IN January, A. D. 275, Aurelian was assassinated. Two emperors followed in quick succession—Tacitus for two hundred days, and Florianus for about three months—and August 3, A. D. 276, Probus succeeded to the purple, and held the Imperial authority till he was murdered—A. D. 282, August.
“Instead of reducing the warlike natives of Germany to the condition of subjects, Probus contented himself with the humble expedient of raising a bulwark against their inroads.” The country which now forms the circle of Swabia had been left desert in the age of Augustus by the emigration of its ancient inhabitants. The fertility of the soil soon attracted a new colony from the adjacent provinces of Gaul. Crowds of adventurers, of a roving temper, and of desperate fortunes, occupied the doubtful possession, and acknowledged, by the payment of tithes, the majesty of the empire. To protect these new subjects, a line of frontier garrisons was gradually extended from the Rhine to the Danube. About the reign of Hadrian, when that mode of defense began to be practiced, these garrisons were connected and covered by a strong intrenchment of trees and palisades. In the place of so rude a bulwark, the Emperor Probus constructed a stone wall of a considerable height, and strengthened it by towers at convenient distances. From the neighborhood of Newstadt and Ratisbon on the Danube, it stretched across hills, valleys, rivers, and morasses, as far as Wimpfen on the Necker, and at length terminated on the banks of the Rhine, after a winding course of near two hundred miles.
“This important barrier, uniting the two mighty streams that protected the provinces of Europe, seemed to fill up the vacant space through which the barbarians, and particularly the Alemanni, could penetrate with the greatest facility into the heart of the empire. But the experience of the world, from China to Britain, has exposed the vain attempt of fortifying any extensive tract of country. An active enemy, who can select, and vary his points of attack, must, in the end, discover some feeble spot or some unguarded moment. The strength, as well as the attention, of the defenders is divided; and such are the blind effects of terror on the firmest troops, that a line broken in a single place is almost instantly deserted. The fate of the wall which Probus erected may confirm the general observation. Within a few years after his death, it was overthrown by the Alemanni. Its scattered ruins, universally ascribed to the power of the Dæmon, now serve only to excite the wonder of the Swabian peasant.”—Decline and Fall, chap. 12, par. 20.
The overthrow of the wall of Probus opened to the Alemanni the country of Vindelicia, which they soon overran, and established themselves on the right of the Rhine, from the Mein to the Lake of Constance, in possession of the country, known first by the name of Alemannia and afterward by the name of Swabia, which they and their lineal descendants have held till this day. We shall find that they afterward extended their power over other provinces, of some of which they were in later times deprived, but this they never lost. And it will be found that the country of Swabia was among the most important of Europe in the Middle Ages.
Probus was succeeded by Carus, who reigned till December 25, A. D. 283, and was then, at his death, succeeded by his two sons Carinus and Numerian. Numerian died, or was murdered, September 12, A. D. 284, and was succeeded by Diocletian September 17, and Carinus was murdered in the following May. In the reign of Diocletian occurred the next important inroad of the Alemanni. Diocletian re-established the defenses of the empire along the Rhine and the Danube, for protection against the barbarians.
“From the mouth of the Rhine to that of the Danube, the ancient camps, towns, and citadels, were diligently re-established, and, in the most exposed places, new ones were skillfully constructed; the strictest vigilance was introduced among the garrisons of the frontier, and every expedient was practiced that could render the long chain of fortifications firm and impenetrable. A barrier so respectable was seldom violated, and the barbarians often turned against each other their disappointed rage. The Goths, the Vandals, the Gepidæ, the Burgundians; the Alemanni, wasted each other’s strength by destructive hostilities, and whosoever vanquished, they vanquished the enemies of Rome. The subjects of Diocletian enjoyed the bloody spectacle, and congratulated each other that the mischiefs of civil war were now experienced only by the barbarians.
“Notwithstanding the policy of Diocletian, it was impossible to maintain an equal and undisturbed tranquillity during a reign of twenty years, and along a frontier of many hundred miles. Sometimes the barbarians suspended their domestic animosities, and the relaxed vigilance of the garrisons sometimes gave a passage to their strength or dexterity. Whenever the provinces were invaded, Diocletian conducted himself with that calm dignity which he always affected or possessed; reserved his presence for such occasions as were worthy of his interposition, never exposed his person or reputation to any unnecessary danger, insured his success by every means that prudence could suggest, and displayed with ostentation the consequences of his victory.
“In wars of a more difficult nature, and more doubtful event, he employed the rough valor of Maximian; and that faithful soldier was content to ascribe his own victories to the wise counsels and auspicious influence of his benefactor. But after the adoption of the two Cæsars, the emperors themselves, retiring to a less laborious scene of action, devolved on their adopted sons the defense of the Danube and of the Rhine. The vigilant Galerius was never reduced to the necessity of vanquishing an army of barbarians on the Roman territory. The brave and active Constantius delivered Gaul from a very furious inroad of the Alemanni; and his victories of Langres and Vindoniæa appear to have been actions of considerable danger and merit. As he traversed the open country with a feeble guard, he was encompassed on a sudden by the superior multitude of the enemy. He retreated with difficulty towards Langres; but, in the general consternation, the citizens refused to open their gates, and the wounded prince was drawn up the wall by the means of a rope. But, on the news of his distress, the Roman troops hastened from all sides to his relief, and before the evening he had satisfied his honor and revenge by the slaughter of six thousand Alemanni.”—Id., chap. 13, par. 12, 13.
While Constantine reigned as Cæsar in Gaul (A. D. 306–312) a body of Franks and Alemanni invaded that province. Constantine defeated them, and “several of their princes,” and “a great number of their youth,” “were exposed by his order to the wild beasts in the amphitheater of Treves.”—Id., chap. 14, par. 18. After this, both Franks and Alemanni seem to have remained on their own side of the Rhine till the time of Constantius, the son of Constantine, about 350–351 A. D. In the contest of Constantius with Magnentius, the usurper of Gaul, the emperor gave as a “perpetual grant,” to the Alemanni and the Franks, “all the territories which they should be able to subdue.” They therefore crossed the Rhine, and from its source to its mouth extended their conquests “above forty miles to the west of that river;” and thus the Alemanni obtained possessions which, although defeated in battle time and again, they still held in the time of Charlemagne.
“In the blind fury of civil discord, Constantius had abandoned to the barbarians of Germany the countries of Gaul, which still acknowledged the authority of his rival [Magnentius]. A numerous swarm of Franks and Alemanni were invited to cross the Rhine by presents and promises, by the hopes of spoil, and by a perpetual grant of all the territories which they should be able to subdue. But the emperor, who for a temporary service had thus imprudently provoked the rapacious spirit of the barbarians, soon discovered and lamented the difficulty of dismissing these formidable allies, after they had tasted the richness of the Roman soil. Regardless of the nice distinction of loyalty and rebellion, these disciplined robbers treated as their natural enemies all the subjects of the empire who possessed any property which they were desirous of acquiring. Forty-five flourishing cities, Tongres, Cologne, Treves, Worms, Spires, Strasbourg, etc., besides a far greater number of towns and villages, were pillaged, and for the most part reduced to ashes.
“The barbarians of Germany, still faithful to the maxims of their ancestors, abhorred the confinement of walls, to which they applied the odious names of prisons and sepulchers; and fixing their independent habitations on the banks of rivers—the Rhine, the Moselle, and the Meuse—they secured themselves against the danger of a surprise, by a rude and hasty fortification of large trees, which were felled and thrown across the roads. The Alemanni were established in the modern countries of Alsace and Lorraine; [A. D. 351] the Franks occupied the island of the Batavians, together with an extensive district of Brabant, which was then known by the appellation of Toxandria, and may deserve to be considered as the original seat of their Gallic monarchy. From the sources to the mouth of the Rhine, the conquests of the Germans extended above forty miles to the west of that river, over a country peopled by colonies of their own name and nation; and the scene of their devastations was three times more extensive than that of their conquests. At a still greater distance the open towns of Gaul were deserted, and the inhabitants of the fortified cities, who trusted to their strength and vigilance, were obliged to content themselves with such supplies of corn as they could raise on the vacant land within the inclosure of their walls. The diminished legions, destitute of pay and provisions, of arms and discipline, trembled at the approach, and even at the name of the barbarians.
“Under these melancholy circumstances an unexperienced youth was appointed to save and to govern the provinces of Gaul, or rather as he expresses it himself, to exhibit the vain image of Imperial greatness. The retired scholastic education of Julian, in which he had been more conversant with books than with arms, with the dead than with the living, left him in profound ignorance of the practical arts of war and government; and when he awkwardly repeated some military exercises which it was necessary for him to learn, he exclaimed with a sigh, ‘O, Plato, Plato, what a task for a philosopher!’”—Id., chap. 19, par. 20, 21. J.
(To be continued.)
Preach the Word of God
By Western Christian Advocate
It is not necessary to read all the infidel books that are published in order to be prepared to preach the gospel. The natural and logical order of procedure is for a teacher to make himself thoroughly familiar with the subject which he is to teach, and not with something which he is not to teach. The fact is, that a great many people have heard from the pulpit objections to the Christian faith which they would never have heard but for that advertisement of them. Better stick to the word of God. The Lord said to Jonah: "Preach the preaching that I bid thee."
The Law and the Testimony.
By A. H. Will
THE prophet of God says: "To the law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." He here gives a sure and simple rule, by which all, with a little effort, can distinguish the truth from error, if they only desire to do so; and all will be left without excuse who refuse or neglect to heed this truthful guide of the Almighty.
What law is this to which the prophet here directs us? The term the law is here used in the same sense as we use the word Bible, which means "the book, that is, the book of all books;" so in this instance, the law has reference to the law of all laws, than which there is no higher. It is the law of Jehovah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, in whose name the prophet speaks. That law which the Lord himself proclaimed with his own voice in the hearing of the people (Ex. 20:1-17), and engraved with his own finger on tables of stone. That law which David says "is perfect" (Ps. 19:7); of which Christ says one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till heaven and earth pass away (Matt. 5:18); of which the apostle Paul says, it is holy, and just, and good (Rom. 7:12); that law of liberty by which we shall be judged (James 2:11, 12). To this law we are directed by the prophet to look as the standard of truth. To the law! to the law! If any man speaks not according to this, it is because there is no light in him, and we can rest assured that he is not speaking forth words of truth and righteousness.
We must also observe the other requisite, namely, the testimony; for if they speak not also according to this, it is because there is no light in them. If all men in all time had obeyed the law, that great standard of right, then the testimony would not have been needed; but because of sin, or transgression of the law, the testimony has in great mercy been given us to lead the transgressor again to obedience to the law, and thereby to true liberty.
What is this testimony which is so unerring, so true a guide to truth? The word "testimony," as defined by Webster, signifies "a solemn declaration, or affirmation, made for the purpose of establishing or proving some fact;" therefore in this instance it is a solemn declaration or affirmation, made for the purpose of establishing or proving the fact that the Lord of hosts, in whose name Isaiah is here speaking (Isa. 8:11), is the true, the all-wise God, whom alone it is our duty to obey and worship. The law itself is a testimony of the Lord; it in itself contains proof of its origin. The Creator of the heavens and the earth is expressly revealed in the fourth commandment.
It is evident, however, that this is not the testimony here referred to, for the law is the first requisite of this rule of truth, which the prophet here gives us; therefore it is evident that there must be some other "solemn declaration" that testifies to the truth. Neither can it be that the prophet here refers to the Bible as a whole by the word testimony; for the law itself, as well as the testimony, is a part of the Bible. There must be some part of holy writ that testifies to, or proves, its heavenly origin.
In Rev. 19:10 we read this positive statement: "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." The testimony of Jesus and that of the Father are one and the same thing; for Jesus and the Father are one. John 17:21. Jesus is "the way, the truth, and the life," and no man cometh unto the Father but by him. John 14:6. By him also the worlds were made. Heb. 1:2. His name is called the Word of God. Rev. 19:13.
We have now seen that the testimony is the spirit of prophecy. And here we may ask, Is prophecy an evidence of the divine existence? Read: "I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done." "Who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the Lord? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me." "I have even from the beginning declared it unto thee; before it came to pass I showed it thee; lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them." Isa. 46:9, 10; 45:21; 48:5. Thus God says that prophecy is an evidence that he has spoken. It is therefore "the testimony" to which we must appeal in connection with "the law." But the prophecy all tells of Christ and his work, either in his first advent or in his second. In this place, however, it has special reference to his second advent. See Isa. 8:17.
Hear what Peter says: "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the daystar arise in your hearts." 2 Peter 1:19. This sure word of prophecy shineth as a light in a dark place shineth ahead of us. By heeding this sure word of prophecy, the truth will dawn unto us as the clear light of day. This sure word of prophecy unmistakably points us to that true Daystar, Jesus the Son of God, as he comes in his glory; for it is this of which Peter is speaking. He says: "We have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty." "We have also a more sure word of prophecy," etc.
It is not the object, nor is it possible in so brief an article, to produce all this prophetic testimony; neither is it necessary to all who have a desire to know the truth; we would recommend them to read in connection with the Bible that admirable work by Uriah Smith, "Thoughts on Daniel and the Revelation," which they will find a great help in understanding this all-important subject. We shall here briefly consider a part of the testimony given through Daniel the prophet, of which our Saviour says, "Whoso readeth let him understand." Matt. 24:15. In the second and seventh chapters we find recorded the outlines of the history of the world from Daniel's time. Ask any school-boy of ordinary ability, and he will tell you that there were four universal kingdoms on the earth since the time of Daniel, namely, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. In the eighth chapter, the first three are called by name. In the second chapter they are represented by the image of a man, shown by the four main divisions of the human body,—the head, breast and arms, sides, and legs. In the seventh, they are represented by four wild beasts, and in both of these chapters we find the explanation of these symbols, namely, that they represent four universal kingdoms that were to come on the earth before the great and everlasting kingdom of God would be set up. In chapter seven, verses 24, 25, after the division of the fourth kingdom, is shown a little horn arising among the ten, which was so Heaven-defying as to undertake to change the law. Every student of history knows that the papacy has ascribed to itself prerogatives belonging only to God; and by nothing has it shown its true character better than by the act of trying to abolish the second, and to change the fourth and ninth commandments of the law. This shows us how careful the testimony is to point out any tampering with the law.
But the main lesson of this prophetic testimony is this: These four consecutive human kingdoms were pointed out to us during the reign of the first, the Babylonian, as the only universal kingdoms or powers that were to precede on this earth the fifth or heavenly kingdom. History has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that these prophecies were given at the very time it is declared that they were given, more than 2,400 years ago, and all has come to pass precisely as was foretold. Is not this positive evidence that it comes from Him who "ruled in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will"? Where is the human science that can compare with this testimony? Where is another testimony of anything in Heaven or on earth that can equal this? If any man will not accept this as ample evidence that the testimony comes from the true, the all-wise God, neither would he believe if the Lord himself would, with his own voice, proclaim the truth from on high. To this law and this testimony we must cling; for upon all who reject them will come that which was spoken by Paul: "For this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie; that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 2 Thess. 2:11, 12.
But has not the law and the testimony been faithfully held up to the people of the world for the last half century? Most certainly it has. Have the people believed it? A few have, but the great majority have not heeded it, but have rather hearkened to the cry of "peace and safety," and to the conscience-searing, peeping and muttering of familiar spirits and wizards. And what is the result of neglecting to heed such great light and truth? It is darkness, confusion, and impending destruction.
But now, seeing this confusion and these impending calamities, what are the people who reject the law and the testimony proposing to do to remedy these difficulties? Let the prophet answer: "Say ye not a confederacy. This people talk of nothing but a confederacy." Isa. 8:12 (German translation). That is it exactly. And now we have Knights of Labor, Anti-Chinese, National Reform, Socialist, and innumerable other organizations, all confederations to rectify or alleviate the present and impending difficulties. But hear again what the prophet says: "Associate yourselves, O ye people, yet [margin] ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to naught; speak the word, and it shall not stand." Verses 9, 10. In the 13th and 14th verses he shows us the true and only way out of these difficulties. "Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread; and he shall be for a sanctuary." This Lord of hosts who has given us his sure testimony, he is the true Lord; he alone can truly help us.
Dear reader, are you heeding the testimony of the Most High? Which will you believe, the deceptive, wonder-working power of familiar spirits which drives to "darkness and dimness of anguish" (verse 22), or will you believe the sure testimony of the Most High, which leads in the way of light shining more and more unto the perfect, glorious day? Let us all take heed and be diligent to choose wisely whom we will believe. In these last days of trouble and confusion, we should be exceedingly thankful that the Lord has in his great mercy given us so clear a testimony to the truth. Let us all be diligent to observe with renewed zeal the way of this true guide so that we may not be deceived during the last hour of trial that will come upon all the world. "To the law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." A. H. WILL.
Evil Ministers Consume Themselves
EVIL ministers of good things are as torches—a light to others, a waste to none but themselves only.—Sel.
THE word "sermon" seems to grate harshly on the ears of many people. Listening to a sermon is considered as a sort of penance, which they are constrained to undergo once a week as an expiation for their "shortcomings;" for "shortcomings" also sounds less harsh than "sins." And so the word "sermonizing" is used to characterize any talk which, being of a serious cast, is consequently disagreeable. This is doubtless why "sermonettes" have become so popular lately. They are ostensibly for children, but we learn that they are preferred by older people. A "sermonette" is supposed to be a diluted sermon,—easier to take. And now they have the "churchette." This, the Sunday School Times aptly defines as a place "where they have375sermonettes, and prayerettes, and hymnettes, and creedettes, and commandmentettes, and all the other little 'ettes.'" All this is in harmony with the mistaken idea that religion must be belittled in order to adapt it to children.
THE remainder of the seventh chapter of Romans is a graphic account of the steps which lead the sinner to hate the sin to which he was bound, and to his freedom therefrom. It is not, as some have supposed, a Christian experience; it is simply an account of the experience of a man passing from a state of sin, through conviction, to a new creature in Christ. It will be worth our while to give it a little study, that we may learn more of the law's dealings with the sinner.
The apostle first declares (verse 7) that the law is not sin; this is proved by the fact that it points out sin. But for the law he could not have known what sin is. "But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead." Verse 8. Here sin is regarded as a person, producing all manner of evil in the heart. And since without the law there would be no sin he says that sin took occasion by the commandment. In the next verse he embodies this idea and carries it farther. He says:—
"For I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died." Verse 9.
The first clause of this verse presents to us a picture of carnal security. It is the confidence of the man who is insensible to danger. "Without the law" means that the law had not been driven by the Spirit into his heart. Many a man who has read the ten commandments scores of times, has never felt them searching his heart. Therefore his way is right in his own eyes, and he feels secure. An easy mind is by no means a sure test of acceptance with God. It was forgetfulness or ignorance of this fact that caused David so much trouble. Ps. 73. He saw the wicked wholly at ease, and that there were no bands even in their death. But when he learned their end, he found that such a condition is not an enviable one.
But as soon as a personal application of the law is made to one's heart, the sin stands out in bold relief. "When the commandment came, sin revived." The law did not create the sin; it simply brought to his view that which already existed. A room may be very dusty and dirty, yet if it is dark, the filth will not appear. But let a bright light be brought in, and the foulness becomes all too noticeable. So the law of God lights up the dark corners of the heart and reveals the depravity within.
When this had been done, says Paul, "I died." He does not here mean death to sin; for the next verse says: "And the commandment which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death." The law had shown him that he was a sinner, and "the wages of sin is death;" therefore he felt himself to be virtually a dead man. He did not actually die, but he speaks as though that which was inevitable had already come. In like manner the Lord said to Abimelech, who had taken Abraham's wife, "Thou art but a dead man." Ex. 20:3. "For sin taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me." Rom. 7:11. Sin is deceitful; it arrays itself in a pleasing garb so that to the unsuspecting one it appears to be good. But underneath its pleasing exterior it carries a weapon that wounds to the death all who come in contact with it.
Notwithstanding all that the law had revealed to Paul, he could say, "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good." Verse 12. He would uphold the dignity of the law, and shield it from all blame for his present deplorable condition. Although he had before said that the law, which was ordained to life, he found to be unto death, he insists that it was not the law,—"that which is good" (verse 13)—that was made death to him, but that it was sin that condemned him to death, and that the commandment had simply made sin "become exceeding sinful." Happy is the awakened sinner who views the law in this light. Such a one is "not far from the kingdom of Heaven." Unfortunately too many rail at the law, as though it were the cause of their lost condition, and then, as if they could avert the danger by shutting their eyes, they turn away from the law, and relapse into their old state of false security.
"For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not; for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I." Rom. 7:14, 15.
Again we must caution the reader against supposing that in these verses Paul is relating a Christian experience. Up to this point he has shown how any person is convicted of sin. He has related the experience of one who, when the law convicts him of sin, does not turn from the light, but honestly desires to obey. Now he proceeds to give the experience of one under conviction, until he is made a free man in Christ. He uses the first person and the present tense in order to make the narrative more vivid, as he portrays the sinner's struggle for freedom. It was once a present matter with him, and is the experience that all pass through, though with various modifications, before they find peace with God.
"Sold under sin." This idea is carried out in many places. Peter says that the sinner is "in bondage." 2 Peter 1:19. Paul says that he is in bondage "to the weak and beggarly elements of the world." Gal. 4:3, 9. He is a slave to sin. Rom. 6:16, 17. In a future article we shall see the case stated in even stronger terms. The idea is that the sinner is helpless. He may "consent unto the law that it is good" (verse 16), and may with his mind serve the law of God (verse 25); that is, he may desire to obey it, yet sin has dominion over him, and he is forced to serve the law of sin, namely his natural, sinful habits. As Paul elsewhere says, "They that are in the flesh cannot please God" (Rom. 8:7); and "The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary the one to the other; so that ye cannot do the things that ye would." Gal. 5:17.
This is the condition of the awakened sinner. He would do good, but evil is present with him, so that he does the very thing that he has resolved not to do. The flesh is depraved, having no good thing in it, so that although he may determine to do good, he will not find any power in him to carry out his determination. The trouble is, sin dwells in him; it has never been killed.
Let the reader imagine a man bound with fetters and having a dead carcass fastened to him by a strong chain. He is fully conscious of the seriousness of the situation, and knows that death must be the inevitable result. Every day the load which hangs to him becomes more noxious, and the whole air becomes putrid. Imagine the terror of the man as he contemplates the steady and sure approach of a horrible death, and imagine his despair when he finds that all his frantic efforts to escape from the disgusting cause of that death are in vain. It would be impossible for the imagination to overdraw the feelings of horror and despair that would fill the soul of the unfortunate man. This was the condition in which Paul found himself. Sin was upon him as a terrible burden; he knew that unless he could get rid of it and lead a life of righteousness it would sink him into perdition; and he found that his most desperate efforts to get rid of it, and to do the good that he longed to do, were unavailing. It was the law that revealed his condition to him. As he continues to look into that holy law, his sin becomes more and more disgusting to him, and yet the more he looks, the larger and more revolting does the burden of sin become. What shall he do? Must he sink into perdition? In the agony of his despair he cries out, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from this body of death?" Even as he utters this wail for help, the help appears, and he immediately answers his own question, "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." He has found peace and rest in Christ. His condition now is presented in the following words,—a Christian experience:—
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For 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; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:1-4.
"No condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus," because they are new creatures. They are not the ones against whom the law had such a terrible indictment. The condemned ones have died, have been crucified with Christ, and now although they live, it is no more they, but Christ dwelling in them. Once sin dwelt in them; now Christ has taken its place.
Verse 2 is a parallel to Rom. 3:21, 22. The righteousness of Christ being imputed to the sinner, frees him from sin and the fear of death. For a long time he may have tried to make himself righteous, but he found his best deeds so far below what the law requires that they alone would have been sufficient to ruin him. Even if he could have fulfilled the requirements of the law, that would not have removed past transgression. What the law cannot do is to make a sinner righteous. This is not on account of any defect of the law, but is solely owing to the weakness of the flesh. The law points out the disease and shows what a condition of health would be; then the man begins an ineffectual struggle to reach that high condition; the law goads him on until he finds that he has not power to accomplish his desire; and when he has lost all confidence in himself, he accepts Christ as the only source of help, and at once becomes free. Thus the law drives the sinner to Christ that Christ may free him from his past sins and enable him to keep the law.