Substitute and representative

Christ's salvific work is staggering in its scope. What He came to do can be simplified; He saved us. But it can also be studied and appreciated inexhaustibly.The grandeur of the life He lived, His birth, His death, His resurrection, and all that is incorporated in the works of Christ is a glory-filled investigation that will never end.

Robert Peterson, in his book Salvation Accomplished by the Son, puts the works of Christ on display for readers to marvel at. The study of Christ quickly transforms into the worship of Christ for his deeds are remarkable.

In this excerpt from his book, Peterson informs that Christ's work is both as a representative and a substitute. He is considering one of the most notable passages from Mark found in the tenth chapter:

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45 ESV)

Peterson writes:

Christ redeems as both representative and substitute. He is representative because he is “the man Christ Jesus.” He became a member of the human race to function as Mediator between God and human beings. It is possible that the preposition anti on the front of “ransom” has its classical meaning of “on behalf of.” If so, then it also indicates Christ’s representation of his people before God. The preposition in “a ransom for all” clearly communicates substitution.