In the book of the Psalms, there is the great prophetic picture of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ (Psalm 22), which begins with the words He uttered on the cross, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" There is a phrase in the midst of the well-known description that needs a little explaining. We read, "Many bulls have compassed Me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset Me round" (Psalm 22:12). One commentator writes as follows of this passage, "The mighty ones in the crowd are here marked by the tearful eye of their victim. The priests, elders, scribes, Pharisees, rulers and captains bellowed round the cross like wild cattle, fed in the fat and solitary pastures of Bashan, full of strength and fury; they stamped and foamed around the innocent One, and longed to gore Him to death with their cruelties. . ." Yes, and adding one further word: that which most infuriates a bull is the sight and smell of blood. That which most infuriates the followers of the Pharisees in our day is the doctrine of salvation by the blood of Jesus Christ.

The idea that it is possible to judge whether or not a man is a Christian by the outward manifestations of his life is an idea that Jesus rejected on several occasions. The disciples asked if they were to root up the tares that the enemy had planted in the midst of the wheat. The Lord told them that they were to let them alone, for in seeking to destroy tares they might root up some of the wheat. God has His program of good works which He desires the believer to experience. He tells us that the born again ones have been "created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that ye should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10), but He also tells us that some Christians are "babes in Christ," and are "carnal," walking as unsaved men so that it would be difficult for the outsider to tell the difference (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).