Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Of Man's Chief End by Thomas Ridgely
Articles & Books Summer 1992 PRC Magazine Of Man’s Chief End
Of Man’s Chief End
Summer 1992 PRC Magazine
Written by Thomas Ridgely
Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him for ever.
l. It is supposed, in this answer, that every intelligent creature, acting as such, designs some end, which excites endeavours to attain it.
2. The ends for which we act, if warrantable, may be considered as to their degree of excellency, and, in proportion to it, are to be pursued by proper means conducing thereto.
3. There is one that may be termed the chief and highest end, as having an excellency and tendency to make us blessed above all others: this consists, as it is observed in this answer, in the glorifying and eternal enjoyment of God, the fountain of blessedness.
If it be enquired with what propriety these may both be called chief and highest, the answer if obvious and easy, viz., That the former if absolutely so, beyond which nothing more excellent or desirable can be conceived; the latter is the highest or best in its kind, which, notwithstanding, is referred, as a means leading to the other; and both these ends, which, with this distinction, we call chief and highest, are to be particularly considered by us, together with the connection that there is between them. And,
I. We are to consider what it is to glorify God. In order to our understanding of this, let it be premised,
l. That there is a great difference between God’s glorifying himself and our glorifying him; he glorifies himself when he demonstrates or shows forth his glory; we glorify him by ascribing to him the glory that is his due: even as the Sun discovers its brightness by its rays, and the eye beholds it. God glorifies himself, by furnishing us with matter for praise; we glorify him when we offer praise, or give unto him the glory due to his Name.
2. Creatures are said to glorify God various ways; some things do it only objectively, as by them, angels and men are led to glorify him. Thus the heavens declare his glory (Ps. 19:1). The same might be said of all other inanimate creatures which glorify God, by answering the end of their creation, though they know it not: but intelligent creatures, and particularly men, are said to glorify God actively; and this they do by admiring and adoring his divine perfections: these, as incomprehensible, are the object of admiration; and accordingly the Apostle admire the divine wisdom, O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God; how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out (Rom. 11:33). And as they are divine, so they are the object of adoration: God is to be admired in all the displays of his relative or manifestative glory; and his work, which men behold, is to be magnified (Job 36:24). But he is to be adored more especially for his essential perfections.
We are to glorify God, by recommending, proclaiming, and setting forth his excellency to others. What we have the highest value for, we desire that others may have the same regard to it with out selves: thus it is observed by the Evangelist, that when the Disciples received their first conviction that Jesus was the Messiah, they imparted this to others; as Andrew to Peter, and Philip to Nathanael; so the woman of Samaria being convinced hereof, endeavoured to persuade all her neighbors to believe in him, as she did. Thus we glorify God by making mention of his name with reverence, proclaiming his goodness with thankfulness, and inviting others, as the Psalmist does, to taste and see that he is good. (Ps. 34:8).
But since this is a very comprehensive duty, including in it the whole of practical religion, it may be considered under the following particulars.
1. We glorify God by confessing and taking shame to our selves for all the sins we have committed, which is interpretatively to acknowledge the holiness of his nature, and of his law, which the Apostle asserts to be holy, just and good. (Rom. 7:12). This Joshua advises Achan to do; to give glory to God, by making confession to him (John 7:19). And thus the penitent thief, who was crucified with out Saviour, glorified God by confessing that he received the due reward of his deeds (Luke 23:40,41). So did the Levites, in their prayer recorded by Nehemiah, when the said to God, Thou art just in all that is brought upon us, for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly (Neh. 9:33).
2. By loving and delighting in him above all things, which is to act as those who own the transcendent amiableness of his perfection, as the object of their highest esteem. Thus the Psalmist says, Whom have I in heaven but thee; and there is none upon earth, that I desire besides thee. (Ps. 73:25).
3. By believing and trusting in him, committing all our concerns, both in life and death, for time and eternity, into his hands: thus Abraham is said to the strong in faith, giving glory to God (Rom. 4:20) And the Apostle Paul, to have committed his all to him.(2 Tim. 1:12)
4. By a fervent zeal for his honour; and that either for the honour of his truth and Gospel, when denied, disbelieved or perverted; or for the honour of his holiness, or any of his other perfections, when they are reflected on, or reproached, either by the tongues or actions of those who set themselves against him.
5. By improving our talents, and bringing forth fruit in proportion to the means we enjoy; herein says our Saviour, is my father glorified, that ye bear much fruit. (John 15:8).
©2010 Presbyterian Reformed Church
http://www.presbyterianreformed.org/content/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=62:of-mans-chief-end&catid=38:summer-1992-prc-magazine&Itemid=55
Of Man’s Chief End
Summer 1992 PRC Magazine
Written by Thomas Ridgely
Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him for ever.
l. It is supposed, in this answer, that every intelligent creature, acting as such, designs some end, which excites endeavours to attain it.
2. The ends for which we act, if warrantable, may be considered as to their degree of excellency, and, in proportion to it, are to be pursued by proper means conducing thereto.
3. There is one that may be termed the chief and highest end, as having an excellency and tendency to make us blessed above all others: this consists, as it is observed in this answer, in the glorifying and eternal enjoyment of God, the fountain of blessedness.
If it be enquired with what propriety these may both be called chief and highest, the answer if obvious and easy, viz., That the former if absolutely so, beyond which nothing more excellent or desirable can be conceived; the latter is the highest or best in its kind, which, notwithstanding, is referred, as a means leading to the other; and both these ends, which, with this distinction, we call chief and highest, are to be particularly considered by us, together with the connection that there is between them. And,
I. We are to consider what it is to glorify God. In order to our understanding of this, let it be premised,
l. That there is a great difference between God’s glorifying himself and our glorifying him; he glorifies himself when he demonstrates or shows forth his glory; we glorify him by ascribing to him the glory that is his due: even as the Sun discovers its brightness by its rays, and the eye beholds it. God glorifies himself, by furnishing us with matter for praise; we glorify him when we offer praise, or give unto him the glory due to his Name.
2. Creatures are said to glorify God various ways; some things do it only objectively, as by them, angels and men are led to glorify him. Thus the heavens declare his glory (Ps. 19:1). The same might be said of all other inanimate creatures which glorify God, by answering the end of their creation, though they know it not: but intelligent creatures, and particularly men, are said to glorify God actively; and this they do by admiring and adoring his divine perfections: these, as incomprehensible, are the object of admiration; and accordingly the Apostle admire the divine wisdom, O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God; how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out (Rom. 11:33). And as they are divine, so they are the object of adoration: God is to be admired in all the displays of his relative or manifestative glory; and his work, which men behold, is to be magnified (Job 36:24). But he is to be adored more especially for his essential perfections.
We are to glorify God, by recommending, proclaiming, and setting forth his excellency to others. What we have the highest value for, we desire that others may have the same regard to it with out selves: thus it is observed by the Evangelist, that when the Disciples received their first conviction that Jesus was the Messiah, they imparted this to others; as Andrew to Peter, and Philip to Nathanael; so the woman of Samaria being convinced hereof, endeavoured to persuade all her neighbors to believe in him, as she did. Thus we glorify God by making mention of his name with reverence, proclaiming his goodness with thankfulness, and inviting others, as the Psalmist does, to taste and see that he is good. (Ps. 34:8).
But since this is a very comprehensive duty, including in it the whole of practical religion, it may be considered under the following particulars.
1. We glorify God by confessing and taking shame to our selves for all the sins we have committed, which is interpretatively to acknowledge the holiness of his nature, and of his law, which the Apostle asserts to be holy, just and good. (Rom. 7:12). This Joshua advises Achan to do; to give glory to God, by making confession to him (John 7:19). And thus the penitent thief, who was crucified with out Saviour, glorified God by confessing that he received the due reward of his deeds (Luke 23:40,41). So did the Levites, in their prayer recorded by Nehemiah, when the said to God, Thou art just in all that is brought upon us, for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly (Neh. 9:33).
2. By loving and delighting in him above all things, which is to act as those who own the transcendent amiableness of his perfection, as the object of their highest esteem. Thus the Psalmist says, Whom have I in heaven but thee; and there is none upon earth, that I desire besides thee. (Ps. 73:25).
3. By believing and trusting in him, committing all our concerns, both in life and death, for time and eternity, into his hands: thus Abraham is said to the strong in faith, giving glory to God (Rom. 4:20) And the Apostle Paul, to have committed his all to him.(2 Tim. 1:12)
4. By a fervent zeal for his honour; and that either for the honour of his truth and Gospel, when denied, disbelieved or perverted; or for the honour of his holiness, or any of his other perfections, when they are reflected on, or reproached, either by the tongues or actions of those who set themselves against him.
5. By improving our talents, and bringing forth fruit in proportion to the means we enjoy; herein says our Saviour, is my father glorified, that ye bear much fruit. (John 15:8).
©2010 Presbyterian Reformed Church
http://www.presbyterianreformed.org/content/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=62:of-mans-chief-end&catid=38:summer-1992-prc-magazine&Itemid=55
Saturday, April 17, 2010
My Notes For Today by Greg Feguer
God's creatures, including human beings, have no ulimate right to hold him accountable to our understanding of eternal things. No, it is he - almightly God - who holds us accountable. He, the sovereign Creator, exercises divine prerogatives over his creatures. - Romans 9:19-2320
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The Character of the Cross Work of Christ
The Character of the Cross Work of Christ
by Robert L Reymond
Excerpt From A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith
THE CROSS WORK of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is God’s Alpha and Omega, stands at the beginning, the center, and the end of God’s eternal will and all his ways and works. Christ’s cross work is sacred ground. It is the church’s “holy of holies.” John Murray describes our Lord’s cross work as “the most solemn spectacle in all history, a spectacle unparalleled, unique, unrepeated, and unrepeatable” and the site of “the most mysterious utterance that ever ascended from earth to heaven, ‘My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?’ ” Beholding it, we are spectators of a wonder the praise and glory of which eternity will not exhaust. It is the Lord of glory, the Son of God incarnate, the God-man, drinking the cup given him by the eternal Father, the cup of woe and of indescribable agony. We almost hesitate to say so. But it must be said. It is God in our nature forsaken of God. The cry from the accursed tree evinces nothing less than the abandonment that is the wages of sin.… There is no reproduction or parallel in the experience of archangels or of the greatest saints. The faintest parallel would crush the holiest of men and the mightiest of the angelic host.
As the Surety of the elect in the eternal plan of salvation, and in fulfillment of God’s covenant promises to Abraham (Luke 1:54–55, 68–73; Rom. 15:8–9; Gal. 3:8–9, 13–14), and as the Mediator of the covenant of grace and the only Redeemer of God’s elect, the Lord Jesus Christ performed his saving work in their behalf in his threefold office of prophet (Deut. 18:15; Luke 4:18–21; 13:33; Acts 3:22), priest (Ps. 110:4; Heb. 3:1; 4:14–15; 5:5–6; 6:20; 7:26; 8:1), and king (Isa 9:6–7; Pss. 2:6; 45:6; 110:1–2; Luke 1:33; John 18:36–37; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:11; Rev. 19:16). Theologians refer to these as the three offices of Christ, with all the other christological designations such as Apostle, Shepherd, Intercessor, Counselor, and Head of the church being subsumed under one or more of these three general offices. Fulfilling his office work of prophet, Christ (1) claimed to bring the Father’s message (John 8:26–28; 12:49–50), (2) proclaimed God’s message to the people (Matt. 4:17) and to us, his disciples (Matt. 5–7), and (3) foretold or predicted future events (Matt. 24–25; Luke 19:41–44). Still today he continues to exercise his work as prophet in “revealing to us, by his word [John 16:12–15] and Spirit [1 Pet. 1:10–11] the will of God for our salvation” (Shorter Catechism, Question 24) and our edification (Eph. 4:11–13).
Executing his office work of high priest, Christ (1) offered himself up to God as a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice and to reconcile the church to God (Rom. 3:26; Heb. 2:17; 9:14, 28) and (2) makes and continues to make intercession for all those who come unto God by him (John 17:6–24; Heb. 7:25; 9:24). Performing his office work of king, Christ (1) calls his elect out of the world to become a people for himself (Isa. 55:5; John 10:16, 27), (2) gives them officers, laws, and censures by which he visibly governs them (1 Cor. 5:4–5; 12:28; Eph. 4:11–12; Matt. 18:17–18; 28:19–20; 1 Tim. 3:1–13; 5:20; Titus 1:5–9; 3:10), (3) preserves and supports them in all their temptations and sufferings (Rom. 8:35–39; 2 Cor. 12:9–10), (4) restrains and overcomes all his and their enemies (Acts 12:17; 18:9–10; 1 Cor. 15:25), (5) powerfully orders all things for his own glory and their good (Matt. 28:19–20; Rom. 8:28; 14:11; Col. 1:18), and (6) finally takes vengeance on his enemies who know not God and who obey not the gospel (Ps. 2:9; 2 Thess. 1:8). This delineation of Christ’s three general offices indicates that he exercises them in both the estate of his humiliation and the estate of his exaltation (Isa. 9:6–7; Ps. 2:6; Rev. 19:16). That is to say, one must not think that it was his prophetic and priestly ministries that he exercised before his death and entombment while it is his kingly office that he has exercised since his resurrection; the Scriptures represent him as exercising all three offices in both estates. In filling these offices Christ meets and fulfills all the needs of men. “As prophet he meets the problem of man’s ignorance, supplying him with knowledge. As priest he meets the problem of man’s guilt, supplying him with righteousness. As king he meets the problem of man’s weakness and dependence, supplying him with power and protection.”
In this chapter our Lord’s office work as priest will be particularly considered.
The cross work of Christ is central to the Christian faith and its proclamation, because of who it was who died on the cross and what it was he did there. With the apostles the church affirms that it was the eternal Son of God, the Word who became flesh, the Lord of glory, who died on Calvary (Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:1; John 1:1, 14; 20:28; 1 Cor. 2:8). Accordingly, in its best moments, the church has “gloried in nothing but the cross” (Gal. 6:14) and has “resolved to know nothing among [the nations] except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). It has done so even though it knows that the preaching of the cross is “a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” (1 Cor. 1:23). It has done so, not only because it knows that “God was pleased through the foolishness of preaching [the message of the cross] to save those who believe” (1 Cor. 1:18, 21), but also because it recognizes that the cross of Christ is “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24). For Paul to characterize the cross of Christ the way he did in 1 Corinthians 1:24—”the power of God and the wisdom of God”—implies that God accomplished a truly great salvation through the cross work of the Lord of Glory. One can sketch the momentous outlines of that “so great salvation” simply by surveying what the New Testament epistles affirm about the “body,” “blood,” “cross,” and “death” of Christ, words which taken in their contexts represent that great work in terms of a sacrifice (see also 1 Cor. 5:7; Heb. 7:27; 9:26, 28; 10:10, 12, 14).
THE BODY OF CHRIST
The New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of Christ’s “body,” this word referring in the contexts cited to his body offered up in sacrifice to God:
Romans 7:4: Christians “died [ἐθανατώθητε, ethanatōthēte] to the law through the body of Christ.”
Colossians 1:22: God “reconciled [ἀποκατήλλαξεν, apokatēllaxen] you by the body of [Christ’s] flesh through death to present you holy and unblemished and blameless in his sight.”
Hebrews 10:10: Christians “have been made holy [ἡγιασµένοι, hēgiasmenoi] through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
1 Peter 2:24: Jesus “bore [ἀνήνεγκεν, anēnenken] our sins in his body on the tree, in order that we might die to sins and live for righteousness—by whose wounds you have been healed [ἰάθητε, iathēte].”
THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
The New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of Christ’s “blood,” the word blood in these verses to be construed as theological shorthand for his sacrificial death.Acts 20:28: God “acquired [περιεποιήσατο, periepoiēsato] [the church] through his own blood” (or “through the blood of his own [Son].”
Romans 3:25: God “publicly set Christ forth [προέθετο, proetheto] as a propitiation [ἱλαστήριον, hilastērion], through faith in his blood, to demonstrate his justice because of the passing over of sins committed beforehand in God’s forebearance.” (See also Heb. 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10)
Romans 5:9: Christians “have been justified [δικαιωθέντες, dikaiōthentes, that is, pardoned and constituted righteous] by his blood.”
Ephesians 1:7: Christians “have redemption [ἀπολύτρωσιν, apolytrōsin] through his blood, the forgiveness of trespasses” (see Col. 1:14, where Paul attaches directly to “redemption,” virtually as a synonym, “the forgiveness of sins.”)
Ephesians 2:12–13: Gentile Christians “who once were far away have been brought near [ἐγενήθητε ἐγγὺς, egenēthēte engys] [to Christ, to citizenship in Israel, to the benefits of the covenants of the promise, to hope, and to God himself] by the blood of Christ.”
Colossians 1:20: God was pleased through Christ “to reconcile [ἀποκαταλλάξαι, apokatallaxai] all things to himself, having made peace [εἰρηνοποιήσας, eirēnopoiēsas] through the blood of his cross.”
Hebrews 9:12: Christ “entered the Most Holy Place once for all through his own blood, having obtained [εὑράµενος, heuramenos] eternal redemption [λύτρωσιν, lytrōsin].”
Hebrews 9:14: The blood of Christ “will cleanse [καθαριεῖ, kathariei] our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God.”
1 Peter 1:2, 18–19: God’s elect were chosen “for sprinkling by the blood of Jesus Christ,” which figure portrays Christ’s death as a sacrificial death in fulfillment of the Old Testament typical system of sacrifice in which the blood of bulls and goats was ceremonially sprinkled on the persons and objects to be cleansed. Furthermore, it is by his “precious blood” that the believers “were redeemed [ἐλυτρώθητε, elytrōthēte]” from their former empty way of life.
1 John 1:7: “The blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses [καθαρίζει, katharizei] us from all sin.”
Revelation 1:5: Christ “loved us and freed [λύσαντι, lysanti] us from our sins by his blood.”
Revelation 5:9–10: Christ “purchased [ἠγόρασας, ēgorasas] for God by his blood men from every tribe and language and people and nation, and made [ἐποίησας, epoiēsas] them for God a kingdom and priests, and they will reign on the earth.”
THE CROSS OF CHRIST
Paul states the following about the accomplishments of the “cross”—again, metaphorical shorthand for Christ’s sacrificial death:
Ephesians 2:16: God “has reconciled [ἀποκαταλλάξῃ, apokatallaxē] both [Jews and Gentiles] in one body to God through the cross, having put to death [ἀποκτείνας, apokteinas] [God’s] enmity by [or “on”] it.”
Colossians 1:20: Christ “made peace [εἰρηνοποιήσας, eirēnopoiēsas] through the blood of his cross.”
Colossians 2:14–15: God “canceled [ἐξαλείψας, exaleipsas] the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it out of the way [ἦρκεν ἐκ τοῦ µέσου, ērken ek tou mesou], nailing it fast to the cross. Having disarmed [ἀπεκδυσάµενος, apekdysamenos] the rulers and authorities, he exposed [them] publicly [ἐδειγµάτισεν ἐν παρρησίᾳ, edeigmatisen en parrēsia], triumphing [θριαµβεύσας, thriambeusas] over them by it.”
THE DEATH OF CHRIST
Finally, the New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of the “death” of Christ:
Romans 5:10: “When we were enemies, we were reconciled [κατηλλάγηµεν, katēllagēmen] to God through the death of his Son.
Colossians 1:21–22: “Once you were alienated and enemies in your minds as shown by evil works, but now God has reconciled [ἀποκατήλλαξεν, apokatēllaxen] you … through [Christ’s] death, to present you holy and unblemished and blameless in his sight.”
Hebrews 2:9–10: “We see Jesus, through the suffering of death, being crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God in behalf of all he might taste death. For it was fitting for [God] … in bringing many sons to glory to perfect the Author of their salvation through suffering.”
Hebrews 2:14: Christ “shared in their humanity in order that through his death he might destroy [καταργήσῃ, katargēsē] the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free [ἀπαλλάξῃ, apallaxē] those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.”
Hebrews 9:15: “He is the Mediator of a new covenant in order that, by means of death as a ransom to set them free [εἰς ἀπολύτρωσιν, eis apolytrōsin] from the trespasses under the first covenant, the ones who have been called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”
Other verses, without using the noun “death,” also speak of what Christ accomplished when he “died”:
John 12:24: By “falling into the ground and dying,” Christ’s dying “produces many seeds.”
Romans 5:6: “When we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”
Romans 5:8: “When we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
1 Corinthians 15:3: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.”
2 Corinthians 5:15: “He died for all in order that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
Excerpt From A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith
by Robert L Reymond
Excerpt From A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith
THE CROSS WORK of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is God’s Alpha and Omega, stands at the beginning, the center, and the end of God’s eternal will and all his ways and works. Christ’s cross work is sacred ground. It is the church’s “holy of holies.” John Murray describes our Lord’s cross work as “the most solemn spectacle in all history, a spectacle unparalleled, unique, unrepeated, and unrepeatable” and the site of “the most mysterious utterance that ever ascended from earth to heaven, ‘My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?’ ” Beholding it, we are spectators of a wonder the praise and glory of which eternity will not exhaust. It is the Lord of glory, the Son of God incarnate, the God-man, drinking the cup given him by the eternal Father, the cup of woe and of indescribable agony. We almost hesitate to say so. But it must be said. It is God in our nature forsaken of God. The cry from the accursed tree evinces nothing less than the abandonment that is the wages of sin.… There is no reproduction or parallel in the experience of archangels or of the greatest saints. The faintest parallel would crush the holiest of men and the mightiest of the angelic host.
As the Surety of the elect in the eternal plan of salvation, and in fulfillment of God’s covenant promises to Abraham (Luke 1:54–55, 68–73; Rom. 15:8–9; Gal. 3:8–9, 13–14), and as the Mediator of the covenant of grace and the only Redeemer of God’s elect, the Lord Jesus Christ performed his saving work in their behalf in his threefold office of prophet (Deut. 18:15; Luke 4:18–21; 13:33; Acts 3:22), priest (Ps. 110:4; Heb. 3:1; 4:14–15; 5:5–6; 6:20; 7:26; 8:1), and king (Isa 9:6–7; Pss. 2:6; 45:6; 110:1–2; Luke 1:33; John 18:36–37; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:11; Rev. 19:16). Theologians refer to these as the three offices of Christ, with all the other christological designations such as Apostle, Shepherd, Intercessor, Counselor, and Head of the church being subsumed under one or more of these three general offices. Fulfilling his office work of prophet, Christ (1) claimed to bring the Father’s message (John 8:26–28; 12:49–50), (2) proclaimed God’s message to the people (Matt. 4:17) and to us, his disciples (Matt. 5–7), and (3) foretold or predicted future events (Matt. 24–25; Luke 19:41–44). Still today he continues to exercise his work as prophet in “revealing to us, by his word [John 16:12–15] and Spirit [1 Pet. 1:10–11] the will of God for our salvation” (Shorter Catechism, Question 24) and our edification (Eph. 4:11–13).
Executing his office work of high priest, Christ (1) offered himself up to God as a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice and to reconcile the church to God (Rom. 3:26; Heb. 2:17; 9:14, 28) and (2) makes and continues to make intercession for all those who come unto God by him (John 17:6–24; Heb. 7:25; 9:24). Performing his office work of king, Christ (1) calls his elect out of the world to become a people for himself (Isa. 55:5; John 10:16, 27), (2) gives them officers, laws, and censures by which he visibly governs them (1 Cor. 5:4–5; 12:28; Eph. 4:11–12; Matt. 18:17–18; 28:19–20; 1 Tim. 3:1–13; 5:20; Titus 1:5–9; 3:10), (3) preserves and supports them in all their temptations and sufferings (Rom. 8:35–39; 2 Cor. 12:9–10), (4) restrains and overcomes all his and their enemies (Acts 12:17; 18:9–10; 1 Cor. 15:25), (5) powerfully orders all things for his own glory and their good (Matt. 28:19–20; Rom. 8:28; 14:11; Col. 1:18), and (6) finally takes vengeance on his enemies who know not God and who obey not the gospel (Ps. 2:9; 2 Thess. 1:8). This delineation of Christ’s three general offices indicates that he exercises them in both the estate of his humiliation and the estate of his exaltation (Isa. 9:6–7; Ps. 2:6; Rev. 19:16). That is to say, one must not think that it was his prophetic and priestly ministries that he exercised before his death and entombment while it is his kingly office that he has exercised since his resurrection; the Scriptures represent him as exercising all three offices in both estates. In filling these offices Christ meets and fulfills all the needs of men. “As prophet he meets the problem of man’s ignorance, supplying him with knowledge. As priest he meets the problem of man’s guilt, supplying him with righteousness. As king he meets the problem of man’s weakness and dependence, supplying him with power and protection.”
In this chapter our Lord’s office work as priest will be particularly considered.
The cross work of Christ is central to the Christian faith and its proclamation, because of who it was who died on the cross and what it was he did there. With the apostles the church affirms that it was the eternal Son of God, the Word who became flesh, the Lord of glory, who died on Calvary (Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:1; John 1:1, 14; 20:28; 1 Cor. 2:8). Accordingly, in its best moments, the church has “gloried in nothing but the cross” (Gal. 6:14) and has “resolved to know nothing among [the nations] except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). It has done so even though it knows that the preaching of the cross is “a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” (1 Cor. 1:23). It has done so, not only because it knows that “God was pleased through the foolishness of preaching [the message of the cross] to save those who believe” (1 Cor. 1:18, 21), but also because it recognizes that the cross of Christ is “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24). For Paul to characterize the cross of Christ the way he did in 1 Corinthians 1:24—”the power of God and the wisdom of God”—implies that God accomplished a truly great salvation through the cross work of the Lord of Glory. One can sketch the momentous outlines of that “so great salvation” simply by surveying what the New Testament epistles affirm about the “body,” “blood,” “cross,” and “death” of Christ, words which taken in their contexts represent that great work in terms of a sacrifice (see also 1 Cor. 5:7; Heb. 7:27; 9:26, 28; 10:10, 12, 14).
THE BODY OF CHRIST
The New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of Christ’s “body,” this word referring in the contexts cited to his body offered up in sacrifice to God:
Romans 7:4: Christians “died [ἐθανατώθητε, ethanatōthēte] to the law through the body of Christ.”
Colossians 1:22: God “reconciled [ἀποκατήλλαξεν, apokatēllaxen] you by the body of [Christ’s] flesh through death to present you holy and unblemished and blameless in his sight.”
Hebrews 10:10: Christians “have been made holy [ἡγιασµένοι, hēgiasmenoi] through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
1 Peter 2:24: Jesus “bore [ἀνήνεγκεν, anēnenken] our sins in his body on the tree, in order that we might die to sins and live for righteousness—by whose wounds you have been healed [ἰάθητε, iathēte].”
THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
The New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of Christ’s “blood,” the word blood in these verses to be construed as theological shorthand for his sacrificial death.Acts 20:28: God “acquired [περιεποιήσατο, periepoiēsato] [the church] through his own blood” (or “through the blood of his own [Son].”
Romans 3:25: God “publicly set Christ forth [προέθετο, proetheto] as a propitiation [ἱλαστήριον, hilastērion], through faith in his blood, to demonstrate his justice because of the passing over of sins committed beforehand in God’s forebearance.” (See also Heb. 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10)
Romans 5:9: Christians “have been justified [δικαιωθέντες, dikaiōthentes, that is, pardoned and constituted righteous] by his blood.”
Ephesians 1:7: Christians “have redemption [ἀπολύτρωσιν, apolytrōsin] through his blood, the forgiveness of trespasses” (see Col. 1:14, where Paul attaches directly to “redemption,” virtually as a synonym, “the forgiveness of sins.”)
Ephesians 2:12–13: Gentile Christians “who once were far away have been brought near [ἐγενήθητε ἐγγὺς, egenēthēte engys] [to Christ, to citizenship in Israel, to the benefits of the covenants of the promise, to hope, and to God himself] by the blood of Christ.”
Colossians 1:20: God was pleased through Christ “to reconcile [ἀποκαταλλάξαι, apokatallaxai] all things to himself, having made peace [εἰρηνοποιήσας, eirēnopoiēsas] through the blood of his cross.”
Hebrews 9:12: Christ “entered the Most Holy Place once for all through his own blood, having obtained [εὑράµενος, heuramenos] eternal redemption [λύτρωσιν, lytrōsin].”
Hebrews 9:14: The blood of Christ “will cleanse [καθαριεῖ, kathariei] our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God.”
1 Peter 1:2, 18–19: God’s elect were chosen “for sprinkling by the blood of Jesus Christ,” which figure portrays Christ’s death as a sacrificial death in fulfillment of the Old Testament typical system of sacrifice in which the blood of bulls and goats was ceremonially sprinkled on the persons and objects to be cleansed. Furthermore, it is by his “precious blood” that the believers “were redeemed [ἐλυτρώθητε, elytrōthēte]” from their former empty way of life.
1 John 1:7: “The blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses [καθαρίζει, katharizei] us from all sin.”
Revelation 1:5: Christ “loved us and freed [λύσαντι, lysanti] us from our sins by his blood.”
Revelation 5:9–10: Christ “purchased [ἠγόρασας, ēgorasas] for God by his blood men from every tribe and language and people and nation, and made [ἐποίησας, epoiēsas] them for God a kingdom and priests, and they will reign on the earth.”
THE CROSS OF CHRIST
Paul states the following about the accomplishments of the “cross”—again, metaphorical shorthand for Christ’s sacrificial death:
Ephesians 2:16: God “has reconciled [ἀποκαταλλάξῃ, apokatallaxē] both [Jews and Gentiles] in one body to God through the cross, having put to death [ἀποκτείνας, apokteinas] [God’s] enmity by [or “on”] it.”
Colossians 1:20: Christ “made peace [εἰρηνοποιήσας, eirēnopoiēsas] through the blood of his cross.”
Colossians 2:14–15: God “canceled [ἐξαλείψας, exaleipsas] the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it out of the way [ἦρκεν ἐκ τοῦ µέσου, ērken ek tou mesou], nailing it fast to the cross. Having disarmed [ἀπεκδυσάµενος, apekdysamenos] the rulers and authorities, he exposed [them] publicly [ἐδειγµάτισεν ἐν παρρησίᾳ, edeigmatisen en parrēsia], triumphing [θριαµβεύσας, thriambeusas] over them by it.”
THE DEATH OF CHRIST
Finally, the New Testament affirms the following about the accomplishments of the “death” of Christ:
Romans 5:10: “When we were enemies, we were reconciled [κατηλλάγηµεν, katēllagēmen] to God through the death of his Son.
Colossians 1:21–22: “Once you were alienated and enemies in your minds as shown by evil works, but now God has reconciled [ἀποκατήλλαξεν, apokatēllaxen] you … through [Christ’s] death, to present you holy and unblemished and blameless in his sight.”
Hebrews 2:9–10: “We see Jesus, through the suffering of death, being crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God in behalf of all he might taste death. For it was fitting for [God] … in bringing many sons to glory to perfect the Author of their salvation through suffering.”
Hebrews 2:14: Christ “shared in their humanity in order that through his death he might destroy [καταργήσῃ, katargēsē] the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free [ἀπαλλάξῃ, apallaxē] those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.”
Hebrews 9:15: “He is the Mediator of a new covenant in order that, by means of death as a ransom to set them free [εἰς ἀπολύτρωσιν, eis apolytrōsin] from the trespasses under the first covenant, the ones who have been called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”
Other verses, without using the noun “death,” also speak of what Christ accomplished when he “died”:
John 12:24: By “falling into the ground and dying,” Christ’s dying “produces many seeds.”
Romans 5:6: “When we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”
Romans 5:8: “When we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
1 Corinthians 15:3: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.”
2 Corinthians 5:15: “He died for all in order that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
Excerpt From A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith
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