Power of Christ's Sacrifice

"Therefore doth my Father love me ."  What is the secret of the Father's love ? Why is it that the heart of the Father rejoices in the Son .? Is it because of the Son's sacrifice  .?  Is it because the Father saw in Him a victim on the altar  of death .? No , it is because that on the altar of death He sees in Him an offering that is no victim . The Father's heart rejoices not that the Son is compelled to die , but that the Son can die without compulsion , that he has power to lay down His own life .All other sacrifices had been types of impotence , but this was a type of power . Never had the strength of will been manifested so gloriously . There had been conquerors and mighty warriors , who had paved their own way through the hearts of others ;   here was a life that could pave a way for others through its own heart . O strength perfected in weakness , O , self surrendering power of love , we , like the Father , yield our hearts to thee . If it had been mere resignation to death we could have admired Thee . If it had been mere distaste for life ,we could have pitied Thee ; but since it is the choice of love , we love Thee . We magnify the power that could relinguish power , the might that could abanddon might , the will that could resign wil;l . You are most crowned to us in the valley of Thy humiliation . Thou art most glorious to us in the shades of Thy Gethsamane . We feel that Thou are no victim , that Thy love has chosen the burden , that Thou would not have otherwise for twelve legions of angels . Therefore Thy cross is to us not a weakness but a power ; we are not ashamed of it , we glory in it, we long to be like it . We pant to be made conformable unto Thy death, to have our wills set free from their own burning . We gaze on Thee till we shall catch Thine impress, till we shall be transformed into Thine image from glory to glory, till we shall say , not with resignation but with acquiescence , "Thy will be done ."We shall get back our joy the moment we have ceased to seek it ; when we shall power to lay down our life we shall have power to take it up again .

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