Great Themes of the Bible
Christ 4] pastures, and expose ourselves to the beasts of prey, but as our iniquity. We affront God in going astray from Him, for we turn aside every one to his own way and thereby set up ourselves and our own will in competition with God and His will, which is the malignity of sin.
Christ was appointed, and did undertake, to make satisfaction for our sins, and so to save us from the penal consequences of them. He was appointed to do it by the will of His Father.
"The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.'' God chose Him to be the Saviour of poor sinners, and would have Him to save them in this way, by bearing their sins and the punishment of them; not the zdem (''the same"' that we should have suffered) but the tandundem (that which was more than equivalent for the maintaining of the honour of the holiness and justice of God in the government of the world). As the sins of the offerer were laid upon the sacrifice, and those of all Israel upon the head of the scapegoat, so our sins have been laid upon Christ. They were laid upon Christ when He was made sin, that is, a sin-offering for us. He redeemed us from the curse of the law by being made a curse for us, and so He put Himself into a capacity to make those easy that come to Him heavyladen under the burden of sin.
Having undertaken our debt, He underwent the penalty. Solomon says, ''He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it." Christ, being surety for us, did smart for it. 'He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows.' "'He was wounded for our transgressions."
6. CHRIST THE KING From Zechariah ix we learn that Christ is a King. He is invested with regal powers and prerogatives, a sovereign prince, an absolute monarch, having all power both in heaven and on earth. He is Zion's King. God hath "set him upon his holy hill of Zion". In Zion His glory as of a King shines. Thence His law went forth, even the word of the Lord.
Here is such a description of Christ the King as renders Him very amiable in the eyes of His loving subjects, and His coming to them very acceptable.
(a) He is a righteous ruler. All His acts of government will be exactly according to the rules of equity. For He is just.
(b) He is a powerful protector to all those who bear faith and