WE who have received Christ and have been brought to God by Him have good news to pass on to others, news of the great salvation which God has provided for men in Christ.
We can speak of this salvation not merely as a “plan of salvation” or a part of a creed, but as those who, having for ourselves tasted its joy and proved its worth, can commend it to others. We are like the patients of a great and wise physician who, for two reasons, can recommend his treatment: firstly, because his greatness and wisdom are such as to command confidence; secondly, because of having personally benefited by his skill.
It was not always so with us. There was a time when our hearts were in darkness, not knowing God, when we were strangers to His grace and to the blessings of His kingdom. But now, having the knowledge of Him and of these precious things, we think of others, of the many who still are as we once were.
To such I would like to address a few words. God has brought in for men, in Christ, things that are very real and great and blessed.
If we know and consider the greatness of the Person who has come out from God to us, One who is Himself God, but who has become man, it is not difficult to see that the things that God has introduced in Him for men must necessarily be very great and very blessed things.
A great person was required as mediator to bring in the law. Moses was great enough for that; but great as the law was, the things which God has now introduced in Christ are as much, greater than the law and all connected with it as Christ, God’s Son, is greater than Moses.
I will name some of these things, and, in passing, may say that, as they are for all men, they are for the person who reads this paper.
To commence with, repentance, as a privilege, is preached in Christ’s name. God, in favor, calls upon all to repent as a privilege, because it has in view their receiving the forgiveness of sills (Luke 24:46, 47; Acts 17:30, 31). Repentance, at the same time, is a moral obligation toward God and a moral necessity for man as a sinner.
Free, full, and present Forgiveness of Sins has also been brought in, for men, in Christ (see Luke 7:36-50; Acts 13:37-9).
God’s kingdom, too, has come in, and is now established in the Lord Jesus Christ. Though not yet a visible and universal kingdom, such as it will be when He comes in His power and glory, it nevertheless exists as a present reality, so that men—all who will—may enter into it by coming by faith under the authority of Jesus as their Lord, and may find in it salvation, both present and eternal.
Then there are the blessings of God’s kingdom, such as a free and present justification before God; peace with God; the gift of the Holy Spirit; righteousness in Christ; salvation; eternal life; and the hope of God’s glory.
If you are sufficiently interested in these things to read the Holy Scriptures, you will find (in such as Rom. 5) that these great blessings are now available for all men “through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Such is the blessed character of the present time in God’s ways with men; yet we think of many who, were they to put to themselves the question, “Have I repented toward God?” and were to reply truthfully, would have to answer, “No, I have not.”
“Have I really in my heart (see Rom. 10:8-10) believed on and bowed to Jesus as my Lord?” No.
“Have I entered God’s kingdom?” No.
“Are my sins forgiven?” No.
“Am I justified?” No.
“Am I saved?” No.
“Have I entered into peace with God?” No. “Can I rejoice in hope of the coming day of His glory?” No.
Now in view of the wonderful and blessed facts and realities of the gospel—of God’s grace having thus come into the world, in His Son, bringing salvation and life for all, and within the reach of all, to men’s doors, so to speak, that all might be saved, that none may perish—how serious a matter it is for any person to have only a negative a—NO—to say to God regarding His glad tidings.
If such is your state, my reader, or if you have only vague and uncertain hopes as to these things, we can say to you, and can press upon you, that God’s will for you is that you should be saved (see 1 Tim. 2:3, 4). But you will not always have the opportunity you now have, for you are going and judgment is coming.
Let not the devil keep you from what God has for you in Christ. This warning is not unnecessary; for as in the parable of the great supper, in Luke 14, there were those who were so engrossed with a “yoke of oxen,” “a piece of land,” and “a wife,” as to neglect, or despise—and thus to miss—the great supper, so, alas! is it as a present-day reality; many are content, and Satan helps them, to be so engrossed with the pleasures and cares of this life, and the passing events and trifles of this world, that the voice of God speaking in grace in the gospel falls on deaf ears. Beware, then, for Satan and his efforts to hinder your being saved are very real.
We would warn you also not to allow your fellow-men, by their favor or enmity, nor the matter of gain nor loss in this world, to influence you in these matters of such present and eternal importance.
The Lord Himself warns men of a time when the door of God’s grace in the gospel, and of man’s opportunity, will be closed. That moment may now not be far distant. He also speaks of those who, with the earnestness of despair, will desire and seek to enter when too late (see Luke 13:34).
Therefore do not trifle with God’s glad tidings, do not delay in turning to Him. An assured welcome awaits every repentant sinner (see Luke 15:11). Allow nothing to stand in the way of your entering God’s kingdom. Abundance of grace and present salvation await all who enter it, with the joyful prospect of full salvation and of God’s glory at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
E. J. W.