[Footnote E: I Peter iii:16.]
[Footnote F: Rom. v:6-10.]
7. Vicarious Suffering. Its Reality and Its Effectiveness is the Doctrine of the Christ: This, then, is the especial doctrine of the Christ on which his earth-life's mission is based. One Intelligence at need can suffer for others. It is possible for one to stand responsible for another; a man can be his brother's keeper, and vicariously endure even suffering for another's sins; make a satisfaction to justice, and bring the quality of Mercy into the moral economy of things, and give it legitimate standing under a reign of law, softening somewhat the otherwise harsh aspect of things.
8. The Reign of Law and Love: To this then our inquiry and discussions lead us; to recognize in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the central truth of which is the Atonement, a reign of Law and Love; and that to preserve this Law, and to manifest this Love was the purpose of the earth-life's mission of the Christ. To teach and to demonstrate, first of all, God-love for man, by a sacrifice that tasks God that man might be saved;[A] and second, to inspire man-love for God, by the demonstration that God first loved man, and how deeply God loved man;[B] and third, to teach man-love for man. "For beloved," said the apostle whom Jesus loved pre-eminently—"If God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."[C] In this love for one another the children of God are manifest, he contends. "Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. * * We know that we have passed from death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. * * Here by perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."[D] It is not to be marveled at that this same apostle declared that "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love,"[E] or that Paul, accepting the same principles, should say, "he that loveth another, hath fulfilled the law. * * * Love worketh no ill to his neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."[F]
[Footnote A: St. John iii:16, 17.]
[Footnote B: "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins" (I John iv:9, 10.)]
[Footnote C: I John iv:11.]
[Footnote D: I John iii:10-16.]
[Footnote E: I John iv:8.]
[Footnote F: Rom. xiii:8, 10.]