CHRIST'S SUFFERINGS AND CROSS UNDER PONTIUS PILATE. XV. LORD'S DAY. 1 Peter iii. 18. For Christ hath also once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. Q. 37. What dost thou understand by the word "he suffered ?” A. That he, all the time he lived upon earth, but especially at the end of his life, sustained in body and soul, the wrath of God against the sins of all mankind, that so by his passion, as the only propitiatory sacrifice, he might redeem our body and soul from everlasting damnation, and obtain for us the favour of God, righteousness and eternal life. Q. 38. Why did he then suffer under Pontius Pilate as his Judge? A. That he, being innocent, and yet condemned by a temporal judge, might thereby free us from the severe judgment of God, to which we were exposed. Q. 39. Is there any thing more in his being crucified, than if he had died some other death? A. Yes there is: for thereby I am assured, that he took on him the curse which lay on me; for the death of the cross was accursed of God. THE Saviour Jesus speaking of himself, saith Matt. xx. 28. "The TH give his life a ransom for many." It was indeed foretold, that Israel should serve David their King, the Messiah, Jer. xxx. 9, as the Father also promised to him in the council of peace, "that he should have the heathen for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession," Psalm ii. 8, wherefore he also went by his incarnation, like a nobleman, into a far country, that he might receive a kingdom for himself, Luke xix. 12, but it behooved him first to humble himself, and "make his soul an offering for sin, if he should see his seed," Isaiah liii. 10 And so he came in a humble manner, not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many, inasmuch as he came to suffer; therefore he is also represented to us, as "one whom man despised, whom the nation abhorred, and a servant of rulers," Isaiah xlix. 7. On which account he also withdrew, when he knew that they would come, and take him by force, and make him a king," John vi. 15. His design in coming into the world was, " to save sinners," 1 Tim. i. 15. As it was also foretold, that he should come in a most despised condition, in order to suffer, and give his soul a ransom, and an offering for sin, Isaiah liii. And therefore his suffering and humiliation for the redemption of the elect sinner are usually joined to his incarnation, as we see not only, Matt. xx. 28, but also Matt. xviii. 11. Philip. ii. 7, 8. In this manner do the compilers of the Christian creed proceed, when they teach us to say, " Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate." And in this manner doth the instructor also proceed; for after explaining the doctrine of Christ's incarnation in the fourteenth Lord's day, he exhibits his suffering in this Lord's day." We have three general heads proposed in this Lord's day: II. the reason why he suffered under Pontius Pilate, Question 38. III. The grievousness of his crucifixion, Question 39. 1. Although the word," suffered " is very small, yet it implies the whole of Christ's sufferings, from the beginning to the end of his life: "Christ suffered once for sin," saith our text. See this also Heb. ii. 18. 1 Peter ii. 21. The captious Remonstrants will not allow that the whole of Christ's sufferings is expressed by the word, "suffered." The creed restrains the suffering indeed to Pontius Pilate; yet this doth not exclude Christ's former sufferings, but only shows when he suffered most grievously. In order then to explain this word in its more extensive significa tion, we will consider particularly, (a) who suffered, (b) what he suf fered, (c) when he suffered, (d) for what end he suffered, and (e) for whom he suffered. A. If we believe the word of God, we must say that the Son of God, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin Mary, suffered; and that not only in appearance, but in reality. We do not deem it necessary to refute here the ancient and long since obsolete opinions of the Patripassians, who taught that the Father suffered neither will we busy ourselves with Marcion, and others, who held that the Son of God suffered only in appearance, and not in reality. These opinions have confuted themselves and they have therefore also perished, and we know not that they are patronized by a single person at present. Sabellius taught in former times that the divine and human natures of Christ were mixed, the one with the other, or that the Godhead was changed into the manhood, which opinion is still maintained by certain Anabaptists who also say that the Son of God suffered in his Godhead. But what can be imagined more absurd? For since he is the blessed and unchangeable God, he is also "immortal and incorruptible," 1 Tim. i. 17. vi. 16. The apostle saith indeed that “God hath purchased his church with his own blood," Acts xx. 28, but he doth not say that the Godhead purchased the church with its own blood: he only intimateth that the person, who gave the blood of his manhood to redeem and purchase his church, was God. But when we say that he suffered only in his manhood, we do not understand it only of his body, as the Papists do, in order to deny the perfection of Christ's satisfaction, but also of "his soul, which was exceedingly sorrowful even unto death," Matt. xxvi. 38. We must understand this not only of the inferior and less noble parts of his soul, which were affected with sorrow, fear and compassion, on account of his approaching bodily suffering, as the Papists speak: for he suffered properly the power of God's wrath in his soul; inasmuch as compassion and fear alone could not cause him to mourn and sweat blood, as he did, because he would then have manifested greater weakness than many martyrs, whose souls sustained the most grievous suffering with the greatest courage, triumph and joy. He was also obliged to satisfy the justice of God for the sins of the soul, and thus to give his soul a ransom for many," Matt. xx. 28. It was also foretold, that "he should make his soul an offering for sin,” Isaiah liii. 10, as it was also typified, when the blood of beasts, and therefore their soul was offered upon the altar, to make reconciliation for souls, Lev. xviii. 11. But although Jesus suffered only in his manhood, yet he did not suffer without any relation to his Godhead: but his Godhead (1) surrendered the manhood to be an offering for sin, and dedicated it to God, to make reconciliation: "He offered himself without spół to God through the eternal Spirit, to purge the conscience," Heb. ix. 14.. See John x. 18. Eph. v. 2. (2) His Godhead veiled its glory under the manhood, so that it could not beam forth in its greatest lustre "For he, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross," Philip. ii. 6, 7, 8. (3) The Godhead sustained the manhood under its suffering: "His own arm brought him salvation, and his fury it upheld him for the Lord God helped him, therefore he was not confounded therefore he set his face like a flint, knowing that he should not be ashamed." Isaiah l. 7. (4) The Godhead also added the value to his suffering; by which the suffering of the manhood being the suffering of him who was also God, "brought in an everlasting righteousness," Dan. ix. 24. Acts xx. 28. 1 John i. 7, 5. We shall now consider what he suffered. The instructor saith "that he suffered the wrath of God against the sins of all mankind.” God was terribly displeased with the sins of mankind, as we have shown on the tenth question. Since now the Son of God was become surety, and had taken all the sins of elect men upon himself, in order to satisfy for them, therefore the righteous God also stirred up his whole wrath, and poured it out upon the Surety. It is indeed true, that he suffered from devils and from men, from friends and from enemies; but in all this he still suffered the wrath of God. For (1) the men who procured this suffering to him, were the rods of God's anger," Isaiah x, 5. Therefore Peter also saith, Acts ii. 23. "Him, being delivered by the determinate council and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain." (2) He suffered all that was necessary to make satisfaction for sin, as we shall show in the sequel. Now sin could not be satisfied for, but by bearing the wrath of God: this hath been proved on the fifth Lord's day. (3) The suffering was a cup of God's wrath, as we see Matt. xxvi. 39, compared with Psalm xl. 6. Isaiah li. 17-23 Jer. xxv. 15-29. (4) He suffered the death of the cross, inflicted on him by men, as a curse, and indeed so, that he hath delivered the elect from the curse, Gal. iii. 13. He suffered the wrath of God thus from wicked instruments; but he suffered it also immediately in his soul. when his Father withheld his light and lovingkindness from him, abandoned him to a dreadful darkness, subjected him to his grievous wrath on account of all the sins of the elect, and let all the powers of hell loose upon him. We might speak of this somewhat more largely here, but it will be more proper to do it in order on the forty-fourth question. C. We must observe in the third place, with respect to the word suffered, when Christ suffered. The catechism saith, that he suf fered in body and soul "during his whole life." This is also true : for he was born in a poor and needy condition; when he was only. eight days old, he underwent the bloody and painful rite of circumcision: he was obliged to flee for his life into Egypt, while he was yet very young. He had no sooner begun his publick ministry, than he fasted forty days, was tempted by the devil, blasphemed, threatened, and insidiously watched by the Jews; and though the foxes had holes, and the birds of the air had nests, yet the Son of Man had not where to lay his head. And who knows what spiritual disEtresses and desertions he was obliged to suffer, when he spent so great a part of his time alone, and in the dreary night, that he might wrestle in prayer with his Father. But he suffered the wrath of God particularly "at the end of his life." Then the hour and power of darkness surprised him, when his Father attacked him with his anger in the garden and on the cross; when he was betrayed by his own apostle Judas, was apprehended as a thief by the Jews with swords and staves, was deserted by his pious disciples, and denied by his zealous Peter, dragged from tribunal to tribunal, falsely accused there of sedition and blasphemy, condemned, mocked, spitten upon, scourged, and finally put to death in the most shameful, and most painful manner on the cross. Alas, how bitter was all this to him! The anguish of his heart for ced that dismal complaint from him, which he uttered with a loud voice, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" All nature was disturbed at this grievous suffering: "For the sun was darkened, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom, the earth quaked, the rocks rent, the graves were opened, and many bodies of saints which slept arose," Matt. xxvii. 45, 46, 50, 51, 52. D. The fourth particular that requires our consideration with respect to the word suffered, is the end for which Christ suffered. Surely it could not be by accident, and without a regard to some great end, that God's innocent Son suffered so long a time, and so grievously. The word of God informs us, that he suffered, (a) “ Because the hand and counsel of God had before determined, that he should suffer," Acts iv. 28. He had entered into an engagement to his Father in the council of peace to suffer, Paalm xl. 6, 7, 8. In U u |