Choose a topic from Part 3a:
1. Christ as man suffered voluntarily to redeem mankind.He suffered for justice, and therefore grace came to him asmerited, and this merited grace overflows into the members ofChrist, the children of his Church, and indeed all men. Thus Christby his Passion merited salvation for his members.
2. Because he suffered willingly, out of love andobedience towards God, our Lord gave back to God more than enoughto compensate for the offenses of the whole human race. Hence, thePassion is a superabundant atonement for the sins ofmankind. Scripture says (I John 2:2): "He is the propitiationfor our sins; and not for ours only, but for those of the wholeworld."
3. A sacrifice is something acceptable to God, offered toappease him and to manifest his supreme dominion over all things.The sacrifice offered by our Lord in the Passion was the mostperfect sacrifice possible.
4. And the Passion was our redemption. To redeem a man isto secure his release from captivity. Man was a captive of sin,which is the bondage of the devil; man lay also under the bondageof God'soffended justice. Now, the Passion of Christdissolved both bonds, releasing man from the thrall of sin andSatan, and atoning to God for man's rebellion against him.Therefore, the Passion is truly a work of redemption.
5. God in Trinity is the first cause of our redemption.But the immediate cause is Christ. The life of Christ (or hisblood, which makes life possible), is the price paid to redeem us.Our Lord voluntarily paid this price. Hence, in the sense ofimmediate action and payment, our redemption was accomplished byour Lord alone. Thus Christ alone is our Redeemer.
6. The principal effecting cause of man's salvation isGod. And the humanity of Christ is the instrument of the Godhead inworking out man's salvation. All that Christ as man does andsuffers for us, is truly done by him instrumentally; that is, ascarrying out the effectiveness rooted in, and proceeding from, theGodhead. Now, what Christ does and suffers for us is called hisPassion. Therefore, the Passion of Christ is the effecting cause ofman's salvation.
"The supreme perfection of man in this life is to be so united to God that all his soul with all its faculties and powers are so gathered into the Lord God that he becomes one spirit with him, and remembers nothing except God, is aware of and recognises nothing but God, but with all his desires unified by the joy of love, he rests contentedly in the enjoyment of his Maker alone."
St Albert the Great
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"The more you know and the better you understand, the more severely will you be judged, unless your life is also the more holy. Do not be proud, therefore, because of your learning or skill. Rather, fear because of the talent given you."
Thomas á Kempis
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"For what would it profit us to know the whole Bible by heart and the principles of all the philosophers if we live without grace and the love of God?"
Thomas á Kempis
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