Featured Articles
WHAT CHRIST HAS DONE FOR MY SOUL
Text: "Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what He hath done for my soul." -Psalm 66:16-
If you possess the kind of fear of God that makes you want to run from His presence like the Egyptians of old, this word from the Holy Scriptures will not interest you. But if on the other hand, you desire to fear the Lord as your Heavenly Father, "Come and hear what He hath done for my soul."
In the first place, He ransomed me. "Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto but to minister and to give His life a Ransom for many."--(Matthew 20:28). Since a Ransom is the price paid to buy back that which is either forfeited or seized, so the price paid is called a "Redemption." As a son of Adam, I have inherited his sinful desires and his characteristic rebellion to the will of God; and when I acquired the knowledge of right, Sin seized me and led me away in chains. I forfeited the everlasting joy of my soul in Heaven. "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law."--(Galatians 4:4). He came to redeem me who was under the sentence of Judgment of a righteous and holy God.
In the second place, He propitiated the wrath of God for me. "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."--(I John 4:10). Propitiation is an appeasement or conciliation.
There used to be a story told of a young Dutch boy, who passed the village dike, which kept back the North Sea from flooding his village. Suddenly, he spied a small hole in the dike. Knowing in but a very short time the hole would be of such a size the dike would collapse and would result in tremendous loss of life, he acted the only way he knew: he stuck his finger in the wall. When the wrath of God was about to break in upon my soul, Christ shed His blood and thus held back the wrath of God the Father. His blood propitiated or appeased the wrath of God the Father. "Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him."--(Romans 5:9).
In the third place, He reconciled me to the Heavenly Father. Reconciliation can well be understood by the words of the hymn-writer,
"Opened is the gate of Heaven;
Peace is made ’twixt man and God."
-John Bakewell-
"For it pleased the Father that in Him should all the fullness dwell; and having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in Heaven."--(Colossians 1:19,20). When I received Christ as my Saviour, God the Father spoke peace to me.
In the fourth place, He substituted Himself in my place of condemnation. "Who His own Self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness; by Whose stripes ye were healed."--(I Peter 2:24). Christ suffered for my sins. The debt is paid in full. I need not eternally suffer for them.
In the fifth place, He satisfied both the law of God (for my sins are punished), and the Justice of God (for Christ was judged bearing my sins). Now the Father is satisfied with me, for "As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name."--(John 1:12). I now stand justified in His sight, but Justified through the righteousness of Christ, for He knew no sin.
Now, how could I have anything but love and devotion for Him Who has done so much for my soul?
"Living, He love me;
Dying, He saved me;
Buried, He carried my sins far away;
Rising, He justified freely forever;
One day He’s coming, O Glorious Day!"
If you do not have as much love for Him, it may be you have not known just how much He has done for you. What has Christ done for me that He has not done for you?
And will you let another moment go by without receiving Him as your Saviour from sin? Neglect Him no longer. "Awake thou that sleepest and Arise from the Dead, and Christ shall give thee light."--(Ephesians 5:14)
"WHO IS A PARDONING GOD LIKE THEE?"
Text: "The Lord is...plenteous in mercy."--(Psalm 103:8).
1. Forgiveness is God’s passing by sin, wiping off the score, and giving us a discharge.
"Who is s God like unto Thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger for ever, because He delighteth in mercy."--(Micah 7:18).
2. Forgiveness is God’s taking away our iniquity.
"And why dost Thou not pardon my transgression, and take away mine iniquity?"--(Job 7:21). The Hebrew word translated "take away" means to "lift off" as when a man carrying a heavy burden is relieved by another who comes and lifts it off.
3. Forgiveness is God’s covering our sin.
"Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of Thy people, Thou hast covered all their sin."--(Psalm 85:2). As a dead man is covered with a sheet, so our sins being reckoned dead are covered.
4. Forgiveness is God’s blotting out our sins.
"I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins."--(Isaiah 43:25). The Hebrew text implies the marking "PAID" beside the account of a debtor whose debt has been paid by another.
5. Forgiveness is God’s casting our sins out of sight and remembering them no more.
"Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea."--(Micah 7:19).
"Their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." –(Hebrews 8:12).
-Thomas Watson-