RB being condemned in Christ's flesh (Rom. viii. 3), so here our Lord is regarded as having in his flesh ta.ken upon him the sins of his people, as the great cause of enmity and disunion, aud having exhausted at once the sin of man and the wrath of God on the cross, he thus at once abolished the law of ceremonies and annihilated the enmity which found its occasion in it. The cross is still the instrument of reconciling man to man. The world has made many efforts to unite men on a basis of liberty, equality, fraternity-often trying to bring about a union even by the most terrible bloodshed; but no princi~le has yet been discovered to unite man to man save the gospel of Christ, with its doctnne of atonement through the blood of the cross. 3. Consider the ultimate result of the death of Ghrist. "To make of twain one new man, so making peace." Those previously sundered were by the cross lifted into a higher unity, and placed upon a platform of equal privilege that obliterated all the old causes of division. The reconciling power of the cross ran through all the relations of men and all the relations of life. The person of Christ crucified became henceforth the great Centre of unity. II. How CHRIST IS OUB PEACE IN EFFECTING BECONCILIA TION BETWEEN Gon AND JIUN. " That he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." Nothing can be more explicit than the declaration that Christ's mission was intended to reconcile God and man, who were previously alienated by sin. It is often contended that, as God is essentially a God of love, it becomes us to think only of reconciliation on man's side. There are, in fact, two reconciliations, the one based on the other-a reconciliation of God to man, and a reconciliation of man to God. The apostle says elsewhere that "God has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ" (2 Cor. v. 18), and that it pleased "the Father, having made peace through the blood of the cross, to reconcile all tnings unto himself" (CoL i. 20). The scheme of salvation, whether we take account of the incarnation or the atonement, emanated from the Divine good plea.sure as the supreme source of all blessings. It is always important to emphasize the fa.et that the atonement is the effect, not the cause, of God's love. The peace here spoken of is peace on a basis of law and justice; for the offering up of Christ so magnified the Law and exhausted all its demands, that, on the ground of that propitiation, God could be at once just and the Justifier of the ungodly. This is according to another passage: "God hatb sent forth his Son to be a. propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness" (Rom. iii. 25). If this be so, it is a.n error to hold that the only purpose of Christ's death was the manifestation of Divine love. It was, in fact, a. manifestation of Divine justice as well a.s of Divine love; and if it was not a manifestation of Divine justice, that is, if there was no righteousness making that death necessary, it is difficult to see bow there could be a manifestation of love in his dying. It follows also that it is an err r to depreciate the importance of Christ's death, and to lay the ma.in emphasis of his mission upon the virtues of his life. The Bible knows nothing of a gospel without a cross, or of a gospel which makes the cross a mere affecting incident at the close of a sublime career; it rather exhibits the cross as the grand procuring cause of life and redemption to man. If you take a.way the cross, you dry up the stream of blessing which has flowed down through all Christian ages, you put an end to the abiding peace of God's people, and you paralyze the right arm of the ministry. Therefore we a.re justified in regarding the reconciliation between God and man as resting on Christ's work, and this work as charged with reconciling power, not as it moved the human heart or led· to a new conduct in man, but as it introduced a new relation in which men were placed before God.-T. C. Ver. 17.-The proc1,amation of peace. I. HE WHO IB OUB PEACE IS THE PUBLISHER OP PEA.OE. "And came and preached peace." He came a.s the Prince of peace, spoke of peace before his death as his parting legacy to the Church, and after his ascension to heaven sent forth his ambassadors with the gospel of peace to say," We pray you in Christ's stead be ye reconciled to God " (2 Cor. v. 20). What Christ does by the apostles he does by himself. II. TBE BURDEN OP TBE GOSPEL-PEAal!I, The first word of the angelic annun- ciation was, " Peace on earth." 1. It is peace through the blood of Christ, which thus "speaketh better things than that of Abel." 2. It is peace through the right- eousness of Christ: "Therefore, being justified by faith, wo have pcaoe with God EPHESIANS, 0 S2 THE EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIAN~. [OH. II. 1-22,
through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. v. 1). 3. It is the staple of the gospel which is a gospel of peace proclaimed by ministers who are the publishers of peace'. 4. It introduces sinners into the covenant of peace, which cannot bo removed. 6. It has peace for its fruits, for believers have "joy and peace in believing;" "Great peace have they ~at love thy Law;" '.' To be spiritually minded is life and peace;" "'!'hey that tmst m the Lord are kept m perfect peace;"" They dwell in peaceable habita- tions, in quiet resting-places." I II. THE PERSOh-S TO WHOM PEACE IS PREACHED. "To you that aro afar off and to them that are nigh." There was peace for both Jew and Gentile. It was peace for the wurld. There is no restriction upon the messa,,,o-e of peace. n The Lord shall hle.ss his people mth pe..'ICe n (Ps. nix. 11). " Great shall be the peace of thy children." The proof that the peace bas this wide and blessed efficacy is our free arc= t() the Father by Jesus Cbrist.-T. C. '