For suggested Meditations during the week see Appendix.



VIII

Discipline through Self-sacrifice

GOOD FRIDAY

1 Tim. ii. 6

"Christ Jesus, Who gave Himself a ransom for all."

To-day we reach the solemn climax which embraces in itself the whole idea of discipline under each of those aspects upon which we have touched. Will, body, soul, spirit, obedience, suffering, death, all summed up in the tremendous self-sacrifice declared by the Cross of Christ.

The principle of sacrifice is one of those deep mysteries which seem, as it were, to be rooted in the very nature of our being. It begins in the initial fact by which man's existence is maintained upon earth—motherhood, a vast vicarious sacrifice. Yet borne with gratitude, readiness, ay, even with joy because of the dignity, the love, the delights it brings with it. One of the surest signs of the decadence of a nation is when its women, through desire of merely living for themselves, begin to rebel against the high privilege of motherhood, or to neglect the duties it should entail. This attitude of mind poisons life at its fountain-head.

Time would fail us, nor indeed would it be profitable, to enter upon a discussion as to the exact theological bearing of the death of Christ upon the forgiveness of sins. This is a matter which may rightly occupy the attention of theologians and scholars who endeavour, so far as infinite verities can be expressed in finite language, to give a reason for the hope that is in them. Such books as Liddon's Bampton Lectures, Dale on the Atonement, or Illingworth on Personality, will be found most valuable by those who have the time and the capacity for studying them. It is a good thing, especially in these days, that the intellect of the Christian should be well-equipped, so that he may silence the taunts of those who say Christianity is purely a matter of emotion.

The personal acceptance of Christ as a personal Saviour rests, not so much on arguments, as on a sense of need; when this is accompanied by strong intellectual grip of truth then the influence of the Christian upon others becomes a great missionary factor. The beauty of the Gospel story lies in its wonderful adaptability. It is the same in its power to a Pascal, a Butler, a Liddon, as it is to the unlettered peasant, who can neither read nor write.

Scripture declares quite plainly that the death of Christ was "for us"; how far this may be pressed to mean "instead of us" is a very grave question. The words will bear that interpretation, no doubt, but we must remember that they do not necessarily involve any more than "in our behalf," that is, for our benefit.

It has been the forcing of the words into an unnatural and immoral theory of substitution, the notion of an angry God claiming a victim, that has done such terrible harm to the cause of Christianity, and has led many thoughtful minds to give it up in disgust or despair. Probably in a wise commingling of the two lines of thought we shall arrive most nearly at the truth. We all agree that our Blessed Lord's death was "in behalf of us"; that is for our everlasting welfare; in a very real sense this was "instead of us," since His sufferings were endured so that we might not lose the blessing of salvation.

Very beautifully is the matter summed up by a modern writer: "In the death of the Lord Jesus Christ as a Sacrifice and Propitiation for the sins of the world, the moral perfections of God find their highest expression, and the deepest necessities of man's moral and spiritual life their only complete satisfaction."[3]

[Footnote 3: Dale on the Atonement.]

The death of Christ was not only typically but, in a certain sense, actually the offering up of our bodies on the Cross. Notice very carefully the words of St. Paul, "I have been crucified with Christ" (Gal. ii., 20 R.V.). Not simply, as in the old Authorised Version, "I am crucified with Christ," but something much more definite and exact. When Christ ascended the Cross He took up with Him our human nature collectively, as bound up in Himself by virtue of His Incarnation. Hence it follows that you, the individual, have been crucified with Him; just as you, the individual, have been buried with Him, and raised with Him in your Baptism (Rom. vi., 4). How completely this takes the sting out of the reproach brought against Christianity, on the ground of the immorality of the Crucifixion! It is no longer the Innocent one suffering instead of the guilty, but it is the sinless One taking upon Himself human nature, with all its guilt and consequent punishment, and "in His own body on the tree," offering that human nature up to God. He in us, we in Him, that the redemption of human nature may be complete. Canon Liddon thus puts it in one of his University sermons, "The substitution of the suffering Christ arose directly out of the terms of the Incarnation. The human nature which our Lord assumed was none other than the very nature of the sinner, only without its sin. Therefore He becomes the Redeemer of our several persons, because He is already the Redeemer of this our common nature, which He has made for ever His own."

We have already noticed that it was not the sufferings of Christ which were acceptable to God the Father. To think this would be to fall back into the very crudest and most repulsive idea of substitution. No, it was the offering up of the will of Christ that formed the essence of the sacrifice. If we may presume to attempt a mere earthly illustration of so tremendous a matter, let us take the case of a General whose son meets with a terrible death while leading a forlorn hope. The father's heart is torn with anguish both for the death and the circumstances of it; but at the same time the father's heart swells with pride, ay, even with joy, that his son should have been true to the highest thing in the world—duty.

He Who said, "I come not to do mine own will but the will of Him that sent Me," also said, "I lay My life down of Myself, no man taketh it from Me." Herein is the discipline of sacrifice complete by the using of one's own will to surrender it absolutely to the will of another.

We have spoken so fully of the surrenders of will being made on all sides that we need say no more now on that point, but for further illustration let us turn our thoughts in a somewhat fresh direction.

The example of Belgium is a living witness of the power of self-sacrifice.

G.K. Chesterton has put forth a striking pamphlet entitled "The Martyrdom of Belgium"; in it he says:

"There are certain quite unique and arresting features about the case of Belgium. To begin with, it cannot be too much considered what a daring stroke of statesmanship—far-sighted, perhaps, but of frightful courage—the King of the Belgians ventured in resisting at all. Of that statesmanship we had the whole advantage, and Belgium the whole disadvantage: she saved France, she saved England—herself she could not save."

Had Belgium yielded instead of standing out, then, humanly speaking, nothing could have averted the immediate success of the German dash for Paris.

Now think for one moment of the solemn obligation this lays upon us in regard to that gallant, struggling, yet temporarily dismembered little nation. We must look after the refugees. There are those who say, "The Government have brought the Belgians over here, let the Government make their support a State matter."

One almost blushes to have to deal with such a sentiment. Could 1s. in the L income-tax take the place, morally, spiritually, or ethically, of the rich profusion of voluntary aid now being poured forth? The loss to the nation, of that which is purest and noblest in its life, would be simply unspeakable. It is suffering that provides opportunity for the exercise of the highest duty known to man, "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ." Try to picture to yourself, quietly yet resolutely, what it would mean to you to-morrow morning, to find suddenly that you had to leave your house, not in a motor-car for a railway train; no! but to turn out at once, without time to put together any belongings; to tramp, perhaps in pouring rain, along miles of road, foodless, cold, exhausted; seeing those around you dropping out to faint or die by the wayside; not knowing where or how the journey should end. This is what has happened to tens of thousands of Belgians; many, cultured and refined, coming forth penniless from homes of comfort and plenty!

In ministering to the needs of the Belgians you find a glorious privilege, a priceless opportunity. Again, to quote G.K. Chesterton:

"In a sense Belgium could still have saved her face; but she preferred to save Europe. This, it seems to me, gives her a claim on something beyond pity or even gratitude—a claim on our intellectual honour beyond anything that even suffering could extort."

Our Lent is nearly over. With all its opportunities, its calls, its privileges, it is now behind us. Some perhaps began it with high resolves and brave hopes, and are disappointed at the apparently small results. None, we trust, are wholly satisfied with themselves, for that would point to a condition far worse than despair. There is such a thing as divine discontent, and every true Christian should know something of it. For all the conscious failures ask pardon, but do not give up striving.

Standing under the Cross of Christ, as we do to-day, we have a standard for the measuring of ourselves which makes our little efforts at discipline look very poor indeed. Yet He remembers our frame, He knows whereof we are made; He can and will accept the feeblest struggles of our will towards His. Perhaps some progress in the life of grace may have been made, then thank Him and take courage.

Let us just cast our minds back. The discipline of the will means, laying ourselves open to listen to the voice of the living God. The discipline of the body means, never letting it get the upper hand of the real self. The discipline of the soul means the taking a very serious view of the responsibility of life. The discipline of the spirit means, a close approach to God by every channel of worship. The discipline of obedience means, that we put self in the background, so that we may exalt the person of Christ. The discipline of sorrow means, that Christ is still present in His suffering ones, and there is our opportunity. The discipline of bereavement means, the trial of our faith that it may enter into the realities of the spiritual kingdom.

Then comes the crown and climax, the discipline of self-sacrifice. Place steadily before you the thought of Christ crucified, see there the culmination of all possibility of the offering up of self for others. No element of completeness was wanting. The sacrifice was voluntary, was made for enemies, brought no return to self.

Strong in His strength go forth ready to spend and be spent, if only by the discipline of self-sacrifice you can lighten the load borne by any one of your fellow-creatures.

What hast Thou done for me, O Mighty Friend, Who lovest to the end? Reveal Thyself that I may now behold Thy love unknown, untold, Bearing the curse and made a curse for me That blessed and made a blessing I might be.

Wounded for my transgressions, stricken sore, That I might sin no more, Weak, that I might be always strong in Thee: Bound, that I might be free; Acquaint with grief that I might only know Fulness of joy, in everlasting flow.

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For suggested Meditations during the week see Appendix.



IX

Discipline through Victory

EASTER DAY

Romans vi. 9

"Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more."

To couple the word discipline with victory may seem incongruous almost to the point of impossibility. Yet, if we look below the surface, we shall see that never is the connection more strong and the need for realising it more urgent.

Lent is over, its special discipline has passed, and now the danger begins. The danger is lest any progress made, any victory won, should lead to that self-confidence which can only end in disaster. Success is often a discipline far more fatal in its results than failure.

We celebrate to-day the grandest victory the world has ever known: a victory which sprang out of the depths of an apparently complete defeat. "We trusted that it was He which should have redeemed Israel." Vain confidence, for how could One Who had died as a malefactor, Who could not save Himself, rescue His nation from the tyranny of the Roman power? And then He, this stranger Whom they knew not, opened to them the Scriptures; showed them the necessity of the sufferings, and the great climax, in the Resurrection. The ears were dull, the hearts unconvinced, as they generally are by mere argument, till he revealed Himself in "the breaking of bread." The eyes of love could not be deceived and sorrow gave place to joy.

Some dispute has arisen as to whether we ought to pray for victory in this War. The matter is well put by an anonymous writer: "If we are only to pray in matters wherein there is no difference of opinion our prayers will be few, and if we cannot pray for the triumph of honour over falsehood, of respect for treaties over unscrupulousness, of order over cruelty and outrage, for what are we ever to pray? We must pray according to the light we have. And if we end our prayers with the truly Christian supplement 'Nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt,' we cannot be doing anything contrary to the principles of the highest religion. Surely prayer is, or should be, merely the expression of our best hopes and wishes submitted to a Divine tribunal."

Putting aside the question of prayer, let us consider for a moment what should be our attitude as we look into the future. First and foremost one of confidence and hopefulness. Without arrogance we can say that we believe firmly and strongly in the absolute righteousness of our cause. In violating the neutrality of Belgium, Germany itself confesses that a wrong was done. A wrong which necessity compelled, as they say. What necessity? That of getting to Paris at the earliest possible moment. And so when Germany prays for victory, as of course it does, and ought, at the same time it has to confess to an initial wrong, which was certainly not made right by the fact that it was the quickest way of accomplishing an end.

We have purposely abstained in these Addresses from fanning flames, or appealing to passions. But here is a broad ground upon which, by the very confession of our enemies, we stand on a higher platform. We went to war because we would not break a treaty, nor forsake a friend too weak for self-defence; Germany commenced the war by a treacherous act. Therefore, strong in the belief that the God of righteousness will cause the right to triumph, we can calmly look forward to ultimate victory,

To doubt would be disloyalty, To falter would be sin.

Much more might be said in the same direction, but let the broad thought suffice.

The war has produced a type of pessimism which, in some instances, runs almost to disturbance of mental balance. Every reverse is exaggerated, and accepted with a kind of confident despondency; every success discounted and treated with half-hearted incredulity: "The Germans have destroyed another ship; what is our Navy doing?" "Oh, but that's only one little hill; the Germans will have it back soon enough." Surely this kind of pessimism, except where the victim of it is not really responsible, must be as offensive to God as it is exasperating to man.

But now to turn to our chief thought for the day, that is, the permanence of the victory of Easter Day, "Christ dieth no more." That is why He is called "The first fruits of them that are asleep." Several resurrections are recorded both in the Old and New Testaments, but these are cases of those who were raised by others, and then died again. Christ raised Himself and death hath no more dominion over Him. The resurrection is permanent and keeps on perpetuating and extending itself in the life of the whole universal Church. It was not an isolated act, but part of a wondrous plan. Not only does it possess doctrinal significance in that plan, but vital force for the carrying of it out. "He died for our sins," but "He was raised for our justification."

Yes, death's last hope, his strongest fort and prison, Is shattered, never to be built again; And He, the mighty Captive, He is risen, Leaving behind the gate, the bar, the chain.

We are praying constantly, earnestly, that we "may be brought through strife to a lasting peace"; and that "the nations of the world may be united in a firmer fellowship for the promotion of Thy glory and the good of all mankind." No conditions of peace are worth accepting unless they will, humanly speaking, secure this result. Germany on the one side, and the Allies on the other, both realise that this is a "fight to a finish." Singularly enough the object of both sides is similar—to render another great European war impossible: but the ideals in respect to its attainment are by no means the same; one looks to the setting up of a world dominion; the other, to the establishment of a state of balanced power and mutual interests among European nations. We are fighting essentially for the principle of "live and let live," and therefore have to face unflinchingly all the sacrifice that still lies before us. When peace is concluded it must be upon terms which will make results permanent! Should Germany, in the mysterious providence of God, be allowed to become supreme, there will be peace, but, alas! only the peace of desolation and the numbness of despair. But, as we have already said, it seems disloyal to all our deepest instincts, all our truest feelings, even to contemplate such a possibility.

But when the Allies triumph, what then?—the discipline of victory. Think for one moment of what the victory of Christ meant, as the ratification of the treaty signed upon the Cross, in the very hour of apparent defeat. It meant for you and me all that is included in the words "the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; the means of grace and the hope of glory." The resurrection puts the seal to the great charter, commenced at Bethlehem, indited page by page through the wondrous life of three and thirty years, closed, as to its earthly side, on Calvary, sealed, signed and delivered on Easter morning. In the power of that treaty of peace you and I live, day by day; secure except for our own carelessness; beyond all possibility of hurt from spiritual enemies, unless by our own traitorous dealings with them. The victory was complete! "He hath put all enemies under His feet"; the victory is permanent, for, "death hath no more dominion over Him."

In these Addresses we have said much about those large results which God is allowing us already to see as obviously coming out of the war; on our Day of "Humble Prayer to Almighty God" we solemnly thanked Him:

For the laying aside of controversies at home, and for the unity of the Nation and Empire;

For the loyal and loving response of our fellow-subjects beyond the seas;

For the full harmony between our Allies and ourselves, and for the success which has already been granted to our common efforts;

For the devotion of those who have laid down their lives for their country;

For the revelation in danger, in suffering, and in death, of the power of the Cross and the benefits of the Lord's Passion.

Now remains the question, Are the results to be permanent? That entirely depends upon our attitude towards the discipline of victory; or how we are going to behave ourselves in the hour of success. It is written concerning Israel, "The Lord saved them from the hand of them that hated them: and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. Then believed they His words, they sang His praise. They soon forgat His works: they waited not for His counsel." God willing we shall ere long be singing our Te Deum; oh! yes, we shall do it with all our heart and soul; but how are we to fix the emotions, to render permanent that thankfulness which we shall really feel. The Israelites "waited not for His counsel." They failed, that is, under the discipline of success. Victory is given that it may be used for good, just as much as failure is sent that we may rise on "stepping-stones of our dead-selves" to fresh endeavour.

As a nation we have been single-minded and honourable in our entry upon and our waging of the War; when it is over we are to be just the same in our use of the fruits of the War. Victory will not come to us simply for our own sakes and that it may be selfishly exploited for our own needs. No, assuredly not: it will come for the mutual benefit of all concerned, and unless the very first fruits of it be dedicated to the cause of heroic Belgium, to her re-instatement in something of her former condition, it will have come in vain. The time of distress and disaster has knit together the Empire in a wondrous unity of brotherhood. There will be debts to be repaid to India and our Colonies, debts which can never be discharged in money, but in those higher acts of fellowship, justice, endeavour, which will knit yet closer the bonds that have been formed. There will remain a large heritage of disablement and unemployment to cope with which will require wise counsel, comprehensive measures, real self-sacrifice. It is computed that should the war last another eighteen months there will be nearly a quarter of a million men more or less unfitted to resume their ordinary callings.

All this, you say, is the concern of the State; certainly, but what is the State? Only another term for you and me. Therefore the seriousness of attitude, the sense of proportion, the realisation of brotherhood, that by the mercy of God we have gained, must be retained for the facing of the new problems that will lie before us.

Turning to the more purely personal aspect of it, there will be the temptation to grow slack and cold in intercessions and communions, when the immediate occasion that prompted them has passed. To be forewarned is to be forearmed, let us look out for this, expect it, then we shall not be afraid to meet it. "Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more"; think what the permanency of that victory has meant all down the ages of the past in the triumphs of the saints, in the deaths of the martyrs, in the splendid story of the Church of Christ. Think what it means to-day in the lives of millions of the faithful; in all the deeds of charity which are brightening homes, cheering hearts, giving hope to the hopeless, healing to the sick, and soundness to the maimed: think of all it means in rest and refreshment to the souls in Paradise; think of all it still will mean in the growth of the Church of Christ up to the fulness of its destined and glorious completion; think of all it may mean for you in your individual life, right up to the day when you shall be like Him, for you shall see Him as He is.

In the permanence of the victory of Christ, may we each one of us so use the discipline of victory that it may redound to the glory of Him, in Whom we live, and move, and have our being.



APPENDIX

GIVING A SPECIAL THOUGHT AND PASSAGE FOR MEDITATION FOR EACH DAY IN LENT SUGGESTED BY THE ADDRESSES.



APPENDIX

A SUGGESTED THOUGHT FOR DAILY MEDITATION

N.B.—You will find it useful to look up references in a reference Bible.

Ash Wednesday: God wishes that we should be saved.—1 Tim. ii. 3, 4; 2 Pet. iii. 9.

Thursday: Our natural will is in conflict with God's will.—Rom. vii. 21-25.

Friday: God the Holy Ghost assists us by illuminating the will.—S. John xvi. 13-15.

Saturday: What is the guiding principles of our lives?—Ps. xxxix. 7; S. Matt. vi. 19-24.

1st Sunday in Lent: The Incarnation the mission of Christ to the body.—S. John i. 1-14; Eph. v. 23.

Monday: The body in its physical aspect wonderfully suited to its purposes.—Gen. i. 26-28; ii., 7; Ps. cxxxix. 14.

Tuesday: The body the external means by which we receive the Sacraments.—Heb. x. 22; Acts viii. 14-17; 1 Cor. xi. 26.

Wednesday: The body in its ultimate destiny.—1 Cor. xv. 42-49; 1 John iii. 2, 3.

Thursday: Disciplining the body braces the will.—2 Tim. ii. 3; Heb. xi. 32-40.

Friday: The corporate life of the Church in its bearing on influence and conduct.—1 Cor. xii. 12-27.

Saturday: The duty of example in respect of the temperance question.—1 Cor. viii. 7-13; 2 Cor. viii. 9.

2nd Sunday in Lent: The inner value of our life.—S. Mark viii. 34-38.

Monday: The deadening effect of prosperity.—S. James v. 1-6.

Tuesday: Our Lord's example of single-mindedness.—S. Mark vii. 37; S. Matt. xxvi. 39-44.

Wednesday: The need for seriousness in thought.—S. Matt. xv. 10-20; Phil. iv. 8.

Thursday: The need for seriousness in word.—S. James iii. 1-11.

Friday: The need for seriousness in deed.—S. James iii. 13-18; 1 Pet. v. 8.

Saturday: The need for perseverance, lest we forfeit our blessings.—Rom ii. 4-7; Rev. ii. 18-29.

3rd Sunday in Lent: Man seeking after God.—Ps. xlii.

Monday: The Incarnation the means by which the union between God and man is brought about.—S. John xvii. 17-26.

Tuesday: Prayer the characteristic act of religion.—S. Matt. vii. 7-12; Eph. vi. 18.

Wednesday: The importance of self-examination as leading to self-knowledge.—Gal. vi. 3-5.

Thursday: Confession of sins to God the only condition of forgiveness.—1 John i. 5-10.

Friday: Forgiveness of sins comes from God through the blood of Christ.—Eph. i. 3-12.

Saturday: The ministry of reconciliation committed to the ministers, as Christ's ambassadors.—2 Cor. v. 18; S. John xx. 22, 23.

4th Sunday in Lent: The natural body of Christ the source of healings.—S. Matt. xiv. 34-36.

Monday: The spiritual body of Christ found in His Church.—Eph. i. 18-23.

Tuesday: The sacramental body of Christ, given to us in the Holy Communion.—1 Cor. x., 14-21.

Wednesday: Obedience the test of religion.—Rom. vi. 16-23.

Thursday: Self-indulgence the great obstacle to obedience.—S. Luke xvi. 19-31.

Friday: Self-renunciation the condition of service.—Acts xx. 17-24.

Saturday: Our Lord's example of obedience.—Phil. ii. 1-11; Heb. xii. 1-3.

5th Sunday in Lent: Suffering in the light of eternity.—Rev. vii. 9-17; 2 Cor. iv. 17, 18.

Monday: Suffering in the light of the Incarnation.—S. Matt. viii. 16, 17; Heb. iv. 14-16.

Tuesday: Christ still suffering in His people.—S. Matt. xxv. 34-46; Acts ix. 4.

Wednesday: Devotion to Christ the power of endurance.—Acts v. 40-42; Rom. viii. 35-39.

Thursday: Christ succouring those who suffer for Him.—Acts vii. 54-60; xxvii. 21-26.

Friday: Character disciplined by suffering.—Heb. x. 32-36; xii. 4-11.

Saturday: Suffering giving opportunity for sympathy.—Heb. xii. 12, 13; S. James i. 27; ii. 14-16.

6th Sunday in Lent: The resurrection of Christ, the basis of hope.—1 Thess. iv. 13-18.

Monday: The Holy Spirit the power of the risen life, here and hereafter.—Rom. viii. 5-11.

Tuesday: The communion of Saints in the one body of Christ.—Heb. xii. 1, 2, and 22-24.

Wednesday: The departed remembering us.—S. Luke xvi. 19-31; esp. v. 24; Rev. vi. 9.

Thursday: The glorious reward of faithful service.—S. Matt. xxv. 14-23.

Good Friday: What does the death of Christ mean to me?—S. John xix. 23-30.

Easter Eve: Am I showing the fruits of my Baptism by leading a risen life?—Rom. vi. 1-11.

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