The Christadelphian September 1948, John Carter

"Christ's Obedience and His Offering for Himself and for Us"

The Obedience of Christ

Jesus was obedient to the Father in word and deed because his mind was guided by the word of God. He is our example as a “learner” (Isa. 50: 4), for “the volume of the book” was his teacher. But he is not only an example as a pupil who recognized the complete authority of the instruction of God’s word; he is also the master who calls upon his disciples for a similar attitude to God’s word. He was a warrior against error. In his day, as in every day, men “were transgressing and lying against the Lord”; and “the Lord saw it, and it displeased him” (Isa. 59 : 13–15). With righteousness as breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet, clad with zeal, he opposed the errors current and directed men to the “old paths” of God’s way. The battle was in the realm of ideas, where an issue has been joined ever since the serpent lied and said, “Ye shall not surely die”.

The apostles were enrolled in this service, to set forth truth against the wiles of error, to bring men from darkness to light, from evil to righteousness. The power of reason and argument is alone permitted in the strife at the present time—reason and argument based upon the authoritative divine record. The enemies of truth have again and again had recourse to physical weapons, using the sword, torture, imprisonment, and numberless cruelties, to suppress the defenders of truth. But Christ’s disciples do not war after the flesh; when warred against by fleshly weapons, they do not retaliate in kind. They are, nevertheless, warriors, overthrowing citadels of thought and teaching contrary to God’s truth. The “imaginations” and “high things” that exalt themselves “against the knowledge of God” are the enemies with which peace cannot be made. The aim is “to bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10 : 3–5).

Christ in this passage is the captain, the apostle his soldier: and as the apostle vanquished error and taught men truth, so men were brought to subjection to Christ, to obedience to him. When teaching subversive of truth is proclaimed, men’s imaginations are exalted against the truth of God, When men rally to the standards of error they are enemies of God; but when men are truly instructed in Christ and obey him, they are enrolled in his service valiantly to proclaim the truth that makes men free.

Mere contention is to be eschewed; strifes of words to be abhorred; contention has to be no indulgence of fleshly combativeness but disciplined service for truth. We rejoice in our knowledge of God’s salvation through the loyalty to the gospel of men of faith—to us who know the truth has the duty been passed. Whether the teachers of error come from within or arise without the camp of Israel does not alter the duty. In apostolic days Paul’s difficulties arose from within and without the ecclesias, but he could say at the end of his life that he had “kept the faith”.

Christ’s Offering for Himself and for Us

A brother requests the reprinting of the statement appended written by bro. Roberts (The Devil Destroyed by Christ in His Death, The Christadelphian August 1875) during the controversy stirred up by the teaching of Edward Turney, some seventy years ago. The words quoted are much to the point to-day.

“In the moral sense, that is, as regards character, Jesus knew no sin, and was absolutely separate from sinners; but in the physical sense he was not separate from sinners, for ‘he was made in the likeness of sinful flesh’ (Rom. 8: 3). He was ‘made sin’ for us who knew no such thing in his character (2 Cor. 5 : 21). He was made in all things like his brethren (Heb. 2: 17), tempted like them (Heb. 4: 15), and possessed their very flesh and blood (Heb. 2: 14). He was of the seed of David according to the flesh (Rom. 1: 3). Therefore he was not ‘separate’ from them physically, but their bone, and their flesh, and their blood—Son of Man as well as Son of God (John 5: 27). This being so, he was a sufferer from the hereditary effects of sin; for those effects are physical effects. Death is a physical law in our members, implanted there through sin ages ago, and handed down from generation to generation. Consequently, partaking our physical nature, he partook of this, and his own deliverance (as ‘Christ the first fruits’) was as necessary as that of his brethren. In fact, if Christ had not first been saved from death (Heb. 5: 7)—if he had not first obtained eternal redemption (Heb. 9: 12), there would have been no hope for us, for we attain salvation only through what he has accomplished in himself, of which we become heirs by union with him. He overcomes and we share his victory by uniting with him, if he at the judgment seat permit. This we do in baptism, in which we are made partakers of his death, as well as his resurrection. The orthodox and Renunciationist theory of Christ’s death being substitutionary and the payment of a debt owing by us, is another affair altogether, and destructive of the wisdom of God as expressed in the death and resurrection of His Son, and of His mercy and loving kindness as manifested to us in the offer of forgiveness on approaching Him through the name of His slain and accepted Lamb, who from birth to resurrection was provided ‘for us’, ‘the just for the unjust that he might bring us unto God’”.