The Sinfulness Of Sin - Preach The Word

The Sinfulness Of SinRalph Venningransom price. Hence we are said to be bought, redeemed, and purchased: 'Ye arenot your own, for ye are bought with a price' (1 Corinthians 6.20), that is, the priceof his blood. 'Ye were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ' (1 Peter1.18,19). And the church is purchased with his own blood (Acts 20.28). He gavehimself as the redemption price, and we are a purchased people (1 Peter 2.9).b. He died for us as a sacrifice for our sins. He became sin for us (2 Corinthians5.21). In the Old Testament the sin offering is called sin; so here Christ Jesus, asan offering for sin, is said to be made sin for us. It is said in the Holy Scripture thatChrist offered his body, his soul, himself. 'We are sanctified through the offering ofthe body of Jesus Christ once for all' (Hebrews 10.10)--there is the offering of hisbody. He made his soul an offering for sin (Isaiah 53.10). 'And he has given himselffor us an offering and a sacrifice to God' (Hebrews 9.14). He offered himselfwithout spot to God, and he put away sin by the sacrifice of himself (verse 26).Now just as we were redeemed by the price, so we are reconciled by the sacrificeof his death. For we are reconciled by the death of his Son (Romans 5.9,10).c. Christ laid down his life for us, bearing the curse due to our sins. Therefore it issaid, 'He was made a curse for us', (Galatians 3.13). He bore our sins, that is, thecurse due to our sins. He shall justify many, for he shall bear their sins (Isaiah 53.1 1, 12). He became a curse for us that the blessing of Abraham might come uponus, and that is justification by faith as you may see from the context (Galatians3.13,14 with verses 8 and 9).2. The sufferings of Jesus Christ were exceedingly great. I shall omit what might begathered from the types under the law, and what is spoken by the prophetsconcerning the suffering of Christ, though many things might be collected thence.But they are all fulfilled in him, and I shall therefore confine myself especially towhat is related in the New Testament. He was a man of sorrows, as if to say thathe was a man made up of sorrows and nothing else, just as the man of sin is as itwere made up of sin. He knew more sorrow than any man, indeed, more than allmen ever did. For the iniquity, and therefore the sorrows of all men, met in him asif he had been their centre. He was acquainted with grief--indeed, he wasacquainted with little else. Grief was his familiar acquaintance. He had noacquaintance with laughter: we never read that he laughed at all when he was inthe world. His other acquaintance stood afar off, but grief followed him to hisCross. From his birth to his death, from his cradle to the Cross, from the womb tothe tomb he was a man of sorrows, and never were sorrows like his. He might say,Never was grief or sorrow like my sorrow. Indeed, it is impossible to express thesufferings and sorrows of Christ, and so the Greek Christians used to beg of Godthat for the unknown sufferings of Christ he would have mercy on them.Though Christ's sufferings are abundantly made known, yet they are but littleknown. Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it nor can it enter into the heart ofman to conceive what Christ suffered. Though it is impossible to declare all Chrlst'ssufferings, it is useful to take a view of what we can. I shall therefore considerChrist's sufferings under three heads: (a) He underwent all kinds of sufferings, (b)He suffered by all kinds of persons, (c) All kinds of aggravating circumstances metin his sufferings.54