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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1909 edition. Excerpt: ... in the charge by which they secured his crucifixion from a complaisantly cruel governor. Jesus' own course of action had given to such a charge just enough verisimilitude to accomplish its malignant purpose.--And having accomplished it, like many similar false representations it went much further than its originators had foreseen, and became the very watch-word of the Galileans they supposed themselves to be now permanently suppressing. It may well be questioned, as we have seen, whether up to the crucifixion itself the prophet of Nazareth had been seriously regarded as "the Christ" by even the most ardent disciple (see however on 14: 3-9). But from the time that he had been put to death as such, it was in harmony with all contemporary habits of reasoning for his following to declare that he was in very truth the Christ of God. His enemies failed to allow for this alternative. In God's providence their "lifting him up" became the means of "drawing all men unto him"; for certain it is that no amount of proclamation of the Galilean leader as "the Christ" by Peter, or by Jesus himself, or by all Israel, would ever have signified anything without the cross. Only by what that signifies does the word "Christ" leave its lowly place in the vocabulary of obsolete superstitions of an obscure Semitic people, and become the designation of the great Elder Brother of humanity. The Danielic title Son of man must undergo the same transfiguration before it fitly describes the Son, who by his dauntless championship of the "lost sons" has indeed "opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers." For the event of real significance to the world neither the word of Peter nor the word of...