The Son of God

From: Christian's Library: Volume 6 By: Alfred Henry Burton

THE gospel of God (Rom. 1:1¹Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, (Romans 1:1)) not only flows from God as its source — it can have no other source — but it must be according to the very nature of Him from whom it flows, expressing His infinite dignity, majesty, and holiness, but at the same time answering fully to the heart of Him who is love. And while its source is thus the very highest, its objects are the very lowest, even sinners hopelessly defiled and lost (Rom. 1:18-32, 3:9-19), and its aim to raise such to the highest point of blessing; and this according to the claims of a perfect righteousness, without which a love that would save sinners, would not be the love of a God of holiness, nor could its results be abiding. Had this gospel sprung from a lower source, or its objects been in the least degree above the lowest, or the contemplated blessing less than the most exalted, the gospel would not have been according to a God who is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable.

Who, save God Himself, could either devise or carry out such a gospel? None; or it would fall short of the gospel of God. Man has conceived plans of salvation, and has even modified God’s plan, corrupting it to suit his own thoughts, but even his highest thoughts are not only folly, but finite. And poor man himself, when tested by God in many ways, has uniformly failed completely. But God in mercy to man has revealed a gospel worthy of Himself, and sent into the world His only-begotten Son, who answered to His whole nature and heart in all their infiniteness. He came from the highest, having been written of in the volume of the book of God’s eternal counsels, was announced as soon as sin entered into the world, foretold in the Law, Psalms, and Prophets, and manifested in the fullness of time, coming to do God’s will (Heb. 10:7⁷Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. (Hebrews 10:7)).

The Eternal Word, who was in the beginning with God, who was God, was made flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1-14¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²The same was in the beginning with God. ³All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. ⁴In him was life; and the life was the light of men. ⁵And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. ⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. ⁸He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. ⁹That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. ¹¹He came unto his own, and his own received him not. ¹²But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: ¹³Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. ¹⁴And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (John 1:1‑14)) in the likeness of sinful flesh (Rom. 8:3³For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: (Romans 8:3)). He thus stooped from the highest glory in heaven to the very lowest place on earth, that He might seek and save the lost, and not only deliver them from hell, but give present peace with God, the relationship of children, communion with the Father, and might bring them to that glory from which He Himself came, and for which His atoning death would fit them. And all this for the glory of God in His whole nature, and for the satisfaction of His heart of love. For this end He became man, taking up the whole circumstances of man, from the beginning of his life, even becoming a babe, and in the humblest condition, laid in a manger because there was no room in the inn (Luke 2:7⁷And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:7)). He then pursued his life amid the temptations of the devil, and the scorn and persecution of the world — weary, though He might have gone back to the glory from whence He came; hungry, though the cattle on a thousand hills were His.

But even this was not the lowest depth to which He had to stoop, for it was not miserable man, but sinful man He came to save — man subject to death, the wages of sin; and so He humbled Himself to death, even the death of the cross (Phil. 2:6-8⁶Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: ⁷But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: ⁸And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:6‑8)), where He was made sin who knew no sin (2 Cor. 5:21²¹For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)), and where He was forsaken of His God (Ps. 22:1; Matt. 27:46⁴⁶And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46), &c.). There He was numbered with transgressors, and amid the jeers and taunts of priests and people He bowed His head and gave up the ghost. Still there was a lower step He had to take, entering The grave, thus going under the earth His own hands had made, and so descending from the highest place, which, as the Eternal Son of God He filled, to the very lowest He could reach. He thus accomplished an atonement infinite in its character, suited to God, and by which the very chief of sinners might be saved, and a message of free salvation go out to the whole world, telling all — even the most degraded men sunk in sin — that God in the person of His Son had gone down lower than the death their sins deserved, and that none are too low to be the subjects of this infinite, eternal, redeeming grace.