The Golden Chain - Robert J. Wieland

limited to the innocent physical effects of the
Fall, such as weariness, hunger, thirst, fatigue,
etc.?
Surely He physically took upon Himself those
innocent consequences of the Fall. But He makes
clear that He also "took" upon Himself the inner
spiritual battle that we have with temptations—He
had to battle with the urge to gratify self. "I do not
seek My own will but the will of the Father who
sent Me" (John 5:30; that necessity for constant
denial of self was what Ellen White says Christ
took upon Himself—the "decreasing ... in moral
worth" (DA 117). Please note: the necessity for
Christ to deny self did not mean that He was
selfish; His perfect self-denial meant the opposite.
In fact, there can be no such thing as unselfishness
without a denial of self. And for Christ, that was as
painful as it is for us, more so in the light of the
agony of His cross.
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