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SACRIFICE
SACRIFICE
543
expression to the thought that He is Himself the Mediator of salvation, the only Kev^ealer of God (Mt Il-o-''"). He realizes that it is ottence at His humility and lowliness that keeps ' the wise and prudent' from hearing His word, anil tiiat it is love to Him that draws the i)oor and despised and sin-laden to the knowledge of the Father and tiie doing of His will. From that time the thought that He is tiie personal Mediator is frequently upon His lips (Mt 10^" 12="^ 18-^ Lk 128 etc.). It is opposition, too, tliat .arouses in Him the conscious- ness of being tlie Conqueror and Dethroner of Satan and all the powers of darkness (Mt 12-"', Mk 3-'^, Lk lo'*'-^'* 11-^). As time goes on, this opposi- tion develops into a bitter hatred which threatens His life. Seltishness and world-love array them- selves against Him and His doctrine of world- renunciation. His power is too great to be over- looked. The ■world- spirit Mliich dominates the bulk of His countrymen demands His death ; and even His most faithful followers are still enslaved by the world's toils — boirnd to eartii by that material glory which, according to their selfish hopes, His Messiahship is to procure for them. AVhile He lives, they will still buoy themselves up witli false iiopes : they will not understand the pure spirituality of His life and work — that His 'kingdom is not of this world.' Tiie perception of these dangers, then— of that which from the outside threatened His life, of that which from within threatened the purity of His disciples' faith — became to Him a further revelation of the Father's will, — a revelation that His death was decreed, and that by it He should accomplish that for wiiich His whole life had been biit the prepara- tion. But we must not expect many explicit state- ments on the subject. His followers were not yet fit to bear this truth. He was leaving this to be made plain to them by the Holy Spirit after His departure. Yet there are hints enough to lead us to a right understanding. ' I have a baptism to be baptized witli,' He says on one occasion, 'and how am I straitened till it be accomplislied ! ' (Lk jo-Jfl- 51)). ISLanifestly the baptism was the baptism of deatii (cf. Mt 20----«). In Mt 20^8 the reason for the necessity of His death is made plain — 'to give his life a ransom for many.' The idea clearly is that men .are enslaved, ami that Christ gives His life to set tliem free ; but the question still remains as to the nature of the bondage. ' From death, from the guilt of sin and its punisiiment,' says the old theology, or, as it is sometimes expressed, 'from the wrath of God.' But tiiere is not a single word upon the lips of Christ to justify this inter- pretation ; .and, as we siiall see later, wherever in the NT the deatli of Christ is called a deliverance or a ransom, it is always a being purchased for (Jod, a biiing delivered from the bondage of sin to serve God, that is thought of (Ro e^-", 1 Co 6-» 7^, 1 1' 1"*"- etc.). Moreover, the whole mission of our liord .and tiie whole meaning of His teaching w.as to deliver man from sin. to make him love, and long for, rigiiteousness. It is impossible to imagine tlie Preacher of the Sermon on the Mount account- ing it tiie great work of His life merely to deliver men from the consequences of their sins. Can any one believe tiiat sucii a Moralist would be content with less th.an tiie deliver,ance from sin itself, the worst bond.age of all to wliich man is subject •; The context of the words, too (Mt 20'''--''), must lead us to the s.ame conclusion. There is no tiiougiit of death or even of guilt ; but there is a tliought of .sin— of tiie sin of self-seeking, bound up as it w.as with the expectation of m.aterial glory in .an earthly kingdom, which had just jnompted the request of James and John, .and of tiie selfish indign.ation of tiie other disciples wiio resented that request as an attempt to obtain an
unf.air advantage over them. Th.at Ciirist sliould think of His coming death as certain to break for ever the cords of tlieir worldliness, so that their love for Him migiit draw them away from th6 world unto rigiiteousness and God, is perfectly conceivable. His cross, borne for love's sake as tiie Last step in tlie path of perfect holiness wliicii He was called to tread, must for all time crucify the world unto all who truly believed in Him, and them unto the world. To imagine that Christ in these words represents the Fatiier as requiring a ransom at His liands before He can forgive man- kind, is to render His revel.ation of tlie Heavenly Father w holly inconsistent, is to give the lie to all His earlier words regarding the mercy and com- passion of God. The parable of the Prodigal Son in the light of tliis later presentation becomes an impossibility.