THE TRUE MEANING OF
CALVARY
It has often been stated that Charles G.
Finney was the greatest theologian of the entire Christian
era
Five hundred lawyers and judges of the
New York State Bar Association invited him to present to
them the claims of the Gospel in a two week series of
meetings. On the last night he called on them for a full
surrender of their lives to Jesus Christ and two hundred and
fifty out of the five hundred accepted the invitation to
repent of their sins and get right with God. More than a
million souls were won to Christ through his sermons and his
books, and those converts have, by competent writers been
called the deepest converts of the Christian
era."
It seems to be a conservation estimate
that eighty percent of those converted under Charles Finney
were faithful to Christ through the rest of their
lives.
Speaking of the true meaning of Calvary,
Mr. Finney says: "The atonement of Christ is a governmental
expedient to sustain law, without the execution of it
penalty on the sinner. Of course, it must always be a
difficult thing in any government to sustain the authority
of the law, and the respect due to it, without the execution
of the penalty. Yet God has accomplished it most perfectly.
A distinction must be made between 'public justice' and
'retributive justice.'
"Retributive justice visits on the head
of the individual sinner a punishment corresponding to the
nature of his offense. Public justice looks only toward the
general good, and must do that which will secure the
authority and influence of the law as well as the infliction
of the penalty would do it.
"It may accept a substitute, provided it
will be equally effective to the support of law, and the
insuring of obedience.
"Public justice, then may be satisfied in
one of two ways--either by the full execution of the
penalty, or by some substitute which shall answer the ends
of the government equally well.
"Let it be distinctly understood", says
Mr. Finney "that the divine law originates in God's love,
and has no other than benevolent ends in view.
"It was revealed only and solely to
promote the greatest possible good by means of
obedience.
"Now such a law can allow of pardon
provided an expression be given which would equally secure
obedience, making an equal revelation of the Law-giver's
firmness, integrity and love. The law being most essential
to the good of His creatures, God must not set aside its
penalty without some influence to induce
obedience.
"Every act of rebellion denounces the
law. Hence before God can pardon rebellion, He must make
such a demonstration of His attitude toward sin as shall
thrill the heart of the universe and make every ear
tingle---and such as shall show that He is no tyrant, and
that He seeks only the highest obedience and consequent
happiness of His Creatures. This done, God will be
satisfied.
"On this point", he says, "many mistake,
saying, "If I believe the facts of history, it is enough!'
No, No!" says Mr. Finney, "To believe the facts is not by
any means enough. For the Scripture says, 'with the heart
man believeth unto righteousness'." Mr. Finney insists that
obedience, after conversion, is absolutely essential to
salvation. "The sacrifice on Calvary," he says, "is to be
understood as God's offering to public justice---God Himself
giving up His Son to death and thus throwing open the
folding gates of mercy to a sinning lost race."
We come, then, to a three-fold
conclusion: first, God yearns to forgive all sin, and does
so on the grounds of Calvary, in the twinkling of an eye,
when a soul repents.
Second: however because of the very
nature of sin He cannot and will not forgive until all sin
is forsaken.
Third: sin indulged the second time, or
the fortieth time---is as vitally destructive as it ever was
the first time.
AN ILLUSTRATION
In the time of Oliver Cromwell, "the iron
man of England," an officer of his army was found to be a
traitor, and Oliver Cromwell signed the death-warrant for
him. An order was given that the next morning when the bell
from a nearby church should ring at six o'clock that officer
should be shot.
The wife of the officer came into the
room where Oliver Cromwell was and fell upon her knees and
said, "Sir, won't you pardon my husband?" "No," he said. "He
has proved himself a traitor to the country and to the
commonwealth. Tomorrow when the bell from the church steeple
will ring at six o'clock, then he will be shot."
Heartbroken, this woman of love went out
of his presence. Oh, what she experienced! She did not sleep
that night, of course. Early in the dawn long before sunrise
the form of the wretched woman torn by grief in her heart,
was seen hurrying toward the church steeple.
Up she went, step by step until she
reached where the large bell was hanging. A man perhaps
ninety years of age both deaf and blind, received a few
shillings a month for ringing the bell. The officer's wife
hid herself in the belfry and when that blind and deaf man
began to take hold of the bell rope and pull the wife placed
her hand between the brass tongue of the bell and the side
and instead of striking the side if the bell, it struck the
soft hand of the loving wife of that officer and no sound
was heard.
Then the man swung it the other way and
the woman put her left hand upon the other side of the bell
and it struck her left hand. For about five minutes it kept
on striking against her hands until instead of fingers there
were only shreds of flesh and blood left. Tears were flowing
down the face of that woman in her suffering but she never
made a sound, because she was suffering for a loved one.
When the old man had finished she went down, the blood
dripping to the floor, and she went to Cromwell, the man who
had said her husband must die. She stretched forth her
bleeding hands and said, "for the sake of these hands won't
you forgive my husband?"
Cromwell weakened and said, "Woman great
is your love. Go in peace." Thus her husband was freed
through an act of grace on the part of their Governor and in
recognition of the love and the suffering of
another.
However, it must not be overlooked that
this officer in Cromwell's army had continued his traitorous
acts, then Cromwell would have been compelled to disregard
the bleeding hands of his loving wife and proceed with the
strict demands of justice---because EVEN GRACE CANNOT APPLY
WHERE THERE IS NO REPENTANCE.
Now let us look at another scene. Behold
the Savior, the spotless, holy and lovely Jesus, struggling
with convulsive effort, under the scourger's lash, to rise
the Cross, beneath which He had fallen, blood from his
bleeding body staining the ground. The severed flesh
quivered from repeated strokes by the athletic scourger's
hand. His spirit groaned, but without complaint. Instead He
looked upon His accusers and tormentors with pity. He
remembered their depraved state, and felt compassion for
them. His swollen visage was more marred than any man's. His
eye of love was concealed beneath blood and tears. His holy
lips moved, prompted by His heart which was ever full of
love and pity. They seemed to emphasize "sinner, for thee I
freely suffer; for thee I endure these afflictions, yea, I
endure them that thou mayest be saved." Then, at last,
because He was bearing our sins, when the Father turned His
back upon Him, hear Him cry, 'My God, My God, why hast Thou
forsaken Me?!" Thus an awful price was paid for our
redemption. But here, too, it must be noted that even though
the Savior did indeed suffer in our stead, and through truly
"He was bruised for our iniquities," yet WITHOUT REPENTANCE
THERE CAN BE NO FORGIVENESS.
Heaven is a holy place and sin can never
enter there WHEREVER SIN IS FORGIVEN, IT MUST FIRST HAVE
BEEN FORSAKEN. Saving faith in Jesus as the redeemer,
incites the true worship of God from a broken spirit and a
contrite heart.
This alone is saving faith. For said our
Savior, "My sheep hear my voice and they follow Me" and "Not
everyone that saith Lord, Lord shall enter the Kingdom of
Heaven but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in
Heaven" (Matt.7:21).
Dear reader, if this book has helped to
clarify to you what Jesus really taught about sin, why not
send for extra copies to place in the hands of preachers and
Sunday School teachers, and earnest Christian friends, that
many more may know and teach exactly what our Savior taught
about sin. In doing this you will please our risen Lord and
also make a vital contribution toward genuine
Revival!
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