3. His sinlcssness. — We thus see in the life of Jesus no ofiTence against the law of right. There is no evidence of sinfulness. But this would not in itself establish His sinlessness. Many a man gives the impression of a perfect life, is, according to the Scripture phrase, ' blameless,' who is not ' sinless,' because he sees sin in himself, and charges himself with it. But Jesus claimed sinlessness for Himself. He challenged the Jews to con\ict Him of sin (Jn 8^*^) ; and He affirmed of Himself that the ' prince of this world ' had nothing in Him (Jn 14^"). True, this sinlessness was first attained through conflict (cf. Mt 4'i, Jn 12-', Mk \o^), and ' learned ' (He G^), and Jesus Himself shrank from the application to Him of the Avord 'good' in the absolute sense (Mk 10'^) ; but it Avas attained and learned, and this Avithout the experience of failure. Its necessity to the Avork of redemption gives it its complete dog- matic establishment (cf. He 9'- " 5« 41^) ; but the proof of its actuality depends, finally, upon the Avord of Jesus Himself. Were this the testimony of the JcAvs, Avho Avere self-righteous, and thus incapaci- tated for judging of their true spiritual condition, it Avould have no value ; but it is the testimony of a .specially sensitive conscience, one Avhich saAV deeper into the meaning of the Law than others, Avhich enjoyed perfect communion Avith God (Jn 14^ 12*'). As such it stands, and is subject to no diminution from our al)ility to point out defect in Him. As a challenge, it Avas not met by His ad- versaries, eA'idently because they could not meet it. See, further, art. SiNLES.SNESS.
4. His superiority to the Law. — His obedience may be conceived, on the one side, as His perfect suljjection to the LaAv. But, on the other side. He Avas superior to the LaAV. In respect to infringe- ments of the laAv of the Sabbath Avith Avhich He Avas charged. He did not simply defend Himself by !«aying that He alone rightly interpreted the laAv, but He proclaimed His superiority to it. ' The Son of Man is Lord even of the sabbath ' (Mk 2-8). He set aside certain of the provisions of the LaAV (Mt 5^") ; but He did a more significant thing in deepen- ing the meaning of others (Mt 5^"^-). He revealed the true meaning of the LaAv Avhen He brought it back to its foundation in the all-embracing laAv of love. The element of the LaAV Avhich He modified Avas, therefore, the external, the scattblding or clothing of the legal principle, not the fundamental meaning of the LaAv. He came also to ' fulfil ' the Law (Mt 5^'); and this meant to f II out (wXripbo]), and
OBEDIENCE
OBEDIENCE
25;
hence to set it aside as completed and its design acconiplislied. In the later form of the Apostolic doctrine Jesus was called the 'end of the law' I (Ko 10^), in the sense that He provided a new way of salvation, which had formerly had to be attained through the observance of the Law. This was particularly through the sacritice of Himself (He l(j»-i4j ]r,y ^vhich He brought the whole OT system to an end, and for ever cancelled the jceremonial law. When the same idea appears in St. Johns Gospel {3"-i« 6" 10'"), it may he thought to be- long to the same stratum of later teaching ; but it is reflected in the earliest form of the Gospel (Mk 10*^), it ajipears in the institution of the Lord's Supi)er (Mt 26^^), and is accordingly to be regarded as the primal and unvarj'ing substance of the Gospel. The Law, then, is abrogated because its object has been attained, and its definite and i>eculiar i)rescriptions may give way to more general and spiritual forms of jirecept. The em- phasis is hereafter to be laid not upon the letter, but upon the spirit {2 Co 3**). See Law, Law of God.
5. The capital article of His obedience — the Death upon the Cross. — The later strata of the Gospel history lay emphasis upon the fact that the death of Christ was a subject of the Divine command. Thus Jesus says, according to St. John, ' Tiiis com- mandment [viz. to lay down my life] I received from the Father' (10'*). In 12^, shrinking from tiie foreseen sutl'ering of the cross. He says, ' For this cause [viz. to sutler the death of the cross, cf. v.^-] came 1 unto this hour.' The same idea, that His death upon the cross was the essential part of His work which He came into the world to do, and which was laid upon Him by the Father, appears in manv other texts in this Gospel, implied where not explicitly stated (cf. 3" 6*'- ^- ^i- ^ 8-' 10" 14*^- ^i |-i3 1930J 'I'ljg >^a,me conception is fullj- developed in the other portions of the NT Avhich belong to the .same period of development with this Gospel, par- ticularly in rhilippians (2*) and the Epistle to the Hebrews (5"- ^ 10'^'). I>ut it is also indicated in the earliest strata. Li Mk lO''^ Jesus Himself says tliat He has come, ' not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ran.som for many.' The whole Gospel story is displayed, as it were, upon the black background of the darkness and sutt'erings of Calvary. Prophecies by Jesus Him- self of His own death begin to appear at an early period by intimation (Mt 10^, cf. 16-'''), and at a period still long before the final Passion in more explicit and frequent utterance (Mt 16'-'"'-* n ; 17^^' according to l! Lk 9^1 ; IT"- '^ |i ; 20''-'9 I'). There is evidence in these passages, taken as a whole, and regarded as containing the concurrent and con- sistent Evangelical idea of the death of Clirist. that to Christ the burden of death consisted partly in its physical pain, from Avhich One shrank who possessed tiie instinct of life among other human qualities (.see Humanity of Christ), but still more as something unbecoming to the pure and holy Son of God, associated, as it was in human