89
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
February 1932
with Jesus, what scripture was fulfilled (cf. Isa. S3 :12) ? Why was one saved and one lost? Was the inscription above Jesus’ cross a true or a false statement? Why did the Jews object to it? In what lan guages was the accusation written? Why? Vs. 25-27. Why did it require courage for Jesus’ friends to be found with Him at the cross ? Did each o f them require His atoning work as much as any other sinner? To whose care did Jesus commit His mother? Why did He not leave her with His brothers? Does this indicate that the bond o f faith in Him as Saviour was stronger than any natural tie ? Vs. 28-30. In what sense was the death o f Christ voluntary? substitutionary? a proof o f the trustworthiness o f Scripture? What phenomenon occurred in the natural world at the time of the death of Christ? Golden Text Illustration In one o f his sermons, Mr. C. H. Spur geon told the following tale: “ One Sabbath evening, having returned home from the Tabernacle, there came a ring at my front doorbell. I opened the door myself, and there stood a big, burly Irishman. “ ‘Good evening, yer riverence,’ he began. “I said, ‘Don’t call me “reverence” ; but what is it you want at this time o f night?’ “ I took the man into my study, and there Pat told me that he had been listening to my sermon that evening at the Tabernacle; but, being a ’ Catholic, he could not under stand what I meant by a full and free salvation. I tried hard to show him the way o f salvation, but nohow could he un derstand, until I used this illustration. “ ‘Pat,’ I said, ‘suppose you had committed a crime, and were sentenced to a long term o f imprisonment; and I were to go to the Queen and get her to set you free, and I went to prison and suffered in your stead.’ “ ‘Sure,’ said - Pat, ‘that would be very kind o f you.’ “ ‘Yes,’ I said, ‘and in the same way, Jesus suffered for your sins on the cross’ (1 Cor. IS :3, 4). I prayed with the man, and after much soul struggle, he admitted his con dition as a sinner, and accepted the Lord Jesus as his Saviour. I saw him many times afterward, and He was still resting on the finished work o f Christ.” Jesus Gives His Life for Us John' 19:17-22; 10:17, 18. Memory Verse: “ Christ died for our sins” (1 Cor. 15:3). Approach: The time had now come for Jesus to give up His life. You remember that Jesus called Himself the Good Shep herd, and He had said, “ The good shep herd giveth his life for the sheep.” Dur
BLACKBOARD LESSON
scripture relative to His death had been fulfilled. Here we may see the importance o f every word o f Scripture. “ I thirst” is just one word in the original, but it is a very important word. The One who made all the rivers, all the springs, and all the streams, must say, “ I thirst.” Christ, the Rock which followed the children o f Israel across the desert and gave them to drink, is now hanging on the cross athirst, and that because of Scripture. Here is a startling answer to those who think the Old Testament Scriptures o f little impor tance. There are many things written therein which have not as yet been fulfilled, but they will all be fulfilled as certainly as our Lord, in His dying moment, remem bering that passage, cried, “I thirst.” 1. His death brought His redemptive work to completion. He cried, “ It is finished.” All His suf ferings as the Substitute, all the fulfillment o f the law as the Sacrifice, the complete satisfaction o f divine justice and holi ness, and all the work for man’s redemp tion was finished- at the cross. Now the believer need not fear that sin or Satan or the law will ever rise to condemn •him. How foolish is the one who attempts, by prayers or tears, by good works or Chris tian service, to add anything to the value o f that finished work! 2. His death was wholly voluntary. He “gave up the ghost.” His life was not forced from Him. He did not go to the cross as an unwilling victim. He was not dragged there against His will, but willingly, and in a sense joyfully, He went to His death. It was no surprise to Him. He had come into the world for that very purpose. We die because we must; He died because He willed it. He died when, and where, and how, He chose. 3. His death was not for Himself but for others. He was “ holy, harmless, and undefiled” ; hence He did not die for His own sin. Here was a unique death, unlike any other before or since. “ I lay down my life,” and “no man taketh it from me,” were His own words. H is blood must be shed, if sin was to be put away. His power might bear our burdens. His compassion might pity our .sorrows, but only His blood could wipe away our sin. And His blood has been shed for all who will trust Him. His death was penal as well as voluntary; He suffered “ for sins.” Moreover, His death was vicarious; H e suffered “the just for the unjust.” And finally, His death was reconciling; He suffered that He “might bring us to God” (cf. 1 Pet. 3:18). His death was sacrificial, substi tutionary, and sufficient, bringing satisfac tion to God, to Himself, and to all who trust Him as their Saviour and Lord. 4. His death is proof that the Bible is true and trustworthy. Over and over again, the Old Testament declared that such a death must take place; again and again, it spoke o f One who would come and suffer, not for His own but for His disciples’ sins. In type and symbol and ceremony and prediction, it declared that a suffering Messiah should come. When the accusation, “This is Jesus the King o f the Jews,” was placed over His cross, and He died there, these statements were all fulfilled (cf. Isa. S3; Ex. 12; Psa. I dare not work my soul to save— That work the Lord hath done. But I will work like any slave For love o f God’s dear Son.
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22; Num. 21, etc.). The cross is God’s answer to infidelity. When confronted with the question, “ Does the Bible really mean what it says?” we have only to look back to the cross to find the answer. 5. His death is God’s answer to every scheme o f man for race betterment. The deepest needs o f man are shown by what he is and has done. He is a sinner and he has sinned. All the beautiful sac rifices offered in the way o f humanitarian- ism, religious ceremonies, or legal observ ances can never put away sin. “Without the shedding o f blood there is no remis sion” o f sin. But the blood of Christ cleariseth from all sin. It blots sin from the memory o f God, it erases every mark in the handwriting o f ordinances which was against us, and it presents our record before God as clean and pure as the rec ord o f God’s own Son. As the signs of children’s play upon the sands o f the sea shore are obliterated when the tide comes in, so the marks o f the believers’ sin upon the records o f eternity are blotted out for ever, leaving no blur or trace, when the precious blood o f Christ is applied. Let the teacher press home upon every scholar the absolute necessity o f trusting the blood of Christ to atone for sin. .6. His death caused the convulsion of all nature. Unlike every other death, Christ’s death disturbed the universe. When Lincoln died by an assassin’s hand, nature gave no sign; when good Queen Victoria passed away, nature remained unmoved; when the Titanic went to the bottom o f the sea, carrying so many brilliant men and women with it, nature was undisturbed; but when Christ, the Son o f God, bowed His head and gave up the ghost, the heavens and the earth and the sea all united in express ing their disturbance. The heavens were darkened, the sun refused to shine, the earth rocked, the rocks were split asunder, and the sea roared when God the Son paid the price of man’s redemption on Cal vary’s hill. Lesson Questions Vs. 17-22. What is.the meaning of Gol gotha? When two thieves were crucified
ing His last talk with His disciples, when He w a s explaining how much He loved them, He said,“ Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” L e s s o n S t o r y : Our story today is a sad one. It is sad to know that it was be
Comfort Just a few more miles, beloved! and our feet shall ache no more; No more sin, and no more sorrow —hush thee, Jesus went before! And I hear Him sweetly whispering, “Faint not, fear not, still press on, For it may be ere tomorrow the long journey will be done.” T S T M argaret B arber .
cause o f people’s sinning that God had to let His Son die for them. It is sad to know that it was one of Jesus’ own disci ples who told Jesus’ enemies where He was, so that the soldiers could come and take Him away. It is sad to know that, « ' V i s t o *
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