The precious name of Jesus is, thank God, being sounded far and wide, and the truth of the forgiveness of sins, and escape from judgment, through Him, is widely proclaimed; but we need to apprehend better the manner in which God blesses, and the fullness of His grace.
In the parable in Luke 15, the father did not content himself until the son—who had so disgraced his father’s name, but who, now, had owned his sins was clothed in the best robe, and ushered, with ringed hand and well-shod feet, into the house. There that which was reserved for a distinguished guest, was prepared; the fatted calf was killed, and the son was to feast in company with his father: “They began to be merry.”
Just so, our Savior-God is not content with merely saving us from destruction, nor even with giving us a place in heaven, but brings us to the ocean of His love, where we may drink again of the riches of His grace and glory.
There we may contemplate the place of blessing into which we are brought “in Christ Jesus.” “He hath made Him to be sin for us, He who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Cor. 5:2121For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)).
Shall we ever fathom the depths to which Christ went, when He was made sin? No, never, throughout eternity! Never shall we rightly appreciate the sufferings of Calvary. But what joy to us to be able to look upon “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world;” and to know that He, having been made sin, having borne all the judgment at the hands of a holy, sin-hating God, is now glorified; and that through His work upon the tree, this poor groaning world, now so leavened and corrupted by sin, will be brought into richest blessing.
All that had to be met, has been met. The basis has been laid, on the ground of which the whole earth, when cleansed from all evil, shall ring with praise to God. Then the thorn shall give place to the myrtle, and the desert blossom as a rose.
Yes, the work is finished. Every question has been once and forever settled, and we who believe are brought into present blessing.
Not only are we cleared from all the judgment which we deserved, but we are brought into all the nearness and privilege in which the Lord Jesus Himself stands; with Him, joying in, and rejoicing before, His Father and His God.
May these wonderful truths have a deeper place in all our hearts. Then, indeed, will the Lord get truer praise, and richer worship will flow forth from us to our Father and our God.