The Inner Life

seriously as the standard of all truth. If they failed to do this, they would never know the truth concerning the atonement.

THE ATTITUDE of Jesus toward the Scriptures was always the same. He realized that they were misleading, and so he never insisted that men pay very great attention to them. He would give them the NEW COVENANT. They were not to worry about the Old Testament, because he would attend to that matter himself.

Let us take another illustration of the necessity of discarding the Old Testament teachings. Jesus tells us:

“God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth on him (takes him seriously), would not perish (become lost or chaotic in his thinking), but would have eternal life (would contact the Infinite source of all good).”

The first thought in these words proves the paradox of the Atonement as taught in the Old Testament, because if God loved the world, there was no need of the elaborate ritual, or temple worship. God was always available; was never far off nor apart from his creation. God is unchangeable, therefore it never was true, nor will it ever be true that God does not exist in loving contact with his universe. This being true, the doctrines of atonement and substitutionary sacrifices were the impositions of a crafty priesthood, but they never had divine sanction.

On another occasion Jesus commanded his disciples to “Be ye perfect even as your Father which in heaven is perfect.” What did he mean? Certainly, he did not ask men to do the impossible. He simply asked them to fulfill certain standards which were easily attainable, providing men made it their business to live up to the new standards. The standards were those which the Father, the Divine Power which controlled the universe, fulfilled.

The Father had no favorites, either in nations or among individuals. He makes the sun to shine upon the evil and the good; and sends the rain on the just and the unjust. There is no privileged class in the universe of the Father, because he is perfect in his attitude toward his creation. He loves his enemies, the wicked and the sinful. He blesses those that curse him; he does good to those that hate him; he communes with and contacts those who despitefully use Him and persecute His creation.