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however is of far deeper import than merely to record the literal physical fact of
crucifixion, he enables us to hear the confession of one of those thus "crucified with"
Christ:
"Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed
justly: for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this man hath done nothing
amiss" (Luke 23: 40, 41).
These words let light in upon the doctrinal intention in the words "crucify with"
as used by Paul. Paul as much as said, I too, like that malefactor recognize two facts:
(1) that I was condemned by the law, and merited death; this curse of a broken law is set
forth under the Hebrew judgment of "hanging on a tree" (Gal. 3: 13); (2) I also
recognize that Christ had done "nothing amiss", that He was indeed without sin and
perfectly righteous. Consequently I saw with rapturous faith that "the Son of God had
loved me, and given Himself for me". I realized that He had not only died "for" me as
my Substitute, but that by the gracious reckoning of God, I can now be looked upon as
having died in my Substitute, that I can indeed take to myself in a sense unknown before
the words "crucify with", and have passed for ever out of the dominion both of sin and
law, to find my life in Christ Who died form me. "So far as I now live in the flesh, it is a
life of faith" (Lightfoot). The "now" is not used here to indicate a contrast with present
life on earth, and future life in glory, but rather a contrast between the old life, the old
man, the ego of Rom. 7: 14, and the newness of life, the new man, the ego of
Rom. 7: 25 (see also Rom. 6: 4).
All now depends upon the Son of God. The faith of the Son of God refers to His
faithfulness, not merely the believer's faith in Him. Faith "in Christ, must be
distinguished from the faith "of" Christ, the one refers to the believer's exercise of faith
in the person and work of the Saviour, the other refers to the faithfulness unto death and
beyond that is the sure anchor of all our hopes. This matter is of sufficient importance to
demand our most earnest attention.
"The faith of Christ." The usual interpretation makes the faith of Jesus Christ nothing
more than the believer's faith in Him. That something is wrong with such an
interpretation is manifest the moment we attempt to introduce it into the Scriptures. For
example who would tolerate such a rendering of Rom. 3: 21, 22 that read:
"The righteousness of God has been manifested through the believer's faith in Jesus
Christ"?
Both in Rom. 3: 22 and 26 this aspect of faith is found. The second reference hides
it under the translation "him which believeth in Jesus". The near context provides a proof
of the translation suggested, for in Rom. 4: 12 "the faith of our father Abraham" can by
no stretch of imagination mean the believer's faith in Abraham.
The word translated "faith" in these passages is pistis. In the LXX of Hab. 2: 4 "the
just shall live by faith" the Greek word pistis is used to translate the Hebrew emunah.
This Hebrew word and its cognate amanah often mean "faithfulness" as for example: