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through the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, shall we be saved by his life; and not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom
we have now received the reconciliation . . . . For if, by the trespass of the one, death reigned through the one; much more shall they that receive the abundance of grace and of
the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, even Jesus Christ .... For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience
of the one shall the many be made 1 righteous.' St. Paul says also: 'There 2 is one God, one mediator also between God and man, himself man, Christ Jesus, who
gave himself a ransom for all.'
In preaching at Athens, St. Paul spoke of the final judgement of all men as committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, saying that God 'hath 3 appointed a day, in the which
he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.' Elsewhere he
says: 'We 4 must all be made manifest before the judgement-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he hath done, whether
it be good or bad.'
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PROOF OF THE DEITY OF CHRIST |
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He declares that God raised Christ from the dead, 'and 1 made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and
dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and he put all things in subjection under his feet.' In order that the Lord Jesus
Christ should be able to judge and govern all things both in heaven and in earth, it is necessary that He should possess not only all power but all wisdom. This St. Paul tells us
He has, for he calls Him 'the 2 mystery of God, even Christ, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden.' Nor will this wisdom or this knowledge ever
fade away for 'Jesus 3 Christ is the same yesterday and to-day, yea and for ever.'
Many of these passages undoubtedly prove that the Lord Jesus Christ was a man, not in appearance only but in reality. But they also show that He was much more than a mere man,
for we have seen that many of the divine attributes are ascribed to Him. None but God can be truly unchangeable,4 omniscient, the judge and ruler of all, and yet all
these things, as we have seen, are asserted of Christ. Moreover, these statements are not made by St. Paul alone, but the very same thing is stated by the earlier Apostles of
Christ, and even by the Lord
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