Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

covenant people, yet this mediation was not undertaken attheir request nor did it require their consent. In otheroccasions, when the subjective aspect of salvation was inview, the sinner laid claim to the mediation of the prieston his behalf. On this occasion the mediation of the HighPriest was effected on behalf of all the covenant peoplewithout any expression of desire for such mediation ontheir part (Lev. 16:15,16,33,34).In this way it was made plain that salvation is everinitiated by God. God has not redeemed sinners becausethey cried to Him for redemption; nor has He provided aMediator in answer to man's prayer. All that we see takingplace in time is the outworking of the eternal covenant ofredemption in which, by a solemn contract between thePersons of the Godhead, the redemption of sinners issecured. The provision of Christ as Mediator is not God'sresponse to man's cry but God's provision for man's needbefore man knew how to cry. Scripture tells us that "whilewe were yet sinners we were reconciled to God by thedeath of His Son" (Rom. 5:8-10; 2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 1:2).In the light of this fact all idea of human merit is shutout and every ground for man's boasting is excluded in thesalvation of sinners. The sole fountain of man's redemptionis in God alone. The redeemed, made perfect in glory,have but one theme they love to sing; it is to extol thevirtues and glories and grace of the Triune God. Theredeemed on earth are ever nearest that heavenly perfectionwhen this same theme most completely dominatestheir life (Rev. 4:5; 2 Cor. 10:31; 1 Pet. 2:9).AWFUL LONELINESSIt is impossible to pass from the consideration of theHigh Priest without noticing his loneliness in the ritual ofthe Day of Atonement. No man other than the High Priestmight approach the sanctuary while this ritual was inprogress. None of his fellows were permitted to assist himor even to stand by him while he ministered. He mustaccomplish his appointed task utterly alone (Lev. 16:17).As this fact must have reinforced to every believer inancient Israel in the most solemn manner the impossibilityof the sinner having any share in procuring his ownredemption, so to us it points most plainly to the awfulloneliness of our great High Priest when He effected ourredemption.Even during His earthly life there were times whenthis loneliness was suggested. As when His own motherfailed to appreciate fully the character of His mission; orwhen, after many of His once eager followers had desertedHim, He turned to the Twelve and said, "Will ye also goaway?"; or again when, under the very shadow of theagony of the cross, in the upper room, even the Twelvewere wholly absorbed with their own petty, personalambitions, oblivious of the mighty event that was about totake place (Luke 2:49,50; John 6:67, Luke 22:24-34).So we move on to the garden of Gethsemane wherewe behold our Mediator in lonely agony with none tosuccor or support Him as He prepared Himself for themighty task that lay before Him. Yet, it is only at Calvaryitself that we see the awful climax of that loneliness whichour High Priest endured for sinners.JUNE 16, 1971Here, not only was He forsaken of men, but the veryangels of glory must needs stand afar off while thecommon Roman cross became a sacred altar, as the HighPriest, God's Anointed, offered His own life a ransom formany. As an outward token of this loneliness the very lightof heaven was shut off, until finally, out of the midst of theunnatural darkness there rang from that grand altar of theages the cry expressive of the ultimate in loneliness, "MyGod, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" (Matt.26:56; 1 Peter 1:11,12; Matt. 27:45,46).Thus we recognize that His utter loneliness is asnecessary an element in the work of atonement effectedby the one and only perfect High Priest as is His realhumiliation, His absolute sinlessness, and His Divinelyappointed mediation, and that, in shadow, all theseelements were taught to Israel under the Old Testament inthe solemn services of the yearly Day of Atonement.ADORING WONDERIf we ask why such perfection, such abasement, andsuch suffering were necessary in the Mediator, we can findno better answer than that given by the prophet Isaiah,"He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruisedfor our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was uponHim . . . for the transgression of my people was Hestricken . . . and He bear the sin of many, and made intercessionfor the transgressors" (Isa. 53:5,8,12). Man's sin,yes, my sin, is so great and its guilt so awful that nothingless could by any means procure man's redemption.Hard indeed must be the heart that can contemplatesuch a matchless demonstration of love toward the utterlyundeserving, without being moved to fall prostrate inadoring wonder before such a perfect Mediator whilecrying from the depths of the soul, "My Lord and myGod."Evangelical ActionA Pointer from the HodgesMen are religious kings. Religion can't be got rid ofby seeking to ignore it. A man, after taking some liquorperhaps may go hopping round and declaring, "I'll have nogravity;" but he need not expect to get rid of the laws ofgravitation. As little need our legislators attempt to putaway religion. We have a right to insist that they shall nottry. I would not consent to be hanged by a jury with anatheist sitting in it. It would be much more comfortable tobe hanged by a jury of good Presbyterians!—Charles and A. A. HodgeGlimpses from page 4one requesting a copy would be registered." A registeredBible, Bass said, is a revocable Bible."It's an ignominious situation when a nation socultured and enlightened as the Soviet Union wouldprevent its people from having a copy of one of the mostinfluential books in history," Bass said.9