From the first moment that we are awakened by the Spirit of God, Christ is presented to us as our object. Thus when the jailor, wrought upon by the Holy Ghost through the instrumentality of what he may have heard, and the supernatural occurrences of that eventful night, came and fell down before Paul and Silas, and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." (Acts 16:29-3129Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:29‑31).) This is in accordance with the Lord's own words: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:14, 1514And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:14‑15). The reason is evident. When the sinner is made to feel his guilt, God appears to his soul in the character of a judge—of a holy God, whose claims he has failed to meet, and under whose righteous judgment he has consequently fallen. His one need, therefore, is to find a way of escape, both from his state and the condemnation under which he is groaning; and since this is found alone in Christ, Christ is the first Object to which his eyes are directed. So Paul brings out this truth most fully in the epistle to the Romans. He says, "All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Rom. 3:23-2623For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. (Romans 3:23‑26). Having thus Christ in all the efficacy of His atoning work presented to him, and believing, receiving God's testimony concerning Him—concerning what He is and what He has done—the sinner (now a believer) is justified, cleared from all guilt—from everything that was against him—and he has "peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:11Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: (Romans 5:1)).
He has much more besides; but now we only call attention to the fact that, looking believingly to the Object held out before his soul in the time of his need, he is saved. Has he then done with Christ? Far be the thought! For it will be found, on examination of the Scriptures, that the Object to which his eye was directed as a guilty sinner, is the Object which is still kept before him after that, by the grace of God, he has been saved. Yea, the Object to which the sinner turns to find relief from the heavy burden of his sins, is that which is to fill his gaze in all his pathway as a saint, and, indeed, throughout eternity.
We propose then to collect a few examples of this-to show that the eye of the believer is ever to be fixed on Christ—that He is held out to us as the one Object that is to fill our gaze and absorb our souls.
1) As He is the Object of faith for salvation to the sinner, so is He the Object for the life of faith to the saint. The Apostle Paul thus writes: "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Gal. 2:2020I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20). That is-touching only on the clause which we have emphasized—the life which the Apostle lived down here had the Son of God as the Object of its faith. Corresponding with this are the words of the Lord Himself. When the disciples were plunged into great sorrow at the prospect of His speedy separation from them, He said, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me." John 14:11Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. (John 14:1). He thus teaches that though He was soon to be absent from them, no longer to be seen by their natural eyes, they were to believe in Him, have Himself as the Object of their faith, even as they already believed in God; and thereon He revealed to them the character of the place to which He was about to go. It was the Father's house, a house of many mansions, in which He would prepare a place for them, in anticipation of the time when He should return for them. Meanwhile, they were to be occupied with Him, have Him as their Object; and how sweet and blessed a thing to raise our eyes to—nay, to have them always upon—Christ as occupied with and for us in the Father's house! The clouds may be very dark round about our earthly path, and trials may abound, but nothing can obscure Him—Him in all the tenderness of His love, in all that He is for us before God-from the gaze of our faith; and light, and joy, and peace always stream from His presence.
But there is more than this. It is not only that He is the Object of our faith, but our faith is sustained-we live by Him as our Object. Christ as our Object is the life of our faith. Thus He said, "As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by [because of] the Father; so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by [because of] Me." John 6:5757As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. (John 6:57). Now eating Christ is but the constant appropriation of Him in all that He is by the exercise of faith; and it expresses, therefore, our entire dependence upon Him as the source of life; that just as food sustains and nourishes our bodies, so Christ sustains and nourishes our souls. Thus He is the Object, and we live by the exercise of faith, according to that word in the Hebrews, "Now the just shall live by faith" (chap. 10:38). With Him is the fountain of life, and faith is the channel which connects us with the fountain, and through which, in the power of the Spirit, the life flows. We therefore live both by faith in, and by dependence upon, Christ.
2) Christ is also our Object in service; nay, the whole of our life has Him as its end and aim. The Apostle Paul thus says, "The love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: and that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for the m, and rose again." 2 Cor. 5:14, 1514For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: 15And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. (2 Corinthians 5:14‑15). Still more comprehensive (though of the same character) is his language in another epistle: "To me to live is Christ" (Phil. 1:2121For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:21)). At this time he was in prison; and yet he was so utterly oblivious of self, that he was able to cherish the earnest expectation and hope, that in nothing he should be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also, Christ should be magnified in his body, whether it were by life or death; and he gives us the ground of this confidence, "To me to live is Christ." That was the one Object of his life; in all his manifold activities, in all that he desired, and in all that he did, everything had respect to Christ. He was thus perhaps the closest approximation to the example of our blessed Lord that has ever been seen on earth. For Christ never sought to please Himself, but He always did those things that pleased the Father; He found His meat in doing His Father's will and finishing His work (John 4:34; 6:30; 8:2934Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. (John 4:34)
30They said therefore unto him, What sign showest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work? (John 6:30)
29And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him. (John 8:29)). The truth is strikingly set forth by the Apostle in connection with the death of Christ. "Be ye... followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor." Eph. 5:1, 21Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; 2And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savor. (Ephesians 5:1‑2). True that He loved the Church and gave Himself for it, but it was God who was the object before His soul, His glory which He sought, and which was the governing motive of His death; for He became obedient-obedient surely to God—obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
So also it should be with us -Christ alone the Object of our lives, of our thoughts, feelings, designs, occupations, activities. We are His, for He has redeemed us with His own precious blood; and He therefore claims us for His own- that we should live not to ourselves, but to Him who has died for us and risen again. What a searching, practical test does this supply! Do I purpose this or that? Is it then for Christ? Do I desire anything? Is it for Christ? Am I busy in service? Is it for Christ? Can I look round my dwelling and say of all that I behold, It is for Christ? Thus, "for Christ" supplies us with a principle that can be applied to the whole of our daily lives—a principle that s he u Id reign supreme, governing us in all our works and ways-a principle which makes nothing of self—of man—but which makes everything of Christ.
3) Again, Christ is brought before us as an object to be possessed. This aspect is unfolded to us in Philippians 3. In the beginning of the chapter the Apostle gives a list of the advantages which he had as a Jew—as a man in the flesh-and which formed his ground of confidence as such.
"If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless." He had thus everything which could exalt a natural man in his own eyes before God. Morally, religiously, and ecclesiastically, he lacked nothing, according to man's judgment. Nay,
more; writing under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, he is able to say that "touching the righteousness which is in the law" he was "blameless." Like the young man who asked of the Lord Jesus, "What good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?" and, when referred to the commandments, replied, "All
these things have I kept from my youth up"-so Saul-and he might have added with the young man, "What lack I yet?" (Matt. 19:16-2016And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19Honor thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 20The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? (Matthew 19:16‑20)). But when Saul, in his zeal of persecuting the Church, was on his way to Damascus, the Lord in glory met him-that same Jesus whom Saul had with his nation rejected and cast out, but now risen from the dead and glorified, appeared to him; and thereon Saul discovered the true value of his precious things in the light of the glory which shone round him—saw their utter worthlessness, and hence by grace was able to say, "What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for [because of] the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for [because of] whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ." Phil. 3:7, 87But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, (Philippians 3:7‑8). Now he had discovered the fine gold, and by the side of it he could see that what he had been priding himself upon was but wretched tinsel; and, estimating it at its proper value, he now desired only to win Christ-that is, to have Christ as his gain. Everything which had been so precious in his eyes disappeared, and Christ only remained; but it was Christ only that he now desired to possess, not only as his ground of confidence before God, but also as his everlasting possession. For Christ had won his heart, and the heart can never rest until it has gained the object of its affections.
But inasmuch as it was a Christ in glory whom he had thus seen and desired, it was only in the glory that He could be possessed. Hence the whole future course of the Apostle was governed by this fact. With heart and eyes fixed upon his Object, he says, "I follow after, if that I may apprehend" (if I may get possession of that for which also I have been taken possession) "of Christ Jesus." And in the energy of his soul—being all aglow with fervent desire-he adds: "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling [the calling on high] of God in Christ Jesus." This was the prize on which his heart was now set; and, like a racer, he bent his rapid steps toward the goal, and the varied objects of the surrounding scene passed by him unheeded, or were seen but dimly as he hastened onward; for his eyes were on a glorified Christ, and he could see naught else for the glory of that light. This was the Object that possessed his heart, controlled and formed his life below, and drew him unweariedly forward in the race he ran, while he waited for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who would change the vile body of His servant, that it might be fashioned like unto the body of His glory; and then Paul would be both like, and with, his Object for evermore.
Such also is the object set before every believer. Well might we examine ourselves by the light of this scripture -by the light of the energy, the ardent desire, the concentrated affection of the Apostle. Does Christ, let us each ask ourselves in the presence of God, so possess our hearts that we desire no other object? Are we satisfied to lose everything but Himself? Do we, like Paul, count all that the natural man esteems but loss on account of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord? The prayer is often heard and, it may be, presented by ourselves, that our hearts may be set upon Christ. He Himself said, "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matt. 6:2121For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matthew 6:21). If our hearts, therefore, are not upon and occupied with Him, it is because He is not sufficiently our treasure. If then we would have our hearts detached from this scene and its objects, we must begin with Christ; we must trace out His manifold perfections, His varied beauties, His ineffable grace and unchanging love; and then our hearts will be drawn out toward Him, and, inflamed with holy desire after Him, He will absorb our affections, and attract us wholly to Himself. We often sing- "Jesus, Thou art enough
The mind and heart to fill," and nothing can be truer; but the question for us to answer, when the words are upon our lips, is, Do we know this practically? Can we take the ground of wanting nothing outside of Christ? If we were bereft of everything else, should we be able to say, We are satisfied with Christ? These are searching questions, but questions that need to be answered. For it is only when we are satisfied with Christ, that no other object will divert our gaze; and then we shall long for the moment when, like Him, we shall see Him as He is, and be with Him forever.
"Forever to behold Him shine!
For evermore to call Him mine!
And see Him still before me;
Forever on His face to gaze,
And meet the full assembled rays,
While all His beauty He displays
To all the saints in glory!"