The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1916-02-19

shame? The
shame Of being put to death as a COM
mon criminal. For it was as such, you
will recall, he was condemned to death,
and as such he died in the eyes of the
law; though he did nothing worthy of
death, and PLATE his judge found In
him NO fault at all.
When we apprehend that Jesus
Christ, the Holy One of God, suffered
the ~reproach, the dishonor, the con-
tempt, the infamy and ignominy of a
common criminals execution, we begin
to know a little of the shame of the
cross. We understand something of
what Paul means when, speaking of
Christ becoming obedient unto death,
he adds, even the death of the cross"
But there is a deeper shame than
that of which we have spoken. 1t is
the shame that came to him through
dying; his death identified him with
the result of sin, for death is a conse-
quent of sin. Wherefore, as by one
man sin entered into the world, and
death by sin; and so death passed
upon all men, for that all have sinned."
So, while Christ suffered the shame of
dying the death of a common criminal,
it was greater shame for him, the Son
of God, in whom was no sin, to die at
all.
The teaching Of the philosophers
that death is natural to man, is not
the teaching of the Bible. The body is
not the prison-house of the soul from
which escape is desirable. The body
and soul united constitute the com
plete man. This does not mean that
when the dissolution of soul and body
takes place, the soul does not survive
the body. The Scriptures teach it
does; but they also teach that mans
complete personality consists in the
union of both soul and body, and that
this will be realized at the resurrection
of the just. Death then is not natural,
but unnatural. 1t is the resultant of
sin, and so for Christ to die was a dis
grace, a reproach, a shame. Death had
no dominion over Christ; no claim up
on him for he was without sin. mo
man." he said, speaking of his death,
ldhCLA lnJ 1lLC lAOLu me- OUb L 10y IL
down of myself. l have power to lay
1t down, and I have power to take it
again." He alone of all men could say
this. Other men die because they must,
for death has passed upon all men,"
He became obedient unto death; he
yielded up his spirit; that is, he al
lowed death, the great conqueror of
80 - hi-a III 1,,f
fered its shame.
But deep as this shame was, the
shame of the cross was still deeper.
1t was the shame of our sin. For there
On the cross, HE bore u sins in his
W body" there, the Lord laid on
him the iniquity of us ALL" there, 'he
suffered for our sin, the just for the
unjust, that he might bring us to
Cod" there, the holy spotless lamb
of God died for the %ungodly." Thus,
"the one who knew no sin," became
identified, not only with the result of
sin by death, but with sin, being made
sin for u.s." 1t was this, more than any
thing else, hat constituted the shame
of the cross of our Lord. Its baseness
and dishonor was your sin and mine.
which he there put put away by the
sacrifice of himself.
Was it for crimes that 1 have done,
He groaned upon the tree.
Amazing pity, grace unknown.
And Love beyond degree!
1 wish we might catch the picture
given us of our Lord in the two words
"despised" and endured" The first
word shows him so far above the
shame of the cross that he, as it were,
looked down upon it. Literally, the
word means ito think down upon"
that is, to think lightly of it. What a
wonderful Christ! Because of the Joy
set before him, he could think lightly
of the awful shame of the cross.
Truly, our master came not to be
ministered unto, but to minister and
to give his life a ransom for many"
The other word, endured pictures
him as voluntarily, patiently, suffering
on the accursed Cross. We see him
held there, not by the cruel nails that
pierced his hands and feet, put by his
own indomitable will and supreme
love for us. Human hands placed MIN
there, but divine love kept him there.
Surely, his cruciiXion from the human
side was murder for with wicked
hands they slew him, but on the divine
side it was sacrifice, God giving his
son to be tie sayi0s CT TIE world and
'ae scH G'YisB h'r1os . might
sve Re sJ3l. . T.