CHAPTER XIII. Having considered reconciliation as one of the fruits of Christ's triumph on the cross, we will now consider the comfort which flows from it, and is enjoyed by every believing soul, as he realizes it by precious faith. It is an unspeakable comfort, all is now peace, all is well. "We joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the atonement." "What are these comforts ?" you ask. First, in the answer to all that Satan can say. How often doth Satan stand at our right hand to accuse us, as he did Joshua the High Priest pointing at his polluted garments; but here is an answer for him. God is reconciled, justice satisfied, and Christ is my Peace-maker. Secondly, there is an end of all differences, and disputes. Often unbelief disputes our state, tells us that God is angry with us, but the answer is, God is reconciled, and all the Egyptians are drowned in the Red Sea, I mean all our enemies; sin no more can pursue us so as to drag us to hell. Satan, Pharaohlike, has no more power over us to bring us back into his kingdom of darkness. "We are "delivered from the power of darkness, and translated into the kingdom of God's beloved Son." He may and does pursue us with all His host, and threaten destruction; we often hear as it were the rattling of His chariot wheels, the neighing of the horses, and the confused noise of glittering swords, and we may hear his boasting language, I will pursue them, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil, my soul shall be satisfied upon them, I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them." We do feel at times his fiery darts, yet, for all this, he cannot reach us so as to destroy. And why? because the Red Sea lies between us. If an attempt should be made (by him) he must be overwhelmed like the host of the Egyptians: his head is already bruised by the Captain of our salvation, and shortly he will be destroyed from off the earth. A believing soul who carries about this blessed reconciliation in the court of conscience, can strike His golden harp, and sweetly sing, "The Lord is my strength, and song, and he is become my salvation, he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation, my Father's God and I will exalt him." "The Lord is a man of war, the Lord is His name." Here we behold Christ, the God-man, the glorious Warrior who was engaged in this great war, and on Calvary's cross triumphed over all His and our enemies. "Forasmuch then, as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also, Himself likewise took part of the same, that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil." He died to conquer, and rose in triumph. Pharaoh's " chariot and his host hath he cast into the sea; his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea." The depths have covered them, they sank into the bottom as a stone, "Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them, they sank as lead in the mighty waters." This denotes destruction. They shall never rise again. Thirdly, He is a sure rest for the conscience. The Egyptians are drowned, and the Israelites are now on shore and quiet, for God is reconciled. Nothing can quiet the conscience until it is brought to know and feel that God is pacified. Fourthly, The poor sinner shall never hear of the wrath of God, all that is removed, and all now is love. Fifthly, He may now look to God and gaze on His lovely countenance, knowing that there is not a frown on His brow. He may now come boldly to a throne of grace, with prayer, and supplications to make his requests known unto him; he may go in full confidence, and with high expectations that He will" in no wise" cast out, nor shut the door of mercy. He loves the sinner freely, and therefore will He receive him graciously as his Almighty Friend, and heavenly Father. Sixthly, this friendship shall ever remain, and the enmity shall never be renewed. The reconciliation by Christ looks not only to the time past in removing all old, and former differences, but also it looks to the time future, in preventing all succeeding breaches of separation. It is the everlasting bond of peace. For, as Christ's righteousness is everlasting, so is His peace. Seventhly, to such we would say, you may enjoy yourselves in all the permissive comforts of this life, with exceeding comfort. You are accepted of God, His candle shines now upon your tabernacle, and your sun shall go down no more. It may be beclouded, it may hide its face for a little while, but it shall never go down. Eighthly, the world may trouble you, your heart may plague you, the devil may distress you, nay, heaven and earth may be thrown into seeming consternation; but your peace is immovable, for God is reconciled to you. Ninthly, that man alone is truly happy who has the Lord for his God. "Yea, happy is that people that is in such a case," O, what will not a reconciled God do for a reconciled sinner? "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things." "But God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Much more then being now justified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath through him." His love and friendship is as fruitful of mercies, and blessings, as His justice and wrath is of punishments and miseries. Lastly, If you are a regenerated character, what can hinder you from being eternally saved? Shall your unbelief, doubts, fears, poverty, or distress? Shall death and the grave separate you? Oh no! hear what the holy Apostle says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ; shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? see Romans viii. 35, to the end. From all these things, we may certainly conclude, that reconciliation cannot possibly be universal. If Christ reconciled all, all must be saved. 1st, it is evident that God is not reconciled to all, for His wrath abideth on some. John iii. 36. And reconciliation is the turning away of wrath. 2nd, all are not reconciled to God; "For by nature all are the children of wrath," (Eph. ii. 3.) and some, all their lives, do nothing but treasure up wrath against the day of wrath. Rom. ii. 5. 3rd, how then can it be that reconciliation should be wrought between God and all men, and yet neither God reconciled to all, nor all reconciled to Him? 4th, If God be reconciled to all, when doth He begin to be unreconciled towards them that perish; by what alteration is it in His will or nature? 5th, If all be reconciled by the death of Christ, when do they who perish begin to be unreconciled seeing that they are born children of wrath? 6th, inasmuch as reconciliation on the part of God consists in the turning away of His wrath, and not imputing iniquity, 2 Cor. v. 18, 19, (which is justification, rendering us blessed,) Rom. iv. 6, 8. why then is it, if God be reconciled to all, yet all are not justified and made blessed, through a nonimputation of their sin? They who have found out a redemption where none are redeemed, and a reconciliation where none are reconciled, must answer these, and such other questions." These are the unanswerable arguments of John Owen. "Dearest of all the names above, 'Tis by the merits of thy death, But if Immanuel's face appear, I love th' incarnate mystery CHAPTER XIV. REDEMPTION. THE more we taste the sweetness of the fruits, the more it encourages us to come again and pluck from that blessed tree. It is such a fruitful tree, that it bears "all manner of fruits," and that all the year round, winter as well as summer; it is never barren; let the sinner come, when he will, he will always find plenty of clusters hanging within the reach of the hand of precious faith. "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight. and his fruit was sweet to my taste." It must have been within her reach, otherwise she could not have tasted it. This fruit is not only "good for food," but for medicine also. "In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month, and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Song of Sol. ii. 3; Rev. xxii. 2. We have been privileged to visit this treee, and gather some of the fruit. And we will endeavour, God willing, to pluck another cluster, Redemption by Christ; which makes another discovery of the depth of sin, and of our misery on account of it. Sin was such a debt as none but Christ could satisfy; such an offence as nothing but His blood could obtain a pardon for; sin was such a breach and enmity that nothing but His death could make reconciliation for it. And sin was such a bondage and thraldom, that nothing but the blood of Christ could redeem us from its power. redemption, through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace." Eph. i. 7. "But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish, and without spot." 1 Pet. i. 18, 19. 66 "In whom we have any. We will endeavour now to consider the fitness of Christ as our Redeemer. Two things were necessary to make Him a suitable Redeemer. 1st, An ability of power. Yea, it required an Almighty power, to deliver the lawful captives from the power of Satan. That was beyond the power of "Shall the prey be taken from the mighty or the lawful captive delivered ?" Here is a solemn interrogation, "shall it be done ?" or, can it be done ?" The answer is in the affirmative. But, thus saith the Lord, "Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered." How shall it be done?"For I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children; and I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh, and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with new wine; and all flesh shall know that I the Lord, (or I JEHOVAH,) am thy Saviour (or thy Jesus, or Anointed,) and thy Redeemer, (or thy Kinsman,) the mighty one of Jacob." The word mighty here, denotes one who excels or is lifted up, and is applied to God. (Gen. xlix. 24.) Christ, as God, excels all creatures, inasmuch as He is their Creator. Secondly, He must have also an ability to redeem us from the curse of the broken law, and that could not be done without blood. "As for thee also by the blood of thy covenant, I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit, wherein is no water." And these two, we find in Christ, as declared in Isa. xlix. 24, 25, and especially in the 26th verse, His deity is declared in the words, "I am the Lord," as aforesaid, and His humanity, "and thy Redeemer" or Kinsman," and Christ could not be our Kinsman, except He assumed our nature, "made in all points like unto His brethren, sin excepted." See Hebrews ii. 14—17, 66 |