By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.
Jesus was made the guarantee of a better covenant by becoming humanity's substitute, undertaking to redeem men and women because after selling themselves to the enemy they could not redeem themselves, return to loyalty, or do any good thing by their own power. With the Father before the world was created He pledged by solemn promise that if humanity were overcome He would ransom it from the destroyer, restore it to purity and defeat the foe, and He fulfilled that pledge by leaving a throne of light and glory, laying aside royalty and coming in human form to pass over the ground where Adam stumbled and meet every temptation without swerving. As substitute He stood in the place of sinners and bore the curse, guilt and wrath due for disobedience from Adam to the end of time, facing that suffering in Gethsemane where He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to their penalty but chose to become the propitiation by His sinless offering and death. He guarantees the better covenant through His own perfect and sufficient sacrifice and mediating work, whereas the earlier sacrifices and priesthood had no power to save but pointed forward to Him, and as Surety He maintained the sacred honor of the Father's unchanging law, vindicated its binding claims by a life that fulfilled every precept and paid its full cost on the cross. By conquering on their behalf He secured another trial and probation in which the guilty may return to loyalty, so that those who do their very best to keep the way of the Lord by obedience receive free pardon with His perfection and righteousness imputed to cover them, and in union with Him humanity is joined to divinity as the only hope and security against Satan.
Surety Became Substitute
By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament means He became humanity's substitute and guarantee, undertaking its redemption because after selling themselves to the enemy of all righteousness people could not redeem themselves, could not return to loyalty to God by their own power, and of themselves could do no good thing. When man sinned He offered Himself to stand in that place to provide a way of escape for the guilty race to return to loyalty. As surety He took humanity and passed over the ground where Adam stumbled and fell, meeting without swerving from allegiance the temptations that beset man and overcoming every temptation, so that His righteousness was distinctly made apparent and the guilty could have a way back to God.
He became surety by solemn pledge with the Father before the world was created, that if humanity were overcome by Satan's deception He would undertake the sacrifice needed for its redemption. When Adam sinned and to all appearance there was no hope for the race, God did not abandon human beings to sin and misery but laid help upon one that is mighty. Then the Son of God pledged Himself to ransom human beings from the destroyer, to restore them to their original purity, and to defeat the cruel foe.
He fulfilled that pledge voluntarily and not by compulsion, leaving a throne of light and glory with His Father, stepping down from the eternal throne, laying aside robes of royalty and heavenly position, and not counting equality with God a thing to be desired while man was lost in sin and misery. He clothed His divinity with humanity and came in human form to a world seared and marred by the curse to become the representative and surety for the race. In that human nature He passed over the ground where Adam stumbled, meeting every temptation without swerving from allegiance so His righteousness was made apparent, and His obedience in becoming subject to the law fulfilled God's requirements as the example people are to follow in obeying their Father in heaven rather than serving God's enemy.
Alone in humanity, single-handed, He humbled Himself to face the powers of darkness and won the victory on humanity's behalf. With His human arm encircling the race and His divine arm grasping the throne of the Infinite He united finite man with the infinite God and connected earth with heaven. As substitute He stood in the place of sinners and bore the curse that should fall upon man, bearing human guilt and taking upon Himself the Father's wrath that disobedience would otherwise bring on humanity. That bearing reached from Adam's transgression to the end of time, faced in Gethsemane with its guilt and suffering, where He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to receive their penalty but instead chose to become the propitiation for a sinful race by a sinless offering and death, thereby preserving the authority of God's unchanging law while redeeming sinners.
He retains His human nature and stands in God's presence as man's representative, substitute, and living intercessor, and as a man His human nature enables Him to represent humanity and live to intercede, giving assurance of salvation and of God's coming judgment through the man He appointed. At His baptism the Father's declaration that He was the beloved Son showed that Christ was accepted, and through Him heaven is open to Adam's sons and daughters. Those who accept the mercy offered through Christ can be saved, become children of God, and have access to the Father, with all power on humanity's behalf and all things committed to Him so that He can complete the work of redemption begun through humiliation and immense sacrifice.
Better Covenant Accomplished
Jesus guarantees a better covenant through His own perfect and sufficient sacrifice and mediating work, while the earlier sacrifices and priesthood had no power in themselves to save but represented Him and pointed forward to His offering, and through Him sinners can approach God because the communication broken by sin is restored. As surety He pledged Himself to maintain the sacred and exalted honor of the Father's law, to vindicate completely its binding claims and to manifest the holiness of every principle, preserving the authority of the unchanging law while redeeming sinners. The law was given as rules to govern conduct, exposing sin, holding transgressors accountable, excusing no wickedness, and unable to remove sin or save from its consequences, and His life perfectly fulfilled every precept while He paid the full cost on the cross of Calvary as a sinless offering.
The penalty for breaking God's law fell on Him and is suspended for a time so the guilty do not feel its full weight, yet this does not cancel the law's claims or set aside its demands but is meant to draw people to holiness and obedience. In Gethsemane He faced the guilt of the world's sin from Adam's transgression to the end of time with its suffering, and though He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to receive their penalty He chose to become the propitiation and give humanity another trial and probation. By conquering on their behalf He secured that probation in which the guilty race may return to loyalty by keeping God's law, with repentance as the first step that reveals the wrong of disobedience and the excellence of the law's requirements, and this present probation tests every descendant of Adam whether they will return to allegiance.
That probation brings the treasures of heaven within reach to restore man to the perfection in which he was first created and to rescue him from degradation, revealing in light reflected from the cross the value of the human soul. Through Him pardon is offered to all who return to allegiance to God's law, with immortal life in the mansions prepared and life running parallel with the life of God, so that to turn from it for earthly treasures is to neglect so great salvation. The Father pledged that if Christ took humanity and endured the test Adam failed, Christ's obedience would be counted as righteousness for His people.
Through faith those who do according to the very best of their ability and seek to keep the way of the Lord by obedience to the ten commandments receive pardon and free salvation, for He stands ready to pardon transgression and forgive sin. Through His merits, self-sacrifice, death and resurrection they are forgiven, freed from sin's penalty and defilement, and restored to allegiance to God, with His perfection and righteousness imputed to cover the transgression of the repentant and obedient soul so that restoration is thorough and complete. Though blameless He bore the guilt of sinners so that through faith in His merits they might go free, imputing His righteousness to them and presenting them to the Father as innocent with an assurance that cannot be taken away. In union with Him humanity is joined to divinity, which is the only hope of salvation and the ground of security against Satan, skepticism and unbelief, with no human or dead saint coming between the sinner and Him as Advocate and Surety. No one is safe apart from standing close beside Him and following His leading in obedience and trust, and in that union human nature is perfected, all power and all things being committed to Him to complete the redemption begun through humiliation and immense sacrifice, as He retains His human nature to stand as substitute and living intercessor, stands at the head of the race on the side of life against Satan and fallen angels, fulfills God's requirements as the example to follow in obeying the Father rather than God's enemy, and gives those who trust Him by faith power to become victors.
Reverent contemplation of His humbling Himself to face the powers of darkness single-handed and gain the victory on humanity's behalf softens, purifies and ennobles the heart while inspiring the mind with new strength and vigor. Because He stands in the place of those He redeemed with His blood, a brother who bears His message is not worthless, heaven keeps a record of how people treat those purchased, and to censure and accuse that brother is to censure Christ Himself.
Jesus was made the guarantee of a better covenant by becoming humanity's substitute, undertaking to redeem men and women because after selling themselves to the enemy they could not redeem themselves, return to loyalty, or do any good thing by their own power. With the Father before the world was created He pledged by solemn promise that if humanity were overcome He would ransom it from the destroyer, restore it to purity and defeat the foe, and He fulfilled that pledge by leaving a throne of light and glory, laying aside royalty and coming in human form to pass over the ground where Adam stumbled and meet every temptation without swerving. As substitute He stood in the place of sinners and bore the curse, guilt and wrath due for disobedience from Adam to the end of time, facing that suffering in Gethsemane where He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to their penalty but chose to become the propitiation by His sinless offering and death. He guarantees the better covenant through His own perfect and sufficient sacrifice and mediating work, whereas the earlier sacrifices and priesthood had no power to save but pointed forward to Him, and as Surety He maintained the sacred honor of the Father's unchanging law, vindicated its binding claims by a life that fulfilled every precept and paid its full cost on the cross. By conquering on their behalf He secured another trial and probation in which the guilty may return to loyalty, so that those who do their very best to keep the way of the Lord by obedience receive free pardon with His perfection and righteousness imputed to cover them, and in union with Him humanity is joined to divinity as the only hope and security against Satan.
Surety Became Substitute
By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament means He became humanity's substitute and guarantee, undertaking its redemption because after selling themselves to the enemy of all righteousness people could not redeem themselves, could not return to loyalty to God by their own power, and of themselves could do no good thing. When man sinned He offered Himself to stand in that place to provide a way of escape for the guilty race to return to loyalty. As surety He took humanity and passed over the ground where Adam stumbled and fell, meeting without swerving from allegiance the temptations that beset man and overcoming every temptation, so that His righteousness was distinctly made apparent and the guilty could have a way back to God.
He became surety by solemn pledge with the Father before the world was created, that if humanity were overcome by Satan's deception He would undertake the sacrifice needed for its redemption. When Adam sinned and to all appearance there was no hope for the race, God did not abandon human beings to sin and misery but laid help upon one that is mighty. Then the Son of God pledged Himself to ransom human beings from the destroyer, to restore them to their original purity, and to defeat the cruel foe.
He fulfilled that pledge voluntarily and not by compulsion, leaving a throne of light and glory with His Father, stepping down from the eternal throne, laying aside robes of royalty and heavenly position, and not counting equality with God a thing to be desired while man was lost in sin and misery. He clothed His divinity with humanity and came in human form to a world seared and marred by the curse to become the representative and surety for the race. In that human nature He passed over the ground where Adam stumbled, meeting every temptation without swerving from allegiance so His righteousness was made apparent, and His obedience in becoming subject to the law fulfilled God's requirements as the example people are to follow in obeying their Father in heaven rather than serving God's enemy.
Alone in humanity, single-handed, He humbled Himself to face the powers of darkness and won the victory on humanity's behalf. With His human arm encircling the race and His divine arm grasping the throne of the Infinite He united finite man with the infinite God and connected earth with heaven. As substitute He stood in the place of sinners and bore the curse that should fall upon man, bearing human guilt and taking upon Himself the Father's wrath that disobedience would otherwise bring on humanity. That bearing reached from Adam's transgression to the end of time, faced in Gethsemane with its guilt and suffering, where He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to receive their penalty but instead chose to become the propitiation for a sinful race by a sinless offering and death, thereby preserving the authority of God's unchanging law while redeeming sinners.
He retains His human nature and stands in God's presence as man's representative, substitute, and living intercessor, and as a man His human nature enables Him to represent humanity and live to intercede, giving assurance of salvation and of God's coming judgment through the man He appointed. At His baptism the Father's declaration that He was the beloved Son showed that Christ was accepted, and through Him heaven is open to Adam's sons and daughters. Those who accept the mercy offered through Christ can be saved, become children of God, and have access to the Father, with all power on humanity's behalf and all things committed to Him so that He can complete the work of redemption begun through humiliation and immense sacrifice.
Better Covenant Accomplished
Jesus guarantees a better covenant through His own perfect and sufficient sacrifice and mediating work, while the earlier sacrifices and priesthood had no power in themselves to save but represented Him and pointed forward to His offering, and through Him sinners can approach God because the communication broken by sin is restored. As surety He pledged Himself to maintain the sacred and exalted honor of the Father's law, to vindicate completely its binding claims and to manifest the holiness of every principle, preserving the authority of the unchanging law while redeeming sinners. The law was given as rules to govern conduct, exposing sin, holding transgressors accountable, excusing no wickedness, and unable to remove sin or save from its consequences, and His life perfectly fulfilled every precept while He paid the full cost on the cross of Calvary as a sinless offering.
The penalty for breaking God's law fell on Him and is suspended for a time so the guilty do not feel its full weight, yet this does not cancel the law's claims or set aside its demands but is meant to draw people to holiness and obedience. In Gethsemane He faced the guilt of the world's sin from Adam's transgression to the end of time with its suffering, and though He could have refused the cup and left the guilty to receive their penalty He chose to become the propitiation and give humanity another trial and probation. By conquering on their behalf He secured that probation in which the guilty race may return to loyalty by keeping God's law, with repentance as the first step that reveals the wrong of disobedience and the excellence of the law's requirements, and this present probation tests every descendant of Adam whether they will return to allegiance.
That probation brings the treasures of heaven within reach to restore man to the perfection in which he was first created and to rescue him from degradation, revealing in light reflected from the cross the value of the human soul. Through Him pardon is offered to all who return to allegiance to God's law, with immortal life in the mansions prepared and life running parallel with the life of God, so that to turn from it for earthly treasures is to neglect so great salvation. The Father pledged that if Christ took humanity and endured the test Adam failed, Christ's obedience would be counted as righteousness for His people.
Through faith those who do according to the very best of their ability and seek to keep the way of the Lord by obedience to the ten commandments receive pardon and free salvation, for He stands ready to pardon transgression and forgive sin. Through His merits, self-sacrifice, death and resurrection they are forgiven, freed from sin's penalty and defilement, and restored to allegiance to God, with His perfection and righteousness imputed to cover the transgression of the repentant and obedient soul so that restoration is thorough and complete. Though blameless He bore the guilt of sinners so that through faith in His merits they might go free, imputing His righteousness to them and presenting them to the Father as innocent with an assurance that cannot be taken away. In union with Him humanity is joined to divinity, which is the only hope of salvation and the ground of security against Satan, skepticism and unbelief, with no human or dead saint coming between the sinner and Him as Advocate and Surety. No one is safe apart from standing close beside Him and following His leading in obedience and trust, and in that union human nature is perfected, all power and all things being committed to Him to complete the redemption begun through humiliation and immense sacrifice, as He retains His human nature to stand as substitute and living intercessor, stands at the head of the race on the side of life against Satan and fallen angels, fulfills God's requirements as the example to follow in obeying the Father rather than God's enemy, and gives those who trust Him by faith power to become victors.
Reverent contemplation of His humbling Himself to face the powers of darkness single-handed and gain the victory on humanity's behalf softens, purifies and ennobles the heart while inspiring the mind with new strength and vigor. Because He stands in the place of those He redeemed with His blood, a brother who bears His message is not worthless, heaven keeps a record of how people treat those purchased, and to censure and accuse that brother is to censure Christ Himself.