Christian reader, let us never forget that when we look at the death of Christ we see two things; namely, the death of a victim and the death of a martyr—a victim for sin, a martyr for righteousness—a victim under the hand of God, a martyr under the hand of man. He suffered for sin that we might never suffer. Blessed be His name for evermore! But then, His martyr sufferings for righteousness under the hand of man, these we may know.
It is a positive gift to be allowed to suffer for Christ. Do we esteem it so?