Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1884-02-21
THE MISSION OF JESUS.

1t is agreed CnaC Cne immaculate emu lOT
which Jesus Christ came into the world was
to save sinners. This is so plainly, and so
often taught in the Scriptures, that no one
will deny it. Was, however, the salvation
of sinners the only design he had in view in
coming into our world? Was it the prima-
nv object he had in view? The answer
which will be returned to these important
questions by the multitude is, that to save
sinners and nothing else, Jesus lived, suf-
fered and died.
A moments serious reflection will con-
vince any one that while the immediate
end of Christ's mediatorial work was the
salvation Of sinners, this was neither the
primary nor ultimate design of his under
taking the Office of mediator. In think
ing and speaking about the mediatorial
work of Jesus Christ, we think and speak
about it as if man was the only being in the
universe for which God manifests any con-
Germ. We do the same thing in speaking
about the works of God. In our folly, we
are apt to conclude that for man, and for
nothing else, God made everything. This
is marvellous ignorance combined with i'm
pious arrogance. Has the sun no other mis-
sion to execute than to pour down a flood of
light upon human family? Has the North
star, whose distance from the earth IS so
great that it cannot be measured, no other
office tc perform than to hang continually
in the same place for mans good? Does the
nest only for mans good? Certain it is
that all the works OF God, including crea-
ton, providence and redemption, are linked
together so as to form one stupendOus whole,
and it is also certain that man is but part,
and a very small part, of that whole.
In the economy of God, man, we learn
from the Scriptures, was ''madea little low
er than angels" or, according to the He
brew, "a little lower than God" He was
crowned with dignity and honor, in that he
was given dominion over the other crea-
lures connected with the earth on which he
was to dwell. This is far from saying that
'al sheep and oxen, and the beasts of the
field, and fowls Of the air, and fish of the
sea-" were made only for man. The posi-
tion which God assigned man was that of a
elevated him to position a little lower
than God, in the management Of the affairs
of this world. Mans superintendency eX-
tended no further than the earth which he
inhabited. He wa. given no control over
the sun, or the moon, or the stars.
1t would be fair to infer that instead of
the earth and all that it contains, being
made only for man, man was made for the
same primary and ultimate end for which
the earth, the air, the sea and their inhab-
itants were created.
From the general scope of the Scriptures,
we are warranted in concluding the end or
design which God had in view in creating
all things, was the same end or design which
Christ into the world to save sinners. If
we knew certainly, the intent and purpose
of God in creating all things, we would
know certainly his purpose in redemption.
Sin, however, has so blinded our minds that
we are unable to come to certain cOnclu-
sion as to what was Gods design in bring
ing into existence the stupendous fabric of
the universe. If upaided intellect is left to
make the discovery, the conclusion must be
that much that God made is useless. From
| the Scriptures we learn WhatWas Gods pur-
pose in sending his son into the world. The
Immediate end was to save sinners. This,
however, was only means designed to ef-
feet the primary end and final intent.
Never could the unaided human mind
discover what God ultimately designed to
accomplish by saving sinners through Jesus
Christ. Without the revelation which is
made to us in the Scriptures, the conclusion
| to which we would, in all probability come,
is that God saves sinners for no other pur-
pose than that they might be happy. This
would be to conclude that God exercised his
| power and his wisdom IN creating, preSerV-
| ing, and redeeming man only for mans
happiness. This would be tantamount to
saying that God exists for man, and would
make man of more importance than God
himself.
The object which God had in view in
sending Jesus Christ into the world to save
sinners, is plainly and forcibly stated by
! Paul in the following words. 1t was, he
says, 'to make all see what was the fellow
ship (rather economy of the mystery which
from the beginning of the world hath been
hid in God, who created all things, to the
intent that now unto the principalities and
powers in heavenly places might be known
by the church, the manifold wisdom of God,
according to the eternal purpose which he
purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" Ephe-
slams, 3:9, 10 and II.
! From this Scripture we learn that the
purpose of God to save sinners through Je-
sus Christ, was an eternal purpose. 1t was
not an after thought of God-not an eXpe-
dient to meet an unforeseen emergency, but
an eternal purpose. In fact, the apostle
plainly teaches that creation was in order to
redemption. He says that God created all
things to the intent that the manifold Wis
dom of God might be known by the Church;
according to his eternal purpose.
! We often think and speak of creation,
providence and redemption as three sepa-
rate and distinct things. In fact, they are
only different aspects of the same thing.
Tho of God fn orp9tp and