as Mediator, was the Father's servant: as says the prophet; "Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delightethV And hence he is spoken of continually as " sent by the Father to be the Saviour of the world V But, as God, he was equal with the Father, and voluntarily concurred with the Father in executing the plan that was agreed upon between them. This appears,
1. At his first undertaking of the work —
[" The counsel of peace was between the Father and the Son0;" the Son agreeing to "make his soul an offering for sin," and the Father engaging to give him " a seed who should prolong their days" in happiness for ever and everd. This mysterious transaction is declared by the Psalmist in the plainest terms; and his words are cited by St. Paul in con- firmation of it : " Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire : mine ears hast thou opened (boring them, as it were, to the door-post, after the manner of a servant, who voluntarily refused his liberty, and consecrated himself for ever to the service of his master e). Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart f." And this ac- cords with what our blessed Lord also says, " For their sakes / sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified through the truths."]
2. In all the progressive steps of its advancement —
[Our blessed Lord foresaw all that should come upon him in the performance of his work. " He knew from the beginning, who should betray himh." In the prospect of his sufferings, he was quite " straitened till they should be accom- plished1." He distinctly and repeatedly foretold all that he was appointed to endure; and, when the time was come for his enduring them, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jeru- salem," for the express purpose that he might endure themk: and, on Peter's endeavouring to dissuade him from submitting to them, he rebuked him with a severity never manifested on any other occasion, and declared him to be on that occasion an agent and confederate of the devil1. On the night previous to his crucifixion, he instituted his last Supper ; delivering to
a Isai. xlii. 1. * 1 John iv. 9, 10. ° Zech. vi. 13.
(1 Isai. liii. 10. e Exod. xxi. 5, 6.
f Ps. xl. 6 — 8. with Heb. x. 4 — 10. e John xvii. 19.
11 John vi. 64. ' Luke xii. 50. k Luke ix. 51.
1 Matt. xvi. 23.