The Martyr Lamb

And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.

Most terrible scene! fit to move a heart of stone! What is it that is happening to our Redeemer? And in what a terrible sense is he become a reproach unto the people, despised and rejected of men! Well might the heart bleed and break when it beholds such a tragedy: and yet when it views it with the eye of faith, it may at the same time sing and rejoice. For here the foundation of our salvation is laid, and out of the martyrdom of the Son of God, the tree of life springs forth unto sinners!

The history which we contemplate to-day, is as significant and important as it is terrible and awful; and is more suitable than almost any other for unveiling the true aim and object of the sufferings of Jesus. Whilst reading it, however, I find myself placed in five alternatives, which I shall proceed to detail. Either the man described in our narrative is guilty, or Divine providence is a delusion. Either this man is punished, or the whole occurrence is inexplicable* Either He has made ample satisfaction for us, or we are lost for ever. Either we hate sin, or we do not love Jesus. Either no regenerated one can enter heaven, or the condemning power of evil thoughts suggested by Satan has been taken away.

I. Either the man described in our narrative is guilty, or what has been taught us of Divine providence is a dream and a delusion.

This is our first alternative, and one of these sides of the question we must adopt. Let us now consider the subject of our text; contemplate his situation, and measure his sufferings. Only a few moments before, suborned witnesses had raised up their voices against him, the principal authorities had accused him of blasphemy, and unanimously condemned him to death; and now he had been delivered up to the mercy of the populace, to do with him what they would. Great God! What happens now to the Saviour of Israel! Who can look upon this terrible scene without shuddering, and starting back in terror? A troop of the most debased of men seize upon the helpless One, to wreak their rage upon him, and pour out all their devilish hatred on his devoted head. David trembled at the thought of falling into the hands of men: but here is a greater than David, and more terrible men than the Philistines, before whom the royal Psalmist quaked. Would it not be a terrible thing for us, my brethren, to be exposed to the rage of an infuriated populace 7 But what are we in comparison to the man in our narrative? The most acute feelings which ever mortal possessed, are, when compared to those of Jesus, like the coarse skin on the hand of a labourer, to the tender and exquisitely transparent filament covering the eye. Ye know how the smallest sin, viewed even from afar, grieved and offended his soul; judge then how the Holy One must have suffered, when the rage of the ungodly overwhelmed him, and he found himself in the hands of the servants of Satan, confounded with the lowest malefactors. They commenced by saluting their innocent victim with the most insulting mockery, and outvied each other in heaping upon him terms of opprobrium. A dagger thrust into the heart is painful, but the sting of scorn is far worse than a blow from the sharpest poinard. Even we experience this; and how much more must the tender soul of our Redeemer have done so? Butjmere words were not all; for the contemptuous mockery and malicious language soon passed into deeds of hatred. They smote the Man of sorrows on the face, on the back, and on the bosom, some with their hands, and some with reeds; and no just man interposed to drive away the miscreants; no compassionate heart implored for mercy and compassion to the martyr, and no thunderbolt from heaven descended to annihilate the barbarians. Think for a moment, ye who were brought up in civilized society, how ye would have felt this; is it not true that the bodily pain which ye might suffer, would be as nothing in comparison to the agony occasioned by such unworthy and degrading treatment? And now call to mind who is the striken One in our history, and try to realize all he must have suffered.

Let us next inquire who are his tormentors. Men to whom he had stretched out the arms of his love, and to save whom he was about to shed his most precious blood. Think upon this, ye who have felt the wounds which the ingratitude and misapprehension of the world can inflict, and then say, if ye can comprehend how the cords of gentleness and patience were not snapped asunder, when the Martyr Lamb underwent such an accumulation of the most refined bitterness and suffering. The blows, however, which Jesus received, were not the worst part of his treatment; his tormentors went farther — they even spat upon him, like hissing adders giving vent to their venom. Holy Jesus! how didst thou bear this? Pure incarnation of the Godhead! why wast thou plunged in this depth of degradation and woe? And what think ye 1 Did the spitting upon Jesus conclude his sufferings? No! The fountain of their iniquity was not yet dried up; and they fell upon another mode of torment. They wished to make a jest of his prophetic office; and for this purpose, having bound his eyes, they struck him in the face with their hands, saying, “Prophecy, who is it that smote thee?” In short, they repeated one scene of this kind after another; and blasphemy after blasphemy; for hell took care that their diabolical devices should not be soon exhausted. Meanwhile, I repeat with astonishment, no just man interposed to deliver him, and no destroying thunderbolt descended from heaven!

This then, my brethren, is the terrible scene which we have to contemplate to-day. Now mark me with attention! It seems to me that one whom the gospel hitherto has not mentioned, now appears before us.

You yourselves must judge, however. If one more thinking than the rest had been present at those misdeeds, what would have been his opinion of them? Without doubt he would have said, “Surely, this man, so much abused, must have been a sinner, and must have deserved such a fate!” And if we replied to him, “Not so, he is a just and a holy man,” he would contradict us in the most decisive manner, saying, “That cannot be — it is impossible!” And should we now try to make him observe the gentleness, love, and unutterable patience with which the martyred One bears his sufferings, the sceptic would reply, “Let him appear as holy as he pleases, he must surely have committed some secret crime!” Let it be granted that we were at last able to convince him that the object of those tortures was in reality no sinner; but a just man, nay, even a blameless and a perfect one; how then would the stranger express himself? He would say, “Is that man guiltless? and has he fulfilled all that the divine law requires? Then,. it is impossible for one to believe henceforward in a divine providence!” This would be his opinion; and, in truth, all the world must agree, that it would be sound and reasonable. For what do we understand by divine providence, unless the eternal rule of an unutterably wise, just, and holy Being, who not only punishes the wicked, and chastises the disobedient, but according both to justice and his promises, exalts and protects the righteous, encircling them with the arms of his tenderness, and making them happy, soul and body? And what then becomes of this holy and righteous governance, if yonder bruised reed is a holy man? And where is divine providence, if not even the smallest guilt can be attached to this martyr 1 Most true it is, that if in this Jesus we only perceive the righteous and innocent being which he is in his own person, then in our narrative there is a rock, on which the whole doctrine of divine providence suffers shipwreck. Then it is clear that chance rules every thing; that there is no superintendence of eternal righteousness, and no God of wisdom and order! Every thinking being is thus compelled to admit, that either the weight of sin rests upon Jesus, or he must henceforward renounce the blessed and consoling idea of a divine providence. There is no other alternative. And so, my brethren, our history, which we have been contemplating to-day, seems to me to prove this truth, that Christ bore the burden of our sins; and surely all that confirms it must be welcome to us, for it is the gospel of peace.

II. Either the suffering Jesus is punished by God, or the whole occurrence remains inexplicable. You know of what immense importance it is that the doctrine be firmly established, that Jesus underwent all with which the divine law threatens sinners. A gospel which could promise us mercy, without informing us who was to bear the curse which had rested upon us, never could have tranquillized our minds, and calmed our terrors; for of this I am certain, that I, as a transgressor, deserve death, and not life. The law pronounces against me a sentence of death, and this sentence is irrevocable. The holy and just God must put it into execution, or how otherwise can he remain just and holy? Thus I stand in need of a gospel, which not merely promises me salvation, but which shows me I am acquitted by eternal justice, and not by caprice. And such a gospel we have; for I maintain that the sentence, of death under which we lay has been executed in the person of our great representative, who made atonement for our guilt. Our peace of mind, therefore, rests henceforward upon a rock; for the sufferings which Christ underwent, were the punishments of God for our sins: and our curse was laid upon the Lamb who was slain, not merely for us, but in our stead.

The history which we contemplate to-day, clearly proves that the passion of our great Mediator was of this mysterious nature. Regard for a moment the terrific scene; look at the Man of sorrows, and then say if these wonders can be accounted for in any other way than by admitting that Jesus was punished by God for the sins of others. But perhaps you may say, “No! the Father did not punish the Son, he merely tried him!” If so, I appeal to your feelings, and ask if the Almighty could thus have subjected the Beloved of his heart, whose faithfulness and holiness he knew from all eternity, to the utmost extent of disgrace and torture, for no other purpose than to prove and try him? Will you reply, “God did not wish to punish his only-begotten Son, but to purify him?” Then I remind you that nothing can be purified which is not mingled with impure element.

And will you subscribe to the opinion of those who maintain that Christ took upon himself our original sin in order to annihilate it by a conflict with his own flesh 1 If so, let me ask you. how you can make this blasphemous doctrine agree with the words, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me:” or, in other words, He finds no point in my character whereby I can be assailed by his temptations. Perhaps you will now say, God did not punish his Son, but only gave us in him an example and pattern to teach us how we should undergo suffering. What! such a gigantic sacrifice in order to attain such a small object! so dear a price for such an unimportant result! No, no, my brethren; regard once more Him that was despised and rejected of men; look at his agonized countenance, his bleeding back, his head crowned with thorns; and listen to the blasphemies and hellish laughter which pierce his very soul; and then yield to the voice of your heart, which calls out in the most earnest manner, “Truly if God had only meant to try his beloved Son, or give him as an example to us, he would have attained his object by very different means, than by subjecting him to the most wanton cruelty and debasement!” Yes, give ear to that inward voice, which tells you that Jesus must have borne the curse of our sins; for in no other point of view can the mystery of his sufferings and of his passion be explained. Most assuredly, my brethren, it must have been so; and deep and wonderful thoughts must have passed through the soul of our Redeemer at the moment when the wretches who surrounded him cried out, mocking, 11 Prophesy, who it is that smote thee V Alas I he knew well who it was that smote him: the Father himself smote him, although humanly speaking, it was with a bleeding heart. The words, “Cursed be every one!” were in him fulfilled: he suffered what was due to our sins; and in his passion he was the man of whom it was written in the Prophets, “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts; smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.”

III. Either the Sufferer in our text made ample sat isfaction for us to Divine Justice, or we are lost beyond redemption. This is most vividly impressed upon om’ minds, when we regard the tormentors by whom the Redeemer is surrounded. Think you that they may venture to hope for heaven and happiness? The question appears, at first sight, almost absurd; but I repeac it. Tell me, then, what think ye? With one voice I hear you reply, “If those sinners can ever be justified, and enjoy the love of God and the blessedness of heaven, then we no longer pretend to know what God and heaven are! God must annihilate them, and pursue them with the thunders of his vengeance; or else his throne is no longer established in righteousness!” You are right, my brethren; he must condemn them; he must, if he is just and holy. But are you aware who the people are, whom you thus adjudge to be worthy of death 1 My brethren, I entreat you to believe me, they are our representatives. Perhaps I may fail to convince you; but in that case a greater will demonstrate it — the Invisible, of whom it stands written, that “when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin.” John xvi. 18, If this be true, it is evident that we are by nature no better than the miscreants who wreaked their evil passions on our unoffending Lord; for in our own bodies we carry the germ and seed of that leprosy of sin which broke out so terriffically in them. The same brand of hatred, bitterness, and enmity to Christ, has been impressed on our houses, and on our very limbs; though in our persons perhaps the volcanic crater may only smoke, while in theirs it burst forth into flames. No, you behold nothing strange or foreign to yourselves in those servants of Satan; you see only the old Adam unveiled. That poisonous plant whose roots are visible in yourselves, in them has attained the ripeness of summer. But God looks into the heart, and in his eyes ye stand on an equality with those sinners. And now, my brethren, I hold you to your word, and judge you from your own mouths. In holy zeal you have cried out, “If God be just, those evil doers can expect nothing but condemnation!” You thus pronounced your own sentence, for in reality you resemble them. “Yes,” I hear you repeat, “if it can be proved that we are no better than those miscreants, God must cast us from his presence, or — .” Now what is this or? — “or another must suffer in our place, and thus satisfy the Divine Justice.” Yes, my brethren, ye have spoken truly; and the scene of moral corruption which we contemplate to day, forces us to exclaim, “Ample satisfaction must have been made for our sins, or we are lost beyond redemption!”

IV. Either we are at variance with sin, and hate it; or we do not love Jesus! And to this conclusion our text compels us. Ye know already what a tempest of shame and woe broke over the head of our Lord Jesus; and never had ye beheld the Holy One in such fearful circumstances, and never had he undergone such unutterable agony and shame, had love not impelled him to suffer in our stead the decree of Eternal Justice. He reaped the harvest of our sins; he suffered from the flame which our misdeeds had kindled; and the sword struck him which our transgressions had drawn out of its sheath. In a word, the wickedness which ye have -committed, and which is implanted in your very nature, is the true and only cause of our sufferings which our great Pledge underwent. Reflect upon this; and then tell me how you feel towards that which made your Saviour bleed! Do you still embrace sin, that murderer of the Lord Jesus, instead of detesting it with all the fervour of your natures? Do you still cherish it, instead of flying its presence, and swearing eternal hatred against it? If you do so, cease henceforward to assert that you love the Lord Jesus. You could as little persuade us of the fact, as a young prince could of his love to his father, who, on his ascent to the throne, should choose his parent’s murderers to be his friends and ministers, instead of bringing them to judgment. Yes, he that truly loves the Lord Jesus, will find in a scene like that which we contemplate to-day, an additional reason to hate, and struggle with sin. No longer will he love it; his friendship for it is for ever snapped asunder; and from the bottom of his heart will he join with us in saying, “Either thou must hate sin, or thou canst not love the Lord Jesus.”

V. I am aware there are many souls grievously tempted in the midst of us; and for their sakes I repeat, “Either no regenerated one can enter heaven, or the condemning power of evil, suggested by Satan, has been taken away. Why was our Saviour condemned to death? He had blasphemed God, said his judges; as such, too much could not be done to him, and the ignominious treatment to which he was subjected, was only suited to his transgressions. And lo! in the scene which we contemplate to-day, he stands as a blasphemer of God, not merely before a human tribunal, but before the judgment-seat of Jehovah. He now atones by this depth of infamy for the thousand impieties which we have uttered against his Father. Our blasphemies weigh down his soul, and for our sakes, in pursuance of the divine sentence, he is chastised by a fearful rod. Yes, it is a mysterious fate which thus tramples him in the dust of the streets, and treats him like the off-scourings of humanity: eternal and inexorable justice demands it to be so. You thus see how severely the Holy of holies punishes the desecration of his name, and what a measure of anger and vengeance repays it. Nothing rouses his indignation more than this transgression; and, indeed, all who contemplate the subject, must be apt to fall into the terrible idea, that even regenerated people are not exempt from the danger of being lost for ever, on account of this sin. You ask Wherefore 1 Does nothing come into the hearts of the servants of God which may be termed “blasphemous thoughts?” Are their souls never assailed with unworthy representations and images of God and divine things? We must admit indeed that regenerated persons are those whom Satan chiefly assails with these his fiery arrows; and it is amongst them that we so frequently hear the lamentation, that things are suggested to their minds, which, if they were uttered, would cause us to shudder with horror. Every Christian has experienced this, some in a greater, others in a less degree; and when he reads the history in our text, which exemplifies in such a fearful manner the anger of God at this species of sin, well may he pause and cry out, “Either no regenerated one can enter heaven, or the condemning power of evil thoughts suggested by Satan has been taken away!” And certainly the latter has been the case. The tragic scene before us at present, affords us this consolation; for here the Redeemer makes atonement for the blasphemous thoughts of his people, and takes upon himself all the sin we have committed in dishonouring Jehovah. Therefore, ye sorely tempted souls, engrave this history on the walls of your chambers; hang it as an amulet round your necks; and as often as the fiery arrows whistle past, and a hateful train of thoughts in wild confusion assails your heart, direct your gaze through the midst of this tumult, to the tranquil picture of your Redeemer’s passion; and take refuge in the blessed conviction, that those evil suggestions, the weight of which is now overpowering you,* have lost their power to condemn — no longer can estrange you from the presence of God, nor yet lessen the love of the Eternal towards you; but on the contrary, must contribute like all else to your salvation, for Jesus has taken their evil consequences upon himself.

There is a sixth alternative suggested by this subject, which f must mention before concluding. Either in the contemplation of this subject, our softened hearts must ejaculate with the apostle, “Let us go forth, therefore, unto him, without the camp, bearing his reproach!” or else we cannot be Jesus’ friends. Truly the man who, after viewing the scene of his martyrdom, can desire to be honoured and regarded by that world which trampled his Lord under foot, need not attempt to persuade us that this Lord is dear unto him. True love for Jesus would rather desire his crown of thorns than a garland of victory; and would rather suffer shame on his account, than receive the empty fame and praise of worldlings; for to it the world is crucified along with Christ. Yet it by no means throws itself in the way of the hatred and scorn of enemies to the cross; although it would rather seek than depart from the right course in order to avoid them. Reflect upon this, ye Nicodemuses, and be not astonished if we think but little of your love towards our Saviour, as long as you do not, like Moses, esteem “the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt.” Ye must first, in loud and decisive terms, cast aside for ever the gold and purple chains of Belshazzar, and with holy boldness place yourselves in the ranks of the despised and persecuted Jew. Then shall we begin to esteem you, find pleasure in contemplating your characters, and believe henceforward in your love towards our crucified Master!