Editorial
January/February, 1976
Volume 11, Number 1
George Bernard Shaw once said that his chief objection to the Bible was the superstition of atonement by blood sacrifice. He said that if Christianity is to survive, it must get rid of the teaching. He went on to say that such a doctrine will never impress thoughtful people. Yet the truth of the death of Jesus Christ is the very heart of Christianity. The death of Christ is the great fact upon which salvation for all believers depends. Because He was “delivered up for our trespasses” (Romans 4:25), the crucifixion becomes absolutely central.
A church survey taken as part of a national poll included the question: “What is your favorite religious hymn?” The list was topped by the hymn, “The Old Rugged Cross.” The songs “How Great Thou Art”and “Rock of Ages” came in second and third respectively.
It is praiseworthy to know that multitudes of people gave top honors to a song regarding the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ – the most important event in all history. It is true as the writer of the hymn says, that it was there that the “Dearest and Best, for a world of lost sinners was slain.” Each person who sings the song should make a personal application, as did the composer:
“In the old rugged cross,
stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see;
For ’twas on that old cross
Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.”
In the Cross, God is saying to the whole world, “I love you; I am willing to forgive your sins.” God pardons and sanctifies the guilty sinner who pleads the death of Jesus on the Cross. To “pardon” means “to cancel a penalty.” To “sanctify” means “to set apart.” All who have been pardoned are set apart from the world to the Lord. All who see Jesus suffering as a Substitute for them on the Cross, must surely say with Charles Wesley: “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”
Above the Cross, a loving Heavenly Father bends down from His throne and offers the hand of reconciliation. Beneath the Cross is the confused mass of blundering, sinning, suffering humanity, alienated from God. Upon the Cross is the quivering, bleeding body of the Son of God — the great Reconciler. He is the only mediator between God and man. Apart from faith in His shed blood, there is no hope for eternal salvation. In the Cross, the chasm between the sinfulness of man and the holiness of God has been bridged. And thus Paul could say, “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Galatians 6:14).
What glory is there in the Cross? It was an instrument of torture and punishment. It had no glamor about it. It was an emblem of suffering and shame. Why then did Paul glory in it! He gloried in it because the hopes and dreams of all men throughout history are bound up with it. Upon that Tree, the love of a compassionate God was revealed to a rebellious world, God was in Christ “reconciling the world unto himself’ (2 Cor. 5:19). To “reconcile” means “to bring into harmony; to restore proper relations” With our finite minds we cannot fully comprehend the mystery of Christ’s substitutionary atonement, but we can know that all who come to the Cross in simple, trusting faith – lose all their guilty stains and find peace with God (Colossians 1:20). It is always important to remember that Calvary was one of the primary purposes for Christ’s coming as we remember it at Christmas.
The Cross of Christ, A Universal Event
by Harry B. Nell
One of the basic Scripture passages which lies at the heart of the Gospel, is found in Romans 5:12, 19. The Bible says, “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. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.”
The text of the message plainly tells us that by the disobedience of one man (Adam), sin entered into the human family, and because of Adam’s transgression the judgment of God has come upon us all The effects of Adam’s disobedience are felt throughout the world today. None can deny it; it is universal. As the result of this one act of disobedience the human family has been engulfed in sorrow, misery, pain, and even death, down through the centuries.
The Bible text also tells us that God has made a way of escape. He has made a provision through sending His Son into the world to become one of us in order that we might become like Him. In Romans 8:32 we read, “God spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all; how shall he not with him also freely give us all things!” In Isaiah 53:5 we read, “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” When we think of a universal event, we may think about the three American astronauts who several years ago blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral and headed for the moon. After several days of traveling through space with careful calculation and navigation they were pulled into an orbit around the moon. After they had secured a precise orbit around the moon, the lunar module separated from the command module and landed the first men ever to walk on the moon. People in all nations were awe-stricken by the news that men had walked on the moon. People around the world had difficulty believing what they were seeing on their television screens–men walking on the moon. They were heralded and crowned as being the heroes of the century. One writer said of this historic achievement, “This is the greatest event that has taken place in the history of mankind.” We must admit that the adventure required courage, bravery, and all the skill and technology that mankind could muster. If may be the most courageous event of the century, but it cannot be labeled the most important happening in human history.
Nearly two thousand years ago a greater event occurred. Jesus Christ (who was God come in the flesh) died on a cross planted on a hill just outside the walls of the city of Jerusalem. This event was not controlled from the space center in Houston; it was controlled from heaven. It was not financed by our tax dollars; it was financed by the perfect sinless life of Jesus Christ. It was not broadcast over the radio its message was told by the missionaries of the Cross of Christ for nearly twenty centuries. It was not viewed on television; it was seen on Mount Calvary by men from all walks of life. A limited amount of information about this event can be found in secular history, but the Bible carries the most detailed account of what happened when Jesus expired on the cross This event was not motivated by pride, nor by political superiority. It was motivated by the love of holy God. We want to note three great truths related to the universality of the cross of Christ.
1. UNIVERSAL SIN BRINGS A UNIVERSAL DEMAND FOR THE CROSS
The universal demand is expressed by the Apostle Peter in Acts 4:10-12: “Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Through an act of perfect obedience and love on the part of Jesus Christ, He remains the only real hope for a fallen race. In fact if there would have been any other just way by which the human family could have been redeemed (brought back into fellowship with God)–the Heavenly Father would not have sent His only begotten Son into the world to die on Calvary. The prayer of Jesus the night before in the Garden of Gethsemane, indicated to us that there was no other way by which the human family could be redeemed. Jesus prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane that the cup of suffering would pass from Him In essence He was praying that if there be any other way by which the human family could be redeemed, He would want that way employed.
Just why did it take the death of Jesus on Calvary to answer for the sins of the human family? Since the fall of our first parents in the Garden of Eden, neither they nor their descendants could bring into existence one sinless human being who could atone for sin. The Bible tells us that, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” and that “death passed upon all men for that all have sinned.” David says, “Behold, I was shaped in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” In Genesis 8:21 we read, “The imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth.” This tells us that sin is universal in the human family. The Scriptures declare also that”God is of purer eyes than to behold evil,” and that”He is angry with the wicked every day.” These Scriptures tell us that the human family with all its ability and effort cannot atone for the sin problem.
The answer to the sin problem was realized in a miraculous, supernatural event we call the incarnation (God became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ). This too was a universal event. The conception and birth of Jesus Christ was different from any other that has taken place in the history of mankind. It was unique in that He was the only child who was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. In this day of liberalism and modernism among professed believers, we read and hear of those who do not believe the doctrine of the virgin birth. But as we examine the Scriptures we find that God had four different ways by which He formed a human body. First, He formed a mortal body without the agency of a man and a woman. He formed Adam from the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and he became a living soul Secondly, He formed a human body through the agency of just a man. He caused a deep sleep to come upon Adam and took from his side a rib, from which He made Eve (“the mother of all living”). Thirdly, He formed a human body through the agency of both a man and a woman. This is the way all human beings living today received their bodies. Fourthly, He made a human body through the agency of just a woman. This took place when Mary miraculously conceived seed of the Holy Spirit and gave birth to the Saviour of the world. Through the incarnation, atonement, and resurrection, God the Creator has universally made available the person and work of Jesus Christ as the only way to eternal salvation.
The Lord Jesus Christ not having a human father, nor being born of human seed, did not have the Adamic nature or the sin of a fallen race. He was born into the world without any trace of sin. The Bible tells us that He was tempted in all points like as we are and yet without sin. As a sinless, perfect, spotless human being, He could answer for the sin problem that had engulfed the entire human family. God had decreed that the way for man’s redemption was through the shedding of Christ’s blood. The Bible says “Without the shedding of blood there is no remission.”
2. THE UNIVERSAL SACRIFICE ON CALVARY IS THE ONLY WAY TO SALVATION
We cannot acquire salvation through merely having our names on the church roll, This in itself is not an insurance policy against eternal damnation. The first requirement for salvation is that we realize that we are lost and in a hopeless condition apart from receiving Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour. Then when we believe the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit performs a miracle in our hearts, a miracle which we call the New Birth. Jesus emphatically stresses the work of the Holy Spirit in the new birth with these words, “No man can come unto me, except the Father who sent me draw him.” We are drawn to Jesus Christ through the ministry of the Holy Spirit of God. When this experience becomes a reality in our lives, we will want membership in a Church that practices the New Testament ordinances and preaches and teaches the Gospel.
We cannot be reconciled to God through the intercession and work of Christian parents. They can provide the teaching, instruction, and prayers which can become instrumental in leading us to Christ, but we cannot go to heaven on their Christianity. Psalm 49:7 says, “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.” In simple everyday language this portion of God’s truth tells us that one’s brother, one’s parents, or any other ordinary human being cannot redeem him. Eternal redemption comes only through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus himself said, “I am the door; by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9).
Eternal salvation and redemption cannot be earned through works. It is a gift – something that we did not earn nor pay for ourselves. There are those who say, “I have lived a good life. I have paid my bills. I go to church. I don’t have an enemy in the world. I should go to Heaven when I die.” It is commendable when people can truthfully say these things. But this does not describe the way to Heaven and eternal salvation. Cain learned this when his offering of works was rejected by God. The rich young ruler learned this truth. The Pharisees learned the same truth from the teaching of Jesus. Many today likewise, get redemption and reward mixed up. The Bible is clear in telling us that we shall receive a reward for our faithfulness in service. But when it comes to redemption, the Bible is clear in telling us; “By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).
3. THE SACRIFICE ON THE CROSS IS WORTHY OF UNIVERSAL ACCLAIM
There has never been a person more worthy of universal acclaim than Jesus Christ. He has done more for the human family at Calvary (through shedding His blood for the remission of our sins) than the human family throughout history could ever do for God. The Scriptures teach universal acclaim for Jesus Christ. “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).
The apostle Paul through divine inspiration says, “And He is the head of the body, the church; who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence” (Col. 1:18). The word “preeminent” means “superior in excellence.” Jesus Christ is above all others just like a sky scraper is greater than a doll house, or a mountain is greater than a mole hill, or the burning hot sun is brighter than a flickering candle, or the ocean is mightier than a drop of water. All history past and all prophecy future revolve around Him. The tendency with many today (including professing Christians), is to put Jesus on the same level as man. When this becomes a reality in the minds of persons, then they seek all the more to become their own saviour. This kind of theology has done much to promote humanism. Through the universal act that Christ performed on Calvary, He became more than a superstar. To call Jesus a superstar, places Him on a level which comes very close to blasphemy. Every true born again believer can enthusiastically say, “He is King of kings, and Lord of lords, He is altogether lovely, He is fairer than ten thousand to my soul. He was wounded for my transgressions, he was bruised for my iniquities; the chastisement of my peace was upon him; and with his stripes I am healed.”
Brother Harry B. Nell is a minister in the Upper Conewago (Mummert’s) Church of the Brethren, East Berlin, Pennsylvania. He is a member emeritus of the BRF Committee.