THE DESIGN OF THE DEATH OF CHRIST

-III-

Text: "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved THE CHURCH, and gave Himself for it. . . . –Ephesians 5:25

Christ was the "Particular Redemption" for His Church; and so our text reads. "But," someone may query, "what about other passages of Scripture that seem to teach to the contrary?"

Such objections fall basically into three categories: first, those Scriptures which make use of the word, "world;" second, those texts which use the word, "all;" and last, those verses which coincide with the phrase, "whosoever will may come."

In the first category we find verses as John 1:29 --"Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the WORLD." John 3:16 --"For God so loved the WORLD that He gave His only begotten Son that WHOS0EVER believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 4:42 -- "Now we believe, not because of thy saying, for we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the WORLD." I John 2:1,2 – My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous: And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the SINS OF THE WHOLE WORLD." I John 4:14 – "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the WORLD." And,

II Corinthians 5:19—"...that God was in Christ, reconciling THE WORLD unto Himself."

How are we to answer these?

In the days of the apostles, national Israel was a very haughty and arrogant people. They knew "salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22} and thought they had a monopoly on the grace of God. Imagine the cut, therefore, when Jesus said, "They shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of Heaven." Compare Luke 13:29; and Matthew 8:11. And so, when John, himself a Jew, wrote to his people he labored to convey to them that SALVATION IS FOR THE GENTILES AS WELL AS FOR THE JEW. And Paul, the "Apostle to the Gentiles," wrote this word of encouragement to the Gentile nations.

NOTE: the meaning is NOT "every individual," because in John 12:19, "The Pharisees ...said among themselves, ’Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? Behold, THE WORLD is gone after Him.’" This observation was made of Christ. Are we to think every man, women, boy and girl "went after" Christ? Certainly not, because this would itself be a direct contradiction of the sense of the passage since these Pharisees themselves did not go "after Him,"

The second objection involves those verses using the word, "all." For instance, "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for ALL men; for kings, and for ALL THAT ARE IN AUTHORITY; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have ALL MEN to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom FOR ALL to be testified in due time." --I Timothy 2:1-6 The context is exceedingly clear that the word "ALL" means "ALL WITHOUT DISTINCTION", and NOT "ALL WITHOUT EXCEPTION."

Often misquoted is the passage in Peter, "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to USWARD, not willing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance." NOTE: those whom the Lord is not willing should perish are those among whom he counts himself by his choice of the compound word, "USWARD."

Now, "Who are the USWARD?" In other words, to whom is the Apostle writing? --TO THE SAINTS. "Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, TO THEM THAT HAVE OBTAINED LIKE PRECIOUS FAITH WITH US THROUGH THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD AND OUR SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST." --II Peter 1:1; see also, II Peter 3:9; Romans 5:18; II Corinthians 5:14,15; and Hebrews 2:9.

Is this an unusual use of the word, "all?" Quite the contrary. In Acts 20:26, Paul declared, "I am pure from the blood of ALL men." The obvious meaning is Paul is pure from the blood of all men WITHOUT DISTINCTION OF NATIONALITY, and NOT "All men without exception."

See also, Acts 21:28 –‘Men of Israel help: This is the man, that teacheth ALL MEN EVERY-WHERE against the people, and the law, and this place.... " Did Paul indeed teach "all men EVERYWHERE?" Did he teach the Mayas, and the Aztecs? Did he evangelize the Indians in this country? Did Paul come to the present site of Georgia? Such is absurd. The charge laid against Paul was obviously confined to his locale and is here termed "everywhere".

"For thou shalt be His witness unto ALL MEN of what thou hast seen and heard." --Acts 22:15. This passage refers to the prophecy of Ananias of the unusual ministry Paul was yet to experience: he would be the witness of God to ALL MEN without distinction as to nationality, or social position; this latter being the correct meaning of the passage quoted above in II Timothy 2:1-6.

This explanation bears out by the Apostle John in Revelation 5:9: "And they sung a new song, saying, ’Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for Thou hast redeemed US to God by Thy blood OUT OF EVERY KINDRED, AND TONGUE, ANO PEOPLE, AND NATION.... "

The last objection is founded in the hymnal of many churches and not the Word of God: though we agree quickly with the phrase, "Whosoever will may come," yet we would hasten to add this is not a Bible verse. The Scriptures read, "Whosoever will, LET him take the water of life freely." --Revelation 22:17.

Note first, there is salvation for all who come to Christ, but nowhere does the Bible teach there is salvation "available" even for those who do not come.

In the second place, note that the Scriptures teach that by nature "there is none that seeketh after God." --Romans 3:11. If therefore a man "hungers and thirsts after righteousness" it is because God has "begun a good work in him and will perform it, until the day of Jesus Christ." --Matthew 5:6; Philippians 1:6

Therefore, dear Reader, have you a true desire to be saved from sin? Then there must be a companion emotion of LOATHING your sins. But such a desire is not natural; it is unnatural. It is not normal; it is abnormal. Do you have such a desire? Then "REPENT and be CONVERTED that your sins may be blotted out.... " "Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." --Acts 3:19; Ephesians 5:14

Here you no desire, for the things of God? Have you no relish for the Book of God? The House of God? The Day of God? The People of God? "IT IS GOD which worketh in you BOTH TO WILL AND TO DO of His good pleasure." --Philippians 2:13, Even a desire to do the will of God comes from the working of the Almighty in the soul of a man. Have you no desire for the things of God? Then, do you yearn for a heart that pants after the things of the Lord? If so, come to Him and say, "HEAL ME, 0 LORD, AND I SHALL BE HEALED; SAVE ME, AND I SHALL BE SAVED: THOU ART MY PRAISE!" --Jeremiah 17:14 Amen.