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THE KING’S „BUSINESS
A foyr-fold view of Christ is presented in the Gospels. The number four indi cates “the unfolding o f the. evangel in all its fullness so that it reflects the four-fold sway o f God in the world. Four is the world number. The Gospel meets the four fold wants and views o f the world, and under a four-fold aspect displays the infi nite riches o f revelation.” They are the four inspired histories o f the life o f our Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. They all refer to and treat o f the same Redeemer and the same salvation, though not dealing with precisely the same details and incidents in our Lord’s life. W e have, therefore, one Gospel under a four-fold aspect: the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark,' Luke and John. The stream that flowed from the Garden o f Eden was parted into four heads; so the record o f the life o f Him who is the water o f life comes to us through four Gospel channels. The following illustration throws light on the purpose o f the four-fold Gospel record: A famous sculptor in Paris, who makes' busts and statues o f celebrated men has the following method o f operation: The room in which he works is circular, and around its circumference a number of cameras are placed in position, all pointing towards the center where stands the sub ject for the bust or statue. All lights are properly arranged, and at a given signal photographic exposures are made, and so a picture or photograph is taken o f the subject from different points o f view, and the bust or statue when finished is the result o f these combined views o f the per son. Thus a statue is made which could not be possible as the result o f one single view. So the Evangelists have placed their photographic cameras on four sides o f our Lord Jesus Christ, and given us a com posite picture as the result o f these four different viewpoints. To understand Christ, to get a full-orbed view o f His person and work, we must get a vision o f Him which is the result o f this four-fold combined picture. The differences in the narratives are such as arise from the above facts. The
same thing is true, in a limited sense, o f Socrates. W e have extant two accounts o f the life and character o f Socrates, one by Plato, the other by Xenophon, which widely differ. Shall we say that there never was such a person as Socrates sifn- ply because these two historians speak so differently o f/ him ? Shall we say that there was no such person as Jesus Christ simply because the Evangelists speak dif ferently o f Him? There is no contradiction at all between them. Each presents Christ from his own viewpoint. Cicero says, “ The eye sees 'only that which it brings within, the power o f seeing.” Every man sees another man out o f his own eye, and gets a view o f that other that no other person gets. M ATTHEW ’S ALBUM OF CHRIST Jesus Christ is here presented from the 7 ewish point o f view, showing that He was the' promised Messiah, o f the seed o f Abra ham, and through the kingly line o f David (Matthew 1:1). Jesus o f Nazareth ful filled the Old Testament predictions relat ing to the Messiah (cf. the oft-.recurring expression: “This was done that it might be fulfilled,” 1: 22, 23; 2:5, 15, 17, 23; 3:3, 15; 4:14; etc.) This phase is especially noticeable in connection with the sufferings o f Christ (26:23, 24, 31, 52 ; 27:9, 35, 42, 43, 46; cf. Psalm 22). There are sixty Old Testament quotations in Matthew. MARK ’S PORTRA IT OF CHR IST Mark was written for the purpose o f presenting Jesus Christ to the Romans. For this reason Jesus is set forth as Ihe Mighty Worker, the faithful “ Servant o f the Lord” (Isaiah 42: 1-9), the One Who does the will o f God perfectly. (Psa. 40:7, 8). The key-thought o f this Gospel may be set forth as “ the Lord working” (16:20), for it begins with activity (1 :9 ) and ends with ‘“working” (16:20). There is a noticeable absence in the intro duction to Mark’s Gospel o f Christ’s genealogical table. The reason for this lies in the fact that Mark’s purpose is to present Jesus Christ as the Mighty Worker, and for this reason the record starts with
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