His life as the Son of man, so far as He fulfilled in His life, as Head of the race, the destiny of humanity by redemption and consummation. The two lives indeed are only separable in thought, but the effort to give clearness to them reveals a little more of the meaning of the Gospel.
And yet again: these three passages are of great importance as emphasising the reality of the Lord's human life from step to step. It is at each moment perfect with the ideal of human perfection according to the circumstances.
It is unscriptural, though the practice is supported by strong patristic authority, to regard the Lord during His historic life as acting now by His human and now by His Divine Nature only. The two Natures were inseparably combined in the unity of His Person. In all things He acts Personally; and, as far as it is revealed to us, His greatest works during His earthly life are wrought by the help of the Father through the energy of a humanity enabled to do all things in fellowship with God (comp. John 11:41 f.).
( b ) From the revelation of the teleivwsi" of the Lord we pass to the second group of passages (10:14; 11:39 f.; 12:23) in which men are shewn to receive from Him the virtue of that perfection which He has reached. Those who are in Christ, according to the phrase of St Paul (which is not found in this Epistle; yet see 10:10, 19), share the privileges of their Head. These three passages also present the truth which they express in different lights.
( a ) The first passage (10:14) gives the one sufficient and abiding ground of man's attainment to perfection in the fact of Christ's work. Man has simply to take to himself what Christ has already done for him ( teteleivwken eij" to; dihnekev" ).
( b ) The second passage (11:39 f.) enables us to understand the unexpected slowness of the fulfilment of our hopes. There is a great counsel of Providence which we can trust ( krei'ttovn ti probleyamevnou ).
(
g
) And in the third passage a glimpse is opened of the righteous who have obtained the abiding possession of that which Christ has won
(
teteleiwmevnwn
).
( c ) In the third group of passages which deal with Christ's perfection in His humanity (2:17 f.; 4:15; 12:2) we are led to observe how His perfection through sufferings becomes the ground and pledge of His unfailing sympathy with men. The experience of His earthly life (as we speak) remains in His glory.
Thus we see in succession ( a ) that Christ's assumption of true and perfect humanity ( kata; pavnta toi'" ajdelfoi'" oJmoiwqh'nai ) becomes the spring of His High-priestly work in making propitiation for sins and rendering help to men answering to the universality ( ejn w|/ pevponqen ) of His own suffering and temptation (2:17 f.).
And next (
b
) that the assurance of sympathy based on the fellowship of Nature and experience (
pepeirasmevnon kata; pavnta kaqj oJmoiovthta
) brings confidence to men in their approach to God for pardon and strength (4:14-
16).
And yet again ( g ) that Christ Himself in the fulfilment of His work proved from first to last ( ajrchgo;n kai; teleiwthvn ) the power of that faith by which we also walk (12:1 f.).
No one can regard even summarily these nine passages without feeling their far-reaching significance. And it is of especial importance to dwell