d 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 u