A summary of ch. 26 of John Flavel’s The Fountain of Life.

“Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” Acts 2:23

In this text, we have an account of

1. The nature of the death Christ died, which is here described more generally, as a violent death, You have slain him: and more particularly, as a most ignominious, cursed, dishonorable death; you have crucified him.

2. The causes of it are here likewise expressed: and that both principal and instrumental. The principal cause, permitting, ordering, and disposing all things about it, was the determinate counsel and fore-knowledge of God.

3. The instruments effecting it were their wicked hands. This fore-knowledge and counsel of God, as it did no way necessitate or enforce them to it; so neither does it excuse their fact from the least aggravation of its sinfulness.

In respect of God, Christ’s death was justice and mercy. In respect of man, it was murder and cruelty. In respect of himself, it was obedience and humility.

DOCTRINE. That our Lord Jesus Christ was not only put to death, but to the worst of deaths, even the death of the cross.

I. The nature of his death

1. It was a violent death that Christ died.  He died not a natural death, that is he lived not until nature was consumed with age.

2. It was a most painful death.  His soul was in travail, Isa. 53, his body in bitter pangs; and being as Aquinas speaks, optime complectionatus, of the most excellent crests, exact and just temperament; his senses were more acute and delicate than ordinate.

3. It was a shameful death.  It was a kind of death which was appointed for the basest, and vilest of men.  Freemen, when they committed capital crimes, were not condemned to the cross.  No; that was the death appointed for slaved.  Obedience to his Father’s will, and zeal for our salvation, made him disregard its reproach, Heb 12:2.

4. It was a cursed death.  Gal. 3:13.

5. It was a very slow and lingering death.

6. It was an unalleviated death.

II. The manner of the execution. Of which more in the next discourse.

III. The reasons why Christ died this, rather than any other kind of death.

1. To bear the curse in his death, and a curse by law was affixed to no other kind of death, as it was to this.

2. To fulfill the types, and prefiguration that of old were made with respect to it, Jn 3:14.

3. Because it was predicted of him, Psa 22:16f; Zech 12:10.

Inferences

If Christ died an accursed death for us,

1. There is forgiveness with God, Col. 1:14; 1 John 1:7.  His blood is precious, and can wash away the greatest sins, 1 Pet 1:18.  It was ordained by God to be the means of saving sinners, Acts 13:39.  Can God exact satisfaction from the blood and death of his own Son, the surety of believers, and yet still demand it from believers? It cannot be. “Who (says the apostle) shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifies. Who shall condemn? It is Christ that died,” Rom. 8:33, 34.  Those very men who had a hand in the shedding of Christ’s blood, had the benefit of that blood afterwards pardoning them, Acts 2:36. There is nothing but unbelief and impenitence of heart can bar your soul from the blessings of this blood.

2. Though there be much of pain, there is nothing of curse in the death of the saints. It still wears its dart, by which it strikes; but has lost its sting, by which it hurts and destroys.  Death poured out all its poison, and lost its sting in Christ’s side, when he became a curse for us.  In fact, far from being a curse for believers, death elevates us to a place of greater blessing.  1 Cor 3:22.

3. How cheerfully should we submit to, and bear any cross for Jesus Christ!

First, We shall bear it but a little way.  Let my Lord Jesus, (since he will do so) weave my bit-and-span length of time with white and black; well and woe. – Let the rose be neighbor with the thorn.  Sorrow and the saints are not married together! or suppose it was so, heaven shall make a divorce. Life is but short, and therefore crosses cannot be long. Our sufferings are but for a while, 1 Pet. 5:10. They are but the sufferings of the present time, Rom. 8:18.

Second, Christ himself bears the heaviest end of our cross. And as one happily expresses, he says of their crosses, half mine. He divideth sufferings with them, and takes the largest share to himself. “O how sweet a sight (says one sweetly) is it to see a cross between Christ and us. To hear our Redeemer say, at every sigh, at every blow, and eatery loss of a believer, half mine. For they are called the sufferings of Christ, and the reproach of Christ, Col. 2:24. Heb. 11:26. As when two are partners or owners of a ship, half of the gain, and half of the loss, belongs to either of the two. So Christ in our sufferings, is half gainer, and half loser, with us: yes, the heaviest end of the black tree lies on your Lord. It falls first upon him, and but rebounds from him upon you:” “The reproaches of them that reproached you, are fallen upon me,” Psalm. 69:9. Nay, so speak as the thing is, Christ does not only bear half, or the better part, but the whole of our cross and burden. Yes, he bears all, and more than all; for he bears us and our burden too, or else we would quickly sink, and faint under it.

Thirdly, think what an innumerable multitude of blessings and mercies are the fruit and offspring of a sanctified cross.  I have but small experience of sufferings for Christ, but let my Judge and witness in heaven, lay my soul in the balance of justice; if I find not a young heaven, and a little paradise of glorious comforts, and soul-delighting love-kisses of Christ in suffering for him and his truth. – My prison is my palace, my sorrow is with child of joy; my losses are rich losses, my pain easy pain, my heavy days are holy days and happy days. I may tell a new tale of Christ to my friends. Grace tried is better than grace, and more than grace. It is glory in its infancy.”

4. Our mercies are brought forth with great difficulty; and that which is sweet to us in the fruition, was costly, and hard to Christ in the acquisition.  Things are prized rather as they come, than as they are.

Beware then you abuse not any of the mercies that Christ brought forth with so many bitter pangs and throes. And let all this endear Christ more than ever to you, and make you in a deep sense of his grace and love, to say, Thanks be to God for Jesus Christ!