The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Corinthians — Section 88

I. THE WHOLE; or the entire, the complete. '!'hose having all the Christian faculties :111d graces, and all of them lrnrmonionsly cultured. 'l'ho figure suggests tho complete anmrnl, with cYcry limb well formed, and every organ cllicicntly working. 'l'oo often we find Christians who arc incomplete; some sides of thei1· natures aro quite unculti- vate,1, and some arc o,·er-cultirntcd; they are strong in some things, but weak in "' 1,crs. J nst as wo see in ammals, there are Christian "monstrosities," one-sided grull'lhs, deficiencies of some important members. Wholeness, pcrfect.ness, requires the due cnlture of the large as well as the small graces nnd powers. Ami such " completeness," when r~achcd, is_ a most importitnt witness to Christ's grace, and appeal to men to seek their pcrfcct10n through him. II. THE souND; that is, t)ie healthy. It i~ not enough that the different parts arG) present, and fitted t~gcther rn g;ood a!1d_ practically efficient proportions; all the parts must be free from disease and lull ol vitality. Perfection demands health as well as completeness. Christians often fail of the standard by reason of sin-disease affectin" various organs of their spiritual life, e.g. their prayer; their activity in Christia~ sen-ice; their watchfulness over pe~sonal habits, or their tendency to depression ancl doubt. St. John very tenderly wntes- to the well-beloved Gaius, "I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul pruspereth." Ill. THE FULL-GROWN; or the developed and matured, who have quite passed out of the infantile or ch:ldish stage. This is probably the precise form of the figure as it was presented to the mind of the apostle. He elsewhere speaks of adapting his teach- ings to the uncultured and unspiritual, making them like milk that is suited to the 11ourislimcnt of babes. He means to press on the Corinthians that, while it is quite right that they should be babes, and as such be fed with the simplicities of Christian doctrine, it is not right that they should remain babes; they should reach Christian manhood, and want man'~ food of truth and mystery. lrnpress how reasonable these views of the "perfect" are, and how contrasted with the vague and sentimental notions of an absolute freedom from sin, of which enthusia,;ts sometimes dream.-R. T. , er. 8.- What would have prevented Christ's crucifixion 1 Attention is directed to the second clause of the verse : "For had they known it, they would not have crnci- fic<l the Lord of glory." From the point of view of mernly worldly policy, the cr~cifixion of Christ was a profound mistake. Martyrdom never effects the objects ,ought by the persecutors. It tends rather to glorify, in the popular sentiment, the cause for which the martyrs died. "Not a single calculation of those who compassed 1be Saviour's death was destined to be fulfilled. Pilate did not escape the emperor's displeasure. Caiaphas (John xi. 50) did not save Jerusalem. 'l'he scribes and l'harisees did not put down the doctrine of Jesus." Christ's crucifixion may be 1 egarded from several points of view. As we understand how it actually came about, we are prepared to consider what might conceivably have prevented it. 1. It occurred in the order of Divine providence. Ev~ry man's life is a plan of God. Eacli event is fitted, and its influence used or overruled. A man's incoming to life, and outgoini !rum life, are arranged by the Divine wisdom. The time, the place, and the mode of a man's death are Divine ordering. This is true of every man; it is recognized and made a secret of calm trustfulness for all the future by the Christian man; it is in sublime and glorious manner true of God's own Son, in the life on earth, which was a ~pecial Divine mission. 2. It occurred as a. natural result of operatiug causP-s. In considering this point, we put on one side the Divine overrulings, make a fair estimate of the influence exerted by Christ's character, example, and teaching upon the various classes constituting the people among whom he lived and laboured. When national prejudices are duly weighed, and the character of the public sentiment concerning the upected Messiah, it nu longer seems strange that our Lord excited an opposition which culminated iu his death. o. It occurred as a consequence of our Lord's own conduct. He did not, in any determiued way, avoid those circumstances and situations which tcuded to l,ring about his death. He !llight, humanly speaking, have remained iu Galilee or hidden himself in Bethany, or fled from Gethsemane as the arresting party ;1 prua~hcd. Instead, we find him Jay by day following the Divine lead; in no way 11 ,..,,~i □ g his circumstances, thou;;h the iswe of them was evident enough to himselt:. en. 11. 1-16.] 'l'IIE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIA"NS.