1 Pet. iii. 1 8. Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.
" SUFFERINGS, of whatever kind, are not in themselves joyous, but grievous :" nevertheless they may on some occasions become a source of joy and triumph, If, for instance, they be inflicted for righteousness' sake, and we have the testimony of our conscience that we suffer for well-doing, we may then unfeignedly rejoice in them, as on other ac- counts, so especially because they render us conform- able to our Lord and Saviour. This thought was suggested by St. Peter as a rich source of consolation to the persecuted Christians of his day : nor can we have any stronger incentive to patience and diligence in every part of our duty, than the consideration of what Christ has done and suffered for our sake.
The words before us lead us to contemplate,
I. The nature of Christ's sufferings —
We speak not of their quality, as corporeal, or spiri- tual, but of their nature as described in the text. They were,
1. Penal —
[Some affirm that the sufferings of Christ were onl}T to confirm his doctrine, and to set us an example : but these ends might have been equally answered by the sufferings of his Apostlesa. But they were the punishment of sin : and the wrath of God due to sin, was the bitterest ingredient in them. We had merited the curse and condemnation of the law : and he, to deliver us from it, "became a curse for usb." "He
a If there was nothing penal in our Lord's sufferings, his example was not near so bright as that of many of his disciples ; since he neither met his sufferings with so much fortitude, nor endured them with such triumphant exultation, as many of his followers have since done. But if they were the penalty due to sin, his apparent inferio- rity is fully accounted for.
*b Gal. iii. 10, 13.