THE MEMORIAL OF HIS RESURRECTION.
THAT such an event, so pregnant and important in the plan of redemption, should have a memorial, a constant reminder to the world, would seem to admit of no question. God gave the Passover as a memorial of the deliverance from Egypt and a type of the everlasting deliverance through Christ from sin's results. God gave the Sabbath as a memorial of His creative power, and a sign of His might to redeem. His death is commemorated by the Lord's supper. Surely the resurrection of Jesus Christ should, by parity of reasoning, have a memorial. What is it? Says one, "It is Easter day." Another declares it is Sunday, the first day of the week. It is evident that a memorial should have in it something suggestive of the thing to be remembered. For instance, the Passover was instituted by divine appointment on a certain day of a certain month. On that day of the year, with similar ceremonies, it was annually to be observed in the future. The Sabbath day was God's rest at the close of six days' creation. Creation is to be kept in mind by the sacred rest of the Sabbath the closing day of each week. In the Lord's supper, no time is used, but two emblems, the bread and the wine, emblematical of Christ's body and blood, His Word and Spirit. It is manifest from the nature and act of the resurrection that a day is not a proper memorial. The resurrection took place in a moment, in the dark part of the day, before the dawn, when the Father called His Son to life. There was no divine appointment of the particular of the year or week or month. It was not an event of a day or of a week, and therefore it is not properly commemorated by the observance of either a yearly or weekly day. What is the memorial of the resurrection? Better, For what does the resurrection stand? He who has read the preceding articles in this paper will have noted that Christ's resurrection was the manifestation of His power over sin and Satan. "Sin, when finished, bringeth forth death." "The wages of sin is death." Christ Jesus took our sins. God "made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin." Taking our sins as His own, "He died." But having no sins of His own, having overcome sin in sinful flesh, having only in Himself the perfect righteousness of God, the grave could not bind Him; "it was not possible that He should be holden of it." Acts 2:24. Again, God declared Jesus Christ to be His Son. But as God is "righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works," Jesus must demonstrate His right to the title by living God's life, righteous, despite the mightiest opposition soul ever met. In this Christ was conqueror, and by "the resurrection from the dead" He was "declared to be the Son of God with power." Rom. 1:4. The resurrection therefore stands for the life of God in humanity, triumphing over sin and death, over Satan and hades. Its memorial before the world must be suitable to its meaning. There are three events ever made prominent in "the Gospel" of Christ: "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." 1 Cor. 15:1-4. These three facts are paralleled in the baptism of the Gospel: "Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead." Col. 2:12. "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death; that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection." Rom. 6:3-5. Death, burial, and resurrection are the three great facts of the Gospel,—death to the world, burial in a water grave, and the resurrection, or rising again, are the great facts set forth in immersion, or Bible baptism. So far, then, as a mere act can do it, the resurrection is commemorated by the ordinance of Christian baptism. But the acts of faith mean more than the naked form. They are replete with living power. The rising again from the watery grave of baptism means a new life in Christ Jesus. For that resurrection-life, baptism—true Christian baptism in faith—stands. Elsewhere it is believed to be a marriage. "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Gal. 3:27. "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God." Rom. 7:4. Even as the heart-free maiden is without choice, inconstant, fickle, so is the worldling who knows not Jesus Christ. But as the maiden finds one whom she loves with all her heart, gives herself to him, is united with him in marriage, and is inconstant no longer, caring only "how she may please her husband" in preference to all others, so is the soul who has found Christ Jesus and is united with Him in Gospel marriage, the outward ceremony of which is baptism. The language of that soul is, "I have found Him whom my soul loveth." It yields to Christ, to be His and His only. It is married to Him. It takes His name, His righteousness, His mind, His life, henceforth to live the new life with Him. Of the Husband it is said: "Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over Him." Of the married soul, "For sin shall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace." Rom. 6:9, 14. The believer knows Christ and "the power of His resurrection." Phil. 3:10. In him is fulfilled the prayer of the spirit, that those who are Christ's may know "the hope of His calling," "the riches of the glory of His inheritance," "the exceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come; and hath put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." Eph. 1:17-23. "And hath raised us up together ["with Him," R.V.], and made us sit together ["with Him," R.V.] in heavenly places in Christ Jesus." Eph. 2:6. This is the meaning of baptism. It means men made new creatures in Christ Jesus. It means men living new lives, walking—even by the power of an endless life, the life of Jesus—above sin. This is God's memorial of Christ's resurrection; it is the constant, daily, hourly witnessing for Christ; it is the life and power and honest, holy, righteous living of Jesus in the flesh of His followers, of which baptism is the initial act. If the church had lived this life, she would never present to the world the apology of the forty days of "Lent," nor the pagan festival of "Easter." Her display and perfume and offering would not be that of lilies and flowers, but the beauty and aroma of Christ's loveliness of character, the sacrifice of humble and contrite hearts, and praises from lips touched by His sanctifying power. O reader, let your life be a memorial to the world of Christ's resurrection!