Tim believer in our Lord Jesus Christ has passed from death unto life. He is spoken of in Scripture as “not in the flesh,” “not of the world,” “not under law,” but “washed from sins,” and “in Christ Jesus”— accepted in Christ, blessed in Christ, preserved in Christ, and complete in Christ. He is therefore created in Christ Jesus, and stands before God in all the acceptableness of Christ Himself. He was dead in sins, he is now alive unto God. He was guilty before God, but he now has “remission of sins.” He was afar off, he is now made nigh. He was a child of wrath, he is now a child of God. He was an enemy to God, he is now reconciled to God by the death of His Son. Hence he is now regarded by God in an entirely different position and relationship, and is therefore spoken of as justified from all things, sanctified in Christ Jesus, an heir of God, a joint-heir with Christ, and sealed with the Holy Spirit of God as the earnest of the inheritance. Could anything more be revealed to show us our perfect security in Christ? What worship and thanksgiving flow from our hearts, when we, by faith, enter upon this new character of blessing which the grace of God has given us in Christ Jesus! What solid ground of confidence! No marvel that the apostle should say, “Therefore we are always confident.” It is not what I feel which is the ground of my security, but what God has wrought for me, and what He has made me in Christ Jesus and through His precious blood. As long, therefore, as I am enjoying God’s thoughts of His own love and grace to me in Christ Jesus, I can only praise and give thanks. But if I forget this and descend from His truth, His rich mercy and goodness to me in the death, resurrection, and ascension of His own Son, and become occupied with myself, I get off the true ground of confidence and blessing. Weakness, unhappiness, and it may be, doubts and fears, will then easily set in. But consciously abiding in the Lord Jesus Christ, as risen with Him, and complete in Him who is our righteousness and life, we go on worshipping the Father, rejoicing in Christ Jesus, and having no confidence in the flesh. Most assuredly the finished work of Christ on the cross is the foundation of all our blessings, for without the shedding of blood there could be no remission of sins, and, unless our old man had been crucified with Christ, we should still be in the flesh; but, blessed be God, we have died with Christ, we are risen with Christ, we have eternal life in Him, “who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification and redemption.”
Our hearts being thus happy in the Lord, we peacefully enjoy His truth, become drawn into obedience to His word, and delight in His ways. We may have to judge ourselves on account of failure, but we know that we are always presented before the eye of God in the acceptableness of Him, who always appears before the face of God for us. Our aim is not to sin, but if we do sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
If ever it could come to pass
That sheep of Christ might fall away,
My foolish, fickle soul, alas!
Would fall a thousand times a day.
Were not Thy love as firm as free
Thou soon wouldst take it, Lord, from me.
I on Thy faithfulness depend,
At least I to depend desire;
That Thou wilt keep me to the end,
Be with me in temptation’s fire:
Wilt for me work, and in me too,
Wilt guide me right, and bring me through.
No other hopes have I beside,
If these should falter I must fall;
I look to Thee to be supplied
With life and strength, and heaven, and all.
Rich folks may glory in their store,
But Jesus will relieve the poor.