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more opportunity only remained for them to shew the enmity that was in their minds against him; and they gladly embraced it but in that very conduct they added another testimony to the truth of his Messiahship. Their conduct towards him in this particular had been the subject of prophecy; and, when that prophecy was fulfilled, there remained no further occasion for his continuance in the world: he therefore left the world, and went immediately to the bosom of his Father.

Two things are here presented for our consideration; I. The completion of prophecy

There remained now but one prophecy to be accomplished

[Every thing relating to the incarnation, life, and death, of the Lord Jesus Christ had been foretold in the minutest manner; and every thing, except that which is spoken in our text, had been fulfilled. The drought occasioned by his long and excruciating agonies both of body and mind, and the method used by his enemies to allay his thirst, had been particularly foretold by the Psalmista. To look for the accomplishment of these things in David is in vain. They never were fulfilled in David, or in any other person whatsoever, except the Lord Jesus Christ.]

That prophecy now received its accomplishment in Christ

[The thirst predicted, came upon him: he complained of it: and the people filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it on a stalk of hyssop to his mouth. The vinegar was there at hand; it being, when mixed with water, the common drink of the Roman soldiers. Before his crucifixion, his friends had offered him a drink of wine mixed with myrrh, as a cordial to support him under his sufferings; or rather as a stupifying potion, to allay his pain. But of that he would not drink; because he would endure all that was necessary to make satisfaction to Divine justice for the sins of men. The vinegar was presented to him by his enemies, who had no desire to sooth his anguish, but only to protract the period of his sufferings, and increase their weight. In this, however, they unconsciously fulfilled the prophecy concerning it, and thereby enabled our Lord to say, "It is finished." All was now finished; all that was

a Ps. xxii. 14, 15. and lxix. 21.
b Compare Mark xv. 23. with 36

necessary to be done or suffered for the sins of men

and nothing remained, but to surrender up that life, which had answered all the ends for which it had been given.]

Immediately upon this followed,

II. The dissolution of our Lord

Two things are here particularly to be noticed;

1. The voluntariness of his death

[He had before expressly declared, that "no man could take away his life, but that he should lay it down of himself." And here the correspondence between the prediction and the event is clearly marked. Had the separation of his soul and body been occasioned altogether by his sufferings in a natural way, his strength would have gradually decayed, till he had sunk under them: but behold, immediately before his departure he cried out repeatedly with a loud voice; shewing thereby, that his nature was not exhausted, but that he resigned his soul voluntarily into his Father's hands. The Centurion, who superintended his execution, was particularly struck with this, and was convinced by it that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, the Saviour of the world. The very terms used by St. Matthew to express his death confirm this idea. What we translate, "He yielded up the ghost," is literally, "He dismissed his spirit" so clearly did he manifest, even in death itself, that he was truly" the Lord and Prince of life."]

2. His confidence and composure—

[Though he had just complained of the hidings of his Father's face, yet he did not lose the consciousness that God was his Father: on the contrary, with dignified composure he committed his soul into his Father's hands". Often had he spoken of going to his Father, just as a man would have spoken of going to a distant land: and now that his time was come, he meekly "bowed his head," and surrendered up his soul, having discharged his appointed office, and filled up his destined measure, both of active and passive obedience. How beautiful does death appear, when thus disarmed of its sting? O that we may be enabled thus to meet this king of terrors, and to welcome his arrival as the best of friends!]

Let this affecting subject be IMPROVED by us, 1. For the confirmation of our faith

c John x. 17, 18.

f ἀφῆκε τὸ πνεῦμα.

d Matt. xxvii. 50.
g Acts iii. 15.

e Mark xv. 37, 39. h Luke xxiii. 46.

i John xvi. 16, 28. and xvii. 11, 13.

[The wonderful minuteness of prophecy, surveyed as it must be in the accomplishment of the predictions, affords the strongest ground for our faith and hope. St. Peter laid great stress upon it in his addresses to the Jewish people, and urged the consideration of it as an encouragement to them to expect from Christ all the blessings of grace and glory. To you then would we make our appeal: in whom were these things ever verified, if not in Christ? or what room is there for doubt respecting his Messiahship, when he has fulfilled every thing which the Messiah was either to do or suffer? I may add too, what doubt can exist respecting the accomplishment of all the promises to those who truly believe in him? Let us view him thus as "the Foundation which God has laid in Zion;" and let us expect from him whatever his grace has promised, and our necessities require.]

2. For the regulation of our conduct

[We have seen the Saviour's example both in life and death and in conformity to that we should desire both to live and die. Let us not be anxious to depart from life, till we have completed the work which God has given us to do — . — On the other hand, let us not be afraid of death, but regard it as a departure to our Father's house. The words of David seem to have been referred to by our Lord on this occasion, and they are admirably suited to the case of a dying believer1: and to one who can use them in faith, death is nothing more than falling asleep in the bosom of our Lord m

k Acts iii. 18, 19.

1 Ps. xxxi. 5.

m Acts vii. 59, 60.

MDCCXXVI.

CHRIST'S WORK FINISHED.

John xix. 30. It is finished.

THESE, with the exception of the words with which our blessed Lord commended his spirit into his Father's hands, were the last words which he spake, previous to his dissolution. In the original, they are comprehended in one word: and since the foundation of the world there never was a single word uttered, in which such diversified and important matter was contained. Every word indeed that proceeded from our Saviour's lips deserves the most attentive

3 Τετέλεσται.

consideration: but this eclipses all. To do justice to it, is beyond the ability of men or angels: its height, and depth, and length, and breadth, are absolutely unsearchable. But that its import may be somewhat more clearly seen, we propose to shew,

I. The truths contained in it

Our blessed Lord not having expressly stated what he alluded to as finished, we are left to gather his meaning from a general view of that work which he came to accomplish. We understand then, that when he uttered this word, the following things were finished: 1. The fulfilment of prophecy

[Prophecy was of two kinds, one consisting of typical institutions, the other of positive declarations. Now both these kinds of prophecy received their accomplishment in the death of Christ.

The brazen serpent, the daily sacrifice, the burning of the flesh of the sin-offerings without the camp, with various other ordinances, shadowed forth the death of Christ by crucifixion without the walls of Jerusalem; and at that moment, when our Lord was about to resign his spirit, were all fulfilled: for he was then "suffering without the gate";" and was "lifted up, that all who believed in him might be healed" of their wounds; and was "the Lamb of God taking away the sin of the world."

The declarations of the prophets were so numerous and minute, that a history of our Lord might be compiled from them, fuller, in many respects, than is contained in any one of the Evangelists. The person that betrayed him, the manner in which his trial should be conducted, the sufferings he should undergo previous to the final execution of his sentence, the death to which he should be doomed, the persons in whose company he should suffer, the manner in which his clothes should be disposed of, the very taunts with which he should be insulted in his dying hour, were all fulfilled as exactly, as if the agents in this bloody tragedy had designed to accomplish the predictions concerning him. There remained only one single prophecy to be fulfilled: and who would have conceived. that ever that should be fulfilled? It was customary for the friends of the persons who were executed to give them "wine mingled with myrrh," in order to blunt the edge of their sufferings and the friends of our Lord had offered him such a potion; but he would not drink of it, because he would do e John iii. 14, 15. d John i. 29.

b Heb. xiii. 11, 12.

nothing that should have a tendency to diminish his sufferings but when, in his last moments, he said, "I thirst," the cruel soldiers, wishing only to mock him, and augment his anguish, dipped a spunge in vinegar, and gave him that to drink; and thus fulfilled that prophecy of David, "In my thirst they gave me vinegar to drinks. This done, no other prophecy remained to be fulfilled; and therefore our Lord instantly said, "It is finished."]

2. The work of Redemption-

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[Two things were undertaken by our Lord, and were to be done by him in order to man's redemption; the penalties of the law were to be endured by him, in order that Divine justice might be satisfied for our sins; and the demands of the law were to be obeyed by him, in order that sinners, who could have no righteousness of their own, might be made righteous in him. Both these things were now completed. Our blessed Lord had obeyed the law in its fullest extent: not the smallest defect could be found in him: man could find none; Satan could find none; God himself could find none: for "he did always the things that pleased the Father;" and "in him was no sin." By his obedience, the law, which we had violated, was magnified and made honourable:" and "a righteousness was brought in," a righteousness which shall be unto all and upon all them that believe, and which is amply sufficient for the justification of all who trust in it. Moreover all was now endured that was necessary to make an atonement for our sins. Did we deserve shame, and condemnation, and misery? did we deserve to have the face of God hid from us, and the vials of his wrath poured out upon us, and to be consigned over to everlasting death? All this he suffered, as far as was compatible with his nature, and as far as was necessary for the satisfaction of Divine justice. He was not indeed actually dead; but the moment was arrived for his surrendering up his life; and therefore he could properly say, "It is finished."]

3. The salvation of man

[All that was necessary for man's salvation was now effected. Nothing remained to be done, in order to the perfecting of his work on earth, or to the forming of a perfect ground for man's acceptance with God. It is true, that man must repent: but he need not to repent in order to make satisfaction for his sins: no repentance of man can add to the value of Christ's sacrifice. Men must repent, in order to justify God in the denunciations of his wrath, and to evince g Ps. lxix. 21.

e Mark xv. 23.

f Luke xxiii. 36.

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