Spirit, not the means for procuring the redemptive grace. Jesus Christ, not baptism and not the Lord's Supper, is the Mediator. St. Paul expressly places baptism on a lower plane than the gospel which he preached (1'°'"), which he could not have done if it had per se saving efficacy or was the means of obtaining the benefit of Christ's mediatorial work. He interprets the Supper as symbolic, picturing 'the Lord's death till he come' (ll'°), which ye thereby ' proclaim ' (KaTayy^Were). The ordinances are thus preachers of the death of Christ for sinners and of the new life in Christ. The cup proclaims ' the new covenant in my blood,' as St. Paul quotes from Jesus (v.-'), and is to be drunk ' in remem- brance of nie.' The worthy celebration of the ordinance consists in discerning the body of Christ (v.'-") and not making a mere meal of the emblems. All believers are members of the mystical body of Christ the Head ( 12'-''- ). St. Paul's gospel, in short, has as its first word that * Christ died for sins ' (15^). The preposition is vir^p ('over,' 'on behalf of). This death would have been in vain had He not risen from the dead (v."). But the resurrection of Christ is guarantee of His power to save, so that ' in Christ shall all be made alive ' (v."). So then the Christian, the one in Christ (6 if Xpio-TcJ), is victorious over sin and death ' through our Lord Jesus Christ' (v.").
In 2 Cor. St. Paul touches the very heart of his message about salvation in Christ. The challenge of the Judaizing sacramentalism called forth this passionate emphasis on the sufficiency of the redemptive and reconciling work of Christ. ' The sufferings of Christ abound unto us,' irepurtrevei to. Trad7]fj.aTa tou XpiuTov ets Tjp.ds (P). Here we have the notion of example rather than of redemption. St. Paul sutt'ers as Jesus did. So as to 4'", ' always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus. His ' sufferings are killing him as they killed his Master' (Denney, Death of Christ, p. 139). See also 4*. The face of Jesus Christ gives the know- ledge of God's glory. But the locus classicus is 5u-ai^ where the mediatorial work of Christ receives formal discussion. St. Paul is willing to be con- .sidered 'beside' himself (v.'') in this matter (cf. 1 Co 1^). The love which Christ has for St. Paul keeps him in love [amixei), holds him intact what- ever men think of him. Knowing the love of Christ, he deliberately interprets (Kphw) His death : ' One died for all, therefore all died,' fin tls inrkp TrdvTuv dir^Bavev &pa ol Tracres dir^davop (5'*). We need not stop to show that v-n-^p can be used where the notion of substitution is present. It is common enough in the ostraca and papyri of the Koine (Deissmann, Liqht from the Ancient East, Eng. tr., 1911, p. 153). But see also Jn 11°°, where eU d^dpa- iros diroddvri vir^p roO \aou is explained by Kal /jlt] d\ov rb 'idvoi dirdXTiTai. See further Gal 3'^, to be discussed later. Suffice it to say that in 2 Co 5^* the dpa clause, though parenthetical, clearly means that oi irdvTfs died in the death of Christ and do not have to die in that sense again. Jesus therefore died in their stead. It is not here contended that this notion exhavists the meaning of the death of Christ. St. Paul himself speaks of the mystic crucifixion with Christ (Gal 2-"). No theory can set forth the wealth of meaning in the death of Christ, but St. Paul here places the notion of substitution to the fore. Love prompted this wonderful gift. God carries on the work of reconciliation ((caTa\Xa7v). This is done 'through Christ' (2 Co 5") and 'in Christ' (v.'"). God oilers Christ to the world as supreme proof of His love and as the ground of reconciliation. It is all 'of God' (v.''), and He even made Christ to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ (v.'"). No sin actually touched Christ, but He bore our sins as the sacrifice for sin that we might go
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free. So then St. Paul bears the message of recon- ciliation to men as the ambassador of Clirist. All that lie has said elsewhere is in accord with this central passage. See also 8", where tlie voluntary poverty of Christ in place of His preexistent state of riches in heaven was for our saKes (5id), tliat we ' through his poverty (tb TTToixf'c. instrumental case) might become rich.' Here the wliole earthly life of Christ is brought into view, and not merely His death, as constituting the mediatorial work of the Saviour. Hence 9", where Jesus is the unspeakable gift, ^ttl t^ dveKdtJjyrjTcii avTou dwp^^. St. Paul is positive about his conception of Jesus — so much so that he calls the Jesus of the Judaizers 'another Jesus,' aXXov 'Iijtrow, and that gospel 'a different gospel,' evayy4\iov Irepov (11*). Only one historic Jesus in the sense of St. Paul is possible, so that he uses liXXoi', not irepov.