Question 1.- Was the Lord Jesus capable of yielding to temptation? A. M. C.

Temptation is of two kinds,- from without and from within. The former would include all circumstances, whether of trial or allurement, met with in life. That our blessed Lord was exposed to every form of such temptation, both at the hands of man and of Satan, it is needless to say. After His baptism we see every kind of allurement presented to Him by Satan, only to be rejected" in the power of simple obedience to the word of God Later, when Peter would turn Him from the cross (Matt. 16-23), He, with equal simplicity, put the temptation away. That such resistance to evil meant suffering is most clear. "He suffered, being tempted," but suffering is the opposite of yielding. All through His holy life, He was brought in contact with that which caused Him acute pain. We, alas! are so dull as to appreciate but little what it cost Him to live in a world like this. Doubtless, in the garden of Gethsemane the tempter pressed Him most powerfully to leave the path of pain His love had chosen, but not for a moment did He waver. Oh, what obedience!-what perfection! It calls for worship more than analysis; and yet, in a reverent spirit, it is our privilege to see the Burnt Offering flayed (the inmost thoughts revealed),- separated into its parts, and the whole to be washed in water,- not to cleanse, but to show its purity. In all this we have the perfect Man.

The second kind of temptation is that from within. "Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed." (James 1:14.) We need but to ask the question, Did the Lord Jesus have lust – desire to sin in any form? – to see the blasphemy of the hint of such a thing. But it may be objected that Adam was innocent until he yielded to temptation; and was it not possible that the Lord Jesus might have yielded in the same way? – being a man. This may be more subtle, but is none the less a denial of His perfection. The Holy Ghost is most careful to guard the incarnation from any such misrepresentation. Adam was a man,- a mere man. The Lord Jesus was something more than a mere man. As to His humanity, He was conceived by the Holy Ghost. "Therefore, also, that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35.) So that even as to His humanity He was the Son of God. Further, He was one person, not two. His divine nature gave character to the whole. "The word was made flesh." (John 1:14.) In the language of the type, the gold covered the shittim wood. Even when showing His perfect sympathy and humanity, the Holy Spirit guards most jealously the uniqueness of that humanity. "Forasmuch, then, as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same." (Heb. 2:14.) The word translated "are partakers" is different from that rendered "took part." The former is used for man, and implies the most intimate association. 'I he children are partakers,- that is their nature. "Took part" suggests the thought of one from the outside, and in a sense remaining ever distant, who in grace. takes up a nature similar to that of His people. Thus, that there might be no mistake, a different word is used for each. Our Lord was, and is, perfect man. If He was capable of sinning, He is still so,-I speak with reverence,-for He is "the same yesterday, to-day, and forever." He was perfect man in His thoughts, feelings, desires, as well as in His ways and words. Perfect to sympathize and to succor when we are tempted. He knows human love, He knew human dependence; but He was ever the only One. Let us guard most jealously the spotless integrity of the One who has laid open the holy mystery of His incarnation to our view. Let us ever be worshipers here, and be most quick and sensitive to reject the faintest whisper that He could have been by any possibility anything else than He was and is. The jeweler tests gold to see" that it is gold. If it failed to stand the test, if it were possible that it could not, it would not have been gold. Temptation simply manifested what the Lord Jesus was.

Question 2.- Please explain Eph. 4:25. In the similar passage, Col. 3:9, it is "lie not one to another." Why is it "neighbor" here? Is it to all men? Then how " members one of another"? J, J. D).

Of course truthfulness is to characterize a Christian in his dealings with all men. The term "neighbor" simply means the person with whom we are associated. The following clause applies exclusively to members of the body of Christ. An unbeliever could not be a member of that, for it is formed by the Holy Ghost, who unites us with our glorified Head, and so with one another. See 1 Cor. 12:13, Eph. 1:13, 23. Evidently, then, the persons contemplated in the word "neighbor" are believers. To make the passage teach the universal brotherhood of man would be to do violence to the whole context and to the entire teaching of Scripture.

It is interesting to note the reason assigned for the need of truthfulness, in each epistle. Ephesians is devoted to the unfolding of the great truth of the Church – the body of Christ, the building of God, in its perfectness and unity. It is fitting, therefore, that an exhortation to truthfulness should be based upon that fact. We are members of one body, have a common life, a common hope, and common interests. A man might as well lie to himself as lie to his brother. We are members one of another. In Colossians the theme is the glory of Christ, and our identification with Him in death and resurrection. So the exhortation to truthfulness is based on the fact that we have in the death of Christ put off the old man, and in His resurrection put on the new. The subject is treated at Jarge in the third chapter.