therefore, because it was the preparation, that the
bodies should not remain upon the cross on the Sabbath
day, (for that Sabbath day was an high day,)
besought Pilate that their legs might be broken,
and that they might be taken away. Then came the
soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the
other which was crucified with Him. But when they came
to Jesus, and saw that He was dead already, they brake not
His legs" (John 19:31-33). The Lord Jesus and the two
thieves had been crucified together. They had been on
their respective crosses the same length of time. And
now at the close of the day the two thieves were still
alive, for as it is well known death by crucifixion
though exceedingly painful was usually a slow death. No
vital member of the body was directly affected and often
the sufferer lingered on for two or three days before
being completely overcome by exhaustion. It was not
natural, therefore, that Christ should be dead after but
six hours on the cross. The Jews recognized this,
and requested Pilate that the legs of all three be
broken and death be thus hastened, In the fact, then,
that the Saviour was "dead already" when the soldiers
came to Him, though the two thieves yet lived, we have
additional proof that He had voluntarily "laid down His
life of Himself," that it was not "taken from Him."
(7)
For the final demonstration of the super-natural character of
Christ's death we turn to note the wonderful phenomena
that accompanied it, "And, behold, the veil of the
temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and
the earth did quake, and the rocks rent: and the graves
were opened" (Matt. 27:51,52). That was no ordinary
death that had been witnessed on the summit of
Golgotha's rugged heights, and it was followed by no
ordinary attendants. First, the veil of the temple was
rent in twain from top to bottom, to show that a Hand
from Heaven had torn asunder that curtain which shut out
the temple-worshipper from the earthly throne of God --
thus signifying that the way into the Holiest was now
made plain and that access to God Himself had been
opened up thro' the broken body of His Son. Next, the
earth did quake. Not, I believe, that there was an earthquake, nor even a
"great earthquake," but the earth itself, the entire
earth was shaken to its very foundation, and rocked on
its axis, as though to show it was horrified at the most
awful deed that had ever been perpetrated on its
surface. "And the rocks rent" -- the very strength of
Nature gave way before the greater power of that Death.
Finally, we are told, "the graves were opened," showing
that the power of Satan, which is death, was there
shivered and shattered -all the outward attestations of
the value of that atoning
death.
Putting these together: the
manifest yielding up of Himself into the hands of those
who arrested Him; the crying with a "loud voice,"
denoting His retained vigor; the fact that He was in
full and unimpaired possession of His mentality,
evidenced by the "knowing that all things were now
accomplished." The "bowing" of the erect head; the
deliberate "committing" of His spirit into the hands of
the Father; the fact that He was "dead already" when the
soldiers came to brake His legs; -- all furnished proof
that His life was not "taken from Him," but
that He laid it down of Himself and this, together
with the tearing of the temple veil, the quaking of the
earth, the rending of the rocks, and the opening of the
graves, all bore unmistakable witness to thesupernatural character of His
death; in view of which we may well say with the
wondering centurion, "Truly this was the Son of
God."
The
Death of Christ, then, was unique, miraculous,
supernatural. In the chapters which follow we shall
hearken to the words which fell from His lips while He
hung upon the Cross -- words which make known to us
some of the attendant circumstances of the great
Tragedy; words which reveal the excellencies of the One
who suffered there; words in which is wrapped up the
Gospel of our Salvation; and words which inform us of
the purpose, the meaning, the sufferings, and the
sufficiency of the Death Divine.
1
THE WORD OF FORGIVENESS
"Then said Jesus, Father, forgive
them, for they know not what they do" (Luke
23:34).
Man
had done his worst. The one by whom the world was made
had come into it, but the world knew Him not. The Lord
of Glory had tabernacled among men, but He was not
wanted. The eyes which sin had blinded saw in Him no
beauty that He should be desired. At His birth there was
no room in the inn, which foreshadowed the treatment He
was to receive at the hands of men. Shortly after His
birth Herod sought to slay Him, and this intimated the
hostility His person evoked and forecast the Cross as
the climax of man's enmity. Again and again His enemies
attempted His destruction. And now their vile desires
are granted them. The Son of God had yielded Himself up
into their hands. A mock trial had been gone through,
and though His judges found no fault in Him,
nevertheless, they had yielded to the insistent
clamoring of those who hated Him as they cried again and
again "Crucify Him."
The
fell deed had been done. No ordinary death would
suffice His implacable foes. A death of intense
suffering and shame was decided upon. A cross had been
secured: the Saviour had been nailed to it. And there He
hangs -- silent. But presently His pallid lips are seen
to move. Is He crying for pity? No. What then? Is He
pronouncing malediction upon His crucifiers? No. He is
praying, praying for His enemies -- "Then said Jesus,
Father, forgive them: for they know not what they
do" (Luke 23:34).
This
first of the seven cross-sayings of our Lord presents
Him in the attitude of prayer. How significant! How
instructive! His public ministry had opened with prayer
(Luke 3:21), and here we see it closing in prayer.
Surely He has left us an example! No longer might those
hands minister to the sick, for they are nailed to the
Cross, no longer may those feet carry Him on errands of
mercy, for they are fastened to the cruel tree; no
longer may He engage in instructing the apostles, for
they have forsaken Him and fled;-how then does He occupy
Himself? In the Ministry of Prayer! What a lesson for
us.
Perhaps these lines may be read by
some who by reason of age and sickness are no longer
able to work actively in the Lord's vineyard. Possibly
in days gone by, you were a teacher, you were a
preacher, a Sunday-school teacher,, a tract-distributer:
but now you are bed-ridden. Yes, but you are still here
on earth! Who knows but what God is leaving you here a
few more days to engage in the Ministry of Prayer
-- and perhaps accomplish more by this than by all your
past active service. If you are tempted to disparage such a ministry
remember your Saviour. He prayed, prayed for others,
prayed for sinners, even in His last
hours.
In
praying for His enemies not only did Christ set before
us a perfect example of how we should treat those who
wrong and hate us, but He also taught us never to regard
any as beyond the reach of prayer. If
Christ prayed for His murderers then surely we have
encouragement to pray now for the very chief of sinners!
Christian reader, never lose hope. Does it seem a
waste of time for you to continue praying for that man,
that woman, that wayward child of yours? Does their case
seem to become more hopeless every day? Does it look as
though they had gotten beyond the reach of Divine
mercy? Perhaps that one you have prayed for so long has
been ensnared by one of the Satanic cults of the day, or
he may now be an avowed and blatant infidel, in a word,
an open enemy of Christ. Remember then the Cross. Christ
prayed for His enemies. Learn then not to look
on any as beyond the reach of
prayer.
One
other thought concerning this prayer of Christ. We are
shown here the efficacy of prayer. This
Cross-intercession of Christ for His enemies met with a
marked and definite answer. The answer is seen in the
conversion of the three thousand souls on the Day of
Pentecost. I base this conclusion on Acts 3:17 where the
apostle Peter says, "And now, brethren, I wot that
through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers."
It is to be noted that Peter uses the word "ignorance"
which corresponds with our Lord's "they know not what
they do." Here then is the Divine explanation of the
three thousand converted under a single sermon. It was
not Peter's eloquence which was the cause but the
Saviour's prayer. And, Christian reader, the same is
true of us. Christ prayed for you and me long before we
believed in Him. Turn to John 17:20 for proof. "Neither
pray I for these (the apostles) alone, but for them also
which shall believe on me thro'
their word" (John 17:20). Once more lot us profit from
the perfect Exemplar. Let us too make intercession for
the enemies of God, and if we pray in faith we also
shall pray effectively unto the salvation of lost
sinners.
To
come now directly to our text: "Then said Jesus, Father,
forgive them for they know not what they
do."
1.
Here We See the Fulfillment of the Prophetic
Word
How
much God made known beforehand of what should transpire
on that Day of days! What a complete picture did the
Holy Spirit furnish of our Lord's Passion with all the
attendant circumstances! Among other things it had been
foretold that the Saviour should "make intercession for
the transgressors" (Isa. 53: 12). This did not have
reference to the present ministry of Christ at God's
right hand. It is true that "He is able also to save
them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing
He ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Heb.
7:25), but this speaks of what He is doing now for those
Who have believed on Him, whereas Isaiah 53:12 had
reference to His gracious act at the time of His
crucifixion. Observe what His intercession for the
transgressors is there linked with -- "And He was
numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of
many, and made intercession for the transgressors."
That
Christ should make intercession for His enemies was one
of the items of the wonderful prophecy found in Isaiah
53. This chapter tells us at least ten things about the
humiliation and suffering of the Redeemer. It
declared that He should be despised and rejected of men;
that He should be a Man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief; that He should be wounded, bruised and
chastised; that He should be led, unresistingly, to
slaughter; that He should be dumb before His shearers;
that He should not only suffer at the hands of man but
also be bruised by the Lord; that He should pour out His
soul unto death; that He should be buried in a rich
man's tomb; and then it was added, that He would be
numbered with transgressors; and finally, that He should
make intercession for the transgressors. Here then was
the prophecy -- "and made intercession for the
transgressors;" there was the fulfillment of it --
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
He thought of His murderers. He pleaded for His
crucifiers; He made intercession for their forgiveness.
"Then
said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do."
2.
Here We See Christ Identified With His
People.
"Father, forgive them." On no
previous occasion did Christ make such a request of the
Father. Never before had He invoked the Father's
forgiveness of others. Hitherto He forgave Himself. To the man
sick of the palsy He had said, "Son, be of good cheer;
thy sins be forgiven thee" (Matt. 9:2). To the woman who
washed His feet with her tears in the house of Simon, He
said, "Thy sins are forgiven" (Luke 7:48). Why then
should He now ask the Father to forgive, instead
of directly pronouncing forgiveness
Himself?
Forgiveness of sin is a Divine prerogative. The Jewish
scribes were right when they reasoned "Who can forgive
sins but God only?" (Mark 2:7). But you say, Christ was
God. Truly; but Man also-the God-man. He was the Son of
God that had become the Son of Man with the express
purpose of offering Himself as a Sacrifice for sin. And
when the Lord Jesus cried "Father forgive them" He was on
the Cross, and there He might not exercise His Divine
prerogatives. Mark carefully His own words, and then
behold the marvelous accuracy of Scripture. He had said
"The Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins"
(Matt. 9:6). But He was no longer on earth! He had been
"lifted up from the earth" (John
12:32)! Moreover, on the Cross He was acting as our
Substitute: the just was about to die for the
unjust. Hence it was that hanging there as our
Representative He was no longer in the place of
authority where He might exercise His own Divine
prerogatives, therefore takes He the position of a
suppliant before the Father.
Thus we say that when the blessed Lord Jesus cried, "Father, forgive them," we see
Him absolutely identified with His
people. No longer was He in the position "on earth"
where He had the "power" or "right" to forgive sins;
instead, He intercedes for sinners-as we
must.
"Then
said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do."
3.
Here We See the Divine Estimate of Sin and Its
Consequent Guilt.
Under
the Levitical economy God required that atonement should
be made for sins of ignorance. "If a soul commit a
trespass, and sin through ignorance, in
the holy things of the Lord; then he shall bring for his
trespass unto the Lord a ram without blemish out of
the, flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver,
after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass
offering: And he shall make amends for the harm that he
hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth
part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the
priest shall make an atonement for him with
the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be
forgiven him" (Lev. 5:15,16). And again we read, "And if
ye have erred, and not observed all these commandments,
which the Lord hath spoken unto Moses, even all that the
Lord hath commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the
day that the Lord commanded Moses, and henceforward
among your generations; Then it shall be, if ought be
committed by ignorance without the
knowledge of the congregation, that all the
congregation shall offer one young bullock for a burnt
offering, for a sweet savor unto the Lord, with his meat
offering, and his drink offering, according to the
manner, and one kid of the goats for a sin offering. And
the priest shall make an atonement for all the
congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be
forgiven them; for it is ignorance: and they shall bring
their offering, a sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord,
and their sin offering before the
Lord, for their ignorance" (Nurn. 15:
22-25). It is in view of such scriptures as these that
we find David prayed, "Cleanse Thou me from secret
faults" (Psa. 19:12).
Sin is
always sin in the sight of God whether we are
conscious of it or not. Sins of ignorance need
atonement just as truly as do conscious sins. God is
Holy, and He will not lower His standard of
righteousness to the level of our ignorance. Ignorance
is not innocence. As a matter of fact ignorance is more
culpable now than it was in the days of Moses. We have
no excuse for our ignorance. God has clearly and fully
revealed His will. The Bible is in our hands, and we
cannot plead ignorance of its contents except to condemn
our laziness. God has spoken, and by His Word we shall
be judged.
And
yet the fact remains that we are ignorant of many things,
and the fault and blame are ours. And this does not
minimize the enormity of our guilt. Sins of ignorance
need the Divine forgiveness as our Lord's prayer
here plainly shows. Learn then how high is God's
standard, bow great is our need, and praise Him for an
Atonement of infinite sufficiency, which cleanseth from
all sin.
"Then
said Jesus, Father, forgive them for they know not what they
do."
4.
Here We See the Blindness of the Human
Heart.
"They
know not what they do." This does not mean that the
enemies of Christ were ignorant of the fact of His crucifixion. They
did know full well that they had cried out "Crucify
Him." They did know full well that their vile request
had been granted them by Pilate. They did know full well
that He had been nailed to the Tree for they were
eye-witnesses of the crime. What then did our Lord mean
when He said, "They know not what they do?" He meant
they were ignorant of the enormity of their crime. They
"knew Dot" that it was the Lord of Glory they were
crucifying. The emphasis is not on "They know not"
but on "they know not what they do."
And
yet they ought to have known. Their
blindness was inexcusable. The Old Testament
prophecies which had received their fulfillment in Him
were sufficiently plain to identify Him as the Holy One
of God. His teaching was unique, for His very critics
were forced to admit "Never man spake like this man"
(John 7:46). And what of His perfect life! He had lived
before men a life which had never been lived on earth
before. He pleased not Himself. He went about doing
good. He was ever at the disposal of others. There
was no self-seeking about Him. His was a life of
self-sacrifice from beginning, to end. His was a life
ever lived to the glory of God. His was a life on which
was stamped Heaven's approval, for the Father's voice
testified audibly "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased." No, there was no
excuse for their ignorance. It only demonstrated the
blindness of their hearts. Their rejection of the Son of
God bore full witness, once for all, that the carnal
mind is "enmity against God."
How
sad to think this terrible tragedy is still being
repeated! Sinner, you little know what you are doing in
neglecting God's great salvation. You little know how
awful is the sin of slighting the Christ of God and
spurning the invitations of His mercy. You little know
the deep guilt which is attached to your act of refusing
to receive the only One who can save you from your sins.
You little know how fearful is the crime of saying, "We
will not have this man to reign over us." You know not
what you do. You regard the vital Issue with
callous indifference. The question comes today as it did
of old, "What shall I do with Jesus which is called
Christ?" for you have to do something with Him:
either you despise and reject Him, or you receive
Him as the Saviour of your soul and the Lord of your
life. But, I say again, it seems to you a matter of
small moment, of little importance, which you do. For years you
have resisted the strivings of His Spirit. For years you
have shelved the all-important consideration. For years
you have steeled your heart against Him, closed your
ears to His appeals, and shut your eyes to His
surpassing beauty. Ah! you know not WHAT you do. You
are blind to your madness. Blind to your terrible
sin. Yet are you not excuseless. You may be saved
now if you will. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and
thou shalt be saved." O come to
the Saviour now and say with one of Old, "Lord, that I
might receive my sight."
"Then
said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not
what they do."
5.
Here We See a Lovely Exemplification of His Own
Teaching.
In the
Sermon on the Mount our Lord taught His disciples "Love
your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them
that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you and persecute you" (Matt.
5:44). Above all others Christ practiced what He
preached. Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
He not only taught the truth but was Himself the truth
incarnate. Said He, "I am the Way, the Truth and the
Life" (John 14:6). So here on the Cross He perfectly
exemplified His teaching of the mount. In all things He
has left us an example.
Notice
Christ did not personally forgive His enemies.
So I in Matt. 5:44 He did not exhort His disciples to
forgive their enemies, but He does exhort them to "Pray" for
them. But are we not to forgive those who
wrong us? This leads us to a point concerning which
there is much need for instruction today. Does Scripture
teach that under all circumstances we must always
forgive? I answer emphatically, it does not. The Word of
God says, "If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke
him; and if he repent, forgive him. And
if be trespass against thee seven times a day, and seven
times in a day turn again to thee saying, I repent; thou shalt
forgive him" (Luke 17:3,4). Here we are plainly
taught that a condition must be met by the offender
before we may pronounce
forgiveness. The one who has wronged us must first
"repent," that is, judge himself for his wrong and give
evidence of his sorrow over it. But suppose the offender
does not repent? Then I am not to forgive him. But let
there be no misunderstanding of our meaning here. Even
though the one who has wronged me does not repent,
nevertheless, I must not harbor ill-feelings against
him. 'Mere must be no hatred or malice cherished in the
heart. Yet, on the other hand, I must not treat the
offender as if be had done no wrong. That would be to
condone the offence, and therefore I should fail to
uphold the requirements of righteousness, and this the
believer is ever to do. Does God ever forgive where
there is no repentance? No, for Scripture declares, "If we confess our sins He is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9).
One
thing more. If one has injured me and repented not,
while I cannot forgive him and treat him as though be
bad not offended, nevertheless, not only must I bold no
malice in my heart against him, but I must also pray for him. Here is the value
of Christ's perfect example. If we cannot forgive, we
can pray for God to forgive him.
"Then
said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do."
6.
Here We See Man's Great and Primary
Need.
The
first important lesson which all need to learn is that
we are sinners, and as such, unfit for the presence of a
Holy God. It is in vain that we select noble ideals,
form good resolutions, and adopt excellent rules to live
by, until the sin-question has been settled. It is of no
avail that we attempt to develop a beautiful character
and aim to do that which will meet with God's approval
while there is sin between Him and our souls. Of what
use are shoes if our feet are paralyzed. Of what use are
glasses if we are blind. The question of the forgiveness
of my sins is basic, fundamental, vital. It matters
not that I am highly respected by a wide circle of
friends if I am yet in my sins. It matters not that I
have made good in business if I am an unpardoned
transgressor in the sight of Cod. What will matter most in the hour of
death is, Have my sins been put away by the Blood of
Christ?
The
second all-important lesson which all need to learn is
how forgiveness of sins may be obtained. What is the ground on which a Holy God will
forgive sins? And here it is important to remark that
there is a vital difference between Divine forgiveness
and much of human forgiveness. As a general rule human
forgiveness is a matter of leniency, often of
laxity. We mean forgiveness is shown at the expense of
justice and righteousness. In a human court of law, the
judge has to choose between two alternatives: when the
one in the dock has been proven guilty, the judge must
either enforce the penalty of the law,
or he must disregard the requirements of
the law -- the one is justice, the other is mercy. The
only possible way by which the judge can both enforce
the requirements of the law and yet show mercy to
its offender, is by a. third party offering to suffer in
his own person the penalty which the convicted one
deserves. Thus it was in the Divine counsels. God would
not exercise mercy at the expense of justice. God, as
the judge of all the earth, would not set aside the
demands of His Holy law. Yet. God would show mercy. How?
Through One making full satisfaction to His
outraged law. Thro' His own Son taking the place of
all those who believe on Him and bearing their sins in
own body on the Tree. God could be just and yet
merciful, merciful and yet just. Thus it is that "grace
reigns through
righteousness."
A
righteous ground has been provided on which God can be
just and yet the justifier of
all who believe. Hence it is we are told, "Thus it is
written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer and to
rise from the dead the third day; And that repentance
and remission (forgiveness) of sins should be preached
in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem"
(Luke 24:46,47). And again, "Be it known unto you
therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man is
preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by Him
all that believe are justified from all things, from
which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses"
(Acts 13: 38,39). It was in view of the Blood He was
shedding that the Saviour cried, "Father, forgive them."
It was in view of the atoning sacrifice He was
offering, that it can be said "without shedding of
blood is no remission."
In
praying for the forgiveness of His enemies
Christ struck right down to the root of their need. And
their need was the need of every child of Adam. Reader,
have your sins been forgiven? that
is, remitted or sent away. Are you, by grace, one of
those of whom it is said, "In whom we have redemption
through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins" (Col.
1:4)?
"Then said Jesus, Father,
forgive them, for they know not what they
do."
7.
Here We See the Triumph of Redeeming
Love.
Mark
closely the word with which our text opens: "Then." The
verse which immediately precedes it reads thus, "And
when they were come to the place, which is called
Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the malefactors,
one on the right hand and the other on the left." Then, said Jesus, Father,
forgive them. "Then" -- when man had done his worst.
"Then" -- when the vileness of the human heart was
displayed in climacteric devilry. "Then" -- when with
wicked hands the creature had dared to crucify the
Lord of Glory. He might have uttered awful maledictions
over them. He might have let loose the thunderbolts of
righteous wrath and slain them. He might have caused the
earth to open her mouth so that they had gone down alive
into the Pit. But no. Though subjected to unspeakable
shame, though suffering excruciating pain, though
despised, rejected, hated, nevertheless, He cries,
"Father, forgive them." That was
the triumph of redeeming love. "Love suffereth long, and
is kind . . . beareth all things . . . enduretb all
things" (I Cor. 13). Thus it was shown at the
Cross.
When
Samson came to his dying hour he used his great strength
of body to encompass the destruction of his foes; but
the Perfect One, exhibited the strength of His love by
praying for the forgiveness of His enemies. Matchless
grace! "Matchless," we say, for even Stephen failed to
fully follow out the blessed example set by the
Saviour. If the reader will turn to Acts 7 he will find
that Stephen's first thought was of himself, and then he
prayed for his enemies -- "And they stoned Stephen,
calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my
spirit. And he kneeled down and cried
with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their
charge" (Acts 7:55,60). But with Christ the order was
reversed: He prayed first for His foes,
and last for Himself. In all things He has the
pre-eminence.
And
now one concluding word of application and
exhortation. Should this chapter have been read by
an unsaved person we would earnestly ask him to weigh
well the next sentence -- How dreadful must it be to
oppose Christ and His truth knowingly! Those who crucified
the Saviour "knew not what they did." But, my reader,
there is a very real and solemn sense in which this is
not true of you. You know you ought to receive
Christ as your Saviour, that you ought to crown Him the Lord of
your life, that you ought to make it your first and
last concern to please and glorify Him. Be warned then;
your danger is great. If you deliberately turn from
Him, you turn from the only One who can save you from
your sins, and it is written, "If we sin willfully after
that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there
remaineth no more sacrifice for sins. But a certain
fearful looking for of judgment and of fiery
indignation, which shall devour the adversaries"
(Heb. 10:26,27).
It
only remains for us to add a word on the blessed Completeness of Divine
forgiveness. Many of God's people are unsettled and
troubled upon this point. They understand bow that all
the sins they bad committed before they received Christ
as their Saviour have been forgiven, but oftentimes they
are not clear concerning, the sins which they commit after they have been born
again. Many suppose it is possible for them to sin away
the pardon which God had bestowed upon them. They
suppose that the Blood of Christ dealt with their past
only, and that so far as the present and the future are
concerned, they have to take care of that themselves.
But of what value would be a pardon which might be taken
away from me at any time? Surely there can be no settled
peace when my acceptance with God and my going to Heaven
is made to depend upon my holding on to Christ, or my obedience and
faithfulness.
Blessed be God, the forgiveness
which He bestows covers all sins -- past, present and
future. Fellow-believer, did not Christ bear your "sins" in His own body on the
Tree? And were not all your sins future sins when He died?
Surely, for at that time you had not been born, and so
had not committed a single sin. Very well then: Christ
bore your "future" sins as truly as your past ones. What
the Word of God teaches is that the unbelieving soul is
brought out of the place of unforgiveness into
the place to which forgiveness attaches. Christians are
a forgiven people. Says the Holy Spirit:
"Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute
sin" (Rom. 4:8)! The believer is in Christ, and there
sin will never again be imputed to us. This is our place
or position before God. In Christ is where He beholds us. And because I am
in Christ I am completely and eternally forgiven, so
much so that never again will sin be laid to my charge
as touching my salvation, even though I were to
remain on earth a hundred years. I am out of that Place
for evermore. Listen to the testimony of Scripture: "And
you being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision
of your flesh, hath He (God) quickened together with Him (Christ), having
forgiven you all trespasses" (Col. 2:13). Mark the two
things which are here united (and what God hath joined
together let not man put asunder) -- my union with a
risen Christ is connected with my forgiveness! If then
my life is "hid with Christ in God" (Col. 3:3), then I
am forever out of the place where imputation of sin applies.
Hence it is written, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which
are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1) -- how could there be if
"all trespasses" have been
forgiven? None can lay anything to the charge of God's
elect (Rom. 8:33). Christian reader, join the writer in
praising God because we are eternally forgiven
everything.*
*It
should be added by way of explanation, that it is the judicial aspect we have dealt
with. Restorative forgiveness --
which is the bringing back again into communion of a
sinning believer -- dealt with in I John 1:9 -- is
another matter altogether.
2
THE WORD OF SALVATION
"And he said unto Jesus, Lord,
remember me when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom. And Jesus
said unto hint, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou
be with Me in Paradise (Luke 23:42, 43).
The
second of Christ's cross-utterances was spoken in
response to the request of the dying thief. Ere
considering the words of the Saviour we shall first
ponder what occasioned them.
It was
no accident that the Lord of Glory was crucified
between two thieves. There are no accidents in a
world that is governed by God. Much less could there
have been any accident on that Day of all days, or in
connection with that Event of all events-a Day and an
Event which lie at the very centre of the world's
history. No; God was presiding over that scene. From all
eternity He had decreed when and where and how and with
whom His Son should die. Nothing was left to chance or
the caprice of man. All that God had decreed came to
pass exactly as He had ordained, and nothing happened
save as He had eternally purposed. Whatsoever man
did was simply that which God's hand and counsel
"determined to be done" (Acts 4:28).
When
Pilate gave orders that the Lord Jesus should be
crucified between the two malefactors, all unknown
to himself, he was but putting into execution the
eternal decree of God and fulfilling His prophetic word.
Seven hundred years before this Roman officer gave his
command, God had declared through Isaiah that His Son
should be "numbered with the transgressors" (Isa.
53:12). How utterly unlikely this appeared, that the
Holy One of God should be numbered with the unholy; that
the very one whose finger had inscribed on the tables of
stone the Sinaitie Law should be assigned a place with
the lawless; that the Son of God should be executed with
criminals-this seemed utterly inconceivable. Yet it
actually came to pass. Not a single word of God can fall
to the ground. "Forever, 0 Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven" (Psa.
119:89). Just as God had ordained, and just as He had
announced, so it came to pass.
Why did God order it that His
beloved Son should be crucified between two
criminals? Certainly God had a reason; a good one, a
manifold one, whether we can discern it or not. God
never acts arbitrarily. He has a good purpose for
everything He does, for all His works are ordered by
infinite wisdom. In this particular instance a number of
answers suggest themselves to our inquiry. Was not our
blessed Lord crucified with the two thieves to fully
demonstrate the unfathomable depths of shame
into which He had descended? At His birth He was
surrounded by the beasts of the field, and now, at His
death, He is numbered with the refuse of humanity.
Again; was not the Saviour numbered with transgressors
to show us the position He occupied as our
Substitute? lie had taken the place which was
due us, and what was that but the place of shame, the
place of transgressors, the place of criminals condemned
to death! Again; was He not deliberately humiliated thus
by Pilate to exhibit man's estimate of the peerless
One-"despised' as well as rejected! Again; was He
not crucified with the two thieves, so that in those
three crosses and the ones who hung upon them we might
have a vivid and concrete representation of the drama of Salvation and man's
response thereto -the Saviour's redemption; the
sinner repenting and believing, and the sinner reviling
and rejecting?
Another important lesson which we
may learn from the crucifixion d Christ between the two
thieves, and the fact that one received Him and the
other rejected Him, is that of the Sovereignty of God. The two
malefactors were crucified together. They were equally
near to Christ. Both of them saw and heard all that
transpired during those fateful six hours. Both were
notoriously wicked; both were suffering acutely; both
were dying, and both, urgently needed forgiveness. Yet
one of them died in his sins, died as he had
lived-hardened and impenitent; while the other
repented of his wickedness, believed in Christ,
called on Him for mercy and went to Paradise. How can
this be accounted for except by the sovereignty of
God! We see precisely the same thing going on today.
Under exactly the same circumstances and
conditions, one is melted and another remains
unmoved. Under the same sermon one man will listen with
indifference, while another will have his eyes opened to
see his need and his will moved to close with God's
offer of mercy. To one the Gospel is revealed, to
another it is "hidden." Why? All we can say is, "Even so
Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight." And yet
God's sovereignty is never meant to destroy human
responsibility. Both are plainly taught in the Bible,
and it is our business to believe and preach both
whether we can harmonize or understand them or not. In
preaching both we may seem to our hearers to contradict ourselves, but
what matters that? Said the late C. H. Spurgeon, when
preaching on I Tim. 2:3, 4, "There stands the text, and
I believe that it is my Father's wish that 'all men
should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the
truth.' But I know, also, that He does not will it, so
that -He will save any one of them, unless they believe
in His Son; for He has told us over and over again that
He will not. He will not save any man except he forsakes
his sins, and turns to Him with full purpose of heart:
that I also know. And I know, also, that He has a people
whom He will save, whom by His eternal love He has
chosen and whom by His eternal power He will deliver. I do not know how that squares with
this, that is another of the things I do not know."
And said this prince of preachers, "I will just
stand to what I ever shall and always
have preached, and take God's Word as it stands, whether I can reconcile it with
another part of Gods Word or not." We say again,
God's sovereignty is never meant to destroy man I s
responsibility. We are to make diligent use of all the
means which God has appointed for the salvation of
souls. We are bidden to preach the Gospel to "every
creature." Grade is free; the invitation is broad
enough to take in "whosoever believetb." Christ turns
away none who come to Him. Yet, after we have done all,
after we have planted and watered, it is God who "giveth
the increase," and this He does as best pleaseth
His sovereign will.
In the
salvation of the dying thief we have a clear view of victorious Grace such as is to
be found nowhere else in the Bible. God is the God of
all grace, and salvation is entirely by His grace. "By
grace are ye saved" (Eph. 2:8), and it is "by grace"
from beginning to end. Grace planned salvation, grace
provided salvation, and grace so works on and in His
elect as to overcome the hardness of their hearts, the
obstinacy of their wills, and the enmity of their minds,
and thus makes them willing to receive salvation. Grace
begins, grace continues, and grace
consummates our salvation.
Salvation by grace - sovereign,
irresistible, free grace - is illustrated in the
New Testament by example as well as precept. Perhaps the
two most striking cases of all are those of Saul of
Tarsus and the Dying Robber. And the case of the latter
is even more noteworthy than the former. In the case of
Saul, who afterwards became Paul the apostle to the
Gentiles, there was an exemplary moral character to
begin with. Writing years afterwards of his condition
before his conversion, the apostle declared that as
touching the righteousness of the law he was "blameless"
(Phil. 3:6). He was a "Pharisee of the Pharisees:"
punctilious in his habits, correct in his deportment.
Morally, his character was flawless, After his
conversion his life was one of
Gospel-righteousness. Constrained by the love of
Christ he spent himself in preaching the Gospel to
sinners and in laboring to build up the saints.
Doubtless our readers will agree with us when we say
that probably Paul came nearest to attaining the ideals of the
Christian life, and that he followed after his Master
more closely than any other saint has since. But with
the saved thief it was far otherwise. He had no moral
life before his conversion and no life of active service
after it. Before his conversion he respected neither
the law of God nor the law of man. After his conversion
he died without having opportunity to engage in the
service of Christ. I would emphasize this, because these
are the two things which are regarded by so many as contributing factors to our
salvation. It is supposed that we must first fit
ourselves by developing a noble character before God will receive us as
His sons; and that after He has received us,
tentatively, we are merely placed on probation, and that
unless we now bring forth a certain quality and quantity
of good works we shall "fall from grace and,be lost."
But the dying thief had no good works either before
or after conversion. Hence we are shut up to the
conclusion that if saved at all he was
certainly saved by sovereign
grace.
The
salvation of the dying thief also disposes of another
prop which the legality of the carnal mind interposes to
rob God of the glory due unto His grace. Instead of
attributing the salvation of lost sinners to the
matchless grace of God, many professing Christians
seek to account for them by human influences,
instrumentalities, and circumstances. Either the
preacher, or providential and propitious
circumstances, or the prayers of believers, are looked
to as the main cause. Let us not be misunderstood here.
It is true that often God is pleased to use means in the
conversion of sinners; that frequently He
condescends to bless our prayers and efforts to point
sinners to Christ; that many times He causes His
providences to awaken and arouse the ungodly to a
realization of their state. But God is not shut up to
these things. He is not limited to human
instrumentalities. His grace is all powerful, and when
He pleases, that grace is able to save in spite of the
lack of human
instrumentalities, and in the face of unfavorable circumstances.
So it was in the case of the saved thief.
Consider-
His conversion occurred at a time
when to outward appearance Christ had lost all
power to save either Himself or others. This thief had
marched along with the Saviour through the streets of
Jerusalem and had seen Him sink beneath the weight of
the cross! It is highly probable that as one who
followed the occupation of a thief and robber this
was the first day he had ever set eyes on the Lord
Jesus, and now that he did see Him it was under every
circumstance of weakness and disgrace. His enemies were
triumphing over Him. His friends had mostly forsaken
Him. Public opinion was unanimously against Him. His very crucifixion
was regarded as utterly inconsistent with His Messiahship. His
lowly condition was a stumbling-block to the Jews
from the very first, and the circumstances of His death
must have intensified it, especially to one who had
never seen Him except in this condition. Even those who
had believed on Him were made to doubt by His
crucifixion. There was not one in the crowd who stood
there with out-stretched finger and cried, "Behold the
Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world!" And
yet, notwithstanding these obstacles and difficulties in
the way of his faith, the thief apprehended the
Saviourhood and Lordship of Christ. How can we possibly
account for such faith and such spiritual understanding
in one circumstanced as he was? How can we explain the
fact that this dying thief took a suffering, bleeding,
crucified man for his God! It cannot be accounted for
apart from Divine intervention and
supernatural operation. His faith in Christ was a miracle of
Grace!
It is
also to be remarked that the thief's conversion took
place before the supernatural phenomena of that day. He
cried, "Lord, remember me" before the hours of darkness,
before the triumphant cry "It
is finished," before the rending of the temple veil,
before the quaking of the earth and the shivering of the
rocks, before the centurion's confession "Truly this was
the Son of God." God purposely set his conversion before
these things so that His sovereign grace might be
magnified and His sovereign power acknowledged. God
designedly chose to save this thief under the most
un-favorable circumstances that no flesh should glory in
His presence. God deliberately arranged this combination
of un-propitious conditions and surroundings to teach us
that "Salvation is of the Lord," to teach us not to
magnify human instrumentality above Divine agency, to
teach us that every genuine conversion is the direct
product of the supernatural operation of the
Holy Spirit.
We
shall now consider together the thief himself, his
various utterances, his request of the Saviour, and our
Lord's response - "And he said unto Jesus, Lord,
remember me when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom. And Jesus
said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou
be with Me in Paradise" (Luke
23:42,43).
1.
HERE WE SEE A REPRESENTATIVE SINNER.
We
shall never get to the heart of is incident until we
regard the conversion of this man as a representative
case, and the thief himself as a representative
character. There are those who have sought to show that
the original character of the repenting thief was nobler
and worthier than that of the other who repented now.
But this is not only not true to the facts of the case
but it serves to efface the peculiar glory of his
conversion and takes away from the wonderment of God's
grace. It is of great importance to see that prior to
the time when the one repented and believed there was no
essential difference between the two thieves. In nature,
in history, in circumstances they were one. The Holy
Spirit has been careful to tell us that they both reviled the suffering
Saviour: "The chief priests mocking, with the scribes
and elders said, He saved others; Himself He cannot
save. If He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down
from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in
God; let Him deliver Him now, if He will have Him: for
He said, I am the Son of God. The thieves also which were
crucified with Him, cast the same in His teeth (Matt.
27:41-44).
Terrible indeed was the condition
and action of this robber. On the very brink of eternity
he unites with the enemies of Christ in the awful sin of
mocking Him. This was unparalleled turpitude. Think of
it - a man in his dying hour deriding the suffering
Saviour! O what a demonstration of human depravity and
of the native enmity of the carnal mind against God! And
reader, by nature there is the same depravity inhering
within you, and unless a miracle of Divine grace has
been wrought upon you there is the same enmity against
God and His Christ present in your heart. You may not
think so, you may not feel so, you may not believe so.
But that does not alter the fact. The Word of Him who
cannot lie declares, "The heart is deceitful above all
things, and desperately wicked' (Jer. 17:9). That is a
statement of universal application. It describes what
every human heart is by natural birth. And again the
same Scripture of Truth declares, "The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to
the law of God, neither indeed can be" (Rom. 8:7). This,
too, diagnoses the state of every descendant of Adam. "For there is no difference: for all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God7 (Rom.
3:22,23). Unspeakably solemn is this: yet it needs to be
pressed. It is not until our desperate condition is
realized that we discover our need of a Divine Saviour.
It is not until we are brought to see our total
corruption and unsoundness that we shall hasten to the
great Physician. It is not until we find in this dying
thief a portrayal of ourselves that we shall join in
saying, "Lord, remember me."
We
have to be abased before we can be exalted. We have to
be stript of the filthy rags of our self-righteousness
before we are ready for the garments of salvation. We
have to come to God as beggars, empty-handed, before we
can receive the gift of eternal life. We have to take
the place of lost sinners before Him if we would be
saved. Yes, we have to acknowledge ourselves as thieves before we can have a
place in the family of God. "But," you say, "I am no
thief! I acknowledge I am not all I ought to be. I am
not perfect. In fact, I will go so far as to admit I am
a sinner. But I cannot allow that this thief
represents my state and condition." Ah,
friend, your case is far worse than you suppose. You are
a thief, and that of the worst type. You have robbed God! Suppose that a
firm in the East appointed an agent to represent them in
the West, and that every month they forwarded to him his
salary. But suppose also at the end of the year his
employers discovered that though the agent had been
cashing the checks they sent him, nevertheless, he had
served another firm all that
time. Would not that agent be a thief? Yet this is
precisely the situation and state of every sinner. He
has been sent into this world by God, and God has
endowed him with talents and the capacity to use and
improve them. God has blessed him with health and
strength; He has supplied his every need, and
provided innumerable opportunities to serve and
glorify Him. But with what result? The very things God
has given him have been mis-appropriated. The sinner has
served another master, even
Satan. He dissipates his strength and wastes his time in
the pleasures of sin. He has robbed God. Unsaved
reader, in the sight of Heaven your condition is as
desperate and your heart is as wicked as that of the
thief. See in him a picture of
yourself.
2.
HERE WE SEE THAT MAN HAS TO COME TO THE END OF HIM
SELF BEFORE HE CAN BE SAVED.
Above we have contemplated this
dying robber as a representative sinner, a sample
specimen of what all men are by nature and practice
- by nature at enmity against God and His Christ; by
practice robbers of God, misusing what He has given us
and failing to render what is due Him. We are now to see
that this crucified robber was also a representative
case in his conversion. And at this point we shall dwell
simply upon his helplessness.
To see
ourselves as lost sinners is not sufficient. To learn
that we are corrupt and depraved by nature and sinful
transgressors by practice is the first important
lesson. The next is to learn that we are
utterly undone, and that we can do nothing whatever to help
ourselves. To discover that our condition is so
desperate that it is entirely beyond human repair, is the
second Step toward salvation - looking at it from the
human side. But if man is slow to learn that he is a
lost sinner and unfit for the presence of a holy God, he
is slower still to recognize that he can do nothing
towards his salvation, and is unable to work any
improvement in himself so as to be fit for God.
Yet, it is not until we realize that we are "without
strenatb" (Rom. 5:6), that we are "impotent" (John 5:3),
that it is not by works of
righteousness which we do, but by His mercy God
saves us (Titus 3:5), not until then shall we despair of ourselves, and look
outside of ourselves to the One
who can save us.
The
great Scripture type of sin is leprosy, and for leprosy man
can devise no cure. God alone can deal with this
dreadful disease. So it is with sin. But, as we have
said, man is slow to learn his lesson. He is like the
prodigal son, who when he bad squandered his
substance in the far country in riotous living and began
to be "in want," instead of returning to the Father
straightaway, he "went and joined himself to a citizen
of that country" and went to the fields to feed swine;
in other words he went to work. Likewise the
sinner who has been aroused to his need, instead of
going at once to Christ, he tries to work himself into
God's favor. But be will fare no better than the
prodigal - the husks of the swine will be his only
portion. Or again, like the woman bowed down with her
infirmity for many long years. She tried many physicians
before she sought the great Physician: so the awakened
sinner seeks relief and peace in first one thing and
then another, until he completes the weary round of
religious performances, and ends by being "nothing
bettered, but rather grows worse" (Mark 5:26). No; it is
not until that woman bad "spent all she bad" that she
sought Christ: and it is not until the sinner comes to
the end of his own resources
that he will betake himself to the
Saviour.
Before any sinner can be saved he
must come to the place of realized weakness. This is
what the conversion of the dying thief shows us. What
could he do? He could not walk in the
paths of righteousness for there was a nail through
either foot. He could not perform any good works for
there was a nail through either hand. He could not turn
over a new leaf and live a better life for he was dying.
And, my reader, those hands of yours which are so ready
for self-righteous acting, and those feet of yours which
are so swift to run in the way of legal obedience, must
be nailed to the cross. The sinner has to be cut off from his own workings
and be made willing to be saved by Christ. A
realization of your sinful condition, of your lost
conditions, of your helpless condition, is nothing more
or less than old-fashioned conviction of sin, and this
is the sole prerequisite for coming to
Christ for salvation, for Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners.
3.
HERE WE SEE THE MEANING, OF REPENTANCE AND
FAITH.
Repentance may be considered under
various aspects. It includes in its meaning and scope a
change of mind about sin, a sorrowing for sin, a
forsaking of sin. Yet there is more in repentance
than these. Really, repentance is the realization of our
lost condition, it is the discovery of our ruin, it is
the judging of ourselves, it is the owning of our lost
estate. Repentance is not so much an intellectual
process as it is the conscience active in the presence
of God, And this is exactly what we find here in the
case of the thief. First he says to his companion, "Dost
not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same
condemnation?' (Luke 23: 40). A short time before he had
mingled his voice with those who were reviling the
Saviour. But the Holy Spirit had been at work upon him,
and now his conscience is active in the presence of God.
It was not, "Dost not thou fear punishment?" but, "Dost not
thou fear God?" He apprehends God as judge. And then, in
the second place he adds, "And we indeed justly; for we
receive the due reward of our deeds"
(Luke 23:41). Here we see him acknowledging his guilt
and the justice of his condemnation. He passes sentence
upon himself. He makes no excuses and attempts no
extenuation. He recognized he was a transgressor, and
that as such he fully deserved punishment for his sins,
yea, that death was his due. Have you taken this
position before God, my reader? Have you openly
confessed your sins to Him? Have you passed judgment
upon yourself and your ways? Are you ready to
acknowledge that death is your "due?" Whilever
you palliate sin or prevaricate about it you are
shutting yourself out from Christ. Christ came into the
world to save sinners - self-confessed sinners,
sinners who really take the place of sinners before
God, sinners who are conscious that they are lost and
undone.
The
thief's "repentance toward God" was accompanied with
"faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." In contemplating
his faith we may notice first that it was an intelligent head faith. In the
earlier paragraphs of this chapter we have called
attention to the Sovereignty of God and His irresistible
and victorious grace which were exhibited in the
conversion of this thief. Now we turn to 'another side
of the truth, equally necessary to press, a side which
is not contradictory to what we have said previously,
but rather, complementary and supplementary. Scripture
does not teach that if God has elected a certain soul to
be saved that that person will be saved whether they believe
or not. That is a false conclusion drawn by those who
reject the truth. No; Scripture teaches that the same
God who predestined the end also predestined the
means. The God who decreed the salvation of the dying
thief fulfilled His decree by giving
him a faith with which to believe. This is the
plain teaching of II Thess. 2:13 and other
Scriptures-"God hath from the beginning chosen you
to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and
belief of the truth." This is just what we see here in
connection with this robber. He "believed the
truth." His faith took hold of the Word of God. Over the
Cross was the superscription, "This is Jesus the King of
the Jews." Pilate had placed it there in derision. But
it was the truth nevertheless, and after be had written
it, God would not allow him to alter it. The board
bearing this superscription had been carried in front of
Christ through the streets of Jerusalem and out to the
place of crucifixion, and the thief had read it, and
Divine grace and power had opened the eyes of his
understanding to see - t was the truth. His faith
grasped the Kingship of Christ, hence his mention of
"when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom." Faith always rests on
the written Word of God.
Before
a man will believe that Jesus is the Christ he must ha e
the testimony before him that He is the Christ.
Distinction is often made between head faith and heart
faith, and properly so, for the distinction is real, and
vital. Sometimes head faith is decried as valueless, but
this is foolish. There must be head faith before there
can be heart faith. We must believe intellectually
before we can believe savingly in the Lord Jesus. Proof
of this is seen in connection with the heathen: they
have no bead faith and therefore they have no heart
faith. We readily grant that head faith will not save
unless it be accompanied by heart faith, but we insist
that there is no heart faith unless there has first been
bead faith. How can they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?
True, one may believe about Him without believing in
Him, but one cannot believe in Him without first
believing about Him. So it was with the dying thief. In
all probability he bad never seen Christ before
this day of his death, but be bad seen the written
superscription testifying to His Kingship and the Holy
Spirit used this as the basis of his faith. We say then
that his was an intelligent faitb: first an intellectual
faith, the believing the written testimony submitted to
him; second, a heart faith, the resting in confidence on
Christ Himself as the Saviour of
sinners.
Yes,
this dying robber exercised a heart faith which rested savingly
on Christ. We shall try to be very simple
here. A man may have head faith in the Lord Jesus and be
lost. A man may believe about the historic Christ and be
no better for it, just as he is no better for believing
about the historic Napoleon. Reader, you may believe all
about the Saviour - His perfect
life, His sacrificial death, His victorious
resurrection, His glorious ascension, His promised
return-but you must do- more than this. Gospel faith is
a confiding faith. Saving faith
is more than a correct opinion or a train of reasoning.
Saving faith transcends all reason. Look at
this dying thief! Was it reasonable that Christ should
notice him? - a crucified robber, a self-confessed
criminal, one who a few minutes ago had been reviling Him! Was it reasonable
that the Saviour should take any notice of him? Was it
reasonable to expect that he should be transported from
the very brink of the Pit into Paradise? Ali, my reader,
the head reasons, but the heart does not. And this
man's petition came from his heart. He had not the use
of his hands and feet (and they are not needed for
salvation: they rather impede), but he had the use of his heart and
tongue. They were free to believe and confess, with
the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the
mouth confession is made unto salvation7' (Rom.
10:10).
We may also notice his was a humble faith. He prayed with
becoming modesty. It was not "Lord, honor me," or "Lord,
exalt me," but Lord, if Thou wilt but think of me! if
Thou wilt only look on me-"Lord, remember me." And yet that word
"remember" was wonderfully full and appropriate. He might
have said, Pardon me, Save me, Bless me; but "remember"
included them all. An interest in Christ's heart will include an interest
in all His benefits! Moreover this word was well suited
to the condition of the one who uttered it. He was an
outcast from society-who would remember him! The public would
think no more of him. His friends would be glad to
forget him as having disgraced his family. But there is
One with whom he ventures to lodge this petition -
"Lord, remember me."
Finally, we may notice that his was
a courageous faith. Perhaps this is not apparent at
first sight, but a little consideration will make it
plain. He who hung on the central Cross was the One on
whom all eyes were turned and toward whom all the vile
mockery of a vulgar mob was directed. Every faction of
that crowd joined in jeering at the Saviour. Matthew
tells us that "they had passed by reviled Him," that
"likewise also the chief priests mocked, with the elders
and scribes." While Luke informs us "the soldiers also
mocked Him" (23:36). It is therefore easy to understand
why the thieves should also take up the taunting cry. No
doubt the priests and scribes smiled benignly upon them
as they did so. But suddenly there was a change. The
repenting thief instead of continuing to sneer and jibe
at Christ, turns to his companion and openly rebukes him
in the hearing of the spectators gathered around the
crosses, crying, "This Man hath done nothing amiss."
Thus he condemned the whole Jewish
nation! But more; not only does he bear testimony to
Christ's innocency, but be also confessed His Kingship.
And thus by a single stroke he cuts himself off from the favor of his companion and
of the crowd as well! We talk today of the courage which
is needed to openly witness for Christ, but such courage
in these days pales into utter insignificance before the
courage displayed that day by the dying
thief.
4.
HERE WE SEE A MARVELLOUS CASE OF SPIRITUAL
ILLUMINATION.
It is perfectly wonderful the
progress made by this man in those few dying hours. His
growth in grace and in the knowledge of his Lord was
amazing. From the brief record of the words that fell
from his lips we may discover seven things which he had
learned under the tuition of the Holy Spirit.
First,
he expresses his belief in a future life
where retribution would be meted out
by a righteous and sin-avenging God. "Dost not thou fear
God?" proves this. He sharply reprimands his
companion, and as much as says, How dare you have
the temerity to revile this innocent Man? Remember, that
shortly you will have to appear before God and face a
tribunal infinitely more solemn than the one which
sentenced you to be crucified. God is to be feared, so be
silent.
Second, as we have seen, he had a sight of his own sinfulness - "Thou
art in the same condemnation. And we indeed justly; for
we receive the due reward of our deeds" (Luke 23:40,41).
He recognized that he was a transgressor. He saw that
sin merited punishment, that "condemnation" was just. He
owned that death was his "due." This was something that
his companion neither confessed nor
recognized.
Third,
he bore testimony to Christ's
sinlessness - "This Man hath done nothing amiss" (Luke 23:41). And here we may
mark the pains God took to guard the spotless character
of His Son. Especially is this to be seen toward the
end. Judas was moved to say, "I have betrayed innocent blood." Pilate
testified, "I find no fault in Him." Pilates wife
said, "Have nothing to do with this just man." And now
that He hangs on the cross, God opens the eyes of this
robber to see the faultlessness of His beloved Son, and
opens his lips so that he bears witness to His
excellency.
Fourth, he not only witnessed to
the sinless humanity of Christ but he also confessed His Godhead -
"Lord, remember me," he said. A marvellous word was
that. The Saviour nailed to the Tree, the object of
Jewish hatred and the butt of a vulgar mob's ridicule.
This thief had heard the scornful challenge of the
priests. "If Thou be the Son of God come down from the
cross," and no response had been given. But moved by
faith and not by sight he recognizes and owns the Deity
of the central Sufferer.
Fifth,
he believed in the Saviourhood of
the Lord Jesus. He had heard Christ's prayer for His
enemies, "Father, forgive them," and to one whose heart
the Lord had opened, that short sentence became a saving
sermon. His own cry, "Lord, remember me" included within
its scope, "Lord, save me," which therefore
implies his faith in the Lord Jesus as Saviour. In
fact he must have believed that Jesus was a Saviour for
the chief of sinners or how could
he have believed that Christ would "remember" such as
he!
Sixth,
he evidenced his faith in Christ's
Kingship-"when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom." This too, was a
wonderful word. Outward circumstances all seemed to
belie His Kingship. Instead of being seated on a Throne,
He hung upon a Cross. Instead of wearing a royal diadem,
His brow was encircled with thorns. Instead of
being waited upon by a retinue of servants, He was
numbered with transgressors. Nevertheless, He was King-King of the Jews
(Matt. 2:2).
Finally he looked forward to the Second
Coming of Christ - "when Thou comest." He
looked away from the present to the future. He saw
beyond the "sufferings" the "glory." Over the Cross the
eye of faith detected the Crown. And in this he was
before the apostles, for unbelief had closed their eyes.
Yes, he looked beyond the first advent in shame, to the
Second Advent in power and majesty.
And
how can we account for the spiritual intelligence of
this dying robber? Whence did he receive such insight
into the things of Christ? How comes it that this babe
in Christ made such amazing progress in the school of
God? It can be accounted for only by Divine influence. The
Holy Spirit was his Teacher! Flesh and blood had not
revealed these things unto him but the Father in Heaven.
What an illustration that Divine things are hidden from
"the wise and prudent" and are revealed to
"babes!"
5.
HERE WE SEE THE SAVIOURHOOD OF
CHRIST.
The
crosses were only a few feet apart and it did not take
the Saviour long to hear this cry of the penitent thief.
What was His response thereto? He might have said, You
deserve your fate: you are a wicked robber and have
merited death. Or, He might have replied, You have left
it till too late: you 'should have sought Me sooner. Ah!
but had He not promised, "Him that cometh to Me I will
in no wise cast out!" So it proved
here.
Of the
reproaches which were cast on Him by the crowd the Lord
Jesus took no notice. To the insulting challenge of the
priests to descend from the cross, He made no response.
But the prayer of this contrite, believing thief
arrested His attention. At the time He was grappling
with the powers of darkness and sustaining the
awful load of His people's guilt, and we should have
thought He might be excused from attending to individual
applications. Ah! but a sinner can never come to
Christ in an unacceptable time. He
gives him an answer of peace and that without
delay.
The
salvation of the repentant and believing robber
illustrates not only Christ's readiness but also His power to
save sinners. The Lord Jesus is no feeble Saviour.
Blessed be God He is able to "save unto the uttermost"
them that come unto God by Ilim. And never was this so
signally displayed as when on the Cross. This was the
time of the Redeemer's "weakness" (2 Cor. 13:4). When
the thief cried "Lord, remember me," the Saviour was in
agony on the accursed Tree. Yet even then, even there,
He had power to redeem this soul from death and open for
him the gates of Paradise! Never doubt then, or question
the infinite sufficiency of the Saviour. If a dying
Saviour could save how much more He who rose in triumph
from the tomb, never more to die! In saving this thief
Christ gave an exhibition of His power at the very time
when it was almost clouded.
The
salvation of the dying thief demonstrates that the Lord
is willing and able to save all who come to Him. If Christ
received this penitent, believing thief, then none
need despair of a welcome if they will but come to
Christ. If this dying robber was not beyond the reach of Divine
mercy then none are who will respond to the
invitations of Divine grace. The Son of Man came "to
seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10), and none
can sink lower than that. The Gospel of Christ is the
power of God "to every one that believeth" (Rom.
1:16). O limit not the grace of God. A Saviour is
provided for the very "chief of sinners" (I Tim.
1:15), if only he will believe. Even those who reach the
dying hour yet in their sins are not beyond hope.
Personally I believe that very, very few are saved on a
deathbed, and it is the height of folly for any man to
postpone his salvation till then, for there is no
guarantee that any man will have a death-bed. Many are
cut off suddenly, without any opportunity to lie down
and die. Yet, even one on a death-bed is not beyond the reach of Divine
mercy. As said one of the Puritans, "There is one such
case recorded that none need despair, but only one, in
Scripture, that none might presume."
Yes,
here we see the Saviourhood of Christ. He came into this
world to save sinners, and He left it and went to
Paradise accompanied by a saved criminal - the
first.trophy of His redeeming
blood!
6.
HERE WE SEE THE DESTINATION OF THE SAVED AT
DEATH.
In his
splendid book "The Seven Sayings of Christ on the Cross"
Dr. Anderson-Berry has pointed out that the word "Today"
is not correctly placed in the rendering of our King
James version, and that the designed correspondence
between the thief's request and Christ's response
requires a different construction of the latter. The form of Christ's reply is
evidently designed to match in its order of thought the robber's
petition. This will be seen if we arrange the two in
parallel couplets thus:
And he
said unto Jesus
And
Jesus said unto him
Lord
Verily
I say unto thee
Remember me
Shalt
thou be with Me
When
Thou comest
Today.
Into
Thy Kingdom
In
Paradise.
By
arranging the words thus we discover the correct
emphasis. "Today" is the emphatic word. In our Lord's
gracious response to the thief's request we have a
striking illustration of how Divine grace exceeds human expectations. The
thief prayed that the Lord would remember him in His
coming Kingdom, but Christ assures him that before that
very day had passed he should be with the Saviour. The
thief asked to be remembered in an earthly Kingdom, but
Christ assured him of a place in Paradise. The thief
simply asked to be "remembered," but the Saviour
declared he should be "with Him." Thus- d6eth God
exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or
think.
Not
only does Christ's reply signify the survival of the
soul after the death of the body, but it tells us that
the believer is with Him during the interval
which divides death from the resurrection. To make
this the more emphatic Christ prefaced His promise with
the solemn but assuring words "Verily I say unto you." It was
this prospect of going to Christ at death which cheered
the martyr Stephen in his last hour and therefore did he
cry "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit"
(Acts 7:59). It was this blessed expectation which moved
the apostle Paul to say, 1 have "a desire to depart and
to be with Christ, which is far
better" (Phil 1:23). Not unconsciousness in the grave,
but with Christ in Paradise is what awaits
every believer at death. Every "believer" I say, for the
souls of unbelievers, instead of going to Paradise, pass
to the place of torments, as is clear from our Lord's
teaching in Luke 16. Reader, whither would your soul go,
if this moment you were dying?
How
hard Satan has striven to hide this blessed prospect
from the saints of God! On the one hand he has
propagated the doleful dogma of soul-sleep, the teaching
that believers are in a state of unconsciousness between
death and the resurrection; and on the other hand, he
has invented a horrible Purgatory, to terrify believers
with the thought that at death they pass into fire,
necessary to purify and fit them for Heaven. How
thoroughly the word of Christ to the thief disposes of
these God-dishonoring delusions! The thief went straight
from the cross to Paradise! The moment a sinner
believes, that moment is he "made meet to be a partaker
of the inheritance of the saints in light" (Col. 1:12).
"For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them
that are sanctified" (Heb. 10:14). Our fitness for Christ's presence,
as well as our title, rests solely on His shed
blood.
7.
HERE WE SEE THE LONGING OF THE SAVIOUR FOR
FELLOWSHIP
In
Fellowship we reach the climax of grace and the sum of
Christian privilege. Higher than fellowship we cannot
go. God has called us "unto the Fellowship of His Son"
(I Cor. 1:9). We are often told that we are "saved to
serve," and this is-true, but it is only a part of the
truth and by no means the most wondrous and blessed part
of it. We are saved for Fellowship. God had
innumerable "servants" before Christ came here to die
- the angels ever do His bidding.
Christ came not primarily to secure servants but those
who should enter into Fellowship with
Himself.
That which makes Heaven
superlatively attractive to the heart of the saint is
not that Heaven is a place where we shall be delivered
from all sorrow and suffering, nor is it that Heaven is
the place where we shall meet again those we loved in
the Lord, nor is it that Heaven is the place of golden
streets and pearly gates and jasper walls-no; blessed as
these things are, Heaven without Christ would not be
Heaven. It is Christ the heart of the believer longs
for and pants after - "Whom have I in heaven but Thee?
and there is none upon earth that I desire besides Thee"
(Psa. 73:25). And the most amazing thing is that Heaven
will not be Heaven to Christ in the highest sense until
His redeemed are gathered around Him. It is His saints
that His heart longs for. To come again and "receive us
unto Himself" is the joyous
expectation set before Him. Not until He sees of the
travail of His soul will He be fully satisfied.
These
are the thoughts suggested and confirmed by the words of
the Lord Jesus to the dying thief. "Lord, remember me"
had been his cry. And what was the response? Note it
carefully. Had Christ merely said, "Verily I say unto
thee, Today thou shalt be in Paradise" that would have
set at rest the fears of the thief. Yes, but it did not
satisfy the Saviour. That upon which His heart was set was the fact
that that very day a soul saved by His precious blood
should be with Him in Paradise! We say
again, this is the climax of grace and the sum of
Christian blessing. Said the apostle, "I have a desire '
to depart and to be with Christ" (Phil. 1:23).
And again, he wrote, "Absent from the body" - free
from all pain and care? No. "Absent from the body" -
translated to glory? No. "Absent from the body . .
. present with the Lord" (2 Cor. 5:8).
So, too, with Christ. Said He, "In My Father's house are
many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you.
I go to prepare a place for you;" yet, when He adds, "I
will come again" He does not say "And conduct you unto
the Father's house," or "I will take you to the
Place I have prepared for you," but "I will come again
and receive you unto Myself"
(John 14: 2,3). To be "for ever with the Lord" (I
Thess. 4:17) is the goal of all our hopes; to have us for ever
with Himself is that to which He looks forward with eager and
gladsome expectation. Thou shalt be with Me in
Paradise!
3
THE WORD OF AFFECTION
"Now there stood by the cross of
Jesus His mother. When Jesus therefore saw His mother,
and the disciple standing by, whom He loved,He saith
unto His mother, Woman, behold thy Son! Then saith He to
the disciple,Behold thy mother! (John
19:25,26)
"NOW
THERE STOOD BY THE CROSS OF JESUS HIS MOTHER" (John
19:25). Like her Son, Mary was not un-acquainted with
grief. At the beginning we are told, "And the angel came
in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly
favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among
women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and
cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should
be" (Luke 1:28,29). This was but the forerunner of
many troubles: Gabriel had come to announce to her the
fact of the miraculous conception, and a moment's
reflection will show us that it was no light matter
for Mary to become the mother of our Lord in this
mysterious and unheard of way. It brought with it, no
doubt, at a distant date, great honor, but it brought
with it for the present no small danger to Mary's
reputation, and no small trial to her faith. It is
beautiful to observe her quiet submission to the will of
God -- "And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord;
be it unto me according to thy
word' (Luke 1:38), was her response. T his was
lovely resignation. Nevertheless, she was "troubled" at
the Annunciation and, as we have said, this was but the
precursor of many trials and
sorrows.
What
sorrow it must have caused her when, because there in
the inn, she had to lay her newly-born Babe in was no
room the manger! What anguish must have been hers when
she learned of Herod's purpose to destroy her infant's
life! What trouble was given her when she was forced on
His account to flee into a foreign country and sojourn
for several years in the land of Egypt! What piercings
of soul must have been hers when she saw her Son
despised and rejected of men! What grief must have wrung
her heart as she beheld Him hated and persecuted by His
own nation! And who can estimate what she passed through
as she stood there at the cross? If Christ was the Man
of Sorrows, was she not the woman of
sorrows?
"There
stood by the cross of Jesus His mother" (John
19:25).
1.
HERE WE SEE THE FULFILLMENT OF SIMEON'S
PROPHECY.
In
accordance with the requirements of the Mosaic law, the
parents of the child Jesus brought Him to the Temple to
present Him to the Lord. Then it was that old Simeon,
who waited for the Consolation of Israel, took Him into
his arms and blessed God. After saying, "Lord, now
lettest Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy
word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou
hast prepared before the face of all people; A
light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of Thy
people Israer' (Luke 2:29-32)-he now turned to Mary and
said, "Behold, this child is set for the fall and
rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which
shall be spoken against; (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy
own soul also) that the thoughts of many hearts may
be revealed" (Luke 2:34,35). A strange word was that!
Could it be that hers, the greatest of all privileges
was to bring with it the greatest of all sorrows? It
seemed most unlikely at the time Simeon spoke. Yet
how truly and how tragically did it come fo pass! Here
at the Cross was this prophecy of Simeon
fulfilled.
"Now
there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother" (John
19:25). After the days of His infancy and childhood, and
during all the public ministry of Christ, we see and
hear so little of Mary. Her life was lived in the
background, among the shadows. But now, when the supreme
hour strikes of her Son's agony, when the world has cast
out the Child of her womb, she stands there by the
Cross! Who can fitly portray such a picture? Mary was
nearest to the cruel Tree! Bereft of faith and hope,
baffled and paralyzed by the strange scene, yet bound
with the golden chain of love to the Dying One, there
she stands! Try and read the thoughts and emotions of
that mother's heart. O what a sword it was that pierced
her soul then! Never such bliss at a human birth, never
such sorrow at an inhuman death.
Here
we see displayed the Mother-heart. She is the
Dying Man's mother. The One who agonizes there on the
Cross is her Child. She it was who first
planted kisses on that brow now crowned with thorns. She
it was who guided those hands and feet in their first
infantile movements. No mother ever suffered as she did.
His disciples may desert Him, His friends may forsake
Him, His nation may despise Him, but His mother stands
there at the foot of His Cross. Oh, who can fathom or
analyze the Motherheart.
Who
can measure those hours of sorrow and suffering as the
sword was slowly drawn through Mary's soul! Hers was no
hysterical or demonstrative sorrow. There was no
show of feminine weakness; no wild outcry of
uncontrollable anguish; no fainting. Not a word that
fell from her lips has been recorded by either of the
four evangelists: apparently she suffered in unbroken
silence. Yet her sorrow was none the less real and
acute. Still waters run deep. She saw that brow pierced
with cruel thorns, but she could not smooth it with her
tender touch. She watched His pierced hands and feet
grow numb, and livid, but she might not chafe them. She
marks His need of a drink, but she is not allowed
to slake His thirst. She suffered in profound desolation
of spirit.
"There
stood by the Cross of Jesus His
mother" (John 19:25). The crowds are mocking, the
thieves are taunting, the priests are jeering, the
soldiers are callous and indifferent, the Saviour is
bleeding, dying -- and there is His mother beholding the
horrible mockery. What wonder if she had swooned at such
a sight! What wonder if she had turned away from such a
spectacle! What wonder if she had fled from such a
scene. But no! There she is: she does not crouch away,
she does not faint, she does not even sink to the ground
in her grief -- she stands. Her action and attitude
are unique. In all the annals of the history of our race
there is no parallel. What transcendent courage. She
stood by the Cross of Jesus -- what marvelous fortitude.
She represses her grief, and stands there silent. Was it
not reverence for the Lord which
kept her from disturbing His last
moments?
"When
Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple
standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother,
Woman, behold thy Son! Then saith He to the disciple,
Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home" (John
19:26,27).
2.
HERE WE SEE THE PERFECT MAN SETTING AN EXAMPLE FOR
CHILDREN TO HONOR THEIR PARENTS.
The
Lord Jesus evidenced His perfection in the manner in
which He fully discharged the obligations of every
relationship that He sustained, either to God or man. On
the Cross we behold His tender care and solicitude for
His mother, and in this we have the pattern of Jesus
Christ presented to all children for their imitation,
teaching them how to acquit themselves toward their
parents according to the laws of nature and
grace.
The words which the Finger
of God engraved on the two tables of stone, and which
were given to Moses on Mount Sinai, have never been
repealed. They are in force while the earth lasts. Each
of them is embodied in the preceptive teaching of the
New Testament. The words of Ex. 20:12 are reiterated in
Eph. 6:1,2 -- "Children, obey your parents in the Lord:
for this is right. Honor thy father and mother; which is
the first commandment with promise: That it may be
well with thee, and that thou mayest live long on the
earth."
The
commandment for children to honor their parents goes far
beyond a bare obedience to this exprest will though, of
course, it includes that. It embraces love and
affection, gratitude and respect. It is too often
assumed that this fifth commandment is addressed to
young folks only. Nothing can be further from the truth.
Unquestionaly it is addressed to children first, for in
the order of nature children are always young first. But
the conclusion that this commandment loses force when
childhood is left behind is to miss at least half of its
deep significance. As intimated, the word "honor"
looks beyond obedience, though that is its first import.
In the course of time the children grow to manhood
and womanhood, which is the age of full personal
responsibility, the age when they are no longer
beneath the control of their parents, yet has not their
obligations to them ceased.
They owe their parents a debt which they can never fully
discharge. The very least they can do is to hold their
parents in high esteem, to put them in the place of
superiority, to reverence them. In the perfect Exemplar
we find both obedience and esteem
manifested.
The
fact that the last Adam came into this world not as did
the first Adam-in full possession of the distinguishing
glories of humanity: fully developed in body and
mind-but as a Babe, having to pass through the period of
childhood, is a fact of tremendous importance and
value in the light it casts on the fifth commandment.
During His early years the Boy Jesus was under the
control of Mary His mother and Joseph His legal father.
This is beautifully displayed in the second chapter of
Luke. Arrived at the age of twelve Jesus is taken by
them to Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover. The
picture presented is deeply suggestive if due attention
is paid to it. At the close of the feast Joseph and Mary
depart for Nazareth, accompanied by their friends and
supposing that Jesus is with them. But, instead, He had
remained behind in the royal city. After a day's journey
His absence is discovered. At once they turn back
to Jerusalem, and there they find Him in the temple. His
mother interrogates Him thus: "Son, why hast Thou thus
dealt with us? Behold, Thy father and I have sought Thee
sorrowing" (Luke 2:18). The
fact she had sought Him "sorrowing" strongly implies
that He had hardly ever been outside the immediate
sphere of her influence. Not to find Him at hand, was to
her a new and strange experience, and the fact that she,
assisted by Joseph, had sought Him "sorrowing" reveals
the beautiful relationship existing between them in the
home at Nazarethl The answer that Jesus returned to her
inquiry, when rightly understood, also reveals the honor
in which He held His mother. We quite agree with Dr.
Campbell Morgan that Christ does not here rebuke her. It is largely a
matter of finding the right emphasis-"Wist ye not?" As the afore-mentioned
expositor well says, "It was as though He had said:
'Mother, surely you knew Me well enough to know that
nothing could detain Me but the affairs of the Father.'"
The sequel is equally beautiful, for we read, "And He
went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them"
(Luke 2:51). And thus for all -time the Christ of
God has set the example for children to obey their
parents.
But
more. As it is with us, so it was with Christ: the years
of obedience to Mary and Joseph ended, but not so the
years of "honor." In the last and awful hours of His
human life, amid the infinite sufferings of the Cross,
the Lord Jesus thought of her who loved Him and whom He
loved; thought of her present necessity and provided for
her future need by committing her to the care of that
disciple who most deeply understood His love. His
thought for Mary at that time and the honor He gave her
was one of the manifestations of His victory over
pain.
Perhaps a word is called for in
connection with our Lord's form of address -- "Woman."
So far as the record of the four Gospels go, never
once did He call her "Mother." For us who live today,
the reason for this is not hard to discern. Looking down
the centuries with His omniscient foresight and seeing
the awful system of Mariolatry so soon to be erected, He
refrained from using a word which would in any wise
countenance this idolatry -the idolatry of rendering to
Mary the homage which is due alone her Son; the idolatry
of worshipping her as "The Mother of
God!"
Twice
over in the Gospel records do we find our Lord
addressing Mary as "Woman," and it is most
noteworthy that both of these are found in John’s Gospel which, as is well
known, sets forth our Saviour's Deity. The synoptists
set Him forth in human relationships; not so the
fourth Gospel. John's Gospel presents Christ as the Son
of God, and as Son of God He is above all
human relationships, and hence the perfect
consonance of presenting the Lord Jesus here addressing Mary as
"Woman."
Our
Lord's act on the Cross in commending Mary to the care
of His beloved apostle is better understood in the light
of His mother's widowhood. Though the Gospels
do not specifically record his death, there is little
doubt but that Joseph died sometime before the Lord
Jesus began His public ministry. Nothing is seen of
Marys husband after the incident recorded in Luke 2 when
Christ was a boy of twelve. In John 2 Mary is seen at
the Cana-marriage, but no hint is given that Joseph was
present. It was in view, then, of Mary's widowhood, in view of the fact
that the time had now arrived when He might no longer be
a comfort to her by His bodily presence, that His loving
care is manifested.
Permit
just a brief word of exhortation. Probably these lines
may be read by numbers of grownup people who still have
living fathers and mothers. How are you treating them?
Are you truly -honoring" them? Does this example of
Christ on the Cross put you to sbame? It may be you are
young and vigorous, and your parents grey-headed and
infirm; but saith the Holy Spirit, "Despise not thy
mother when she is old" (Prov. 23:22). It may be you are
rich, and they are poor; then fall not to make provision
for them. It may be they live in a distant state or
land, then neglect not to write them words of
appreciation and cheer which shall brighten their
closing days. These are sacred duties. "Honor thy father, and thy
mother."
3.
HERE WE SEE THAT JOHN HAD RETURNED TO THE SAVIOUR'S
SIDE.
Excepting, of course, the suffering
of Christ at the Hand of God, perhaps the bitterest dreg
of all in the cup which He drank was the forsaking of
Him by the apostles. It was bad enough and sad enough
that His own people, the Jews, should despise and reject
Him; but it was far worse that the Eleven, who had
companied so long with Him, should desert their
Lord in the hour of crisis. One would have thought that
their faith and their love was equal to any
shock. But it was not. "They all forsook Him, and fled"
(Matt. 26:56) reads the sacred narrative. Unspeakably
tragic was this. Their failure to "watch" with Him for
one hour in the Garden well nigh paralyzes our minds,
but their turning away from Him at the time of His
arrest almost baffles comprehension. Almost, we say, for
have we not learned from bitter experience the
deceitfulness of our hearts, how feeble our
faith is, how lamentably weak we are in the hour of
trial and testing! But for the grace of God the veriest
trifle is sufficient to overturn us. Let the restraining
and upholding power of God be withdrawn from us, and how
long would we stand?
The
Lord Jesus had solemnly warned these disciples of their
approaching cowardice -- "Then said Jesus unto them, All
ye shall be offended because of Me this night: for it is
written, I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep of the
flock shall be scattered abroad" (Matt, 26:31). And not
Peter only but all of the apostles affirmed their
determination to stand by Him -- "Peter said unto Him,
Though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee.
Likewise also said all the
disciples" (Matt. 26:35). Nevertheless, His word proved true, and they
all basely deserted Him. And how this reflected upon His
glory! By their sinful flight they exposed the Lord
Jesus to the contempt and scoffs of His enemies. It was
because of this we read, "The high priest then asked
Jesus of His disciples" (John 18:19).
It is not difficult to fill in the blanks. Doubtless
Caiaphas inquired how many disciples He had, and what
was become of them now? And what was the reason they had
forsaken their Master, and left Him to shift for Himself
when danger appeared? But observe that to this question
the Saviour made no reply. He would not accuse them to the
common enemy though they had deserted
Him!
They
forsook Him because they were "offended" at Him" --
All ye shall be offended because of Me this
night" (Matt. 26: 31): the Greek word here translated
offended might well be rendered "scandalized." They
were ashamed to be found in His company. They deemed it
no longer safe to remain with Him. As He gave Himself
up, they considered it advisable to provide as well as
they might for themselves, and somewhere or other take
refuge from the present storm which had overtaken Him.
This from the human side.
From
the Divine side their forsaking of Christ was due to the
suspension of God's preserving and upholding grace. They
were not accustomed to forsake Him. They never did so
afterwards. They would not have done so now had there
been influences of power, zeal and love from Heaven upon
them. But then how could Christ have borne the burden
and heat of the day? How should He have trod the
winepress alone? How should His sorrows have been
unmitigated if they had adhered faithfully to Him? No,
no, it must not be. Christ must not have the least
relief or comfort from any creature, and therefore that
He might be left alone to grapple with the wrath of God
and man, the Lord for a time withholds His strengthening
influences from them; and then like Samson when he was
shorn of his locks, they were as weak as other men. "Be
strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might" says
the apostle -- if that be withheld our purposes and
resolutions melt away before temptation like snow before
the sun.
Yet
mark that the cowardice and infidelity of the apostles
was only temporary. Later, they sought Him-at the appointed
place in Galilee (Matt. 28:16). But is it not cheering
to know that one of the eleven did seek Him out before He rose in triumph from
the tomb? Yea, sought Him while He yet hung on the Cross of
shame! And who might it be supposed this one was? Which
of the little band of apostles shall demonstrate the
superiority of His love? Even if the sacred narrative
had concealed his identity, it would not have been a
difficult task to supply his name. The fact that the
Scripture we are now considering shows us John at the foot of the Cross
is one of the silent yet sufficient witnesses to the
Divine inspiration of the Bible. It is one of those
undesigned harmonies of the Word which
attests the super-buman origin of the Scriptures. There
is no hint that any other of the Eleven were around the
Cross, but the thoughtful reader would expect to find there "the
disciple whom Jesus loved." And there he was. John had returned to the Saviour's
side, and there receives from Him a blessed commission.
How artless and how perfect are the silent harmonies of
Scripture!
And
now, once more, a brief word of exhortation. Is there
one who reads these lines that has wandered away from
the side of the Saviour, who is no longer enjoying sweet
communion with Him, who is, in a word, a backslider! Perhaps in the hour
of trial you denied Him. Perhaps in the time of testing
you failed. You have given more thought to your own
interests than His. The honor of His name which you
bear, has been lost sight of. O may the arrow of
conviction now enter your conscience. May Divine grace
melt your heart. May the power of God draw you back to
Christ, where alone your soul can find satisfaction and
peace. Here is encouragement for you.
Christ did not rebuke John on returning;
instead, His wondrous grace bestowed on him an
unspeakable privilege. Cease then your wanderings
and return at once to Christ, and He will greet you with
a word of welcome and cheer; and who knows but what He
has some honorous commission awaiting
you!
4.
HERE WE DISCOVER AN ILLUSTRATION OF CHRIST'S
PRUDENCE.
We
have already seen how the act of Christ in committing
Mary into the hands of His disciple was an expression of
His tender love and foresight. For John to take charge
of the widowed mother of the Saviour was a blessed
commission, and albeit, a precious legacy. When Christ
said to him, "Behold thy mother," it was as though He
had said, Let her be to thee as thine own mother: Let
thy love for Me be now manifested in thy tender
regard for her. Yet there was far more behind this
act of Christ than that.
I Of
old it had been predicted that the Lord Jesus should act
wisely and discreetly. Through Isaiah God had said,
"Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently" (52-13). In
commending His mother to the care of His loved apostle
the Saviour displayed wise discrimination in His
choice of the one who was henceforth to be her guardian.
Perhaps there was none who understood the Lord Jesus so
well as His mother, and it is almost certain that none
had apprehended His love so deeply as had John. We see
therefore how they would be fit companions for each
other, inasmuch as there was an intimate bond of common
sympathy uniting them together and uniting them to
Christ! Thus there was none other so well suited to take
care of Mary, none whose company she would find so
congenial, and on the other hand, there was none whose
fellowship John would more enjoy.
Furthermore, it needs to be home in
mind that a wondrous and honorous work was waiting for
John. Years later, the Lord Jesus was to reveal Himself
to this apostle in glorious apocalypse. How better,
then, could he equip himself for this than by being
constantly with her who had lived in closest intimacy
and intercourse with the Saviour during the thirty
years He had waited for the time to
come when His work should begin! We can therefore
see how that there was a significant appropriateness in
bringing these two-Mary and John-together. Admire then
the prudence of Christ's election of a home for Mary,
and at the same time providing a companion for the
disciple whom He loved with whom he might have blessed
spiritual fellowship.
Ere
passing to our next point we may remark that this taking
of Mary into his home throws light on an incident
recorded in the next chapter of John's Gospel, In John
20 we learn of the visit of Peter and John to the empty
sepulchre. John outran his companion and arrived
first at the tomb, but went not in. Peter,
characteristically, goes into the sepulchre, and notes
the orderly arrangement of the clothes. Then enters John
and he sees and "believed," for up to this time their
faith had not grasped the promises of Christ's
resurrection. Consequent on John's believing, we read,
"Then the disciples went away again unto their own home" (John
20:10). We are not told why they did this, but in view
of John 19:27 the explanation is obvious. There we are
told that, "from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home," and now
that he has learned the Saviour is risen from the dead,
he hastens back "home" to tell her the good news! Who more
than she would rejoice at the glad tidings! This is
another example of the silent and hidden harmonies of
Scripture.
5. HERE WE SEE THAT SPIRITUAL
RELATIONSHIPS MUST NOT IGNORE THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF
NATURE.
The
Lord Jesus was dying as the Saviour for sinners. He was
engaged in the most momentous and the most stupendous
under taking that this earth ever has or ever will
witness. He was on the point of offering satisfaction to
the outraged justice of God. He was just about to do
that work for which the world had been made, for which
the human race had been created, for which all the ages
had waited, and for which He, the eternal Word had
become incarnate. Nevertheless, He does not overlook the
responsibilities of natural ties; He fails not to
make provision for her who, according to the flesh, was
His mother.
There
is a lesson here which many need to take to heart in
these days. No duty, no work, however important it may
be, can excuse us from discharging the
obligations of nature, from caring for those who have
fleshly claims upon us. They who go forth as
missionaries to labor in heathen lands, and who leave
their children behind, or who send them back to the
homeland, to be cared for by strangers, are not following
the steps of the Saviour. Those women who spend most of
their time at public meetings, even though they be
religious meetings, or who go down into the slums to
minister to the poor and needy, to the neglect of their own family at
home, do but bring reproach upon the name and cause of
Christ. Those men, even though they stand at the
forefront of Christian work, who are so busy
preaching and teaching that they have no time to discharge the
obligations that they owe to their own wives and children,
need to study and practice the principle exemplified
here by Christ on the Cross.
6.
HERE WE SEE A UNIVERSAL NEED
EXEMPLIFIED.
How
different is the Mary of Scripture from the Mary of
superstition! She was no proud Madonna but, like each of
us, a member of a fallen race, a sinner both by nature
and practice. Before the birth of Christ she declared,
"My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath
rejoiced in God my Saviour" (Luke 1.46,47). And
now at the death of the Lord Jesus she is found before
the Cross. The Word of God presents not the mother of
Jesus as the Queen of angels decked with diadem, but as
one who herself rejoiced in a Saviour. It is true she is
"blessed among (not "above") women," and that by virtue
of the high honor of being the mother of the Redeemer;
yet was she human, a real member of our fallen race, a
sinner needing a Saviour.
She
stood by the Cross. And as she stood there the Saviour
exclaimed, "Woman, behold thy Son!" (John 19:26).
There, summed up in a single word, is expressed the need of every descendant of
Adam-to turn the eye away from the world, off from self,
and to look by faith to the Saviour that died for
sinners. There is the Divine epitome of the Way of
Salvation. Deliverance from the wrath to come,
forgiveness of sins, acceptance with God, is obtained
not by deed of merit, not by good works, not by
religious ordinances; No, salvation comes by
Beholding -- "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh
away the sin of the world." Just as the serpent-bitten
Israelites in the wilderness were healed by a look, by a
look at that which Jehovah had appointed to be the
object of their faith, so today, redemption from the
guilt and power of sin, emancipation from the curse of
the broken law and from the captivity of Satan, is to be
found alone by faith in Christ, "As Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man
be lifted up: -that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have eternal life" (John
3:14,15). There is life in a look. Reader, have you thus
beheld that Divine Sufferer?
Have you seen Him dying on the Cross the just for the
unjust, that He might bring us to God? Mary the mother
of Christ needed to "behold" Him, and so do you. Then
look, look unto Christ and be ye
saved.
7.
HERE WE SEE THE MARVELLOUS BLENDINC OF CIIRIST’S
PERFECTIONS.
This
is one of the greatest wonders of His Person-the
blending of the most perfect human affection with
His Divine Glory. The very Gospel which most of all
shows Him to be God, is here careful to prove He was Man
-- the Word made flesh. Engaged as He was, in a Divine
transaction, making atonement for all the sins of all
His people, grappling with the powers of Darkness, yet
amid it all, He has still the same human tenderness,
which shows the perfection of the Man Jesus
Christ.
This
care for His mother in His dying hour was characteristic
of all His conduct. Everything was natural and perfect.
The unstudied simplicity about Him is most marked. There
was nothing pompous or ostentatious. Many of His
mightiest works were done on the highway, in the
cottage, or among a little group of sufferers. Many
of His words, which today are still unfathomable and
exhaustless in their wealth of meaning, were uttered
almost casually as He walked with a few friends. So it
was at the Cross. He was performing the mightiest Work
of all history, He was engaged in doing that, which in
comparison, the creating of a world fades into utter
insignificance, yet He forgets not to make provision for
His mother -- much as He might have done had they been
together in the home at Nazareth. Rightly was it said of
old, "His name shall be called Wonderful (Isa. 9:6). Wonderful
He was in all that He did. Wonderful He was in every
relationship that He sustained. Wonderful He was in
His Person, and wonderful He was in His Work. Wonderful
was He in life, and wonderful was He in death. Let us
wonder and adore.
4
THE WORD OF ANGUISH
"And about the ninth hour Jesus
cried with a loud voice, Saying, Eli, Eli, lanw
sabachthani? that is to say, My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?" (Matt.
27:46)
These are words of startling
import. The crucifixion of the Lord of Glory was the
most extraordinary event that has ever happened on
earth, and this cry of the suffering. One was the most
startling utterance of that appalling scene. That
innocence should be condemned, that the guiltless should
be persecuted, that a benefactor should be cruelly put
to death, was no Dew event in history. From the murder
of righteous Abel to that of Zecharias there was a long
list of such martyrdoms. But He who hung on this central
Cross was no ordinary man, He was the Son of Man, the
One in whom all excellencies met-the Perfect One. Like
His robe, His character was "without seam, woven from the top
throughout."
In the
case of all other persecuted ones there were demerits
and blemishes which might afford their murderers
something to blame. But the judge of this One said, "I
find no fault in Him." And more.
This Sufferer was not only perfect man, but He was the
Son of God. Yet, it is not strange that man should wish
to destroy God. "The fool hath said in his heart-no God"
(Psa. 14:1) such is his wish. But it is strange that He who was
God manifest in the flesh should allow Himself to be so
treated by His enemies. It is exceeding strange that the
Father who delighted in Him, whose own Voice had
declared from the opened heavens, "This is My beloved
Son, in whom I am well pleased," should deliver Him up
to such a shameful death.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
These are words of appalling woe.
The very word "forsaken" is one of the most tragic
in all human speech. The writer will not readily forget
his sensation as 'he once passed through a town deserted
of all its inhabitants, a forsaken city. What calamities
are conjured up by this w6rd-a man forsaken of his
friends, a wife forsaken by her husband, a child
forsaken by its parents! But a creature forsaken by its
Creator, a man forsaken of Godo this is the most
frightful of all. This is the evil of all evils. This is
the climacteric calamity. True, fallen man, in his
unrenewed condition, does not so deem it. But he, who in
some measure at least, has learned that God is the Sum
of all perfection, the Fount and Goal of all excellency,
he whose cry is "As the heart panteth after the water
brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, 0 God" (Psa.
42:1), is ready to endorse what has just been said. The
cry of saints in all ages has been, "Forsake us not, 0
God." For the Lord to hide His face from us but for a
moment is unbearable. If this is true of renewed
sinners, how infinitely more so of the beloved Son of
the Father!
He who
hung there on the accursed-tree had been from all
eternity the object of the Father's love. To employ the
language of Prov. 8, the suffering Saviour was the one
who "was by Him, as one brought tip with Him," He was
"daily His delight." His own joy had been
to behold the Father's countenance. The Father's
presence had been His home, the Father's bosom His
dwelling-place, the Father's glory He bad shared before
ever the world was. During the thirty and three years
the Son had been on earth He enjoyed unbroken communion
with the Father. Never a thought that was out of harmony
with the Father's mind, never a volition but what
originated in the Father's will, never a moment spent
out of His conscious presence. What then must it have
meant to be "forsaken" now by God! Ah, the
hiding of Gods face from Him was the most
bitter ingredient of that cup which the Father had given
the Redeemer to drink.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
These are words of unequalled
pathos. They mark the climax of His sufferings. The
soldiers had cruelly mocked Him: they had arrayed Him
with the crown of thorns, they had scourged and buffeted
Him, they even went so far as to spit upon Him and pluck
off His hair. They despoiled Him of His garments and put
Him to an open shame. Yet He suffered it all in silence.
They pierced His hands and His feet, yet did He endure
the Cross, despising the shame. The vulgar crowd
taunted Him, and the thieves which were crucified with
Him flung the same taunts into His face; yet He opened
not His mouth. In response to all that He suffered at
the hands of men, not a cry escaped His lips. But now,
as the concentrated wrath of Heaven descends upon Him,
He cries, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?"
Surely this is a cry that ought to melt the hardest
heart!
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?'
These are words of deepest mystery.
Of old the Lord Jehovah forsook not His people.
Again and again He was their refuge in trouble. When
Israel were in cruel bondage they cried unto God, and He
heard them. When they stood helpless before the Red Sea,
He came to their aid and delivered them from their
enemies. When the three Hebrews were cast into the fiery
furnace, the Lord was with them. But here, at the Cross,
there ascends a more plaintive and agonizing cry than
ever went up from the land of Egypt, yet was there no
response! Here was a situation far more alarming than
the Red Sea crisis: enemies mote relentless beset this
one, yet was there no deliverance! Here was a fire that
burned infinitely fiercer than Nebuchadnezzar's
furnace, but there was no one by His side to
comfortl He is abandoned by
God!
Yes,
this cry of the suffering Saviour is deeply mysterious.
At first He had cried, "Father, forgive them, for they
know not what they do," and this we can understand, for
it well accords with His compassionate heart. Again had
He opened His mouth, to say to the repentant thief,
"Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with Me in
Paradise," and this too, we can well understand,
for it was in full keeping with His grace toward
sinners. Once more His lips moved-to His mother, "Woman,
behold thy Son;" to the beloved John, "Behold thy
mother" -- and this also we can appreciate. But the next
time He opens His mouth a cry is made which startles and
staggers us. Of old David said, "I have never seen the
righteous forsaken," but here we behold the Bighteons
One forsaken.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
These are words of Profoundest
solemnity. This was a cry which made the very earth
tremble, and that reverberated throughout the entire
universe, Ab, what mind is sufficient for contemplating
this wonder of wonders! What mind is capable of
analyzing the meaning of this amazing cry which rent the
awful darkness! "Why hast Thou forsaken Me?" are words
which conduct us into the Holy of Holies. Here, if
anywhere, it is supremely fitting that we remove the
shoes of carnal inquisitiveness. Speculation were
profane: we can but wonder and
worship.
But
though these words are of startling import, appalling
woe, deepest mystery, unique pathos, and profound
solemnity, yet are we not left in ignorance as to their
meaning. True, this cry was deeply mysterious, yet is it
capable of most blessed solution. The Holy
Scriptures leave it impossible to doubt that these words
of unequalled grief were both the fullest manifestation
of Divine love and the most awe-inspiring display of
God's inflexible justice. May every thought be now
brought-into captivity to Christ and may our hearts be
duly solemnized as we take a closer view of this fourth
utterance of the dying Saviour.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
1. Here We See The Awfulness Of
Sin And The Character of Its Wages.
The
Lord Jesus was crucified at mid-day, and in the light of
Calvary everything was revealed in its true character.
There the very nature of things was fully and finally
exhibited. The depravity of the human heart-its
hatred of God, its base ingratitude, its loving of
darkness rather than light, its preference of a
murderer for the Prince of life-was fearfully
displayed. The awful character of the Devil -- his
hostility against God, his insatiable enmity against
Christ, his power to put it into the heart of man to
betray the Saviour -- was completely exposed. So, too,
the perfections of the Divine nature-God's
ineffable holiness, His inflexible justice, His
terrible wrath, His matchless grace -- was fully made
known. And there it was also, that sin -- its baseness,
its turpitude, its lawlessness-was plainly exhibited.
Here we are shown the fearful lengths to which sin will
go. In its first manifestation it took the form of
suicide, for Adam destroyed his own spiritual life; next
we see it in the form of fratricide -- Cain slaying
his own brother; but at the Cross the climax is reached
in deicide -- man crucifying the Son of
God.
But
not only do we see the heinousness of sin at the Cross,
but there we also discover the character of its awful
wages. "The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). Death is
the entail of sin. "By one man sin entered into the
world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all
men, for that all have sinned" (Rom. 5:12). Had there
been no sin there would have been no death. But what is
"death?" Is it that dreadful silence which reigns
supreme after the last breath is drawn and the body lies
motionless? Is it that ghastly pallor which comes over
the face as the blood ceases to circulate and the eyes
remain expressionless? Yes, it is that, but much more.
Something far more pathetic and tragic than physical
dissolution is contained in the term. The wages of sin
is spiritual death. Sin
separates from God who is the Fount of all life. This
was shown forth in Eden. Previous to the Fall, Adam
enjoyed blessed fellowship with his Maker, but in the
early eve of that day that marked the entrance of sin
into our world, as be Lord God entered the Garden and
His voice was heard by our first parents, the guilty
pair hid themselves among the trees
of the garden. No longer might they enjoy communion with
Him Who is always Light, instead, they are alienated from Him. So, too,
was it with Cain: when interrogated by the Lord he said,
"From Thy face shall I be bid?
(Gen. 4:14). Sin excludes from God's presence. That was
the great lesson taught Israel. Jehovah's throne
was in their midst, yet was it not accessible. He abode
between the cherubim in the holy of holies and into it
none might come, saving the high priest, and he but one
day in the year bearing blood with him. The Veil which
bung both in the tabernacle and in the temple, barring
access to the throne of God, witnessed to the solemn
fact that sin separates from Him
.
The
wages of sin is death, not only physical but spiritual
death; not merely natural but essentially, penal death. What is physical
death? It is the separation of soul and spirit from the
body, So penal death is the separation of the soul and
spirit from God. The Word of Truth speaks of her that
lives in pleasure as being "dead while she liveth" (I Tim.
5:6). Note, too, how that wonderful parable of the
prodigal son illustrates the force of the term "death."
After the return of the prodigal the father said, "This
my son was dead, and is alive again; he
was lost, and is found" (Luke 15:24). While he was in
the "far country" he had not ceased to exist; no, he was
not dead physically, but spiritually -- he was alienated
and separated from his
father!
Now on
the Cross the Lord Jesus was receiving the wages which
were due His people. He had no sin of His own, for He
was the Holy One of God. But He was bearing our sins in His own body on the
tree (I Peter 2:24). He had taken our place and was
suffering the just for the unjust. He was bearing the
chastisement of our peace; and the wages of our sins,
the suffering and chastisement which were due us,
was "death." Not merely physical but penal; and, as we
have said, this meant separation from God, and hence it
was that the Saviour cried, "My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
So,
too, will it be with the finally impenitent. The awful
doom awaiting the lost is thus set forth -- "Who shall
be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of His power" (II Thess. 1:9).
Eternal separation from Him who is the Fount of all
goodness and the Source of all blessing. Unto the wicked
Christ shall say, "Depart front Me, ye cursed" --
banishment from His presence, an eternal exile from God,
is what awaits the damned. This is the reason why the
Lake of Fire -- tbe eternal abode of those whose names
are not written in the book of life -- is designated "The Second Death" (Rev.
20:14). Not that there will be extinction of being, but
everlasting separation from the Lord of Life, a
separation which Christ suffered for three hours as He
hung in the sinner's place. At the Cross, then, Christ
received the wages of sin.
"My
God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken
Me?"
2.
Here We See The Absolute Holiness And Inflexible Justice
Of God.
The
tragedy of Calvary must be viewed from at least four
different viewpoints. At the Cross man did a work: he displayed
his depravity by taking the Perfect One and with "wicked
hands" nailing Him to the tree. At the Cross Satan did a work: he
manifested his insatiable enmity against the
woman's seed by bruising His heel. At the Cross the Lord Jesus did a work: He
died the Just for the unjust that He might bring us to
God, At the Cross God did a work; He exhibited His
holiness and satisfied His justice by pouring out His
wrath on the One who was made sin for
us.
What
human pen is able or fit to write about the unsullied Holiness of God! So holy is God
that mortal man cannot look upon Him in His essential
Being, and live. So holy is God that the very heavens
are not clean in His sight. So holy is God that even the
seraphim veil their faces before Him. So holy is God
that when Abraham stood before Him, He cried, "I am but
dust and ashes" (Gen. 18:27). So holy is God that when
job came into His presence he said, "Wherefore I abhor
myself' (job. 42:6). SO holy is God that when Isaiah had
a vision of His glory he exclaimed, "Woe is me! for I am
undone ... for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of
hosts" (Isa. 6:6). So holy is God that when Daniel
beheld Him in theophanic manifestation he declared,
"there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was
turned -in me into corruption" (Dan. 10:8). So holy is
God that we are told, "He is of purer eyes than to
behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity" (Hab. 1:13). And it
was because the Saviour was bearing our sins that the
thrice holy God would not look on Him, turned His face
from Him, forsook Him. The Lord made to meet on Christ
the iniquities of us all: and our sins being on Him as
our Substitute, the Divine wrath against our offenses
must be spent upon our sin-offering.
"My
God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" That was a
question which none of those around the Cross could have
answered; it was a question which, at that time, none of
the apostles could have answered; yea, it was a question
which h-ad puzzled the angels in Heaven to make reply
to. But the Lord Jesus had answered His own question,
and His answer is found in Psalm twenty-two. This Psalm
furnished a most wonderful prophetic foreview of His
sufferings. The Psalm opens with the very words of our
Saviour's fourth Cross-utterance, and it is
followed by further agonizing sobs in the same
strain till, at verse three we find Him saying -- "But Thou art holy." He
complains not of injustice, instead, He acknowledges
God's righteousnessThou art holy and just in
exacting all the debt at My hand which I am Surety for;
I have all the sins of all My people to answer for, and
therefore I justify Thee, 0 God, in-giving Me this
stroke from Thine awakened sword. Thou art Holy: Thou
art clear when Thou judgest.
At the
Cross then, as nowhere else we see the infinite
malignity of sin and the justice of God in the
punishment thereof. Was the old world over-flown with
water? Were Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed by a storm of
fire and brimstone? Were the plagues sent upon Egypt and
was Pharoah and his hosts drowned in the Red Sea? In
these may the demerit of sin and God's hatred thereof be
seen; but much more so here is Christ forsaken of God.
Go to Golgotha and see the Man that is Jehovah's Fellow
drinking up the cup of His Father's indignation, smitten
by the sword of Divine justice, bruised by the Lord
Himself, suffering unto death, for God "spared not His
own Son" when He hung in the sinner's
place.
Behold
how nature herself had anticipated the dreadful
Tragedy-the very contour of the ground is like unto a
skull. Behold the earth trembling beneath the mighty
load of outpoured wrath. Behold the heavens as the sun
turns away from such a scene, and the land is covered
with darkness. Here may we see the dreadful anger of a
sin-avenging God. Not all the thunderbolts of
Divine judgment which were let loose in Old Testament
times, not all the vials of wrath which shall yet be
poured forth on an apostate Christendom during the
unparalleled horrors of the Great Tribulation, not all
the weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth of
the damned in the Lake of Fire ever gave, or ever will
give such a demonstration of God's inflexible justice
and in. eff able holiness, of His infinite hatred of
sin, as did the wrath of God which flamed against His
own Son on the Cross. Because He was enduring sin's
terrific judgment He was forsaken of God. He who was the
Holy One, whose own abhorrence of sin was
infinite, who was purity incarnate (I John 3:3) was
"made sin for us" (11 Cor. 5:21); therefore did He bow
before the storm of wrath, in which was displayed the
Divine displeasure against the countless sins of a great
multitude whom no man can number. This, then, is
the true explanation of Calvary. God's holy character
could not do less than judge sin even though it be
found on Christ Himself. At the Cross then God's justice
was satisfied and His holiness
vindicated.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
3.
Here We See The Explanation Of
Gethsemane.
As our
blessed Lord approached the Cross the horizon
darkened for Him more and more. From earliest
infancy He had suffered from nwn; from the beginning of His
public ministry He had suffered from Satan; but at the Cross He was
to suffer at the Hand of God. Jehovah Himself was to
bruise the Saviour, and it was this which overshadowed
everything else. In Gethsemane He entered the gloom of
the three hours of darkness on the Cross. That is why He
left the three disciples on the outskirts of the garden,
for He must tread the winepress alone. "My soul is
exceeding sorrowful" He cried. This was no
shrinking horror in anticipation of a cruel death.
It was not the thought of betrayal by His own familiar
friend, nor of desertion by His cherished disciples
in the hour of crisis, nor was it the expectation of the
mockings and revilings, the stripes and the nails,
that overwhelmed His soul. No, all of this keenest
anguish as it must have been to His sensitive spirit,
was as nothing compared with what He had to endure as
the Sin-Bearer.
"Then
cometh Jesus with them unto a place called
Gethsernane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye
here, while I go and pray yonder. And He took with Him,
Peter, and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be
sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith He unto them, My
soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye
here, and watch with Me. And He went a little farther,
and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father,
if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me:
nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt" (Matt.
26:36-39). Here He views the black clouds arising, He
sees the dreadful storm coming, He premeditated the
inexpressible horror of that three hours darkness and
all they held. "My soul is exceeding sorrowful" He
cries. The Greek is most emphatic. He was begirt with
sorrow. He was plunged over head and ears in the
anticipated wrath of God. All the faculties and powers
of His soul were wrung with anguish. St. Mark employs
another form of expression-1le began to be sore amazed"
(14: 33). The original signifies the greatest extremity
of amazement, such as makes one's hair stand on end and
their flesh to creep. And, Mark adds, "and to be very
heavy," which denotes there was an utter sinking of
spirit; His heart was melted like wax at sight of the
terrible Cup. But the evangelist Luke uses the
strongest terms of all: "And being in an agony He
prayed more earnestly: and His sweat was as it were
great drops of blood falling down to the ground" (Luke
22:44). The Greek word for "agony" here, rneans to be
engaged in a combat. Before, He had combated the
oppositions of men and the oppositions of the Devil, but
now He faces the cup which God gives Him to drink. It
was the cup which contained the undiluted wrath of a
sin-hating God. This explains why He said, "If it be
possible let this cup pass from Me." The
"cup" is the symbol of Communion, and there could be no
communion in His wrath, but only in His love.
Notwithstanding; though it means being cut off from
communion He adds, "Nevertheless not as I will, but
as Thou wilt." Yet so great was His agony that "His
sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down
to the ground." We think that there can be little doubt
that the Saviour shed actual drops of blood. There would
be little meaning in saying that His sweat resembled blood, but was not really that. It seems to us
the emphasis is on the word "blood." He shed blood -- just like great beads
of water in ordinary cases. And here we see
the fitness of the place chosen to . be the scene of
this trrible but preliminary suffering. "Gethsemane" --
ah, thy name betrayeth thee! It means the olive-press.
It was the place where the life-blood of the olives was
pressed out drop by drop! The chosen place was well
named then. It was indeed a fit footstool to the
Cross, a footstool of agony unutterable and
unparalleled. On the Cross then, Christ drained the
Cup which was presented to Him in
Gethsemane.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
4.
Here We See The Savior's Unswerving Fidelity To
God.
The
forsaking of the Redeemer by God was a solemn fact, and
an experience which left Him nothing but the supports of
His faith. Our Saviour's
position on the Cross was absolutely unique. This may
readily be seen by contrasting His own words spoken
during His public ministry with those uttered on the
Cross itself. Formerly He said, "And I knew that Thou hearest Me always" (John
11:42); now He cries, "0 My God, I cry in the day time,
but Thou hearest not" (Psa.
22-.2)1 Formerly He said, "And He that sent Me is with
Me: the Father hath not left Me alone"
(John 8:29); now He cries, "My God, My God, why hast Thou FORSAKEN Me?' He
had absolutely nothing now to rest upon save His
Father's covenant and promise; and in His cry of anguish
His faith is made manifest. It was a cry of
distress but not of distrust. God had withdrawn
from Him, but mark how His soul still cleaves to God.
His faith triumphed by laying hold of God even amid the
darkness. "My God" He says, "My God," Thou with whom is
infinite and everlasting strength; Thou who hast
hitherto supported My manhood, and according to Thy
promise upheld Thy servant -- O be not far from Me now.
My God I lean on Thee. When all visible and sensible
comforts had disappeared, to the invisible support and
refuge of His faith did the Saviour betake
Himself.
In the
twenty-second Psalm the Saviour's unswerving fidelity to
God is most apparent. In this precious Psalm the depths
of His heart are told out. Hear Him: "Our Fathers
trusted in Thee: they trusted, and Thou didst deliver
them. They cried unto Thee, and were delivered: they
trusted in Thee, and were not confounded. But I am a
worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the
people. All they that see Me laugh Me to scorn: -they
shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He
trusted
on the Lord that He would deliver Him: let Him
deliver Him, seeing He delighted in Him. But Thou art He
that took Me out
of the womb: Thou didst make Me hope when I was
upon My mother's breasts. I was cast upon Thee from the
womb:
Thou art My God from My mother's belly' (Psa.
22:4-10). The very point His enemies sought to make
against Him was His faith in God. They taunted Him with
His "trust" in Jehovah if He really trusted in the Lord, the
Lord would deliver Him.
But
the
Saviour continued trusting though there
was no deliverance, trusted
though "forsaken" for a season! He had been cast upon
God from the womb and He is still found cast upon God in
the hour of His death. He continues, "Be not far from
Me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help. Many
bulls have compassed Me: strong bulls of Bashan have
beset Me round. They gaped upon Me with their mouths, as
a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like
water, and all My bones are out of joint: My heart is
like wax; it is melted in the midst of My bowels. My
strength is dried up like a potsherd; and My tongue
cleaveth to My jaws; and Thou hast brought Me into the
dust of death, For dogs have compassed Me: the assembly
of the wicked have enclosed Me: they pierced My hands
and My feet. I may tell all My bones: they look and
stare upon Me. They part My garments among them and cast
lots upon My vesture. But be not Thou far from Me, O
Lord; O My strength, haste Thee to help Me. Deliver My
soul from the sword; My darling from the power of the
dog" (Psa. 22:11-20). Job had said of God, "Though He
slay Me yet will I trust Him," and though the wrath of
God against sin rested upon Christ, still He trusted.
Yea, His faith did more than trust, it triumphed --
"Save Me from the lion's mouth: for thou hast heard Me from the horns of
the unicorns" (Psa. 22:11)
O what
an example has the Saviour left His people! It is
comparatively easy to trust God while the sun is
shining, the test comes when all is dark. But a faith
that does not rest on God in adversity as well as in
prosperity is not the faith of Gods elect: We must have
faith to live by-true faith-if we would have faith to
die by. The Saviour had been cast upon God from His
mother's womb, bad been cast upon God moment by moment
all through those thirty-three years, what wonder then
that the hour of death finds Him still cast upon God.
Fellow-Christian, all may be dark with thee, you may no
longer behold the light of God's countenance. Providence
seems to frown upon you, notwithstanding, say still
Eli, Eli, My God, My God.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
5.
Here We May See The Basis Of Our
Salvation.
God is
Holy and therefore He will not look upon sin. God is
just and therefore He judges sin wherever it is found.
But God is Love as well: God delighteth in mercy, and
therefore infinite wisdom devised a way whereby justice
might be satisfied and mercy left free to flow out to
guilty sinners. This way was the way of Substitution,
the just suffering for the unjust. The Son of God
Himself was the one selected to be the Substitute, for
none other would suffice. Through Nahum, the question
had been asked, "Who can stand before His
indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness
of His anger?" (1:6). This question received its answer
in the adorable person of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. He alone could "stand." One only could bear the
curse and yet rise a victor above it. One only could
endure all the avenging wrath and yet magnify the
law and make it honorable. One only could suffer His
heel to be bruised by Satan and yet in that bruising
destroy him that had the power of death. God laid hold
upon One that was "mighty" (Psa. 89:19), one who
was no less than the Fellow of Jehovah, the Radiance of
His glory, the exact Impress of His person. Thus we see
that boundless love, inflexible justice and omnipotent
power all combined to make possible the-salvation
of those who believe.
At the
Cross all our iniquities were laid upon Christ and
therefore did Divine judgment fall upon Him. There was
no way of transferring sin without also transferring its
penalty. Both sin and its punishment were transferred to
the Lord Jesus. On the Cross Christ was making
propitiation, and propitiation is solely Godwards. It was a question of
meeting the claims of God's holiness; it was a
matter of satisfying the demands of His justice. Not
only was Christ's blood shed for us, but it was also
shed for God: He "hath given Himself for
us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling
savor" (Eph. 5:2). Thus it was foreshadowed on the
memorable night of the Passover in Egypt: the lamb's
blood must be where God's eye could see it -- "When I
see the blood, I will pass over
you!"
The
Death of Christ on the Cross was a death of Curse:
"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for
it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a
tree" (Gal. 3:13). The "curse" is alienation from God.
This is apparent from the words which Christ will yet
speak to those that shall stand on His left hand in the
day of His power -- "Depart from Me, ye cursed" He will say
(Matt. 25:41). The curse is exile from the presence and
glory of God. This explains the meaning of a number of
Old Testament types. The bullock which was slain on the
annual Day of Atonement, after its blood had been
sprinkled upon and before the mercy-seat, was removed to
a place without (outside) the Camp"
(Lev. 16:27) and there its entire carcass was
burned. It was in the center of the Camp that God had
His dwelling-place, and exclusion from the Camp was
banishment from the presence of God. Thus it was, too,
with the leper. "All the days wherein the plague shall
be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall
dwell alone; without the Camp shall his
habitation be" (Lev. 13:46) -- this because the
Leper was the embodied type of the sinner. Here also is
the Anti-type of the "brazen serpent." Why did God
instruct Moses to set a .serpenf' on a pole, and bid the
bitten Israelites look upon it? Imagine a serpent as a type of Christ the
Holy One of God! Yes, but it represented Him as 'made a
curse for us," for the serpent
was the reminder of the Curse. On the Cross then Christ
was fulfilling these Old Testament foreshadowings. He
was "outside the Camp" (compare Heb. 13:12) -separated
from the presence of God. He was as the "leper"-made sin
for us. He was as the "brazen serpenf'-made a curse for
us. Hence too, the deep meaning of the Crown of Thorns
-- the symbol of the Curse! Lifted up, His brow
encircled with thorns, to show He was bearing the Curse
for us.
Here,
too, is the significance of the three hours Darkness
which lay over the land as a pall of death. It was
supernatural darkness. It was not night for the sun was
at its zenith. As Mr. Spurgeon well said "It was
midnight at midday." It was no eclipse. Competent
astronomers tell us that at the time of the Crucifixion
the moon was at her farthest from the sun. But this Cry
of Christ's gives the meaning of the Darkness, as the
Darkness gives us the meaning of that bitter Cry.
One thing alone can explain this Darkness, as one thing
alone can interpret this Cry that Christ had taken
the place of guilty and lost ones, that He was in the
place of sin-bearing, that He was enduring the
judgment due His people, that He who knew no sin
was "made sin for us. That Cry was uttered that we might
be allowed to know of what passed there. It was the manifestation of Atonement, so
to speak for three (three hours) is ever the number of
manifestation. God is Light and the "darkness" is
the natural sign of His turning away. The Redeemer was
left alone with the sinner's sin:
that was the explanation of the three hours darkness,
just as there will rest upon the damned a twofold misery
in the lake of Fire, namely, the pain of sense and the
pain of loss; so upon Christ answerably, He suffered the
outpoured wrath of God and also the withdrawal of His
presence and fellowship.
For
the believer the Cross is interpreted in Gal. 2:20-21 am
crucified with Christ." He was my Substitute; God
reckoned me one with the Saviour. His death was mine. He
was wounded for my transgressions and bruised
for my iniquities. Sin was not
pushed
away but put away. As another has said, "Because God
judged sin on the Son, He now accepts the
believing sinner in the Son." Our life is hid with
Christ in God (Col. 3:3). I am shut up in Christ because
Christ was shut out from God.
"He suffered in our stead,
He saved His people thus;
The Curse that fell upon His
head, was due by right to us.
The storm that bowed His
blessed head, is hushed for ever now
And
rest Divine is mine instead, while glory crowns His
brow."
Here
then is the basis of our Salvation. Our sins have been
home. God's claims against us have been fully met.
Christ was forsaken of God for a season that we might
enjoy His presence forever. "My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?" Let every believing soul make answer:
He entered the awful Darkness that I might walk in
the Light; He drank the cup of woe that I might drink
the cup of joy; He was forsaken that I might be
forgiven!
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
6.
Here We See The Supreme Evidence Of Christ's Love For
Us.
"Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends"
(John 15:13). But the greatness of Christ's love can be estimated
only when we are able to measure what was involved in
the "laying down" of His love. As we have seen, it
meant much more than physical death, even though that be
of unspeakable shame, and indescribable suffering. It
meant that He take our place and be "made sin" for us,
and what this involved can only be
judged in the light of His person. Picture a perfectly
honorable and virtuous woman compelled to endure for a
season association with the vilest and impurest, Imagine
her shut up in a den of iniquity, surrounded by the
coarsest of all men and women, and with no way of
escape. Can you estimate her abhorrence of the
foul-mouthed oaths, the drunken revelry, the obscene
surroundings? Can you form an opinion of what a pure
woman would suffer, in her soul amid such impurity? But
the illustration falls far short, for there is no woman
absolutely pure, -- honorable, virtuous, morally pure.
Yes, but pure in the sense of being sinless, spiritually
pure, No. But Christ was pure; absolutely pure. He
was the Holy One. He had an infinite abhorrence of sin.
He loathed it. His holy soul shrank from it. But on the
Cross our iniquities were all laid upon Him, and sin --
that vile thing -- enrapt itself around Him like a
horrible serpent's coils. And yet, He willingly suffered
for us! Why? Because He loved us: "Having loved His own
which were in the world, He loved them unto the end"
(John 13:1).
But
more: the greatness of Christ's love for us can be
estimated only when we are able to measure the
wrath of God that was poured upon Him. This it was from
which His soul shrank. What this meant to Him, what it cost
Him, may be learned in part by a perusal of the Psalms
in which we are permitted to hear some of His pathetic
soliloquisings and petitions to God. Speaking
anticipatively the Lord Jesus Himself by the Spirit
cried through David, "Save Me, O, God; for the waters
are come in unto My soul. I sink in deep mire, where
there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where
the floods overflow Me. I am weary of My crying: My
throat is dried: Mine eyes fail while I wait for My God
. . . Deliver Me out of the mire, and let Me not sink:
let Me be delivered from them that hate Me, and out of
the deep waters. Let not the waterflood overflow Me,
neither let the deep swallow Me up, and let not the pit
shut her mouth upon Me ... Hide not Thy face from Thy
servant; for I am in trouble; hear Me speedily. Draw
nigh unto My soul, and redeem it: deliver Me because of
Mine enemies. Thou hast known My reproach, and My shame,
and My dishonor: Mine adversaries are an before Thee.
Reproach hath broken My heart; and I am full of
heaviness: and I looked for some to take. pity, but
there was none; and for comforters, but I found none".
(Psa. 69:1-3, 14, 15, 17-20). And again, "Deep calleth
unto deep at the noise of Thy waterspouts: All Thy waves
and Thy billows are gone over Me" (Psa. 42:7). God's
abhorrence of sin swept forth and broke like a
descending deluge upon the Sin-Bearer. Looking forward
to the awful anguish of the Cross, He cried through
Jeremiah, "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?
behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto My
sorrow, which is done unto Me, where with the Lord hath afflicted Me in
the day of His fierce angel, (Lam. 1: 12).
These are a few of the intimations we have by which we
can judge of the unspeakable horror with which the Holy
One contemplated those three hours on the Cross, hours
into which was condensed the equivalent of an eternal
hell. The Beloved of the Father must have the light of
God's countenance hidden from Him; He must be left alone
in the outer darkness.
Here
was Love matchless and unmeasured. "If it be
possible let this cup pass from Me" He cried. But
it was not possible that His people should be saved
unless He drained that awful cup of woe and wrath; and
because there was none other could drink it, He drained it. Blessed be His
name! Where sin had brought men, Love brought the
Saviour.
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
7.
Here We See The Destruction Of The Larger
Hope
This
cry of the Saviour's foretells the final condition of
every lost soul-forsaken of Godl Faithfulness compels us
to warn the reader against the false teachings of the
day. We are told that God loves everybody, and that He
is too merciful to ever carry out the threatenings of
His Word. This is precisely how the old Serpent argued
with Eve. God had said, "in the day thou eatest thereof
thou shalt surely die." The Serpent said,
"Ye shall not, surely die." But whose
word proved true? Not the Devil's for he is a liar from
the beginning. God's threat was fulfilled, and our first
parents died spiritually in the day that they disobeyed
His command. Thus will it prove in a coming day. God is
merciful: the fact that He has provided a Saviour,
reader, proves it. The fact that He invites you to
receive Christ as your Saviour evidences His mercy. The
fact that He has been so longsuffering with you, has
borne with your stubborn rebellion till now, has
prolonged your clay of grace to this moment, proves it.
But there is a limit to God's mercy. The day of mercy
will soon be ended. The door of hope will soon be closed
fast. Death may speedily cut thee off, and after death
is "the judgment." And in the Day of judgment God will
deal in justice and not in mercy. He will avenge the
mercy you have scorned. He will execute the sentence, of
condemnation already passed upon you: "He that believeth
not! shall be damned (Mark 16:16).
We
will not repeat again what has already been said at
length, sufficient now to remind the reader once more
how this Cry of Christ witnesses to God's hatred of sin.
Because He is holy and just, God must judge sin wherever
it is found. If then God spared not the Lord Jesus when
sin was found on Him, what possible hope is there,
unsaved reader, that He will spare them when thou standest before
Him at the great white throne with sin upon thee? If God
poured out His wrath on Christ while He hung as Surety
for His people, be assured that He will most certainly
pour out His wrath on you if you die in your sins. The
Word of Truth is explicit -- "He that believeth not the
Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on
him" (John 3:36). God "spared not" His own Son when
He took the sinner's place, nor will He spare him who
rejects the Saviour. Christ was separated from God for
three hours, and if you finally reject His as your
Saviour you will be separated from God for ever --
"Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord" (11 Thess.
1:9).
"My God, My God, why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
Here was a Cry of
Desolation: Reader ' may you never echo it.
Here was a Cry of
Separation: Reader, may you never experience it.
Here was a Cry of Expiation: Reader, may you
appropriate its saving virtues.
5
THE WORD OF SUFFERING
"Jesus knowing that all
things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might
be fulfilled, saith,
I
thirst. (John 19:28).
"I THIRST." These words were
spoken by the suffering Saviour a little before he bowed
his head and gave up the spirit, They are recorded only
by the evangelist John and, as we shall see, it is
fitting they should have a place in his gospel for they
not only evidence his humanity but bring out his divine
glory too.
"I thirst." What a text for
a sermon! A short one it is true, yet how comprehensive,
how expressive, and how tragic! The Maker of heaven and
earth with parched lips! The Lord of glory in need of a
drink! The Beloved of the Father crying "I thirst!" What
a scene! What a word is this! Plainly, no uninspired pen
drew such a picture.
Of old the Spirit of God
moved David to say of the coming Messiah, "They gave me
also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me
vinegar to drink" (Ps. 69:21). How marvelously complete
was the prophetic foreview! No essential item was
missing from it. Every important detail of the great
tragedy had been written down beforehand. The betrayal
by a familiar friend (Ps. 4 1:9), the forsaking of the
disciples through being offended at him (Ps. 31:11), the
false accusation (Ps. 35:11), the silence before his
judges (Isa. 53:7), the being proven guiltless (Isa.
53:9), the numbering of him with transgressors (Isa.
53:12), the being crucified (Ps. 22:16), the mockery of
the spectators (Ps. 109:25), the taunt of
non-deliverance (Ps. 22:7, 8), the gambling for his
garments (Ps. 22:18), the prayer for his enemies (Isa.
53:12), the being forsaken of God (Ps. 22:1), the
thirsting (Ps. 69:2 1), the yielding of his spirit into
the hands of the Father (Ps. 3 1:5), the bones not
broken (Ps. 34:20), the burial in a rich man’s tomb
(Isa. 53:9); all plainly foretold centuries before they
came to pass. What a convincing evidence of the divine
inspiration of the scriptures! How firm a foundation ye
saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in his
excellent word!
"I thirst." The fact that
this is recorded as one of the seven cross-utterances of
our Lord intimates that it is a word of precious
meaning, a word to be treasured up in our hearts, a word
deserving of prolonged meditation. We have seen that
each of the previous sayings of the suffering Saviour
have much to teach us, surely this one can be no
exception. What then are we to gather from it? What are
the lessons which this fifth cross-word teaches us? May
the Spirit of truth illumine our understanding as we
endeavour to fix our attention upon
it.
"I thirst"
1. Here we have an evidence
of Christ’s humanity.
The Lord Jesus was very God
of very God, but he was also very man of very man. This
is something to be believed and not for proud reason to
speculate upon. The person of our adorable Saviour is
not a fit object for intellectual diagnosis; rather must
we bow before him in worship. He himself warned us, "No
man knoweth the Son, but the Father" (Matthew 11:27).
And again, the Spirit of God through the apostle Paul
declares, "Without controversy great is the mystery of
godliness: God was manifest in the flesh" (1 Tim. 3:16).
While then there is much about the person of Christ
which we cannot fathom with our own understanding, yet
there is everything about him to admire and adore:
foremost are his deity and humanity, and the perfect
union of these two in one person. The Lord Jesus was not
a divine man, nor a humanized God; he was the God-man.
Forever God, and now forever man.
When the Beloved of the
Father became incarnate he did not cease to be God, nor
did he lay aside any of his divine attributes, though he
did strip himself of the glory which he had with the
Father before the world was. But in the incarnation the
Word became flesh and tabernacled among men. He ceased
not to be all that he was previously, but he took to
himself that which he had not before - perfect
humanity.
The deity and the humanity
of the Saviour were each contemplated in Messianic
prediction. Prophecy represented the coming one
sometimes as divine, sometimes as human. He was the
Branch "of the Lord" (Isa. 4:2). He was the Wonderful
Counsellor, the mighty God, the Father of the ages
(Hebrews), the "Prince of peace" (Isa. 9:6). The one who
was to come forth out of Bethlehem and be ruler in
Israel, was one whose goings forth had been from the
days of eternity (Micah 5:2). It was none less than
Jehovah himself who was to come suddenly to the temple
(Mal. 3:1). Yet, on the other hand, he was the woman’s
"seed" (Gen. 3:15); a prophet like unto Moses (Deut.
18:18); a lineal descendant of David (2 Sam. 7:12, 13).
He was Jehovah’s "servant" (Isa. 42:1). He was "the man
of sorrows" (Isa. 53:3). And it is in the New Testament
we see these two different sets of prophecy
harmonized.
The one born at Bethlehem
was the divine Word. The Incarnation does not mean that
God manifested himself as a man. The Word became flesh;
he became what he was not before, though he never ceased
to be all he was previously. He who was in the form of
God and thought it not robbery to be equal with God
"made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the
form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men"
(Phil. 2:6, 7). The babe of Bethlehem was Immanuel - God
with us -he was more than a manifestation of God, he was
God manifest in the flesh. He was both Son of God and
Son of Man. Not two separate personalities, but one
person possessing two natures - the divine and the
human.
While here on earth the Lord
Jesus gave full proof of his deity. He spake with divine
wisdom, he acted in divine holiness, he exhibited divine
power, and he displayed divine love. He read men’s
minds, moved men’s hearts, and compelled men’s wills.
When he was pleased to exert his power all nature was
subject to his bidding. A word from him and disease
fled, a storm was stilled, the devil left him, the dead
were raised to life. So truly was he God manifest in the
flesh, he could say, "he that hath seen me, hath seen
the Father."
So, too, while he
tabernacled among men, the Lord Jesus gave full proof of
his humanity - sinless humanity. He entered this world
as a babe and was "wrapped in swaddling clothes" (Luke
2:7). As a child, we are told, he "increased in wisdom
and stature" (Luke 2:52). As a boy we find him "asking
questions" (Luke 2:46). As a man he was "wearied" in
body (John 4:6). He was "an hungered" (Matthew 4:2). He
"slept" (Mark 4:38). He "marvelled" (Mark 6:6). He
"wept" (John 11:35). He "prayed" (Mark 1:35). He
"rejoiced" (Luke 10:21). He "groaned" (John 11:33). And
here in our text he cried, "I thirst". That evidenced
his humanity. God does not thirst. The angels do not. We
shall not in glory: "they shall hunger no more, neither
thirst anymore" (Revelation 7:16). But we thirst now
because we are human and living in a world of sorrow.
And Christ thirsted because he was man: "Wherefore in
all things it behooved him to be made like unto his
brethren" (Heb. 2:17).
"I
thirst"
2. Here we see the intensity
of Christ’s
sufferings.
Let us first consider this
cry of the Saviour’s as an expression of his bodily
suffering. To realize something of what lay behind these
words of his we must recall and review what preceded
them. After instituting the Supper in the upper room,
followed by the lengthy paschal discourse to his
apostles, the Redeemer adjourned to Gethsemane, and
there for an hour he passed through the most
excruciating agony. His soul was exceeding sorrowful. As
he contemplated the awful cup he shed not beads of
perspiration but great drops of
blood.
His wrestling in the Garden
was terminated by the appearing of the traitor
accompanied by the band who had come to arrest him. He
was brought before Caiaphas, and middle of the night
though it was, he was examined and condemned. The
Saviour was held until early morning, and after the
weary hours of waiting were over, was brought before
Pilate. Following a lengthy trial, orders were given for
him to be scourged. Next he was led, perhaps right
across the city, to Herod’s judgment-hall, and after a
brief appearance before this Roman prelate, he was
delivered into the hands of the brutal soldiers. Again
he was mocked and scourged, and again he was led across
the city, back to Pilate. Once more there was the weary
delay, the formalities of a trial, if such a farce
deserves the name, followed by the passing sentence of
death.
Then, with bleeding back,
carrying his cross under the heat of the now almost
midday sun, he journeyed up the rugged heights of
Golgotha. Reaching the appointed place of execution, his
hands and feet were nailed to the tree. For three hours
he hung there with the pitiless rays of the sun beating
down on his thorn-crowned head. This was followed by the
three hours of darkness, now over.
That night and that day were
hours into which an eternity was compressed. Yet during
it all not a single word of murmuring passed his lips.
There was no complaining, no begging for mercy. All his
sufferings had been borne in majestic silence. Like a
sheep dumb before her shearers, so he opened not his
mouth. But now, at the end, his whole body wracked with
pain, his mouth parched, he cries, "I thirst". It was
not an appeal for pity, nor a request for the
alleviation of his sufferings; it gave expression to the
intensity of the agonies he was
undergoing.
"I thirst." This was more
than ordinary thirst. There was something deeper than
physical sufferings behind it. A careful comparison of
our text with Matthew 27:48 shows these words "I thirst"
followed on immediately after the fourth of our
Saviour’s cross-utterances - "Eli, Eli, lama,
sabachthani" - for while the soldier was pressing the
sponge of vinegar to the sufferer’s lips, some of the
spectators cried out, "Let be, let us see whether Elias
will come to save him". We all know the internal trials
of the soul react upon the body, rending its nerves and
affecting its strength - "A broken spirit drieth the
bones" (Pro. 17:22); "When I kept silence, my bones
waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day
and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is
turned into the drought of summer" (Ps. 32:3,4). The
body and the soul sympathize with each other. Let us
remember that the Saviour had just emerged from the
three hours of darkness, during which God’s face had
been turned away from him as he endured the fierceness
of his out-poured wrath. This cry of bodily suffering
tells us, then, of the severity of the spiritual
conflict through which he had just passed! Speaking
anticipatively by the mouth of Jeremiah of this very
hour, he said, "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass
by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my
sorrow, which is done upon me, wherewith the Lord bath
afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger. From above
hath he sent fire into my bones, and it prevaileth
against them: he bath spread a net for my feet, he bath
turned me back: he hath made me desolate and faint"
(Lam. 1:12, 13). His "thirst" was the effect of the
agony of his soul in the fierce heat of God’s wrath. It
told of the drought of the land where the living God is
not. But more: it plainly expressed his yearning for
communion with God again, from whom for three hours he
had been separated. Was it not Christ himself who said
by the spirit of prophecy, said it now, immediately he
emerged from the darkness: "As the hart panteth after
the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when
shall I come and appear before God?" Do not the words
which follow identify the speaker and reveal the time
that longing and "panting" was expressed? "My tears have
been my meat day and night, while they continually say
unto me, Where is thy God?" (Ps.
42:1-3).
"I
thirst"
3. Here we see our Lord’s
deep reverence for the
scriptures.
How constantly the Saviour’s
mind turned toward the sacred oracles! He lived indeed
by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
He was the "Blessed Man" that meditated in God’s law
"day and night" (Ps. 1). The written word was that which
formed his thoughts, filled his heart, and regulated his
ways. The scriptures are the transcript of the Father’s
will, and that was ever his delight. In the temptation
that which was written was his defence. In his teaching
the statutes of the Lord were his authority. In his
controversies with the scribes and Pharisees, his appeal
was ever to the law and the testimony. And now, in his
death-hour his mind dwelt upon the word of
truth.
In order to get the primary
force of this fifth cross-utterance of the Saviour we
must note its setting: "Jesus knowing that all things
were now accomplished, that the scripture might be
fulfilled, saith, I thirst" (John 19:28). The reference
is to Psalm 69 - another of the Messianic psalms which
describes so graphically his passion. In it the spirit
of prophecy had declared, "They gave me also gall for my
meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink"
(v. 21). This remained yet unaccomplished. The
predictions of the previous verses had already received
fulfillment. He had sunk in the "deep mire" (v. 2); he
had been "hated without a cause" (v. 4); he had "borne
reproach and shame" (v. 7); he had "become a stranger
unto his brethren" (v. 8); he had become "a proverb" to
his revilers, and "the song of the drunkards" (vv. 11,
12); he had "cried unto God" in his distress (vv. 17-20)
- and now there remained nothing more than the offering
him the drink of vinegar and gall, and in order to
fulfill this he cried "I thirst".
"Jesus knowing that ALL
things were now accomplished, that the scripture might
be fulfilled, saith, I thirst." How completely
self-possessed the Saviour was! He had hung on that
cross for six hours and had passed through unparalleled
suffering, yet is his mind clear and his memory
unimpaired. He had before him, with perfect
distinctness, the whole truth of God. He reviewed the
entire scope of Messianic prediction. He remembers there
is one prophetic scripture unaccomplished. He overlooked
nothing. What a proof is this that he was divinely
superior to all circumstances!
Ere passing on we would
briefly point an application to ourselves. We have
remarked how the Saviour bowed to the authority of
scripture both in life and death; Christian reader, how
is it with thee? Is the book divine the final court of
appeal with you? Do you discover in it a revelation of
God’s mind and will concerning you? Is it a lamp unto
your feet? That is, are you walking in its light? Are
its commands binding on you?
Are you really obeying it?
Can you say with David, "I have chosen the way of truth:
thy judgments have I laid before me. I have stuck unto
thy testimonies... I thought on my ways, and turned my
feet unto thy testimonies. I made haste, and delayed not
to keep thy commandments" (Ps. 119:30,31,59,60)? Are
you, like the Saviour, anxious to fulfill the
scriptures? O may writer and reader seek grace to pray
from the heart, "Make me to go in the path of thy
commandments; for therein do I delight. Incline my heart
unto thy testimonies... Order my steps in thy word: and
let not any iniquity have dominion over me" (Ps. 119:35,
36, 133).
"I
thirst"
4. Here we see the Saviour’s
submission to the Father’s
will.
The Saviour thirsted, and he
who thirsted thus, remember, possessed all power in
heaven and earth. Had he chosen to exercise his
omnipotency, he could have readily satisfied his need.
He that of old had caused the water to flow from the
smitten rock for the refreshment of Israel in the
wilderness, had the same infinite resources at his
disposal now. He who turned the water into wine at a
word, could have spoken the word of power here, and met
his own need. But he never once performed a miracle for
his own benefit or comfort. When tempted by Satan to do
this he refused. Why did he now decline to satisfy his
pressing need? Why hang there on the cross with parched
lips? Because in the volume of the book which expressed
God’s will, it was written that he should thirst, and
that thirsting he should be "given" vinegar to drink.
And he came here to do God’s will, and therefore did he
submit.
In death, as in life,
scripture was for the Lord Jesus the authoritative word
of the living God. In the temptation he had refused to
minister to his need apart from that word by which he
lived, and so now he makes known his need, not that it
might be ministered unto, but that scripture might be
fulfilled. Mark he does not himself fulfill it, God can
be trusted to take care of that; but he gives utterance
to his distress so as to provide occasion for the
fulfillment. As another has said, "The terrible thirst
of crucifixion is upon him, but that is not enough to
force those parched lips to speak; but it is written: In
my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink - this opens
them" (F W Grant). Here then, as ever, he shows himself
in active obedience to the will of God, which he came to
accomplish. He simply says, "I thirst"; the vinegar is
tendered, and the prophecy is fulfilled. What perfect
absorption in his Father’s will!
Again we pause to point an
application to ourselves - a double one. First, the Lord
Jesus delighted in the Father’s will even when it
involved the suffering of thirst. Are we so resigned to
him? Have we sought grace to say, "Not my will, but
thine, be done"? Can we exclaim, "Even so, Father, for
so it seemed good in thy sight"? Have we learned in
whatever state we are in "therewith to be content"
(Phil. 4:11)?
But now mark a contrast. The
Son of God was denied a draught of cold water to relieve
his suffering - how different with us! God has given us
a variety of refreshments to relieve us, yet how often
are we unthankful! We have better things than a cup of
water to delight us when thirsty, yet often we are not
grateful. O if this cry of Christ’s were but believingly
considered, it would make us bless God for what we now
almost despise, and beget contentment in us for the most
common mercies. The Lord of glory cried "I thirst" and
had nothing in his extremity to comfort him, and dost
thou, who hast a thousand times forfeited all right to
temporal as well as spiritual mercies, slight the common
bounties of providence! What! grumble at a cup of water,
who deservest but a cup of wrath. O lay it to heart and
learn to be contented with what you have, though it be
but the very barest necessaries for life. Complain not
if you dwell in but a humble hovel, for your Saviour had
not where to lay his head! Complain not if you have
nought but bread to eat, for your Saviour lacked that
for forty days! Complain not if you have only water to
drink, for your Saviour was denied even that in the hour
of death!
"I
thirst"
5. Here we see how Christ
can sympathize with his suffering
people.
The problem of suffering has
ever been a perplexing one. Why should suffering be
necessary in a world that is governed by a perfect God?
A God who not only has the power to prevent evil, but
who is love. Why should there be pain and wretchedness,
sickness and death? As we look out on the world and take
cognizance of its countless sufferers, we are
bewildered. This world is but a vale of tears. A thin
veneer of gaiety scarcely succeeds in hiding the drab
facts of life. Philosophizing about the problem of
suffering brings scant relief. After all our reasonings
we ask, Does God see? Is there knowledge with the Most
High? Does he really care? Like all questions, these
must be taken to the cross. While they do not find there
a complete answer, nevertheless they do meet that which
satisfies the anxious heart. While the problem of
suffering is not fully solved there, yet the cross does
throw sufficient light upon it to relieve the tension.
The cross shows us that God is not ignorant of our
sorrows, for in the person of his Son he has himself
"borne our griefs and carried our sorrows" (Isa. 53:4)!
The cross shows us God is not unmindful of our distress
and anguish, for becoming incarnate, he suffered
himself! The cross tells us God is not indifferent to
pain for in the Saviour he experienced
it!
What then is the value of
these facts? This: "For we have not an high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities;
but was in all points tempted (or tried) like as we are,
yet without sin" (Heb. 4:15). Our Redeemer is not one so
removed from us that he is unable to enter,
sympathetically, into our sorrows, for he was himself
"the Man of Sorrows". Here then is comfort for the
aching heart. No matter how despondent you maybe, no
matter how rugged your path and sad your lot, you are
invited to spread it all before the Lord Jesus and cast
all your care upon him, knowing that "he careth for you"
(1 Peter 5:7). Is your body wracked with pain? So was
his! Are you misunderstood, misjudged, misrepresented?
So was he! Have those who are nearest and dearest turned
away from you? They did from him! Are you in the
darkness? So was he for three hours! "Wherefore in all
things it behooved him to be made like unto his
brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high
priest" (Heb. 2:17).
"I
thirst"
6. Here we see the
expression of a universal
need.
Whether he articulates it or
not the natural man, the world over, is crying "I
thirst". Why this consuming desire to acquire wealth?
Why this craving for the honours and plaudits of the
world? Why this mad rush after pleasure, the turning
from one form of it to another with persistent and
unwearied diligence? Why this eager search for wisdom -
this scientific inquiry, this pursuit of philosophy,
this ransacking of the writings of the ancients, and
this ceaseless experimentation by the moderns? Why the
insane craze for that which is novel? Why? Because there
is an aching void in the soul. Because there is
something remaining in every natural man that is
unsatisfied. This is true of the millionaire as much as
of the country rustic who has never been outside the
bounds of his native country: traveling from one end of
the earth to the other and back again, fails to discover
the secret of peace. Over all the cisterns of this
world’s providing is written in letters of ineffaceable
truth, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst
again" (John 4:13). So it is also with the religious man
or woman: we mean, the religious without Christ. How
many there are who go the weary round of religious
performances, and find nothing to meet their deep need!
They are members of an evangelical denomination, they
attend church regularly, contribute of their means to
the pastor’s support, read their Bibles occasionally,
and sometimes pray, or, if they use a "prayer-book" say
their prayers every night. And yet, after it all, if
they are honest, their cry is still "I
thirst".
The thirst is a spiritual
one: that is why natural things cannot quench it.
Unknown to themselves their soul "thirsteth for God"
(Ps. 42:2). God made us, and he alone can satisfy us.
Said the Lord Jesus, "Whosoever drinketh of the water
that I shall give him shall never thirst" (John 4:14).
Christ alone can quench our thirst. He alone can meet
the deep need of our hearts. He alone can impart that
peace which the world knows nothing of and can neither
bestow nor take away. O reader, once more I would
address myself to your conscience. How is it with thee?
Have you found that everything under the sun is only
vanity and vexation of spirit? Have you discovered that
the things of earth are unable to satisfy your heart"?
Is your soul-cry "I thirst"? Then, is it not good news
to hear there is one who can satisfy you? One we say,
not a creed, not a form of religion, but a person - a
living, divine person. He it is who says, "Come unto me,
all ye that labour and are heavy-laden, and I will give
you rest" (Matthew 11:28). Heed then that sweet
invitation. Come to him now, just as you are. Come in
faith, believing he will receive you; and then shall you
sing:
I
came to Jesus as I was,
Weary,
and worn, and sad;
I found in
him a resting place,
And he has
made me glad.
O come to Christ. Delay not.
You are "thirsty"? Then you are the one he is seeking
for: "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after
righteousness: for they shall be filled" (Matthew
5:6).
Unsaved reader, reject not
the Saviour, for if you die in your sins your eternal
cry will be "I thirst". This is the moan of the damned.
In the lake of fire the lost suffer amid the flames of
God’s wrath for ever and ever. If Christ cried "I
thirst" when he suffered the wrath of God for but three
hours, what is the state of those who have to endure it
for all eternity! When millions of years have gone, ten
millions more lie ahead. There is an everlasting thirst
in hell which admits of no relief. Remember the awful
words of the rich man: "And he cried, and said, Father
Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue;
for I am tormented in this flame" (Luke 16:24). O think,
my reader. If physical thirst in the extreme is
insufferable even now when endured but a few short
hours, what will that thirst be which is infinitely
beyond any present thirst, and which shall never be
quenched! Say not it is cruel of God to deal thus with
his erring creatures. Remember to what he exposed his
own dear Son, when sin was imputed to him - surely the
one who despises Christ is deserving of the hottest
place in hell! Again we say, Receive him now as yours.
Receive him as your Saviour, and submit to him as your
Lord.
"I
thirst"
7. Here we see the
enunciation of an abiding
principle.
There is a sense, a real
one, in which Christ still thirsts. He is thirsting for
the love and devotion of his own. He is yearning for
fellowship with his blood-bought people. Here is one of
the great marvels of grace - a redeemed sinner can offer
that which satisfies the heart of Christ! I can
understand how I ought to appreciate his love, but how
wonderful that he - the all-sufficient one - should
appreciate my love! I have learned how blessed to my own
soul is communion with him, but who would have supposed
that my communion was blessed to Christ! Yet it is. For
this he still "thirsts". Grace enables us to offer that
which refreshes him. Wondrous
thought!
Have you ever noticed in
John 4 that though Christ said to the woman who came to
the well, "Give me to drink" - for he sat there
"wearied" from the journey and heat - that he never took
a drink of water? In the salvation and faith of that
Samaritan woman he found that which refreshed his heart!
Love is never satisfied till there is a response and
love in return! So with Christ. Here is the key to
Revelation 3:20: "Behold, I stand at the door, and
knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I
will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with
me".
This is often applied to the
unsaved, but its primary reference is to the Church. It
pictures Christ seeking the fellowship of his own. He
speaks of "supping" and in scripture supping is ever
symbolic of communion, just as the Lord’s Supper is a
special season of communion between the Saviour and the
saved. And observe in this passage Christ speaks of a
double supping - "I will come in to him, and sup with
him, and he with me". Not only is it our unspeakable
privilege to sup with him, and to commune with him, to
delight ourselves in him, but he "sups" with us. He
finds in our communion something for his heart to feed
upon, something which refreshes him, and that something
is our devotion and love. Yes, the Christ of God still
"thirsts", thirsts for the affection of his own. O will
you not offer that which will satisfy him? Respond then
to his own call - "Set me as a seal upon thine heart"
(Song of Solomon 8:6).
6
THE WORD OF VICTORY
"When Jesus therefore had received
the vinegar, he said, It is
finished"
John 19:30
Our last two studies have
been occupied with the tragedy of the cross; we turn now
to its triumph. In his words, "My God, my God, why hast
thou forsaken me?" we beard the Saviour’s cry of desolation; in his words "I
thirst" we listened to his cry of lamentation; now there falls
upon our ears his cry of jubilation - "It is
finished". From the words of the victim we turn now to
the words of the victor, It is proverbial that every
cloud has its silver lining: so had the darkest cloud of
all. The cross of Christ has two great sides to it: it
showed the profound depths of his humiliation, but it
also marked the goal of the Incarnation, and further, it
told the consummation of his mission, and it forms the
basis of our salvation.
"It is finished." The
ancient Greeks boasted of being able to say much in
little - "to give a sea of matter in a drop of language"
was regarded as the perfection of oratory. What they
sought is here found. "It is finished" is but one word
in the original, yet in that word is wrapped up the
gospel of God; in that word is contained the ground of
the believer’s assurance; in that word is discovered the
sum of all joy, and the very spirit of all divine
consolation.
"It is finished." This was
not the despairing cry of a helpless martyr; it was not
an expression of satisfaction that the termination of
his sufferings was now reached; it was not the last gasp
of a worn-out life. No, rather was it the declaration on
the part of the divine Redeemer that all for which he
came from heaven to earth to do, was now done; that all
that was needed to reveal the full character of God had
now been accomplished; that all that was required by law
before sinners could be saved had now been performed:
that the flail price of our redemption was now
paid.
"It is finished." The great
purpose of God in the history of man was now
accomplished - accomplished de jure as it will yet be de facto. From the beginning,
God’s purpose has always been one and indivisible. It
has been declared to men in various ways: in symbol and
type, by mysterious hints and by plain intimations,
through Messianic prediction and through didactic
declaration. That purpose of God may be summarized thus:
to display his grace and to magnify his Son in the
creating of children in his own image and glory. And at
the cross the foundation was laid which was to make this
possible and actual.
"It is finished." What was
finished? The answer to this question is a very full
one, though a number of excellent expositors have sought
to limit the scope of these words and to confine them
strictly to a single application. We are told it was the prophecies concerning the
sufferings of the Saviour which were finished, and that
he referred only to this. It is readily
granted that the immediate reference was to the Messianic
predictions, yet we think there are good and sufficient
reasons for not confining our Lord’s words
here to them. Yea, to us it seems certain that Christ
referred specially to his sacrificial work, for all scripture concerning his
suffering and shame was not fulfilled. There still
remained the dismissal of his spirit into the hands of
the Father (Ps. 3 1:5); there still remained the
"piercing" with the spear (Zech. 12:10: and note that
the word used for the piercing of his hands and feet -
the act of crucifixion - in Ps.
22:16 is a different one); there still remained the
preserving of his bones unbroken (Ps. 34:20), and the
burial in the rich man’s grave (Isaiah
53:9).
"It is finished." What was finished? We answer,
his sacrificial work. It is true there yet remained the
act of death itself, which was necessary for the making
of atonement. But, as is so often the case here in
John’s Gospel - wherein our text is found - (cf.: John
12:23,31; 13:31; 16:5; 17:4),the Lord here speaks anticipatively of the
completion of his work, Moreover, it must be remembered
that the three hours darkness was already past, the
awful cup had already been drained, his precious blood
had already been shed, the outpoured wrath of God had
already been endured; and these are the primary elements
in the making of propitiation. The sacrificial work of
the Saviour, then, was completed, excepting only the act
of death which followed immediately. But, as we shall
see, the completing of the sacrificial work made an end
of a number of things, and to them we shall now turn our
attention.
"It is
finished"
1. Here we see the
accomplished fulfillment of all the prophecies which had
been written of him ere he should
die.
This is the immediate
thought of the context: "When Jesus therefore had received the
vinegar, he said, It is finished" (John 19:30).
Centuries beforehand, the prophets of God had described
step by step the humiliation and suffering which the
coming Saviour should undergo. One by one these had been
fulfilled, wonderfully fulfilled, fulfilled to the very
letter. Had prophecy declared that he should be the "woman’s seed" (Gen. 3:15): then
he was "born of a woman" (Gal.
4:4). Had prophecy announced that his mother should be a
"virgin" (Isa. 7:14): then was it literally fulfilled
(Matthew 1:18). Had prophecy revealed that he should be
of the seed of Abraham (Gen. 22; 18): then mark its
fulfillment (Matthew 1:1). Had prophecy made it known
that he should be a lineal descendant of David (2 Sam.
7:12, 13): then such he actually was (Rom. 1:3). Had
prophecy said that he should be named before he was born (Isa. 49:1):
then so it came to pass (Luke 1:30,31). Had prophecy
foretold that he should be born in Bethlehem of Judea
(Mic. 5:2): then mark how this very village was actually
his birthplace. Had prophecy forewarned that his birth
should entail sorrowing for others (Jer. 31:15): then
behold its tragic fulfillment (Matthew 2:16-18). Had
prophecy foreshown that the Messiah should appear before
the sceptre of tribal ascendancy had departed from Judah
(Genesis 49:10): then so he did, for though the ten
tribes were in captivity. Judah was still in the land at
the time of his advent. Had prophecy referred to the
flight into Egypt and the subsequent return into
Palestine (Hosea 11:1 and cf. Isa. 49:3, 6): then so it
came to pass (Matthew 2:14, 15).
Had prophecy made mention of
one going before Christ to make ready his way (Malachi
3:1): then see its fulfillment in the person of John the
Baptist. Had prophecy made it known that at the
Messiah’s appearing that "then the eyes of the blind
shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be
unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and
the tongue of the dumb sing" (Isa. 35:5,6): then read
through the four gospels and see how blessedly this
proved to be true. Had prophecy spoken of him as "poor
and needy" (Ps. 40:17 - see beginning of psalm): then
behold him not having where to lay his head. Had
prophecy intimated that he should speak in "parables"
(Ps. 78:2): then such was frequently his method of
teaching. Had prophecy depicted him stilling the tempest
(Ps. 107:29): then this is exactly what he did. Had
prophecy heralded his "triumphal entry" into Jerusalem
(Zech. 9:9): then so it came to
pass.
Had prophecy announced that
his person should be despised (Isa. 53:3); that he
should be rejected by the Jews (Isa. 8:14); that he
should be "hated without a cause" (Ps. 69:4): then sad
to say, such was precisely the case. Had prophecy
painted the whole picture of his degradation and
crucifixion - then was it vividly reproduced. There had
been the betrayal by a familiar friend, the forsaking by
his cherished disciples, the being led to the slaughter,
the being taken to judgment, the appearing of false
witnesses against him, the refusal on his part to make
defence, the establishing of his innocency, the unjust
condemnation, the sentence of capital punishment passed
upon him, the literal piercing of his hands and feet,
the being numbered with transgressors, the mockery of
the crowd, the casting lots for his garments - all
predicted centuries beforehand, and all fulfilled to the
very letter. The last prophecy of all which remained ere
he committed his spirit into the hands of his Father had
now been fulfilled. He cried "I thirst" and after the
tendering of the vinegar and gall all was now
"accomplished"; and as the Lord Jesus reviewed the
entire scope of the prophetic word and saw its full realization,
he cried, "It is finished"!
It only remains for us to
point out that as there was a complete set of prophecies
which had to do with the first advent of the Saviour, so
also is there a complete set of prophecies which have to
do with his second advent - the latter as definite, as
personal, and as comprehensive in their scope as the
former. Just as we see the actual fulfillment of those
which had to do with his first coming to the earth, so
we may look forward with absolute confidence and
assurance to the fulfillment of those which have to do
with his second coming. And, as we have seen that the
former set of prophecies were fulfilled literally, actually,
personally, so also must we expect the latter set to be.
To grant the literal fulfillment of the former, and then
to seek to spiritualize and symbolize the latter, is not
only grossly inconsistent and illogical, but is highly
injurious to us and deeply dishonoring to God and to his
word.
"It is
finished"
2. Here we see the
completion of his
sufferings.
But what tongue or pen can
describe the sufferings of the Saviour? O the
unutterable anguish, physical, mental, and spiritual
which he endured! Appropriately was he designated "the
Man of Sorrows." Sufferings at the hands of men, at the
hands of Satan, and at the hands of God. Pain inflicted
upon him by enemies and friends alike. From the
beginning he walked amid the shadows which the cross
cast athwart his path. Hear his lament: "I am afflicted
and ready to die from my youth up" (Ps. 88:15). What
a light this throws on his earlier years! Who can say
how much is contained in those words? For us, an
impenetrable veil is cast over the
future; none of us know what a
day may bring forth. But the Saviour knew the end from
the beginning!
One has only to read through
the gospels to learn how the awful cross was ever before
him. At the marriage-feast of Cana, where all was
gladness and merriment, he makes solemn reference to
"his hour" not yet come. When Nicodemus interviewed him
at night the Saviour referred to the "lifting up of the
Son of man". When James and John came to request from
him the two places of honour in his coming kingdom, he
made mention of the "cup" which he had to drink and of
the "baptism" wherewith he must be baptized. When Peter
confessed that he was the Christ, the Son of the living
God, he turned to his disciples and began to show unto
them "how that he must go unto Jerusalem and suffer many
things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and
be killed, and be raised again the third day" (Matthew
16:21). When Moses and Elijah stood with him on the
mount of transfiguration it was to speak of "his decease which he should
accomplish at Jerusalem."
If it is true we are quite
unable to estimate the sufferings of Christ due to the
anticipation of the cross,
still less can we fathom the dread reality itself. The
physical sufferings were excruciating, but even this was
as nothing compared with his anguish of soul. To a
considering of these sufferings we have already devoted
several paragraphs in previous chapters, yet we make no
apology in turning to them again. We cannot contemplate
too often what the Saviour endured in order to secure
our salvation. The better we are acquainted with his
sufferings, and the more frequently we meditate thereon,
the warmer will be our love and the deeper our
gratitude.
At last the closing hours
have come. There had been the terrible experience in
Gethsemane followed by the appearings before Caiaphas,
before Pilate, before Herod, and back again before
Pilate. There had been the scourging and mocking by the
brutal soldiers; the journey to Calvary; the fastening
of his hands and feet to the cruel tree. There had been
the reviling of the priests, the crowd, and the two
thieves crucified with him. There had been the callous
indifference of a vulgar mob, among whom "none took
pity" and none spoke a word of "comfort" (Ps. 69:20).
There had been the awful cloud that hid from him the
Father’s face, which wrung from him the bitter cry, "My
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" There had been
the parched lips which drew from him the exclamation "I
thirst". There had been the fearful conflict with the
power of darkness as the serpent "bruised" his heel.
Well might the sufferer ask, "Is it nothing to you, all
ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like
unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the
Lord hat afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger"
(Lam. 1:12).
But now the suffering is
ended. That from which his holy soul shrank is over. The
Lord has bruised him; man and devil have done their
worst. The cup has been drained. The awful storm of
God’s wrath has just spent itself. The darkness is
ended. The sword of divine justice is sheathed. The
wages of sin have been paid. The prophecies of his
sufferings are all fulfilled. The cross has been
"endured". Divine holiness has been fully satisfied.
With a cry of triumph - a loud cry, a cry which
reverberated throughout the entire universe - the
Saviour exclaims, "It is finished". The ignominy and
shame, the suffering and agony are past. Never again
shall he experience pain. Never again shall he endure
the contradiction of sinners against himself. Never
again shall he be in the hands of Satan. Never again
shall the light of God’s countenance be hidden from him.
Blessed be God, all that is
finished!
The head that once was crowned with
thorns, is crowned with glory now;
A royal diadem adorns the mighty
Victor’s brow.
The highest place
that Heaven of fords is his by Sovereign right,
The King of kings and Lord of
lords. and Heaven’s eternal Light.
The Joy of all who dwell above, the
Joy of all below,
To whom he
manifest his love, and Grant his name to
know.
"It is
finished"
3. Here we see the goal of
the Incarnation is
reached.
Scripture indicates there is
a special work peculiar to each of the divine persons,
though, like the persons themselves, it is not always
easy to distinguish between their respective works. God
the Father is specially concerned in the government of
the world. He ruleth over all the works of his hands.
God the Son is specially concerned in the work of
redemption: he was the one who came here to die for
sinners. God the Spirit is specially concerned with the
scriptures: he was the one who moved holy men of old to
speak the messages of God, as he is the one who now
gives spiritual illumination and understanding, and
guides into the truth. But it is with the work of God
the Son we are here particularly
concerned.
Before the Lord Jesus came
to this earth a definite work was committed to him. In
the volume of the book it was written by him, and he
came to do the recorded will of God. Even as a boy of
twelve the "Father’s business" was before his heart and
occupied his attention. Again, in John 5:36, we find him
saying, "But I have greater witness than that of John:
for the works which the Father hath
given me to finish, the same works that I do". And
on the last night before his death, in that wonderful
high-priestly prayer we find him saying, "I have
glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou
gayest me to do" (John
17:4).
In his book on the seven
sayings of Christ on the cross, Dr Anderson-Berry makes
use of an illustration from history which by its
striking antithesis shows up the meaning and glory of
the finished work of Christ. Elizabeth, Queen of
England, the idol of society and the leader of European
fashion, when on her death-bed turned to her
lady-in-waiting, and said: "O my God! It is over. I have
come to the end of it - the end, the end. To have only
one life and to have done with it! To have lived, and
loved, and triumphed; and now to know it is over! One
may defy everything else but this." And as the listener
sat watching, in a few moments more, the face whose
slightest smile had brought her courtiers to their feet,
turned into a mask of lifeless clay, and returned the
anxious gaze of her servant with nothing more than a
vacant stare. Such was the end of one whose meteoric
course had been the envy of half the world. It could not
be said that she had "finished" anything, for with her
all was "vanity and vexation of spirit". How different
was the end of the Saviour - "1 have glorified thee on
the earth: I have finished the work which thou gayest me
to do."
The mission upon which God
had sent his Son into the world was now accomplished. It
was not actually finished till he breathed his last, but
death was only an instant ahead, and in anticipation of
it he cries, "It is finished". The difficult work is
done. The divinely-given task is performed. A work more
honourable and momentous than ever entrusted to man or
angels has been completed. That for which he had left
heaven’s glory, that for which he had taken upon him the
form of a servant, that for which he had remained upon
earth for thirty-three years to do, was now consummated.
Nothing remained to be added. The goal of the
Incarnation is reached. With what joyous triumph must he
here have viewed the arduous and costly work which
committed to him had now been
perfected!
"It is finished." The
mission upon which God had sent his Son into the world
was accomplished. That which had been eternally purposed
had come to pass. The plan of God had been fully carried
out. It is true that the Saviour had been by "wicked
hands crucified and slain", yet was he "delivered by the
determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God" (Acts
2:23). It is true that the kings of the earth stood up,
and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord,
and against his Christ; nevertheless, it was but for to
do what God’s hand and God’s counsel "determined before
to be done" (Acts 4:28). Because he is the Most High,
God’s secret will cannot be thwarted. Because he
is supreme, God’s counsel mast stand. Because he is
Almighty, God’s purpose cannot be overthrown. Again and
again the scriptures insist upon the irresistibility of the pleasure
of the Lord God. Because this truth is now so generally
called into question we subjoin seven passages which
affirm it:
But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and
what his soul desireth, even that he doeth (Job
23:13).
I know that thou canst do everything, and that no thought of thine can be hindered (Job
42:2).
But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hark
pleased (Ps.
115:3).
There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel
against the Lord (Pro.
21:30).
For the Lord of hosts bath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and
his hand is stretched out, and Who shall turn it back?
(Isa.
14:27).
Remember the former things of old: for I am God,
and there is none else; I am Clod, and there is none
like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from
ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying,
My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure (Isa.
46:9, 10).
And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed
as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven,
and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say
unto him, What doest thou? (Dan.
4:35).
And, in the triumphant cry
of the Saviour - "It is finished" - we have a prophecy
and pledge of the ultimate carrying out of God’s
plan completely and irresistibly. At
the end of time, when everything is wound up, and God’s
purpose has been fully consummated, when everything has
been done which he before determined should be done,
then shall it be said again, "It is
finished".
"It is
finished"
4. Here we see the
accomplishment of the
atonement.
Above we have spoken of
Christ reaching the goal of the Incarnation, and of the
consummation of his mission to the earth; what that goal
and mission were, the scriptures plainly reveal. The Son
of Man came here "to seek and to save that which was
lost" (Luke 19:10). Christ Jesus came into the world "to
save sinners" (1 Tim. 1:15). God sent forth his Son,
born of a woman, "to redeem them that were under the
law" (Galatians 4:4). He was manifested "to take away
our sins" (1 John 3:5). And all this involved the cross.
The "lost" which he came to seek could only be found
there - in the place of death and under the condemnation
of God. Sinners could be "saved" only by one taking
their place and bearing their iniquities. They who were
under the law could be "redeemed" only by another
fulfilling its requirements and suffering its curse. Our
sins could be "taken away" only by their being blotted
out by the precious blood of Christ. The demands of
justice must be met: the requirements
of God’s holiness must be satisfied: the awful debt we
incurred must be paid. And on the cross
this was done; done by none less than the Son of God;
done perfectly; done once for all.
"It is finished." That to
which so many types looked forward, that which so much
in the tabernacle and its ritual foreshadowed, that of
which so many of God’s prophets had spoken, was now
accomplished. A covering from sin and its shame
- typified by the coats of skin with which the Lord God
clothed our first parents - was now provided. The more excellent sacrifice -
typified by Abel’s lamb - had now been offered. A
shelter from the storm of divine judgment- typified by
the ark of Noah was now furnished. The only-begotten and well-beloved Son
- typified by Abraham’s offering up of Isaac - had
already been placed upon the altar. A protection from the avenging
angel - typified by the shed blood of the Passover lamb
was now supplied. A cure from the serpent’s bite
-typified by the serpent of brass upon the pole - was
now made ready for sinners. The providing of a life-giving fountain -typified
by Moses striking the rock - was now
effected.
"It is finished." The Greek
word here, teleo, is various translated in
the New Testament. A glance at some of the different
renderings in other passages will enable us to discern
the fullness and finality of the term used by the
Saviour. In Matthew 11:1, teleo is rendered as follows:
"When Jesus had made an end of commanding His
twelve disciples, He departed thence". In Matthew 17:24
it is rendered, "They that received tribute money came
to Peter, and said, Doth not your Master pay tribute?"
In Luke 2:39 it is rendered, "And when they had performed all things according
to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee". In
Luke 18:31 it is rendered, "All things that are written
by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished." Putting these
together we learn the scope of the Saviour’s sixth
cross-utterance, "It is finished." He cried: it is "made
an end of; it is "paid"; it is "performed"; it is
"accomplished". What was made an end of? Our sins and
their guilt. What was paid? The price of our redemption.
What was performed? The utmost requirements of the law.
What was accomplished? The work which the Father had
given him to do. What was finished? The making of
atonement.
God has furnished at least
four proofs that Christ did
finish the work which was given him to do. First, in the
rending of the veil, which showed that the way to God
was now open. Second, in the raising of Christ from the
dead, which evidenced that God had accepted his
sacrifice. Third, the exaltation of Christ to his own
right hand, which demonstrated the value of Christ’s
work and the Father’s delight in his person. Fourth, the
sending to earth of the Holy Spirit to apply the virtues
and benefits of Christ’s atoning
death.
"It is finished." What was
finished? The work of atonement. What is the value of
that to us? This: to the sinner, it is a message of glad
tidings. All that a holy God requires has been done.
Nothing is left for the sinner to add. No works from us
are demanded as the price of our salvation. All that is
necessary for the sinner is to rest now by faith upon
what Christ did. "The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord"
(Rom. 6:23). To the believer, the knowledge that the
atoning work of Christ is finished brings a sweet relief
over against all the defects and imperfections of his
services. There is much of sin and vanity in the very
best of our efforts, but the grand relief is that we are
"complete" in Christ (Col.
2:10)! Christ and his finished work is the ground of all
our hopes.
Upon a Life I did not live,
Upon a Death I did not die,
Another’s death Another’s life
I cast my soul eternally
Bold shall I stand in that great
day,
For who, aught to my charge
can lay?
Fully absolved by
Christ lam,
From sin’s
tremendous curse and blame.
"It is
finished"
5. Here we see the end of
our sins.
The sins of the believer -
all of them - were transferred to the Saviour. As saith
the scripture, "The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity
of us all" (Isa. 53:6). If then God laid my iniquities
on Christ, they are no longer on me. Sin there is in me, for the old Adamic
nature remains in the believer till death or till
Christ’s return, should he come before I die, but there
is no sin on me. This distinction between
sin IN and sin ON is a vital one, and there
should be little difficulty in apprehending it. Were I
to say the judge passed sentence on a criminal, and that he is
now under sentence of death,
everyone would understand what I meant. In like manner,
everyone out of Christ has the sentence of God’s
condemnation resting upon him. But when a sinner
believes in the Lord Jesus, receives him as his Lord and
Master, he is no longer "under condemnation" - sin is no
longer on him, that is, the guilt, the condemnation, the penalty of sin, is no longer
upon him. And why? Because Christ bore our sins in his
own body on the tree (1 Pet. 2:24). The guilt,
condemnation and penalty of our sins, was transferred to our substitute.
Hence, because my sins were transferred to Christ,
they are no more upon me.
This precious truth was
strikingly illustrated in Old Testament times in
connection with Israel’s annual Day of Atonement. On
that day, Aaron, the high priest (a type of Christ),
made satisfaction to God for the sins which Israel had
committed during the previous year. The manner in which
this was done is described in Leviticus 16. Two goats
were taken and presented before the Lord at the door of
the tabernacle: this was before anything was done with
them: it represented Christ presenting himself to God,
offering to come into this world, and be the Saviour of
sinners. One of the goats was then taken and killed, and its blood was
carried into the tabernacle. within the veil, into the
Holy of Holies. and there it was sprinkled before and
upon the mercy-seat - foreshadowing Christ offering
himself as a sacrifice to God, to meet the demands of
his justice and satisfy the requirements of his
holiness.
Then we read that Aaron came
out of the tabernacle and laid both his hands upon the
head of the second (living) goat - signifying an act of
identification by which Aaron,
the representative of the whole nation, identified the
people with it, acknowledging that its doom was what their sins merited, and which,
today, corresponds with the hands of faith laying hold
of Christ and identifying ourselves with him in his
death. Having laid his hands on the head of the live
goat, Aaron now confessed over him "all the iniquities of the
children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the
head of the goat" (Lev. 16:21). Thus were Israel’s sins
transferred to their substitute. Finally we are told,
"And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities
into a land not inhabited: and he shall let
go the goat in the wilderness" (Lev. 16:22). The goat
bearing Israel’s sins was taken into an uninhabited
wilderness, and the people of God saw him and their sins
no more! In type this was
Christ taking our sins into that desolate land where God was not, and there
making an end of them. The cross of Christ then is the grave of our
sins!
"It is
finished"
6. Here we see the
fulfillment of the law’s
requirements.
"The law is holy, and the
commandment holy, and just and good" (Rom. 7:12). How
could it be anything less when Jehovah himself had
framed and given it! The fault lay not in the law but in
man who, being depraved and sinful, could not keep it.
Yet that law must be kept, and kept by a man, so that
the law might be honoured and magnified, and its giver
vindicated. Therefore we read, "For what the law could
not do, in that it was weak through the
flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in
(not "by") us, who walk not after flesh, but after the
Spirit" (Rom. 8:3, 4). The "weakness" here is that of
fallen man. The sending forth of God’s Son in the
likeness of sin’s flesh (Greek) refers to the
Incarnation: as we read in another scripture, "God sent
forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, that he
might redeem them that were under the law" (Gal. 4:4, 5
RV). Yes, the Saviour was born "under the law", born
under it that he might keep it perfectly in thought,
word and deed. "Think not that I am come to destroy the
law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy. but to
fulfill" (Matthew 5:17); such was his
claim.
But not only did the Saviour
keep the precepts of the law,
he also suffered its penalty and endured its curse. We
had broken it, and taking our place, he must receive its
just sentence. Having received its penalty and endured
its curse the demands of the law are fully met and
justice is satisfied. Therefore is it written of
believers, "Christ hath redeemed us from
the curse of the law, being made a curse for us" (Gal.
3:13). And again, "For Christ is the end of the law for
righteousness to every one that believeth" (Rom. 10:4).
And yet again, " For ye are not under the law,
but under grace" (Romans 6:14).
Free from the law, O happy
condition!
Jesus hath blest and
there is remission.
Cursed by
the law and dead by the fall,
Grace hath redeemed us once for
all.
"It is
finished"
7. Here we see the
destruction of Satan’s
power.
See it by faith. The cross
sounded the death-knell of the devil’s power. To human
appearances it looked like the moment of his greatest
triumph, yet in reality, it was the hour of his ultimate
defeat. In view of the cross (see context) the Saviour
declared, "Now is the judgment of this world: now shall
the prince of this world be cast out" (John 12:31). It
is true that Satan has not yet been chained and cast
into the bottomless pit, nevertheless, sentence has been
passed (though not yet executed); his doom is certain;
and his power is already broken so far as believers are
concerned.
For the Christian the devil
is a vanquished foe. He was defeated
by Christ at the cross - "that through death he might destroy
him that had the power of death, that
is, the devil" (Heb. 2:14). Believers have already been
"delivered from the power of
darkness" and translated into the kingdom of God’s dear
Son (Col. 1:13). Satan, then, should be treated as a defeated enemy. No longer has
he any legitimate claim upon us. Once we were his
lawful "captives" but Christ has freed us. Once we
walked "according to the Prince of the power of the
air"; but now we are to follow the example which Christ
has left us. Once Satan "worked in us"; but now God worketh in us both to will
and to do of his good pleasure. All that we now have to
do is to "Resist the devil", and the promise is, "he
will flee from you" (James
4:7).
"It is finished." Here was
the triumphant answer to the rage of man and the enmity
of Satan. It tells of the perfect work which meets sin
in the place of judgment. All was completed just as God would
have it, just as the prophets had foretold, just as the
Old Testament ceremonial had foreshadowed, just as
divine holiness demanded, and just as sinners needed.
How strikingly appropriate it is that this sixth
cross-utterance of the Saviour is found in John’s gospel
- the gospel which displays the glory of Christ’s deity!
He does not here commend his work to the approval of
God, but seals it with his own imprimatur, attesting
it as complete, and giving it the all-sufficient
sanction of his own approval. None other
than the Son of God says "IT IS finished" - who then
dare doubt or question it.
"It is finished." Reader, do
you believe it? or, are you trying to add something of
your own to the finished work of Christ to secure the
favour of God? All you have to do is to accept the
pardon which he purchased. God is satisfied with the work
of Christ, why are not you? Sinner, the moment you
believe God’s testimony concerning his beloved Son, that
moment every sin you have committed is blotted out, and
you stand accepted in Christ! O would you not like to
possess the assurance that there is nothing between your
soul and God? Would you not like to know that every sin
had been atoned for and put away? Then believe what God’s word says about
Christ’s death. Rest not on your feelings and
experiences but on the written word. There is only one
way of finding peace, and that is through faith in the
shed blood of God’s Lamb.
"It is finished." Do you really believe it? Or, are you
endeavouring to add something of your own to it and thus
merit the favour of God? Some years ago a Christian
farmer was deeply concerned over an unsaved carpenter.
The farmer sought to set before his neighbour the gospel
of God’s grace, and to explain how that the finished
work of Christ was sufficient for his soul to rest
upon. But the carpenter persisted in the belief that he
must do something himself. One day the farmer asked the
carpenter to make for him a gate, and when the gate was
ready he carried it away to his wagon. He arranged for
the carpenter to call on him the next morning and see
the gate as it hung in the field. At the appointed hour
the carpenter arrived and was surprised to find the
farmer standing by with a sharp axe in his hand. "What
are you going to do?" he asked. "I am going to add a few
cuts and strokes to your work," was the response. "But
there is no need for it," replied the carpenter, "the
gate is all right as it is. I did all that was necessary
to it." The farmer took no notice, but lifting his axe
he slashed and hacked at the gate until it was
completely spoiled. "Look what you have done!" cried the
carpenter. "You have ruined my work!" "Yes," said the farmer, "and
that is exactly what you are trying to do. You are
seeking to nullify the finished work of Christ by your
own miserable additions to it!" God used this forceful
object lesson to show the carpenter his mistake, and he
was led to cast himself by faith upon what Christ had
done for sinners. Reader, will you do the
same?
7
THE WORD OF CONTENTMENT
"And
when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father,
into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said
thus, he gave up his spirit"
Luke
23:46
"And
when Jesus Had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father,
into thy hands I commend my spirit, and having said
thus, he gave up the spirit" (Luke 23:46). These words
set before us the last act of the Saviour ere
he expired. It was an act of contentment, of faith, of
confidence and of love. The person to whom he committed
the precious treasure of his spirit was his own Father.
Father is an encouraging and
assuring title: well may a son commit any concern,
however dear, into the hands of a father, especially
such a Son into the hands of such a Father. That which
was committed into the hands of the Father was his
"spirit" which was on the point of being separated from
the body.
Scripture reveals man as a
tripartite being: "spirit and soul and body" (1 Thess.
5:23). There is a difference between the soul and the
spirit, though it is not easy to predicate wherein they
are dissimilar. The spirit appears to be the highest pan of our complex
being. It is that which particularly distinguishes man
from the beasts, and that which links him to God. The
spirit is that which God formeth within us (Zech.
12:1); therefore is he called "The God of the spirits of all flesh"
(Num. 16:22). At death the spirit returns to God who gave it (Eccl.
12:7).
The
act by which the Saviour placed his spirit into
the hands of the Father was an
act of faith - "I commend". It was a blessed act
designed as a precedent for all his people. The last
point observable is the manner in which Christ
performed this act: he uttered those words "with a loud
voice". He spoke that all might hear, and that his
enemies who judged him destitute and forsaken of God
might know it was not so any longer; but instead, that
he was dear to his Father still, and could put his
spirit confidently into his hands.
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit." This was the last utterance of the Saviour
ere he expired. While he hung upon the cross, seven
times his lips moved in speech. Seven is the number of
completeness or perfection. At
Calvary then, as everywhere, the perfections of the
Blessed One were displayed. Seven is also the number of
rest in a finished work: in six days
God made heaven and earth and in the seventh he rested,
contemplating with satisfaction that which he had
pronounced "very good". So here with Christ: a work had
been given him to do, and that work was now done. Just
as the sixth day brought the work of creation and
reconstruction to a completion, so the sixth utterance
of the Saviour was "It is finished." And just as the
seventh day was the day of rest and satisfaction, so the
seventh utterance of the Saviour brings him to the place
of rest - the Father’s hands.
Seven
times the dying Saviour spoke. Three of his utterances
concerned men: to one he gave the promise that he should
be with him that day in Paradise; to another he confided
his mother; to the mass of spectators he made mention of
his thirst. Three of his utterances were addressed to
God: to the Father he prayed for his murderers; to God
he uttered his mournful plaint; and now into the hands
of the Father he commends his spirit. In the hearing of
God and men, angels and devil, he had cried in triumph,
"It is finished".
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit." It is noteworthy that this closing cry of
the Saviour had been uttered by the spirit of prophecy
long centuries before the Incarnation. In the
thirty-first psalm we hear David’s Son and Lord saying,
anticipatively:
In
thee, O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be
ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine
ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock,
for an house of defence to save me. For thou art my rock
and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me,
and guide me. Pull me out of the net that they have laid
privily for me: for thou art my strength. Into thy hand I commend my spirit
thou hast redeemed me, O Low God of truth" (vv.
1-5)!
In connection with each one of our
Saviour’s cross-utterances a prophecy was fulfilled.
Firstly, he cried, "Father, forgive them, for they
know not what they do", and this fulfilled Isaiah 53:12
- "made intercession for the transgressors". Secondly,
he promised the thief, "Today shalt thou be with me in
Paradise", and this was a fulfillment of the prophecy of
the angel to Joseph - "thou shalt call his name Jesus,
for he shall save his people from
their sins" (Matthew 1:21). Thirdly, to his mother he
said, "Woman, behold thy Son", and this fulfilled the
prophecy of Simeon - "A sword shall pierce through thy
own soul also" (Luke 2:35). Fourthly, he had asked, "My
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" and these were
the identical words of Psalm 22:1. Fifthly, he
exclaimed, "I thirst", and this was in fulfillment of
Psalm 69:21 - "In my thirst they gave me vinegar to
drink". Sixthly, he shouted in triumph "It is finished",
and these are almost the very words with which that
wonderful twenty-second psalm concludes - "He hath done", or, as Hebrew might well
be rendered, "He bath, finished", the
context showing what he had done, namely, the work of
atonement. Finally, he prayed, "Father, into thy hands I
commend my spirit", and, as we have shown beforehand, he
was but quoting as it had been written of him beforehand
in Psalm 31. O the wonders of the cross! We shall
never reach the end of
them.
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
1. Here we see the Saviour
back again in communion with the
Father.
This
is exceedingly precious. For a while that communion was
broken - broken outwardly - as the light of God’s holy
countenance was hidden from the Sin-Bearer, but now the
darkness had passed and was ended for ever. Up to the
cross there had been perfect and unbroken communion
between the Father and the Son. It is exquisitely lovely
to mark how the awful "Cup" itself had been accepted
from the Father’s hand:
"The
cup which my Father hath given me,
shall I not drink it?" (John 18:11). On the cross, at
the beginning, the Lord Jesus is still found in
communion with the Father, for had he not cried, "Father, forgive them!" His first cross-utterance then, was
"Father forgive" and now his
last word is, "Father into thy hands I commend my
spirit". But between those utterances he had
hung there for six hours: three spent in sufferings at
the hands of man and Satan; three spent in suffering at
the hand of God, as the sword of divine justice was
"awakened" to smite Jehovah’s Fellow. During those last
three hours, God had withdrawn from the Saviour, evoking
that terrible cry, "My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me?" But now all is done. The cup is drained:
the storm of wrath has spent itself: the darkness is
past, and the Saviour is seen once more in communion
with the Father - never more to be
broken.
"Father." How often this word
was upon the Saviour’s lips! His first recorded
utterance was, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?" In what
was probably his first formal discourse - the "sermon on
the mount" - he speaks of the "Father" seventeen times.
While in his final discourse to the disciples, the
"paschal discourse" found in John 14-16, the word
"Father" is found no less than forty-five times! In the
next chapter, John 17, which contains what is known as
Christ’s great high-priestly prayer, he speaks to and of
the Father six times more. And now the last time he
speaks ere he lays down his life, he says again.
"Father, into thy hands I commend my
spirit."
And
how blessed it is that his Father is our Father! Ours because his.
How wonderful this is! How unspeakably precious that I
can look up to the great and living God and say,
"Father," my Father! What comfort is
contained in this title! What assurance is conveyed! God
is my Father, then he loves me, loves me as he loves Christ himself!
(John 17:23). God is my Father and loves me, then he
careth for me. God is my Father and careth for me, then he will "supply all my need" (Phil. 4:19). God
is my Father, then he will see to it that no harm shall
betide me, yea, that all things shall be made to work
together for my good. O that his children
entered more deeply and practically into the blessedness
of this relationship, then would they joyfully exclaim
with the apostle, "Behold, what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the children of God" (1 John
3:1)!
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
2. Here we see a designed
contrast.
For
more than twelve hours Christ had been in the hands of men. Of this had he spoken
to his disciples when he forewarned them that "the Son
of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: and they
shall kill him" (Matthew 17:22, 23). Of this had he made
mention amid the awful solemnities of Gethsemane: "Then
cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep
on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand,
and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners"
(Matthew 26:45). To this the angels made reference on
the resurrection morning, saying to the women, "He is
not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you
when he was yet in Galilee, saying, The Son of man must
be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and
be crucified, and the third day rise again" (Luke
24:6, 7). This received its fulfillment when the Lord
Jesus delivered himself up to those who came to arrest
him in the Garden. As we saw in an earlier chapter,
Christ could have easily avoided arrest. All he had to
do was to leave the officers of the priests prostrate on
the ground, and walk quietly away. But he did not do so.
The appointed hour had struck. The time when he should
submit himself to be led as a lamb to the slaughter had
arrived. And he delivered himself into "the hands of
sinners". How they treated him is well known; they took
full advantage of their opportunity. They gave full vent
to the hatred of the carnal heart for God. With "wicked
hands" (Acts 2:23) they crucified him. But now all is
over. Man has done his worst. The cross has been
endured; the appointed work is
finished.
Voluntarily had the Saviour
delivered himself into the hands of sinners, and now,
voluntarily he delivers his spirit into the hands of the Father.
What a blessed contrast! Never again will he be in
the "hands of men". Never again will he be at the mercy
of the wicked. Never again will he suffer shame. Into
the hands of the Father he commits himself, and the
Father will now look after his interests. We need not
dwell at length on the blessed sequel. Three days later
the Father raised him from the dead. Forty days after
that the Father exalted him high above all
principalities and powers and every name that is named,
and set him at his own right hand in the heavens. And
there he now sits on the Father’s throne (Revelation
3:21), waiting till his enemies be made his footstool.
For one day, ere long, the tables shall be turned. The
Father will send back the one whom the world cast out:
send him back in power and glory: send him back to rule
and reign over the whole earth with a rod of iron. Then
shall the situation be reversed. When he was here before
man dared to arraign him, but then shall he sit and
judge them. Once he was in their hands, then they shall be
in his. Once they cried "Away with
him", then shall he say,
"Depart from me". And in the meantime, he is
in the Father’s hands, seated on his throne, awaiting
his pleasure!
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the
spirit."
3. Here we see Christ’s
perfect yieldedness to
God.
How
blessedly he evidenced this all the way through! When
his mother sought him in Jerusalem as a boy of twelve,
he said, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s
business?" When an hungered in the wilderness after a
forty-days fast and the devil urged him to make bread
out of stones, he lived by every word of God. When the
mighty works which he had performed and the message he
had delivered failed to move his auditors, he submitted
to the one who had sent him, saying, "I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise
and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes" (Matthew
11:25). When the sisters of Lazarus sent to the Saviour
to acquaint him with the sickness of their brother,
instead of hurriedly going to Bethany, he abode two days
still in the place where he was, saying, "This sickness
is not unto death but for the glory of God". It was not
natural affection which moved him to action, but the
glory of God! His meat was to do the will of the one who
sent him. In all things he submitted himself to the
Father. See him in the morning, "rising up a great while
before day" (Mark 1:35), in order that he might be in
the presence of the Father. See him anticipating every
great crisis and preparing himself for it by pouring out
his heart in supplication. See him spending the very
last hour before his arrest on his face before God. How
fitly might he say, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of
me; for lam meek and lowly in heart."
And as he had lived, so he died - yielding himself
into the hands of the Father. This was the last act of the dying Saviour.
And how exquisitely beautiful. How thoroughly in keeping
with the whole of his life! It manifested his perfect
confidence in the Father. It revealed the blessed
intimacy there was between them. It exhibited his
absolute dependency upon God.
Truly,
in all things he has left us an example. The Saviour
committed his spirit into the hands of his Father in
death, because it had been in the Father’s hands all
through his life! Is this true of you, my reader? Have
you as a sinner committed your spirit
into the hands of God? If so, it is in safekeeping. Can
you say with the apostle, "I know whom I have believed,
and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto
him against that day" (2 Tim. 1:12)? And have you as
a Christian fully yielded
yourself to God? Have you heeded that word, "I beseech
you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a
living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is
your reasonable service" (Rom.
12:1)? Are you living for the glory of him who loved you
and gave himself for you? Are you walking in daily
dependence upon him, knowing that without him you can do nothing (John 15:5), but
learning that you can do all things through Christ that
strengtheneth you (Phil. 4:13)! If your whole life is
yielded up to God, and death should overtake you before
the Saviour returns to receive his people unto himself,
it will then be easy and natural for you to say,
"Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." Balaam
said, "Let me die the death of the righteous" (Num.
23:10). Ah, but to die the death of the righteous, you
must live the life of the righteous, and that consists
in absolute submission to and dependency upon
God.
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
4. Here we see the absolute
uniqueness of the
Saviour.
The
Lord Jesus died as none other ever did. His life was not
taken from him; he laid it down of himself. This was his
claim: "Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay
down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh
it from me, but I lay it down of myself I
have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it
again" (John 10:17, 18). The various proofs that
Christ’s life was not taken from him have been
set before the reader in the Introduction of this book.
The most convincing evidence of all was seen in the
committal of his spirit into the hands of the Father.
The Lord Jesus himself said, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit", but the
Holy Spirit, in describing the actual laying down of his
life, has employed three different expressions which
bring out very forcibly the fact that we are now
considering, and the various words used by the Spirit
are most appropriate to the respective gospels in which
they are found.
In
Matthew 27:50 we read, "Jesus, when he had cried again
with a loud voice, yielded up his spirit." But this
translation fails to bring out the proper force of the
original: the meaning of the Greek is he "dismissed his
spirit". This expression is most appropriate in Matthew,
which is the kingly gospel, presenting our Lord as "The
Son of David; the King of the Jews". Such a term is
beautifully suited in the royal gospel, for the Lord’s
act connotes one of authority, as of a king
dismissing a servant. The word used in Mark - which
presents our Lord as the perfect servant - is the same
as in our text -taken from Luke, the gospel of Christ’s
perfect manhood - and signifies, he "breathed out his
spirit". It was his passive endurance of death. In John,
which is the gospel of Christ’s divine glory, another
word is employed by the Holy Spirit: "He bowed his head
and gave up the spirit" (John 19:30), or delivered up
would perhaps be more exact. Here the Saviour does not
"commend" his spirit to the Father as in the gospel of
his humanity but, in keeping with his divine glory, as one who has full power over
it, he "delivers up" his spirit!
Two
things were necessary in order to the making of
propitiation: first, a complete satisfaction must be
offered to God’s outraged holiness and offended justice
and this, in the case of our substitute, could only be
by him suffering the outpoured wrath of God. And this
had been borne. Now there remained only the second
thing, and that was for the Saviour to taste of death.
"It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this
the judgment" (Heb. 9:27). With the sinner it is death
first, and then the judgment; with the Saviour the order
was, of course, reversed. He endured the judgment of God
against our sins and then died.
The
end was now reached. Perfect master of himself,
unconquered by death, he cries with a loud voice of
unexhausted strength, and delivers up his spirit into
the hands of his Father, and in this his uniqueness was
manifested. None else ever did this or died thus. His
birth was unique. His life was unique. His death also
was unique. In "laying down" his life, his death was
differentiated from all other deaths. He died by an act
of his own volition! Who but a divine person could have
done this? In a mere man it would have been suicide: but
in him it was a proof of his perfection and uniqueness.
He died like the Prince of Life!
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
5. Here we see the place of
eternal security.
Again
and again the Saviour spoke of a people which had been
"given" to him (John 6:37 etc.), and at the hour of his
arrest he said, "Of them which thou gayest me have I
lost none" (John 18:9). Then is it not lovely to see
that in the hour of death the blessed Saviour commends
them now into the safe-keeping of the Father! On the
cross Christ hung as the representative of his people,
and therefore we view his last act as a representative one. When the
Lord Jesus commended his spirit into the hands of
his Father, he also presented our spirits along with his, to
the Father’s acceptance. Jesus Christ neither lived nor
died for himself, but for believers: what he did in this
last act referred to them as much as to himself. We must
look then on Christ as here gathering all the souls of
the elect together, and making a solemn tender of them,
with his own spirit, to God.
The
Father’s hand is the place of eternal security. Into
that hand the Saviour committed his people, and there
they are forever safe. Said Christ, referring to the
elect, "My Father, which gave them me, is greater than
all: and none is able to pluck out of my
Father’s hand" (John 10:29). Here then is the ground
of the believer’s confidence. Here is the basis of our
assurance. Just as nothing could harm Noah when
Jehovah’s hand had secured the door of the ark, so
nothing can touch the spirit of the saint which is
grasped by the hand of omnipotence. None can pluck us
thence. Weak we are in ourselves, but "kept by the power
of God" is the sure declaration of holy writ: "kept by
the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to
be revealed in the last time" (1 Pet. 1:5). Formal
professors who seem to run well for a while may grow
weary and abandon the race. Those who are moved by the
fleshly excitement of a "revival meeting" endure only
for a time, for they have "no root in themselves". They
who rely upon the power of their own wills and
resolutions, who turn over a new leaf and promise to do
better, often fail, and their last state is worse than
the first. Many who have been persuaded by well meaning
but ignorant advisers to "join the church" and "live the
Christian life" frequently apostatize from the truth.
But every spirit that has been born again is eternally safe in
the Father’s hand.
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
6. Here we see the
blessedness of communion with
God.
What
we have reference to particularly is the fact that
communion with God may be enjoyed independently of place
or circumstances. The Saviour was on the cross,
surrounded by a taunting crowd, his body suffering
intense agony, nevertheless, he was in fellowship with
the Father! This is one of the sweetest truths brought
out by our text. It is our privilege to enjoy communion
with God at all times, irrespective of outward
circumstances or conditions. Communion with God is by faith, and faith is not
affected by the things of sight. No matter how
unpleasant your outward lot may be, my reader, it is
your unspeakable privilege to enjoy communion with God.
Just as the three Hebrews enjoyed fellowship with the
Lord in the midst of the fiery furnace, as Daniel did in
the lion’s den, as Paul and Silas did in the Philippian
jail, as the Saviour did on the cross, so may you
wherever you are! Christ’s head rested on a crown of
thorns, but beneath were the Father’s
hands!
Does
not our text teach very pointedly the blessed truth and
fact of communion with the Father in the hour of death! Then why
dread it, fellow Christian? If David under the Old
Testament dispensation could say, "Yea, though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear
no evil :for thou art with me" (Psalm 23:4),
why should believers now fear, after that Christ has
extracted the sting out of death! Death may be "King of
terrors" to the unsaved, but to the Christian, death is
simply the door which admits into the presence of the
Well-beloved. The motions of our souls in death, as in
life, turn instinctively to God. "Father, into thy hands
I commend my spirit" will be our cry, if we are conscious.
While we tabernacle here we have no rest but in the
bosom of God; and when we go hence, our expectation and
earnest desires are to be with him. We have cast many a
longing look heavenwards, but when the soul of the saved
nears the parting of the ways, then it throws itself
into the arms of love, just as a river after many
turnings and windings pours itself into the ocean.
Nothing but God can satisfy our spirits in this world,
and none but he can satisfy us as we go
hence.
But
reader, only believers are warranted
and encouraged thus to commend their spirits into the
hands of God at the dying hour; how sad is the state of
all dying unbelievers. Their
spirits, too, will fall into the hands of God, but this
will be their misery and not their privilege. These will find it is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb.
10:31). Yes, because instead of falling in the arms of
love, they will fall into the hands of
justice.
"Father, into thy hands I commend
my spirit"
7. Here we see the heart’s
true haven.
If the
closing utterance of the Saviour expresses the prayer of
dying Christians it shows what great value they place on
their spirits. The spirit within is the precious
treasure, and our main solicitude and chief care is to
see it secured in safe hands. "Father, into thy hands I
commend my spirit." These words then may be taken to
express the believer’s care for his soul, that it may be
safe, what ever becomes of the body. God’s saint who has
come nigh to death exercises few thoughts about his
body, where it shall be laid, or how it shall be
disposed of; he trusts that into the hands of his
friends. But as his care all along has been his soul, so
he thinks of it now, and with his last breath commits it
to the custody of God. It is not, "Lord Jesus receive my
body, take care of my dust;" but "Lord Jesus, receive my
spirit" - Lord, secure the jewel when the casket is
broken.
And now a brief word of appeal in
conclusion. My friend, you are in a world that is full
of trouble. You are unable to take care of yourself in
life, much less will you be able to do so in death. Life
has many trials and temptations. Your soul is menaced
from every side. On every hand are dangers and pitfalls.
The world, the flesh and the devil are combined against
you; they are too much for your strength. Here then is
the beacon of light amid the darkness. Here is the
harbor of shelter from all storms. Here is the blessed
canopy which protects from all the fiery darts of the
evil one. Thank God there is a refuge from the gales of
life and from the tenors of death - the Father’s hand -
the heart’s true
haven.
