May We Cherish Jesus' Imputed Righteousness: It Is the Essence of Divine Grace
We ought to study Jesus' sufficient merit. It is how we are right with God. Nothing can take it away from us. We stand complete in Jesus' divine righteousness imputed to us by faith alone. A theologian once said,
In Christ we
have a love that can never be fathomed; a life that can never die; a
righteousness that can never be tarnished; a peace that can never be
understood; a rest that can never be disturbed; a joy that can never be
diminished; a hope that can never be disappointed; a glory that can never be
clouded; a light that can never be darkened; a happiness that can never be
interrupted; a strength that can never be enfeebled; a purity that can never be
defiled; a beauty that can never be marred; a wisdom that can never be baffled;
and resources that can never be exhausted
Again John MacArthur wrote,
As
Christians, we find complete sufficiency in Christ and His provisions for our
needs. There’s no such thing as an incomplete or deficient Christian. Our
Savior’s divine power has granted to us everything
pertaining to life and godliness. Human wisdom offers nothing to augment that.
Every Christian receives all he and she needs at the moment of salvation. Each
one must grow and mature, but no necessary resource is missing. There’s no need
to search for something more.
Alexander MacLaren wrote,
In Christ, as
a great storehouse, lie all the riches of spiritual wisdom, the massive ingots
of solid gold which when coined into creeds and doctrines are the wealth of the
Church. All which we can know concerning God and man, concerning sin and
righteousness and duty, concerning another life, is in Him Who
is the home and deep mine where truth is stored... The central fact of the
universe and the perfect encyclopedia of all moral and spiritual truth is in Christ, the Incarnate Word, the Lamb slain, the
ascended King.
Thomas Brooks author of The
Golden Key to Open Hidden Treasures wrote,
O sirs! There
is in a crucified Jesus – something proportionate to all the straits, needs,
necessities, and desires of His poor people. He is bread to nourish them, a
garment to cover and adorn them, a physician to heal them, a counselor to
advise them, a captain to defend them, a prince to rule them, a prophet to
teach them, a priest to make atonement for them; a husband to protect them, a
father to provide for them, a brother to relieve them, a foundation to support
them, a head to guide them, a treasure to enrich them, a sun to enlighten them,
and a fountain to cleanse them! What more can any Christian desire – to satisfy
him and save him; and to make him holy and happy – in time and eternity?
C.H. Spurgeon wrote,
Do not tell
me that there is no rest for us till we get to heaven. We who have believed in Jesus enter into rest
even now. Why should we not do so? Our salvation is complete. The robe of righteousness in which we are
clad is finished. The atonement for our
sins is fully made. We are reconciled to
God, beloved of the Father, preserved by His grace, and supplied by His
providence with all that we need. We
carry all our burdens to Him and leave them at His feet. We spend our lives in His service, and we
find His ways to be ways of pleasantness, and His paths to be paths of peace. Oh, yes, we have found rest unto our
souls! I recollect the first day that I
ever rested in Christ, and I did rest that day.
And so will all of you who trust in Jesus as I trusted in him.
